The end of an era for the Marvel Cinematic Universe is almost upon us. Nearly a decade after the Guardians of the Galaxy were introduced to the superhero franchise and catapulted to pop culture icons, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 will bid farewell to Peter Quill and his cohorts, at least as a fully-formed unit. As with the previous two Guardians of the Galaxy movies, the threequel will deliver some stellar tunes in the form of Awesome Mix Volume 3. Filmmaker James Gunn has now shared the songs on this new soundtrack, and there are quite a few ‘80s and ‘90s classics included.
Although James Gunn is keeping busy these days co-running DC Studios with Peter Safran, he’s also diligently promoting Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 in these final weeks ahead of its release. As such, the writer/director took to social media to share which songs will make up the Awesome Mix Volume 3 lineup, and you can also listen to them grouped together now on Spotify:
- Creep (acoustic version) (Radiohead)
- Crazy On You (Heart)
- Since You Been Gone (Rainbow)
- In The Meantime (Spacehog)
- Reasons (Earth, Wind & Fire)
- Do You Realize?? (The Flaming Lips)
- We Care A Lot (Faith No More)
- Koinu No Carnival (From “Minute Waltz”)(EHAMIC)
- I’m Always Chasing Rainbows (Alice Cooper)
- San Francisco (The Mowgli’s)
- Poor Girl (X)
- This Is The Day (The The)
- No Sleep Till Brooklyn (Beastie Boys)
- Dog Days Are Over (Florence + The Machine)
- Badlands (Bruce Springsteen)
- I Will Dare (The Replacements)
- Come And Get Your Love (Redbone)
On the ‘90s front, we have “Creep” and “In The Meantime” holding down the fort, and ’80s fans are even luckier with selections like “San Francisco” and “I Will Dare.” Even the 2000s crowd have some stuff to enjoy with “Do You Realize??” and “Dog Days Are Over,” and like with the previous Awesome Mixes, there will be plenty of ‘70s songs to enjoy. Speaking of which, I’d be remiss if I didn’t point out “Come And Get Your Love,” one of the most prominent songs in the first Guardians of the Galaxy movie. Knowing James Gunn, a callback song like that will likely play during an especially integral moment in the upcoming Marvel movie, which means moviegoers should get ready for an outpouring of the feels at that time.
While the first two Awesome Mixes were comprised of songs from mixtapes that Peter Quill’s mother made for him, Awesome Mix Volume 3 hails from Peter’s Zune, which Kraglin gave to him at the end of of Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2. The Zune may have crashed and burned on Earth, but Peter was astounded by its ability to hold a whopping 300 songs, 17 of which we’ll hear in Vol. 3. And while not confirmed, I’d like to think that Zune also held the Christmas songs heard in last year’s The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special, which can be streamed with a Disney+ subscription.
Along with the starring lineup of protagonists all assembled again for one final ride together (which now also includes Cosmo the Spacedog, voiced by Maria Baklova), Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 also includes new players like Will Poulter’s Adam Warlock and Chukwudi Iwuji’s The High Evolutionary. The threequel will see the team embarking on a dangerous mission after something from Rocket’s past disrupts their life on Knowhere. Vol. 3 is the MCU’s second Phase 5 release, with Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania having kicked things off in February.
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 opens in theaters on May 5, so head to Disney+ to make sure you’re caught up on the team’s MCU adventures, as well as watch all the other Marvel movies in order.
