MTV's Jersey Shore soundtrack: What does carefully maintained shallowness sound like? 

Branded as “the perfect summer playlist,” by no less an authority than MTV itself, MTV’s Jersey Shore soundtrack is due July 20 in both regular and “deluxe” versions. The latter will come with a special bonus second CD of music “inspired” by the show, not unlike the way Wagner drew upon Norse mythology for Das Rheingold. Artists tasked with evoking the Jersey Shore milieu through the careful arrangement of melody and meter include Lil Jon, LMFAO, Taio Cruz, and Akon; the lead-off single—a “club-ready” collaboration between Enrique Iglesias and Pitbull called “I Like It”—is already available for a sneak preview at MTV.com. It’s about dancing; apparently, they like it.