Pitchfork list : 50 Best Movie Sountracks

The 50 Best Movie Soundtracks of All Time | Pitchfork

They missed two of my absolute favorites.
(Peter Gabriel's work goes ,without saying)

"Trouble Man" and "The Million Dollar Hotel"

Add your choices.

 

Pretty solid list. I, like anyone, have some quibbles. Most notably the Singles Soundtrack being so low on the list. That soundtrack was as seminal to my generation as Nirvana's Nevermind was. I can't think of a single album grunge fans played more than the Singles Soundtrack and it introduced me to Paul Westerberg and for that I am forever grateful.

Still they placed Help! above Hard Day's Night and as Help! is my favorite album by The Beatles I say hats off to that controversial choice. Also Rushmore in the top ten, yes please.

 

I would say The Crow soundtrack is a stronger candidate for Gen X soundtrack and grunge but for a Cameron Crowe involved film, it would either come down to Fast Times at Ridgemont High, Say Anything and Almost Famous

 

Ooooh, great choices - love to see Rushmore get some love!

What could've been added:

Dr. Dre/Snoop Dogg - Deep Cover OST
Various - Where the Buffalo Roam
Various - Fear & Loathing in Las Vegas
Various - Reservoir Dogs
Various - The Big Lebowski
Neil Young - Dead Man
Eddie Vedder - Into the Wild
Mark Knopfler - Local Hero
Bobby Womack - Across 110th Street

 

The Crow soundtrack was cool but it wasn't a grunge soundtrack and came later than Singles. Singles came out right around Nevermind and predated Ten blowing up. For a lot of us it was our first time hearing Smashing Pumpkins, Alice In Chains, and Screaming Trees. Not to mention Chris Cornell's Seasons, so good.

 

I hesitate to give creedence to soundtracks that are mere mix tapes. That constitutes the majority in that list. Those can contain some inspired selections, like American Graffiti or Baby Driver, but that’s not terribly creative...to me at least. The creativity comes from weaving those songs into the movie, of course. The Big Chill did that well, but the soundtrack alone is so very yawn inducing.

With no Local Hero or Blade Runner or Chariots of Fire or Bullet, that list ends up being, well, really lousy.

 

Dang, I thought for sure that another Cameron Crowe film (in addition to Singles) would make this list -- Almost Famous? That is a killer. Say Anything and Jerry Maguire also had very very good soundtracks. Clueless? Yes.

 

I would have included Adventureland—probably my favorite use of '80s music (plus a couple of older ones) in a movie.

But overall a good list...

 

I have 11 of these:
American Graffiti
A Hard Day's Night
Help!
2001
Performance
O Brother Where Art Thou
Purple Rain
Midnight Cowboy
The Harder They Come
The Graduate
Superfly
I would also like to get The Wicker Man. I've never seen the Superfly movie but I love the soundtrack and it even works as a concept album.

 

I am happy to see Repo Man, especially with the high #11 ranking.

Surprised not to see Saturday Night Fever, which could still be the biggest selling soundtrack.

Not that I necessarily expected it in the top 50 but one of my favourite soundtracks is Adventureland - great mix of 80's classics, cult faves (Big Star, Velvets) and Yo La Tengo incidental music.

 

Music from the film Married to the Mob. The best '80s soundtrack that isn't a score.

 

Ah! Oh well...I still like what I said.

So, A Hard Day’s Night isn’t an original score? Side one says, Bah!

 

Good to see Pretty in Pink on there. It's deserving.

 

Blade Runner is actually number 1 on their movie scores list.

 

Some of my faves not on the list:
Love Story - Francis Lai
The Good, the Bad and the Ugly -Ennio Morricone
The Strawberry Statement - Various
A Mighty Wind - Various
That Thing You Do - Various
You're A Big Boy Now - Lovin' Spoonful
Death Wish II - Jimmy Page
Lady In Cement - Hugo Montenegro
Journey Through the Secret Life Of Plants - Stevie Wonder
The Lady In Red - Stevie Wonder
Uncle Meat - Frank Zappa/Mothers
Wonderwall Music - George Harrison
The Concert For Bangla Desh - George Harrison and friends

 

Number 5 on their movie scores list.

 

Link?

 

Indeed on Repo Man. That & Pulp Fiction are probably my two favorite STs

I'm guessing that's a face-palm oversight by the folks that put that list together. No way that's not in the top-50.

 

Interesting reading.

 

Dead Man soundtrack by Neil Young. To me that’s the the best one of all.

 

They got #1 right. As far as I'm concerned, there's Superfly, then some distance back there's The Harder They Come, and then there's everything else.

On reflection, it could also be A Hard Days Night. I guess I don't conceptualize it as a soundtrack, but that's exactly what the US version is.

 

Saw that the other day. They had GoodFellas way too low.

The one omission that stunned me was Almost Famous.

 

Stealing Beauty

 

Interesting list. Where's Rocky IV? Haha..sentimental favorite of mine.

To be filed under the category of "horrible movies with great soundtracks" check out "Hardware."

 

There should be some Wim Wenders movies on that list... the music is always super important in those:
Until the End of the World
Faraway, So Close!

Also, I agree with whoever mentioned Vangelis and Blade Runner. That soundtrack is iconic and very influential.

Also Peter Gabriel's Passion. Holy toledo!