A Star Is Born

When Streisand and Kristofferson, two very different '70s pop culture icons, united for the remake of the classic film A STAR IS BORN, few expected how well their distinctive styles would complement each other. Streisand was always the singers' singer, possessed of a golden voice and almost superhuman pitch and tone control, while country-rock rebel Kristofferson was from the John Prine/Bob Dylan school of singing, where emotion and intent mattered far more than proper pitch. Yet Streisand's silvery tones and Kristofferson's gruff, three-packs-a-day drawl never seem at odds on this soundtrack. Admittedly, on tunes like "Watch Closely Now" and "The Woman in the Moon", the characters the singers portray are more exaggerated versions of their real selves, but it all works, especially the instant pop standard "Evergreen".