In Brief

* 1/2 Various Artists, “Dangerous Minds,” soundtrack, MCA. Without the timeless skills of Stevie Wonder and the Jackson 5, this soundtrack collection would have few memorable moments. Wonder’s haunting “Pastime Paradise”--sampled by Coolio on the album’s first track--and Rappin’ 4-Tay’s sampling of “I Want You Back” are the only musical standouts, aside from Big Mike’s novel, meaty beaty “Havin Thangs.” The rest of the album is riddled with mediocre fillers by such artists as Tre Black, 24-K and Immature.

Albums are rated on a scale of one star (poor), two stars (fair), three stars (good) and four stars (e x cellent).