Anybody who owns the first two Shrek soundtracks knows that ogres inspire not only charming films but great music--last time out, Pete Yorn, Counting Crows, and Joseph Arthur left monster-sized impressions, and the original movie let loose a masterful rendition of "Hallelujah" by a still-under-the-radar Rufus Wainwright. This go-round the proceedings are playful but backward-looking: Fergie's freewheeling take on the Heart standby "Barracuda" leavens Harry Chapin's "Cat's in the Cradle," and Wolfmother's guitar-heavy "Joker and the Thief" stands up straighter than classic rock fans might like alongside Led Zeppelin's classic "Immigrant Song." Eels returns, this time with two doleful but sweet selections, and Eddie Murphy and Antonio Banderas again cut up (but still manage to carry off) a classic: Here, Sly & the Family Stone's "Thank You (Falletin Me Be Mice Elf Again)" gives up the funk and the fun. The court will be split on a certain actor's absence from the disc; King Arthur, played by Justin Timberlake, might have done a mean cover of Moody Blues' "Nights in White Satin." But we'll never know. --Tammy La Gorce
