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.

David Bowie Buddha of Suburbia released

Buddha of Suburbia David Bowie

Released: November 1, 1993 Peak: -- US, 87 UK, -- CN, -- AU Sales (in millions): -- Genre: glam rock/classic rock veteran

Tracks: Song Title (Writers) [time] (date of single release, chart peaks) Click for codes to singles charts. The Buddha of Suburbia [4:29] (11/22/93, 35 UK) Sex and the Church [6:23] South Horizon [5:24] The Mysteries [7:11] Bleed Like a Craze, Dad [5:23] Strangers When We Meet [4:58] Dead Against It [5:47] Untitled No. 1 [5:02] Ian Fish, U.K. Heir [6:29] Buddha of Suburbia (Bowie, Lenny Kravitz, Erdal Kizilcay) [4:20] Songs written by David Bowie and Erdal Kizilcay unless indicated otherwise. Total Running Time: 55:26 The Players: David Bowie (vocals, saxophone, guitar, keyboards) Erdal Kızılçay (keyboards, trumpet, bass, guitar, drums, percussion) Rob Clydesdale, Gary Talor, Isaac Daniel Prevost (drums, bass, guitar on “Bleed Like a Craze, Dad”) Mike Garson (piano on “Bleed Like a Craze, Dad” and “South Horizon”) Lenny Kravitz (guitar on “Buddha of Suburbia”)

Rating: 2.602 out of 5.00 (average of 18 ratings)

About the Album: David Bowie quickly followed his first solo album in six years with this overlooked project which he recorded in just six days. WK Ostensbily recorded as a soundtrack to the four-part British TV miniseries, the title cut was the only song actually featured on the program. “Record-company affiliation difficulties…kept…Buddha of Suburbia…from being released in the U.S. until 1995, when it was slipped out in the wake of his new album, Outside. That's too bad, because The Buddha of Suburbia is an often engaging collection of songs and instrumental passages that recalls many previous Bowie albums, including such disparate efforts as The Man Who Sold the World, Aladdin Sane, and Low. It's not a major effort by any means, but in another context songs like Strangers When We Meet easily could become Bowie favorites.” AMG Notes: There is an alternate album cover featuring Bowie sitting on a cot.

Resources and Related Links: DMDB encyclopedia entry for David Bowie AMG All Music Guide review by William Ruhlmann WK Wikipedia Other Related DMDB Pages: First posted 2/20/2008; last updated 8/3/2021.

Some Kind of Wonderful soundtrack released

Some Kind of Wonderful Various artists

Released: February 27, 1987 Charted: March 21, 1987 Peak: 57 US, -- UK, -- CN, -- AU Sales (in millions): -- US, -- UK, -- world (includes US and UK) Genre: alternative rock

Tracks: Act “Song Title” (date of single release, chart peaks) Click for codes to singles charts. Pete Shelley “Do Anything” Furniture “Brilliant Mind” (1986, 21 UK, 15 CO) Blue Room “Cry Like This” Flesh for Lulu “I Go Crazy” (1987, --) Stephen Duffy “She Loves Me” The Jesus & Mary Chain “The Hardest Walk” The Apartments “The Shyest Time” The March Violets “Miss Amanda Jones” Lick the Tins “Can’t Help Falling in Love” The March Violets “Turn to the Sky” Total Running Time: 36:20

Rating: 4.008 out of 5.00 (average of 4 ratings) Awards: (Click on award to learn more).

About the Album: John Hughes was the master of the teen movie in the 1980s, including Sixteen Candles (1984), The Breakfast Club (1985), and Pretty in Pink (1986). His 1987 movie Some Kind of Wonderful didn’t reach the commercial levels of any of those, nor did it become as iconic, but personally I’ve watched it more than any movie except for Star Wars. The story line was largely a reversal of Pretty in Pink. This time the boy (Eric Stoltz) from the working-class family is swooning over the popular girl (Lea Thompson) who hangs out with the rich people, all the while unaware of the crush his long-time best friend (Mary Stuart Masterson) is harboring for him. The soundtrack didn’t feature a monster hit like Simple Mind’s #1 hit “Don’t You Forget About Me” from The Breakfast Club or O.M.D.’s top-5 hit “If You Leave” from Pretty in Pink. Instead it featured “a large number of unknown artists for the day.” SK Flesh for Lulu’s I Go Crazy was featured several times in the movie and, given its upbeat, catchy nature was the right choice for a first single, but sadly it went nowhere. Furniture’s Brilliant Mind had been a minor hit in the UK the previous year. Lyrically, the song perfectly captures Keith’s trepidation in acting on his unrequited love for Amanda. Throughout the movie, songs were “chosen with meticulous precision” SK to capture the moods of particular scenes. She Loves Me is a swirling, upbeat track which accompanies the scene when Watts helps Keith practice the perfect kiss. Cry Like This mirrors the dagger-to-the-heart feeling Watts experiences when Keith tells her he’s going on a date with Amanda. There were a couple of intriguing covers on the soundtrack. The March Violets redid the Rolling Stones’ Miss Amanda Jones, which was the name of Thompson’s character. The other two main characters were named after Stones’ members – Keith (Stoltz) as in guitarist Keith Richards and Watts (Masterson) as in drummer Charlie Watts. The Stones’ original version of the song, while not on the soundtrack, was used during a montage in which Keith and Amanda prepare for their date. Lick the Tins turned in a snappy, toe-tapping, flute-infused cover of Elvis Presley’s Can’t Help Falling in Love that resembles an Irish jig. The song runs over the closing credits, matching the movie’s feel-good ending as Keith and Watts walk off into the not-quite sunset. In addition to the Stones’ “Miss Amanda Jones,” there are other songs featured in the movie which weren’t used on the soundtrack, including Billy Idol’s “Catch My Fall,” Charlie Sexton’s “Beat’s So Lonely,” the Psychedelic Furs’ “Pretty in Pink” and the movie’s opening song “Dr. Mabuse” by Propaganda. It’s a shame the soundtrack couldn’t jump start with the same propulsive beat that kicks off the movie.

Resources and Related Links: SK SomeKindOfWonderful.org WK Wikipedia First posted 10/3/2020; last updated 8/22/2021.