No matter how hard they try--and they put plenty into the effort--there's really no way the synthetic drum sounds and effects-laden guitars of Pat Benatar's "Love Is a Battlefield" can be bent into a hip-hop track, even in the days of Puff Daddy. The same can be said for even the best tracks on the Small Soldiers soundtrack: Bone Thugs-n-Harmony are silky smooth (as always) and make a fine single out of "War," but it doesn't add anything or update Edwin Starr's classic take. Similarly, Wyclef, Pras, and Free add nothing to "Another One Bites the Dust"; and who really needs dance-oriented remixes of Billy Squier's "The Stroke," Gary Glitter's "Rock and Roll (Part 2)" or (gulp) Rush's "Tom Sawyer"? Only the Pretenders' "My City Was Gone" survives the addition of some extra beats and rapping by Kool Keith in the breaks. The highlight of the album, it's--in the grand scheme of things--completely unnecessary and plenty of fun. --Randy Silver
1. War [Remix] - Bone Thugs-N-Harmony, Flea, Flesh & Bone, Tom Morello, Henry Rollins
2. Another One Bites the Dust [Wyclef Jean Remix] - John Deacon, Wyclef Jean, Pras, Queen
3. Stroke [Dallas Austin Remix] - Dallas Austin, Billy Squier
4. Love Is a Battlefield [KayGee Remix] - Pat Benatar, Kay Gee, Queen Latifah
5. Rock & Roll, Pt. 2 [Dutch Remix] - Gary Glitter
6. Love Removal Machine [Mickey Petralia Remix] - The Cult
7. My City Was Gone - Butcher Bros., Kool Keith, The Pretenders
8. Surrender [Rich Costey Remix] - Cheap Trick, Rich Costey
9. Tom Sawyer [DJ Z-Trip Remix] - DJ Z-Trip, Rush
10. War - Edwin Starr
