Dave's Music Hall of Fame: Album Inductees (August 2022)

Originally posted 8/22/2022. January 22, 2019 marked the 10-year anniversary of the DMDB blog. To honor that, Dave’s Music Database announced its own Hall of Fame. This month marks the fifteenth group of album inductees. These are the top soundtracks of all time, excluding previous inductees The Bodyguard, Grease, Purple Rain, Saturday Night Fever, South Pacific, and West Side Story. See the full list of album inductees here.

American Graffiti (1973) Inducted August 2022 as “Top Soundtracks.”

This isn’t just the soundtrack to George Lucas’ nostalgic reflection to teenage life in 1962, it’s the soundtrack to the early rock-n-roll era. It’s loaded with classics including Bill Haley & the Comets’ “We’re Gonna Rock Around the Clock,” Chuck Berry’s “Johnny B. Goode,” Buddy Holly’s “That’ll Be the Day,” the Flamingos’ “I Only Have Eyes for You,” Frankie Lymon & the Teeangers’ “Why Do Fools Fall in Love,” Del Shannon’s “Runaway,” and the Platters’ “The Great Pretender.” Read more.

George Gershwin (music) & Ira Gershwin (lyrics) An American in Paris (1951) Inducted August 2022 as “Top Soundtracks.”

George Gershwin’s 1928 classical composition “An American in Paris” inspired this movie starring Gene Kelly. In addition to the title song, the soundtrack features Gershwin classics “I’ll Build a Stairway to Paradise,” “S’ Wonderful,” “Embraceable You,” “I Got Rhythm,” and “Love Is Here to Stay.” The album has been named to the Grammy Hall of Fame. Read more.

Dirty Dancing (1987) Inducted August 2022 as “Top Soundtracks.”

This tale of a young woman (Jennifer Grey) who falls for a dance instructor (Patrick Swayze) while her family is on vacation is set in 1963, but features a soundtrack of both old (The Ronettes “Be My Baby,” Maurice Williams & the Zodiacs’ “Stay”) and new (Bill Medley & Jennifer Warnes’ “I’ve Had the Time of My Life,” Eric Carmen “Hungry Eyes”). It spent 18 weeks atop the Billboard album chart and sold over 30 million copies worldwide. Read more.

Footloose (1984) Inducted August 2022 as “Top Soundtracks.”

An outsider (Kevin Bacon) moves to a small town where dancing is forbidden but crusades to have the law overturned for the high school prom. The soundtrack was loaded with hits, including the #1 title song by Kenny Loggins and Deniece Williams’ chart-topping “Let’s Hear It for the Boy.” The album spent 10 weeks at #1 on the Billboard chart and sold over 16 million copies worldwide. The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame listed it as a definitive album in 2007. Read more.

Frozen (2013) Inducted August 2022 as “Top Soundtracks.”

Disney experienced a commercial revival in the late ‘80s that saw a slew of blockbuster animated films from The Little Mermaid to Aladdin to The Lion King. Even so, the monstrous success of 2013’s Frozen wasn’t expected. The album topped the Billboard chart for 13 weeks on the strength of the top-5 sing-along hit “Let It Go” and became the best-selling album of the year. Read more.

The Harder They Come (1972) Inducted August 2022 as “Top Soundtracks.”

The movie didn’t leave much impression, but its soundtrack became a crucial entry point into the world of reggae music for most Americans. Jimmy Cliff starred in the movie as a would-be reggae singer and contributes several songs to the soundtrack. The album has been named to the Grammy Hall of Fame and the National Recording Registry. Read more.

High School Musical (2006) Inducted August 2022 as “Top Soundtracks.”

The Disney Channel hit gold with this made-for-cable movie that was essentially a modern day take on Grease starring Zac Efron and Vanessa Hudgens. It launched a franchise that included two sequel films, stage musicals, books, comics, live shows, video games, and a television series. The soundtrack hit #1 on the Billboard album chart and sold five million copies in the United States. Read more.

O Brother, Where Art Thou? (2000) Inducted August 2022 as “Top Soundtracks.”

This soundtrack to the Coen brothers’ loose adaptation of The Odyssey caught everyone by surprise, topping the Billboard album chart and selling more than 10 million copies worldwide. It effectively kicked off a revived interest in Americana music and established T-Bone Burnett as the go-to producer for artists wanting to create roots music. The soundtrack won Album of the Year awards from the Grammys, the Academy of Country Music, and the Country Music Association. Read more.

Richard Rodgers (music) & Oscar Hammerstein II (lyrics) The Sound of Music (1965) Inducted August 2022 as “Top Soundtracks.”

The cast album for Rodgers & Hammerstein’s musical The Sound of Music was a major hit, topping the Billboard album chart for 16 weeks. The soundtrack spent an astonishing 70 weeks atop the UK album chart and sold more than 20 million copies worldwide. It has been named to the Grammy Hall of Fame and the National Recording Registry. The show featured now-iconic songs like “My Favorite Things,” “Do Re Mi,” and the title cut. Read more.

Titanic (1997) Inducted August 2022 as “Top Soundtracks.”

Film scores aren’t typically major hits, but James Horner’s score for Titanic was a major hit. The movie about the passenger liner that sank in 1912 after hitting an iceberg became the biggest grossing of all time and made Celine Dion a superstar with the song “My Heart Will Go On.” The soundtrack spent 16 weeks at #1 on the Billboard album chart and sold more than 30 million copies worldwide. Read more.

The Top 100 Soundtracks of All Time

Soundtracks: The Top 100 of All Time

This list was first posted on April 17, 2011, as a note on the Dave’s Music Database Facebook page. It has been revised a few times since then. As with most DMDB lists, this was created based on sales, chart peaks, awards, and an aggregate of lists, in this case more than 100 best-of lists focused on cast albums, musicals, soundtracks, and music-themed movies. You can click on the titles of the soundtrack for more detailed pages at DavesMusicDatabase.com. Unless noted otherwise, soundtracks are recorded by various artists. Check out other best-of-genre/category lists here. 1. Prince & the Revolution Purple Rain (1984) 2. Bee Gees et al Saturday Night Fever (1977) 3. Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II (composers) (1965) The Sound of Music 4. Leonard Bernstein/Stephen Sondheim (composers) West Side Story (1961) 5. Olivia Newton-John, John Travolta, et al Grease (1978) 6. Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II (composers) South Pacific (1958) 7. Whitney Houston et al The Bodyguard (1992) 8. Dirty Dancing (1987) 9. O Brother Where Art Thou (soundtrack, 2000) 10. Curtis Mayfield Superfly (1972) 11. Richard and Robert Sherman (composers) Mary Poppins (1964) 12. Elton John and Tim Rice (composers) The Lion King (1994) 13. James Horner Titanic (1997) 14. Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II (composers) The King and I (1956) 15. American Graffiti (1973) 16. Frozen (2013) 17. The Beatles A Hard Day’s Night (1964) 18. Jimmy Cliff et al The Harder They Come (1972) 19. Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II (composers) Oklahoma! (1955) 20. Al Jolson Songs He Made Famous (1946) 21. Eminem et al 8 Mile (2002) 22. High School Musical (TV soundtrack, 2006) 23. Footloose (1984) 24. Woodstock (recorded live 1969, released 1970) 25. Whitney Houston et al Waiting to Exhale (1995) 26. Alan Jay Lerner and Frederick Loewe (composers) My Fair Lady (1964) 27. Talking Heads Stop Making Sense (live, recorded 1983, released 1984) 28. Mario Lanza The Student Prince (1954) 29. George & Ira Gershwin (composers) An American in Paris (1951) 30. Madonna et al Evita (1996) 31. Flashdance (1983) 32. Elvis Presley Blue Hawaii (1961) 33. Henry Mancini The Music from Peter Gunn (1959) 34. Top Gun (1986) 35. Harold Arlen, Yip Harburg, & Herbert Stothart (composers) The Wizard of Oz (1939) 36. Jerome Kern & Oscar Hammerstein II (composers) Show Boat (1951) 37. Pulp Fiction (1994) 38. The Band The Last Waltz (live, recorded 1976; released April 1978) 39. Earth, Wind & Fire That’s the Way of the World (1975) 40. Alan Jay Lerner and Frederick Loewe (composers) Gigi (1958) 41. John Kander & Fred Ebb (composers) Chicago (2003) 42. Alan Menken & Howard Ashman (composers) Beauty and the Beast (1997) 43. Simon & Garfunkel The Graduate (1968) 44. Forrest Gump (1994) 45. Jerry Bock & Sheldon Harnick (composers) Fiddler on the Roof (1971) 46. Elvis Presley G.I. Blues (1960) 47. Moulin Rouge (2001) 48. John Kander & Fred Ebb (composers) Cabaret (1972) 49. Richard Rodgers/Oscar Hammerstein II (composers) Carousel (1956) 50. Andrew Lloyd Webber, Charles Hart, & Richard Stilgoe (composers) Phantom of the Opera (2004) 51. High School Musical 2 (TV soundtrack, 2007) 52. Nacio Herb Brown & Arthur Freed (composers) Singin’ in the Rain (1952) 53. Isaac Hayes Shaft (1971) 54. The Blues Brothers The Blues Brothers (1980) 55. Irving Berlin (composer) Annie Get Your Gun (1950) 56. Andrew Lloyd Webber & Tim Rice (composers) Jesus Christ Superstar (1973) 57. Meredith Willson (composer) The Music Man (1962) 58. The Beatles Help! (1965) 59. Jane Froman With a Song in My Heart (1952) 60. Prince & the Revolution Parade (Under the Cherry Moon soundtrack, 1986) 61. Henry Mancini Breakfast at Tiffany’s (1961) 62. Benny Andersson & Björn Ulvaeus (composers) Mamma Mia! (2008) 63. Cole Porter (composer) Kiss Me, Kate (1954) 64. Spinal Tap This Is Spinal Tap (1984) 65. Richard O’Brien (composer) The Rocky Horror Picture Show (1975) 66. Elvis Presley Loving You (1957) 67. Galt MacDermot, Gerome Ragni, & James Rado (composers) Hair (cast album, 1967) 68. Frank Churchill (composer) Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1938) 69. John Williams (composer) Star Wars IV: A New Hope (1977) 70. Al Jolson Souvenir Album (1947) 71. Lionel Bart (composer) Oliver! (1968) 72. The Commitments The Commitments (1991) 73. Miami Vice (TV soundtrack, 1985) 74. Almost Famous (2000) 75. Stephen Sondheim (composer) Sweeney Todd, the Demon Barber of Fleet Street (2008) 76. Alan Menken, Howard Ashman, & Tim Rice Aladdin (1992) 77. Jonathan Larson (composer) Rent (2005) 78. Marc Shaiman & Scott Wittman Hairspray (2002) 79. Jule Styne & Bob Merrill (composers), Barbara Streisand (performer) Funny Girl (1968) 80. Prince Batman (1989) 81. Exodus (1961) 82. Elvis Presley King Creole (1958) 83. Olivia Newton-John/Electric Light Orchestra Xanadu (1980) 84. Doris Day Love Me or Leave Me (1955) 85. Glen Hansard & Marketa Irglova as The Swell Season Once (2007) 86. Around the World in 80 Days (1957) 87. Glee Cast Volume 3 Showstoppers (2010) 88. Barbra Streisand & Kris Kristofferson A Star Is Born (1976) 89. Danny Kaye Hans Christian Andersen (1953) 90. Baz Luhrmann (composer) Romeo + Juliet (1996) 91. Bad Boys II (2003) 92. Coyote Ugly (2000) 93. Mario Lanza The Great Caruso (1951) 94. Garden State (2004) 95. Richard Rodgers & Lorenz Hart (composers) Pal Joey (1957) 96. Three Little Words (1950) 97. Madonna I’m Breathless (1990) 98. Neil Diamond The Jazz Singer (1980) 99. Maurice Jarre Doctor Zhivago (1966) 100. Harry Warren & Al Dubin (composers) 42nd Street (1933) Resources and Related Links: Dave’s Music Database: other best-of-genre/category lists Facebook (4/17/2011). “The Top 50 Soundtracks Dave’s Music Database: “The Top 50 Musicals/Cast Albums of All Time” Dave’s Music Database: “Top 50 Music Movies of All Time” Dave’s Music Database: “The Top 1000 Albums of All Time” First posted 4/17/2011; last updated 12/19/2021.

“I’ve Had the Time of My Life” hit #1

I’ve Had the Time of My Life Bill Medley & Jennifer Warnes

Writer(s): Frank Previte, John DeNicola, Donald Markowitz (see lyrics here) Released: July 10, 1987 First Charted: August 8, 1987 Peak: 11 US, 11 CB, 11 RR, 14 AC, 6 UK, 11 CN, 16 AU, 3 DF (Click for codes to singles charts.) Sales (in millions): 1.0 US, 0.8 UK, 2.03 world (includes US + UK) Airplay/Streaming (in millions): -- radio, 449.5 video, 318.82 streaming

Awards: Click on award for more details.

About the Song: No one could have guessed how big the soundtrack for Dirty Dancing would be. The album mixed iconic songs from the late ‘50s and early ‘60s alongside new material from, well, has-beens. The most bankable commodity was Jennifer Warnes, who’d had a #1 with Joe Cocker on “Up Where We Belong,” another film song from five years earlier. But Eric Carmen, who was best known for “All by Myself” from more than a decade earlier? Bill Medley? His biggest hits were with the Righteous Brothers in the ‘60s. And Patrick Swayze, the film’s star, was going to sing? This didn’t sound like a surefire hit. However, Swayze’s “She’s Like the Wind,” Carmen’s “Hungry Eyes,” and Medley & Warnes’ “I’ve Had the Time of My Life” all hit the top 5 and the latter went to #1. It gave Medley the distinction of the longest gap between #1’s – 21 years and 7 months from the time of the Righteous Brothers’ “You’re My Sould and Inspiration” and “Time of My Life.” FB The song also won an Oscar, a Golden Globe, and a Grammy. Jimmy Ienner, the producer and head of Millennium Records, approached Frankie Previte, whose band Frankie & the Knockouts had a top 10 hit in 1981 with “Sweetheart,” about writing songs for the movie. According to Previte, when he told Ienner he was busy with another project, Previte told him “I suggest you get in on this because if you get a song in this movie, it’s going to change your life.” FB Previte was convinced and wrote several songs for the film, including “Hungry Eyes” and “I’ve Had the Time of My Life.” Ienner gave Previte a rough idea of the plot and said they needed a song which started slow, ended up fast, and incorporated a Mambo beat. FB After tapping former bandmate John DeNicola and his friend Don Markowitz, for the music, Previte recorded a demo with singer Rachelle Cappelli. It wasn’t in the film, but it was used as a backing track while Swayze and Grey practiced their dancing. The song was offered to Donna Summer and Joe Esposito, but she said no because she objected to the title of the movie. Ienner approached Medley repeatedly about recording the song, but Medley was skeptical after recording a duet with Gladys Knight for the Sylvester Stallone movie Cobra and seeing it flop. He was also expecting a child and didn’t want to travel for fear of missing the birth. FB After Medley’s daughter was born SF and the session was moved from New York to California, where Warnes also lived, Medley agreed. FB Warnes had already said she’d do it if Medley would. WK Resources: DMDB encyclopedia entry for Bill Medley DMDB encyclopedia entry for Jennifer Warnes FB Fred Bronson (2007). The Billboard Book of Number One Hits (4th edition). Billboard Books: New York, NY. Page 683. SF Songfacts WK Wikipedia Related Links: First posted 11/27/2020; last updated 10/22/2022.

Dirty Dancing soundtrack hit #1 for the first of 18 weeks

Last updated 11/27/2020. image from fanpop.com

Dirty Dancing (soundtrack) Various artists

Released: September 1, 1987 Peak: 118 US, 4 UK, 114 CN, 18 AU Sales (in millions): 11.0 US, 2.44 UK, 32.0 world (includes US and UK) Genre: pop/oldies

Tracks: Song Title (ACT) (date of single release, chart peaks) Click for codes to singles charts. I’ve Had the Time of My Life (BILL MEDLEY/ JENNIFER WARNES) (8/8/87, 1 US, 6 UK, 1 AC, sales: 0.5 m) Be My Baby (THE RONETTES) (8/31/63, 2 US, 4 UK, 4 RB) She’s Like the Wind (PATRICK SWAYZE/ WENDY FRASER) (12/19/87, 3 US, 17, 1 AC) Hungry Eyes (ERIC CARMEN) (11/7/87, 4 US, 2 AC) Stay (MAURICE WILLIAMS & THE ZODIACS) (9/26/60, 1 US, 14 UK, 3 RB) Yes (MERRY CLAYTON) (4/23/88, 49 AC) You Don’t Own Me (THE BLOW MONKEYS) Hey! Baby (BRUCE CHANNEL) (1/27/62, 1 US, 2 UK, 2 RB, sales: 0.5 m) Overload (ALFIE ZAPPACOSTA) Love Is Strange (MICKEY & SYLVIA) (12/22/56, 11 US, 1 RB) Where Are You Tonight? (TOM JOHNSTON) In the Still of the Night (THE FIVE SATINS) (3/56, 24 US, 3 RB) Total Running Time: 39:25

Rating: 4.048 out of 5.00 (average of 18 ratings) Awards: (Click on award to learn more).

About the Album: The fall of 1987 marked the onset of my junior year in college. One of the hottest movies around was Dirty Dancing. I wasn’t interested, but ended up going – with five women. Hey, who would turn that down? Well, I thought the movie was cheesy and eye-rolling, but my movie companions loved it. They swooned over Patrick Swayze and practically danced in the aisles to the music. Ah, yes. The music. As popular as the movie was and as much as women loved Patrick Swayze, the driving force was the music. The soundtrack was an unlikely blockbuster. In the mid-‘80s, soundtracks to Flashdance, Footloose, and Top Gun became huge sellers on the strength of well-crafted pop songs by known commodities. Each album mustered a couple of top ten hits and at least one #1 each and filler artists deemed unfit for their own albums. Dirty Dancing opted for new songs by artists with decades-old hits. Eric Carmen (Hungry Eyes) hit #2 in 1975 with “All By Myself” while Bill Medley (I’ve Had the Time of My Life) had huge hits as part of the Righteous Brothers duo in the 1960s (“You’ve Lost That Lovin’ Feelin’”, “You’re My Soul and Inspiration”, “Unchained Melody”). The best known commodity was Medley’s duet partner, Jennifer Warnes, who had topped the charts in 1982 with “Up Where We Belong,” a duet with Joe Cocker from the movie An Officer and a Gentleman. Sure, she’d had a #1 hit, but who would’ve gambled she had more chart-toppers in her? And who would have guessed Patrick Swayze had a top 10 hit in him? In a move that seemed like it could be cringe-worthy, the soundtrack opted to give its lead – not known for singing – a shot at tackling lead vocals on She’s Like the Wind. Swayze’s foray into music ended up being the album’s third (new) top ten hit. The distinction that it was a “new” hit is important considering that the album is also sprinkled with well-known hits from the ‘50s and ‘60s like the Ronettes Be My Baby and Stay by Maurice Williams & the Zodiacs. They certainly fit the setting of the movie, but it didn’t seem like a winning formula for a successful soundtrack. Somehow, though, it worked – primarily because these are well-done slices of pop music from the present and the past that, unlike many soundtracks, often tie in well with scenes in the movie. “While this may not be ‘the time of your life,’ as the album cover advertises, it is a fun collection.” TH Hey, it’s hard to beat going to a movie with five women who want to dance in the aisles because of the music. Notes: The soundtrack was so successful it spawned a sequel – More Dirty Dancing – in 1988. It was dominated by instrumentals and more oldies, but led to The Contours’ “Do You Love Me” recharting – and peaking at #11 – more than 25 years after its original debut.

Resources and Related Links: TH Tavia Hobart, All Music Guide WK Wikipedia