Sparkle: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack

Background

The songs on the soundtrack are performed by the actors in the film, including Jordin Sparks, Whitney Houston, Cee Lo Green, Carmen Ejogo, Tika Sumpter, and others. Sparkle features songs from the original film written by soul musician Curtis Mayfield as well as new compositions by R&B artist R. Kelly and others. The soundtrack includes new songs not present in the 1976 version of Sparkle: "Celebrate", "His Eye is On the Sparrow", among others. "Celebrate" was sent to radio the week of May 21, 2012 as the first official from the Sparkle soundtrack. The song premiered on On Air with Ryan Seacrest on May 21. and was made available for digital download on iTunes on June 5. Houston's other track, "His Eye is On the Sparrow", debuted only one day after the premiere of "Celebrate".

Music and themes

Sparkle: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack takes on matters of the celebration, heartache, heartbreak and seduction with a mixture of ballads, mid- and up-tempos.

Release

The Sparkle: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack was released on July 31, 2012; though announced with 13 tracks, it was released with only 11 tracks. Five days before the soundtrack's official release the entire soundtrack was made available to stream exclusively through Sparks' Official store and Essence.com. Jordin Sparks, who worked closely with Houston throughout the making of Sparkle, finds the release of the soundtrack to be "bittersweet." Sparks states, "I worked with my idol and that was a dream come true. I used to watch the Cinderella adaptation with her and Brandy every day after school. But she should really be here promoting it with me and [it's] really hard for me to be doing it alone."

Critical response

Allmusic writer Andy Kellman gave it three and a half out of five stars and called the soundtrack "an enjoyable if muddled affair" and commended the four songs covered on the new soundtrack stating "the 2012 soundtrack features faithful and decent covers of four songs from the original. When it comes to "Something He Can Feel," it would be an understatement to say that the deck is stacked against Sparks and her vocal partners, Carmen Ejogo and Tika Sumpter." Entertainment Weekly's Melissa Maerz gave Sparkle: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack a B rating and praised Sparks version of "Look Into Your Heart" stating "Sparks bellows Mayfield's power ballad Look Into Your Heart with absolute conviction. Jody Rosen of Rolling Stone gave the soundtrack 3½ of 5 stars, commenting that "Sparkle revives four soul chestnuts and includes three originals written and produced by R. Kelly. It's the second-most-satisfying retro-soul album of the year – after Kelly's Write Me Back"; however, he was ambivalent towards Houston's last two recordings before her passing, saying that, "Celebrate is forgettable disco-pop, and on the gospel standard "His Eye Is on the Sparrow" Houston sings – and croaks – in a voice octaves lower than in her prime. At times the song has a ravaged magnificence, but mostly it's painful."

Chart performance

Singles

"Celebrate" is the first official single from the soundtrack. It is the last song recorded by Whitney Houston before she died on February 11, 2012, a duet featuring her and R&B/pop singer Jordin Sparks. It was officially released on June 5, 2012 for digital download and it was written by R. Kelly who also produced the track. For the week June 16, 2012, "Celebrate" debuted at number 34 on the US Adult R&B Airplay chart, having amassed 45 spins for that week ending. During that same week, "Celebrate" also debuted at number 84 on the US Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart, and has since peaked at number 54. The music video for "Celebrate" was filmed on May 30, 2012. A preview of the video premiered on Entertainment Tonight on June 4, 2012. The music video made its world premiere on BET's 106 & Park on June 27, 2012.

"His Eye Is on the Sparrow" is the second official single from the soundtrack. The song is a gospel hymn performed by Whitney Houston. Houston is seen performing the song in a church scene in the film trailer. The song was officially released on June 8, 2012 for digital download from Amazon and iTunes. The song was originally written in 1905 by lyricist Civilla D. Martin and composer Charles H. Gabriel. The song is most associated with actress-singer Ethel Waters who used the title for her autobiography.

Track listing

See "Performers" section below for credited singers on each track. Credits adapted from Sparkle: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack liner notes.

(*) donates as co-producer

Credits and personnel