"STAY" LISA LOEB & NINE STORIES (1994)

Exceptional soundtracks can make good movies great. They can also take on a life of their own, becoming a greater highlight than their respective films. In this series, I’m selecting some of my favorite soundtrack songs. While quite a few are well-known recordings, I’m also including a few that have flown under the radar over the years.

“Stay” might be the most recognized song of 1994. And that’s not just because of Lisa Loeb’s unique persona as a singer-songwriter. It’s also because actor Ethan Hawke knew he heard something special when he walked past Loeb’s door in their apartment building. If he hadn’t noticed the magic, the Reality Bites soundtrack would have a completely different feel.

Despite featuring several well-respected acts like U2, Dinosaur Jr., Lenny Kravitz and Squeeze, this soundtrack is nothing without “Stay”. It’s the lynchpin on the album, and the identity of the movie. It’s perhaps the first thing you think of when you think of the movie Reality Bites. “Stay” veered its way into our heads with tempo changes, vocal rants and the coy, yet unforgettable guitar riff.

“And I thought what I felt was simple. And I thought that I don't belong. And now that I am leaving, now I know that I did something wrong.”

"IMMIGRANT SONG" LED ZEPPELIN (1970)

Exceptional soundtracks can make good movies great. They can also take on a life of their own, becoming a greater highlight than their respective films. In this series, I’m selecting some of my favorite soundtrack songs. While quite a few are well-known recordings, I’m also including a few that have flown under the radar over the years.

Jack Black’s love of rock & roll is well-documented. His obsession with rock is felt every time he talks about it — from Rush documentaries to his Kennedy Center honorary speech for Led Zeppelin to the movie School of Rock. It’s like he was just being himself throughout the movie, not simply acting. Jack’s passion is its clearest when he belts Zeppelin’s “Immigrant Song” like every fan wants to — if it weren’t for the fear of permanently damaging our vocal cords.

“Immigrant Song” is Zeppelin in a nutshell. I think that’s why I love this song so much. Mythic-inspired lyrics. Plant’s larger-than-life howl. Page’s epic guitar riff. Bonzo and Jonesy driving the rhythm forward like a wrecking ball. Who else can make Nordic mythology this appealing and infectious? Nobody. Anything else would just feel and sound like a musical parody.

“We come from the land of the ice and snow from the midnight sun where the hot springs flow.”

"SISTER CHRISTIAN" NIGHT RANGER (1984)

Exceptional soundtracks can make good movies great. They can also take on a life of their own, becoming a greater highlight than their respective films. In this series, I’m selecting some of my favorite soundtrack songs. While quite a few are well-known recordings, I’m also including a few that have flown under the radar over the years.

Boogie Nights rode on the back of a vivid, throwback soundtrack — and Night Ranger was at the helm. Call it a glorified karaoke anthem or a cheesy power ballad, but the one thing “Sister Christian” has is it sticks. Impossible to turn off once the song comes on. I’m sucked into its excessive, long-haired, hard rock world.

“Sister Christian” is a musical paradox to the Boogie Nights scene that it appears in. It’s steady, resolute, that’s what makes it a power ballad. But beyond the cymbal crashes and soaring 80’s guitar riffs, even the opening piano chords are unflinching. It’s the rock in a completely unstable scene that feels like it’s about to erupt at any given moment. Maybe that dynamic is what makes “Sister Christian” so likable in life, too.

“You're motoring. What's your price for flight in finding mister right? You'll be alright tonight.”

"ALONE IN KYOTO" AIR (2003)

Exceptional soundtracks can make good movies great. They can also take on a life of their own, becoming a greater highlight than their respective films. In this series, I’m selecting some of my favorite soundtrack songs. While quite a few are well-known recordings, I’m also including a few that have flown under the radar over the years.

The rarely mentioned Lost in Translation soundtrack is a bit underrated in my opinion. There’s some gold in there — with early Phoenix, a Jesus & Mary Chain staple and a My Bloody Valentine distortion fest. But my pick is an underrated song from an underrated soundtrack: Air’s “Alone in Kyoto”.

“Alone in Kyoto” is a powerful reminder of the simplicity and beauty of an instrumental. With no lyrics to hide behind, every single note has to be perfect. Every single note has to be critical, not fluff. “Alone in Kyoto” took a classical approach to ambient, painting a rich, delicate soundscape that captured the feelings of isolation stewing throughout the movie.

"SEYMOUR STEIN" BELLE & SEBASTIAN (1998)

Exceptional soundtracks can make good movies great. They can also take on a life of their own, becoming a greater highlight than their respective films. In this series, I’m selecting some of my favorite soundtrack songs. While quite a few are well-known recordings, I’m also including a few that have flown under the radar over the years.

I have unreasonably high expectations for movie soundtracks — and those expectations are even higher when the movie is about music. So when High Fidelity came out in theaters, I wanted something epic. Nick Hornby’s book is one of my all-time favorite reads, mostly because it truly captured the obsessive, and often ridiculous passion we have for music. While the movie soundtrack left a lot to be desired, “Seymour Stein” was one of the few bright spots in my mind.

The Belle & Sebastian classic wasn’t even officially on the soundtrack album, but it appeared in the movie and there’s even a reference to the new Belle & Sebastian single written into the script. “Seymour Stein” is probably one of my favorite B&S songs because of that sleepy, melodic, retro vibe. It’s not something I’d listen to in large doses, but it’s a reminder of that interesting little niche that B&S has carved for itself in the music world that no one else can claim.

“Half a world away. Ticket for a plane. Record company man. I won't be coming to dinner.”

"DEAD SOULS" NINE INCH NAILS (1994)

Exceptional soundtracks can make good movies great. They can also take on a life of their own, becoming a greater highlight than their respective films. In this series, I’m selecting some of my favorite soundtrack songs. While quite a few are well-known recordings, I’m also including a few that have flown under the radar over the years.

The Crow’s dark underworld found the right musical counterparts in its soundtrack from top to bottom. With contributions from dark, edgy bands, the songs spanned the musical spectrum — from The Cure to Henry Rollins to Rage Against the Machine. One of my favorites is the Nine Inch Nails’ cover of Joy Division’s “Dead Souls”.

The Crow comic books have been known to find inspiration from Joy Division, making the inclusion of “Dead Souls” that much more powerful. Just as the movie brought a new element to the original stories and images, Nine Inch Nails found a way to reinvent the Joy Division song with its own unique musical sensibilities. While Joy Division took to the upper registers with Hooky’s bass lines high up on the fretboards and Ian Curtis’ spastic vocal tremors, NIN found a home in the lower registers, with cyclical bass drum beats, grating electric guitar riffs and Trent Reznor’s tormented chants. It’s a thing of beauty.

“Someone take these dreams away that point me to another day.”

"WAITING FOR SOMEBODY" PAUL WESTERBERG (1992)

Exceptional soundtracks can make good movies great. They can also take on a life of their own, becoming a greater highlight than their respective films. In this series, I’m selecting some of my favorite soundtrack songs. While quite a few are well-known recordings, I’m also including a few that have flown under the radar over the years.

Few movies and soundtracks define their times better than Singles. The movie took place in Seattle, at the height of the grunge era. The music was almost all grunge or some variant of it — Screaming Trees, Soundgarden, Mudhoney, Alice in Chains. Then there were two tracks from Replacements frontman Paul Westerberg. They stuck out like sore thumbs on the soundtrack, but somehow sounded right at home within the movie.

“Waiting for Somebody” feels like a continuation of The Replacements musical narrative — raw, melodic, guitar-driven. minimally produced rock. The seminal alt rock sound that the band helped shape was still pumping in Westerberg’s blood. The charm of it, “Waiting for Somebody” still feels like it was recorded in your garage, untainted and spared from the record label execs and Billboard charts.

“Been down so long, doesn't really matter.”

"APRIL COME SHE WILL" SIMON & GARFUNKEL (1968)

Exceptional soundtracks can make good movies great. They can also take on a life of their own, becoming a greater highlight than their respective films. In this series, I’m selecting some of my favorite soundtrack songs. While quite a few are well-known recordings, I’m also including a few that have flown under the radar over the years.

Some of the greatest movie soundtracks are the soundscapes behind coming-of-age films. And few can exceed the epic songwriting in one of the greatest in that film category, The Graduate. Surrounded by songwriting gems like “The Sounds of Silence”, “Mrs. Robinson” and “Scarborough Fair”, it seems like “April Come She Will” flies a bit under the radar, even though it’s just as good a track as any on the album.

Written poetically, performed delicately and produced ordinarily, “April Come She Will” is the kind of ember-burning, storm-brewing song that seems only at home when played with an acoustic guitar. It’s about far more than just a fling, it’s a pause to recognize the beauty and frailty in the temporal. Like a brighter, lighter shade of Nick Drake.

“April, come she will when streams are ripe and swelled with rain. May, she will stay, resting in my arms again.”

"TALK SHOW HOST" RADIOHEAD (1996)

Exceptional soundtracks can make good movies great. They can also take on a life of their own, becoming a greater highlight than their respective films. In this series, I’m selecting some of my favorite soundtrack songs. While quite a few are well-known recordings, I’m also including a few that have flown under the radar over the years.

The story of Romeo + Juliet is a complex one, filled with every human emotion — from pure ecstasy to torment. The soundtrack, as good as it was, was filled with tracks that erred on the happier spectrum, and gave us some great ones from Des’ree, Garbage and, of course, The Cardigans. But “Talk Show Host” steered the backend of human emotion, and did it the Radiohead way.

This is a forgotten track and one of the least celebrated Radiohead songs in their catalog. It didn’t get album face time and instead played second fiddle as a b-side for the more famous “Street Spirit”. What “Talk Show Host” demonstrated was Radiohead’s ability to create more than music. They created a mood. It felt more like a film score than a single, which made it a perfect addition for the Romeo + Juliet soundtrack, bringing out emotions no other song on the album cared to explore.

“I want to be someone else or I'll explode.”

"MAD WORLD" MICHAEL ANDREWS FEAT. GARY JULES (2002)

Exceptional soundtracks can make good movies great. They can also take on a life of their own, becoming a greater highlight than their respective films. In this series, I’m selecting some of my favorite soundtrack songs. While quite a few are well-known recordings, I’m also including a few that have flown under the radar over the years.

“Mad World” is one of my all-time favorite Tears for Fears anthems. The opening electronic beat, apocalyptic synth overtures and ominous vocal delivery gave the new wave movement a new voice and a new mood. I didn’t think a cover could ever be greater than the original, but the Michael Andrew take for the Donnie Darko soundtrack exceeded all my expectations.

By stripping down the sound and slowing down the RPMs, Michael Andrews created a unique film score that brought TFF’s profound lyrics to the forefront. Like what Johnny Cash did with Nine Inch Nails’ “Hurt”, the deliberately slower pace in Andrews’ vision for “Mad World” gave the lyrics a harder, darker edge—and prove that, as great as the music was, the words of the song have always been the most powerful thing about the song.

“All around me are familiar faces. Worn out places, worn out faces. Bright and early for the daily races. Going nowhere, going nowhere.”

"WHEN DOVES CRY" PRINCE (1984)

Exceptional soundtracks can make good movies great. They can also take on a life of their own, becoming a greater highlight than their respective films. In this series, I’m selecting some of my favorite soundtrack songs. While quite a few are well-known recordings, I’m also including a few that have flown under the radar over the years.

Purple Rain will go down as one of the greatest movie soundtracks of all time. The title track is a song for the ages. But “When Doves Cry” is the track that pushed musical boundaries the most. It’s the one track that packed the most punch, but never felt excessive at any given point. Prince may be considered one of the greatest pop artists of our time, but he did it by going against the mainstream, which is the essence of the song.

Play back “When Does Cry” and you’ll hear a myriad of genres. No one blended them better and so effortlessly than Prince. There’s the hard rock-infused guitar solo in the opening, the dance pop and funk blend fueling the rhythm from beginning to end, and even a classical music-inspired synth solo at the 5:00 mark. Structurally, “When Does Cry” also veered from the expected — becoming one of the few songs in pop history to be recorded without a single bass line. I love bass, but I really love what Prince did with this recording.

“Why do we scream at each other? This is what it sounds like when doves cry.”

"WISE UP" AIMEE MANN (1999)

Exceptional soundtracks can make good movies great. They can also take on a life of their own, becoming a greater highlight than their respective films. In this series, I’m selecting some of my favorite soundtrack songs. While quite a few are well-known recordings, I’m also including a few that have flown under the radar over the years.

Most soundtrack artists are brought on to help complete a movie. But in the case of Magnolia, P.T. Anderson’s vision for the film was inspired by Aimee Mann’s songs. The music was the impetus, not the end product. Every Aimee Mann song on the album is gold, whether it was written for Magnolia or it existed before the film, which is the case of “Wise Up”.

This track stands out from the rest for one reason only: it was the one song that became part of the script. In an unexpected sequence, P.T. Anderson had each of the main characters take turns singing the verses to Aimee Mann’s song. It was masterfully directed. Instead of feeling like a music video slotted into the film, it became one of the movie’s most powerful sequences. It built a much needed pregnant pause into the narrative. It showed a different dimension to each of the characters. It put the entire ensemble together on the same wavelength. And it all started from one song.

“Prepare a list of what you need before you sign away the deed.”

"ONE OF THESE THINGS FIRST" NICK DRAKE (1971)

Exceptional soundtracks can make good movies great. They can also take on a life of their own, becoming a greater highlight than their respective films. In this series, I’m selecting some of my favorite soundtrack songs. While quite a few are well-known recordings, I’m also including a few that have flown under the radar over the years.

From top to bottom, the Garden State soundtrack is hands down one of the best of its era. It pretty much singlehandedly launched The Shins into orbit. It also gave us an early introduction to Iron & Wine and Thievery Corporation. And when I listen back to it, I believe it was also partly responsible for the ridiculously delayed resurgence and rediscovery of Nick Drake. Like most of his catalog, “One of These Things First” is a song that fits comfortably into our times even though it was recorded 50 years ago.

Nick might well be at his best when mired in misery, but the almost wistful demeanor of this song is what makes it pair so well with Garden State. It still has all the characteristics that make Nick Drake’s music so attractive today — from the immediately recognizable baritone voice to the intricate interplay of piano and guitar.

“I could have been a signpost, could have been a clock. As simple as a kettle, steady as a rock.”

"TEMPTATION" NEW ORDER (1982)

Exceptional soundtracks can make good movies great. They can also take on a life of their own, becoming a greater highlight than their respective films. In this series, I’m selecting some of my favorite soundtrack songs. While quite a few are well-known recordings, I’m also including a few that have flown under the radar over the years.

The Trainspotting soundtrack required vivid songs to match the movie’s vivid scenes. “Perfect Day” and “Lust for Life” captured the mood and energy of two very well-known scenes. But in an atypical move, the director chose to only have the character Diane sing “Temptation” instead of feature the full New Order version. But as an homage to the band, the ‘87 version of the song made its way onto this brilliant soundtrack.

“Temptation” was somewhat easy to miss the first time around. It was only released as a single at first — and only charted in the U.K. But the singles compilation Substance became a post-punk must-have in the late 80s, which gave me my first exposure to the song. Like the entire Substance double-disc, I loved “Temptation” from the get go. It was devoid of any remnants of Joy Division, but Sumner, Hooky, Morris and Gilbert reinvented a new sound together with swagger and tenacity.

“Tonight, I think I'll walk alone. I'll find my soul as I go home.”

"IN YOUR EYES" PETER GABRIEL (1986)

Exceptional soundtracks can make good movies great. They can also take on a life of their own, becoming a greater highlight than their respective films. In this series, I’m selecting some of my favorite soundtrack songs. While quite a few are well-known recordings, I’m also including a few that have flown under the radar over the years.

One of the most memorable movie scenes from the 80’s is when Lloyd Dobler lifts his boombox high above his head outside of Diane’s house with Peter Gabriel’s “In Your Eyes” blaring from the speakers. At the time, most guys — myself included — knew immediately that Lloyd made us all look like second rate romantics in that single moment. Some of us were pathetic enough to copy the move with our own love interests because we were too unoriginal to think of our own thing. Whether you’re guilty as charged or not, the scene is engrained in the mind of every 80’s child — and the scene is nothing without the song.

I remember the first few times I heard “In Your Eyes” I didn’t and I couldn’t fully appreciate it for what it was. The more you listen to it, the more you realize it’s far more than just a great pop song. It’s sage, not sappy. It’s world music, not worldly. And it remains ambiguous as to whether “In Your Eyes” is about romantic love, or love of God, or both. I bet Lloyd had no idea.

“All my instincts, they return. The grand facade, so soon will burn. Without a noise, without my pride. I reach out from the inside.”

"LET'S STAY TOGETHER" AL GREEN (1972)

Exceptional soundtracks can make good movies great. They can also take on a life of their own, becoming a greater highlight than their respective films. In this series, I’m selecting some of my favorite soundtrack songs. While quite a few are well-known recordings, I’m also including a few that have flown under the radar over the years.

Pulp Fiction has the rare distinction of being one of the greatest films of all time as well as one of the greatest soundtracks of all time. You can’t pick just one song, but “Let’s Stay Together” is probably one of four marquee tracks on the album, along with “Jungle Boogie”, “Son of a Preacher Man” and “Bustin Surfboards”.

What makes the Al Green song so special? I think it’s this. There are few songs in the history of music that capture the essence of their era so well while also demonstrating a timeless staying power. “Let’s Stay Together” is one of them. It features one of music’s greatest vocal performances with Green’s natural vocal range and falsetto maneuvers so naturally entwined.

“Whatever you want to do is alright with me.”

"CANNED HEAT" JAMIROQUAI (1999)

Exceptional soundtracks can make good movies great. They can also take on a life of their own, becoming a greater highlight than their respective films. In this series, I’m selecting some of my favorite soundtrack songs. While quite a few are well-known recordings, I’m also including a few that have flown under the radar over the years.

Quirky movies need quirky soundtracks. And that’s what Jamiroquai did for Napoleon Dynamite. The soundtrack had a heavy 80’s flavor, accentuated by acts like Cyndi Lauper, When in Rome and Alphaville. Just when we thought the movie might’ve been set in that decade, “Canned Heat” came out of nowhere in the “Vote for Pedro” dance sequence. It was a 70’s-influenced funk fest a la Jamiroquai that came out in the late 90’s.

“Canned Heat” and Jamiroquai’s entire Synkronized album prove that there are still artists out there that just do whatever they want to do, without caring what the public thinks. At its worst, it’s recycled disco funk. At its best, it’s a case in point that the artist performing the song should have just as much fun as the fan who’s listening to it.

“Nothing left for me to do but dance off these bad times I'm going through.”

"THE MAN IN ME" BOB DYLAN (1970)

Exceptional soundtracks can make good movies great. They can also take on a life of their own, becoming a greater highlight than their respective films. In this series, I’m selecting some of my favorite soundtrack songs. While quite a few are well-known recordings, I’m also including a few that have flown under the radar over the years.

The song a director picks for an opening scene can sometimes make or break a film. It’s the mood setter. And there was no better song to kick off The Big Lebowski than Bob Dylan’s “The Man in Me”. Not your typical Dylan anthem, it felt like it was written and performed specifically for The Dude — a melodious homage to the main character.

One of my all-time favorite movies, The Big Lebowski features a strong, diverse set of songs on its soundtrack — from a Gypsy Kings cover to a CCR staple. But no other song on the soundtrack embodies the film and The Dude more than “The Man in Me”. Beyond the opening scene, it’s used again in the famed hallucination scene — and apparently Jeff Bridges has sung it and led audience participation at Lebowski Fest. It’s not just widely loved, it’s beloved.

“Storm clouds are raging all around my door. I think to myself I might not take it anymore. Take a woman like your kind to find the man in me.”

"BRING ON THE DANCING HORSES" ECHO & THE BUNNYMEN (1986)

Exceptional soundtracks can make good movies great. They can also take on a life of their own, becoming a greater highlight than their respective films. In this series, I’m selecting some of my favorite soundtrack songs. While quite a few are well-known recordings, I’m also including a few that have flown under the radar over the years.

Echo & the Bunnymen is a dear band from my youth. I’ve never seen them live, but my Songs to Learn & Sing cassette was a key part of my life’s soundtrack. The seminal post-punk, new wave band also played a vital role in at least a couple of different coming-of-age movies. For Pretty in Pink, “Bring on the Dancing Horses” rounded out one of the greatest soundtracks ever.

Pretty in Pink was full of brat pack anthems: “Pretty in Pink”, “If You Leave”, “Shellshock” and “Left of Center”. But “Dancing Horses” went beyond the melodramatic and was always my favorite song on the album. Echo & the Bunnymen were The Doors of their post-punk generation. No one else sang with the swagger and mystery of Ian McCullough. No one else manned both guitar and keys with the same melodic ingenuity of Will Sergeant. And on “Dancing Horses”, the band rode Les Pattinson’s catchy bass line live a wave of ecstasy.

“Hating all the faking. And shaking while I'm breaking your brittle heart.”

"WONDERFUL TONIGHT" ERIC CLAPTON (1977)

Inspired by Albumism, I’m doing my own version of Flying Solo with individual tracks. Band breakups and hiatuses are never fun, but these solo jams were defining moments in my life’s soundtrack.

I’m more of a fan of Clapton’s work with Cream and Derek & The Dominos. But that doesn’t take anything away from “Wonderful Tonight”. It belongs in the upper echelon of rock classics. It’s revered. It’s adored. It’s so well-known that maybe we take for granted what makes it so great in the first place. Maybe we’ve forgotten.

At a high school talent show my senior year, I was getting ready to perform a rendition of Depeche Mode’s “Somebody”. My friend provided a female take on lead vocals, and I was on piano. Before we went on, I normally would’ve been absolutely nervous and sweating bullets. But a trio before us was performing “Wonderful Tonight” and I was immediately sucked into the performance and my mind was put at ease. It seems so simple, but this is the wonderful power of “Wonderful Tonight”. How many songs do you know can do that? Clapton wrote an exceptionally simple song that draws you in and creates a moment in time for you, every single time you listen to it.

“And then I tell her, as I turn out the light, I say, ‘My darling, you are wonderful tonight’.”