``Streets of Fire'' ``Rock'n'Roll Fable'' creates timeless music that continues to shine

Who is Dan Hartman, who was also the standard-bearer of disco music?

In addition to the two songs by Jim Steinman, there are other notable songs on the soundtrack. Particularly memorable are the songs sung by Sorrels in the movie. The group who rescued Eren hijacks a bus to escape from their pursuers. On the bus was a black vocal group called the Sorrels. "Countdown to Love", which they sing in an a cappella chorus to soothe Ellen's heart, is a famous scene in this movie that is like a breath of freshener, but then they sing "I Can Dream about You" on stage. "I Dream of You" is also a song that became famous from this album, along with Steinman's two songs.

"I Can Dream about You)" MV

These Sorrels songs are also not sung by the actors who played them, but by a singer named Winston Ford. Ford's name appears in the end credits, but the soundtrack album uses a different artist's voice... which makes things a little more complicated. Greg Phillinganes sings "Countdown to Love" on the soundtrack. Famous as a keyboard player, he has worked with such great talents as Stevie Wonder and Michael Jackson.

"I Dream of You" is sung on the soundtrack by composer Dan Hartman. Although his name is not well known in Japan, Dan Hartman is a singer-songwriter who took the disco music world by storm in the late 1970s, producing songs such as ``Rewrite My Fire'' and ``Instant Replay.'' He released hit songs. The latter song was covered by Shonen-tai in Japan at the time, and was sung and danced on stage and on TV (by the way, Shonen-tai also covered "Nowhere Fast").

"Streets of Fire" © 1984 Universal Studios. All Rights Reserved.

"I Dream of You" was Hartman's biggest hit, and many people who heard the Streets of Fire soundtrack assumed he was black. Hartman was the standard bearer of "Blue Eyed Soul" (a genre of music in which white people adopted R&B and soul, which were originally black music). His untimely death at the age of 44 is regretted, but this rock'n'roll allegory, Streets of Fire, made both Dan Hartman's songs and Jim Steinman's songs a myth. I believe that it has surpassed the legend = FABLE and has become a legend = LEGEND as The Truth that will be passed down forever.

Text: Hiroaki Saito

Became freelance in 1997, contributing movie reviews and interview articles to various media such as movie magazines, theater pamphlets, and movie sites. The column is constantly updated on Yahoo! News. Star Channel's program "GO! Theater" introduces the latest released works.

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Streets of Fire

July 21st (Sat) Cinemart Shinjuku and other Dynamite Roadshows! Released nationwide thereafter

© 1984 Universal Studios. All Rights Reserved.

*Information as of July 2018 article publication.