Film soundtracks are a tricky business typically, and usually don't do much for me. Among the notable exceptions to this are two soundtracks that actually changed my approach towards music quite a lot. The first was "Singles," the grunge exposition that accompanied the Cameron Crowe film. When that one came out, it introduced me to then-new/new-to-me acts like Pearl Jam, Soundgarden, the newly solo Paul Westerberg, Mudhoney, Alice In Chains, Smashing Pumpkins and The Screaming Trees, which paved the way for much of my listening during my teenage years. That soundtrack has actually held up remarkably well over the years and I still dig it out fairly regularly.
"High Fidelity" was the second. The film was released right as the 1990s were closing, and I was quite frankly bored with new "pop" (probably meaning "rock" more than anything else) music by this time in my life. Sure I still enjoyed the stuff I had listened to over the years but the new songs I was hearing (a lot of post-grunge noise and hip-hop-metal was popular during that time) just grated on my nerves. I was mainly listening to jazz in fact. But this film introduced me to characters who cared so deeply about songs and the importance of pop music in daily life that I was inspired to dig back in and learn more about pop music again. The novel on which this film was based, by the way, had a huge impact on me as well (as did Nick Hornby's Songbook a few years later). It was the soundtrack to this film that opened me up to new music once again.
I think my favorite thing about this soundtrack is the balance it strikes between then-new "underground" artists and historical artists, and how seamless the whole thing sounds. Tracks by the likes of The Velvet Underground, Love and the Thirteenth Floor Elevators sit nicely beside those of newer artists like The Beta Band, Stereolab and Smog. The inclusion of the older music on this soundtrack in a sense validates its significance to a younger generation of record collectors (Stevie Wonder, Bruce Springsteen, The Smiths and others are namechecked by Rob Gordon and his cohorts in the film), which is nice for me as a lot of the songs I liked at the time (and the songs which have stuck with me) come from "classic" artists such as these (I remember that I was discovering 70s-era Stevie Wonder right when this film came out - and of course I've always loved classic alternative artists like The Smiths). There were also some nice, lesser-known buried treasures here, like the later 80s work of Elvis Costello ("Shipbuilding") and Bob Dylan ("Most Of The Time"), both of which became two of my favorite songs. However, probably the most exciting aspect of this soundtrack at the time was the then-new indie rock. The thing that had turned me off to new pop music was the loud, tuneless blather on late-90s rock radio. However, the work of the Beta Band, Smog and Stereolab couldn't have been further away from that awful noise. One of the first CDs I bought after hearing this soundtrack was The Three E.P.'s, which is to this day one of my all-time favorite discs and really takes me back to this great period of my life when I was rediscovering music all over again. I also bought CDs by Stereolab and Smog, both of which are in regular rotation as well.
However, I didn't stop there. I began to learn more about the music that was out there, looking for more classic stuff as well as new indie artists. I lived in Berkeley at the time and became a regular at Amoeba and Rasputin records on Telegraph Ave, hanging with the employees trying to discover what I might have been missing. Along the way my collection grew to include everything from Built To Spill and Yo La Tengo (two indie artists recommended by an employee at Amoeba and still two of my favorites to this day) as well as just about everything Elvis Costello released during the late 70s and 80s (the Rykodisc versions went out of print around this time but I was still able to find used copies of most of that stuff). Eight years later my collection of CDs, vinyl and tapes has grown to over 1,000 and my apartment looks a lot like Rob Gordon's in High Fidelity.
My point is, never before did one film and soundtrack have such an influence on my life. Several years later the soundtrack holds up just as nicely even if the "new" artists featured here aren't on the cutting edge anymore (or even together, as in the case of the Beta Band). I'd recommend it in conjunction with the film and the Nick Hornby novel, along with Songbook. For me this is larger-than-life stuff, and if you are like me it just might draw you into the universe of thoughtful, quality pop music.
June 6, 2008Phenomenal movie about good music could only generate a phenomenal soundtrack. My only dissappointment is that there aren't more tracks on this cd. However, as other reviewers have already kindly added the lengthy list of tunes heard and discussed in the film, you can look them up and explore the sounds. I have been turned onto at least 3 bands from this soundtrack i previously was unaware of, definitely a bonus to any soundtrack collection.
March 28, 2008i have not yet recieved my purchase and am very unhappy as it was a christmas gift to someone.
December 27, 2007 |  | Honestly, bought this for just one song... |  |
But I found many others that were really good. Soundtrack from the movie, Jack Black's version of "Let's Get It On" can only be found here and as of my purchase, cannot be bought seperately from the CD. I LOVE that song, so here we are. Also found other very nice songs, like Stevie Wonder's "I Believe." Great compilation!
December 11, 2007Nice mix from the movie. Great quality of "You're Gonna Miss Me" by the 13th Floor Elevators, the reason I bought it, but was surprised by the other great songs.
September 19, 2007More reviews at Amazon.com ...
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