[ WEEKEND ]

COURTESY OF DREAMWORKS Henchmen Bernie (voiced by Doug E. Doug, left) and Ernie (voiced by Ziggy Marley) are Rastafarian jellyfish with a stinging sense of humor.

A solid mix

Dreamworks' ‘Shark Tale’

What with the A-list actors doing voice work on this splashy animated feature with a smart urban edge, it follows that the top names in urban pop get a chance to strut their stuff on this equally adept soundtrack.

"Shark Tale: Motion Picture Soundtrack" (DreamWorks) COURTESY OF DREAMWORKS Among the artists featured on the soundtrack are Ziggy Marley, Christina Aguilera, Missy Elliott, Mary J. Blige, JoJo and India.Arie.

All of it's not necessarily their best work but, what the hey, it's all good.

Local listeners will get a kick out of the dance-hall revision of Bob Marley's "Three Little Birds," produced by son Stephen, sung by other son Ziggy and toasted by the ever-popular Sean Paul. (Ziggy and Doug E. Doug play two Rasta jellyfish in the movie.)

The Whale Wash setting gets its own theme in a remake of Rose Royce's 1976 movie soundtrack hit "Car Wash," featuring Christina Aguilera, with rapping and Hollywood-sized production help from Missy Elliott.

That Eastern flava Elliott favors so is heard here, as well as from her compatriot Timbaland, who samples a samisen on the slinky club thumper "Good Foot," with vocal by Justin Timberlake.

Four of my favorite tracks, however, come from two top-notch rap acts, a new teenage act and a disco soul veteran.

COURTESY OF DREAMWORKS Oscar (voiced by Will Smith, left) tries to explain to Angie (voiced by Renée Zellweger) why he is hiding a shark named Lenny (voiced by Jack Black).

One of the last groups I thought would ever show up singing on a family-friendly film would be D12, but the Detroit crew (minus Eminem) especially wrote for "Shark Tale" the song "Lies & Rumors," and it's a loopy and fun affair.

The fishy femme fatale Lola (voiced by Angelina Jolie) gets her own theme song with "Gold Digger," performed by Ludacris with Bobby V. and Lil' Fate. It's a solid piece of work, and is certainly applicable to certain females outside of Lola's species.

"Shark Tale" Rated PG Now playing at Consolidated Kahala, Kapolei, Koko Marina, Koolau, Mililani, Pearlridge and Ward; Signature Dole Cannery, Pearl Highlands and Windward; Wallace Laie

Teenager fan_3 takes a sample of an old Blood, Sweat and Tears song and works a fun, dance pop number around it called "Digits," which is also on her debut album, "Geek Love."

But let's give it up for Cheryl Lynn -- not only is her '78 hit "Got to Be Real" reprised here by Mary J. Blige (with guest rap by Will Smith), but a new song of hers is included on the soundtrack. "Sweet Kind of Life" sounds like it'd be the perfect final song to be played over the credits. It's a smooth bit of disco soul produced by the great team of Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis.

The soundtrack is rounded out with two ballads -- JoJo's "Secret Love" and "Can't Wait" by soul man Avant -- plus India.Arie's serious, self-reflective "Get It Together" from two years ago, Hollywood cabaret act the Pussycat Dolls taking on the old Labelle song "We Went As Far As We Felt Like Going" (with a little bit of the SOS Band's "Take Your Time (Do It Right)" thrown in for good measure), and, as more of an afterthought, some excerpts from Hans Zimmer's orchestral score.

COURTESY OF DREAMWORKS On the cover: "Shark Tale".