Bob Dylan's epic 'Desolation Row' ? 659 words, over 11 minutes long, with a cast that includes the Phantom of the Opera, Cinderella, a fortune telling lady, hunchback of Notre Dame, and Einstein disguised as Robin Hood ? is a seminal work of mad genius.

Only appropriate then that its lyrics play such an integral part in Alan Moore's similarly monumental 'Watchmen'. And equally appropriate that My Chemical Romance's three-minute punk mangling of the song kicks off the pick 'n mix soundtrack to Zac Snyder's three-hour bigscreen mangling of the graphic novel.

But the remainder of this far-reaching collection ? spanning almost the entire 50 years of the story ? remains true to the spirit of Moore's work. Straight from the comic's pages, Dylan features again with 'The Times They Are A Changin'' (used to great effect in the film's opening montage of US history re-imagined) and Hendrix's flaming cover version of 'All Along The Watchtower'.

The spirit of the '60s continues with 'The Sounds of Silence', Simon & Garfunkel's response to the JFK assassination (an event that figures in this twisted tale) and Joplin's ragged 'Me and Bobby McGee' which sets the tone with its lyric "Freedom's just another word for nothing left to lose".

Yet perhaps this eclectic soundtrack shows a bit too much freedom in trying to capture the scope of Moore's creation. Folk doesn't sit too comfortably alongside the '70s disco of 'I'm Your Boogeyman', or Philip Glass's instrumental 'Pruit Igoe & Prophecies', or Wagner's 'Ride Of The Valkyries', or Nat King Cole's nostalgic 'Unforgettable'. But the latter, again referenced in the novel, is perfectly paired with the similarly name-checked 'You're My Thrill' by Billie Holliday and Nina Simone's appropriately civil-rights themed 'Pirate Jenny'.

Cohesive this collection is not. Then again nor is Snyder's film.