50 best movie soundtracks: coolest soundtracks revealed
Without these, the films wouldn't be worth watching.
What happens if you take something cool and add it to something just as cool? No, not hip algebra, but film soundtracks of course. What, after all, can be cooler than music and film combined?
As these best movie soundtracks show, there is something about a soundtrack that can make even the most middle of road movie into something rather special. And when the movie is also a masterpiece, then you have something rather special.
So, with that in mind, we compiled the 50 best soundtracks ever (said in best advertising jingle voice) - those that are the coolest around...
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50. Midnight Cowboy (1969)
John Schlesinger’s magnum opus might be X-rated (although that said more about sexually stunted and homophobic Hollywood than anything else), but its soundtrack is anything but. Using James Bond composer John Barry alongside contemporary songs was a masterstroke. Barry’s titular theme tune is a stunning piece of music: delicate, profound, moving. And Harry Nilsson’s version of Fred Neil’s Everybody’s Talkin’ still reverberates in the pantheon of cool. A compelling and majestic soundtrack.
49. Head (1968)
Despite being savaged by critics at the time, The Monkees’ solitary adventure into feature films is regarded as something of a cult classic today. Its lurid and bizarre script is reflected by the soundtrack that accompanied it. No longer pliable pop puppets, Head demonstrated that The Monkees had real musical chops. Porpoise Song is the equal of anything that Buffalo Springfield, The Lovin’ Spoonful and co released at the time, while the playful Daddy’s Song (written by Harry Nilsson) and the reflective As We Go Along went onto influence the likes of The Flaming Lips, Mercury Rev and other practitioners of cosmic Americana.
48. Performance (1970)
Donald Cammell and Nicolas Roeg dystopic Performance was viewed as a key signifier in the death of the Sixties dream. The soundtrack – all lascivious malevolence and seditious cool – sounded like a wonderful way to dance on the grave of flower power idealism. Mick Jagger’s swaggering Memo From Turner naturally takes most of the plaudits, but with key contributions from Randy Newman, Buffy Sainte-Marie, Ry Cooder, Jack Nitzsche and proto rappers The Last Poets, this was by far not a one-man show. Deranged decadence never sounded so alluring.
47. Dead Man’s Shoes (2004)
With Warp Films behind Shane Meadow’s masterly and disturbing thriller, it was no surprise that the soundtrack should be equally phenomenal. Touching upon electronica, folk, hip hop, techno, alt-country and folktronica, it’s a measured and thrillingly diverse listen. Highlights come from Adem, DM & Jemini, The Earlies and perhaps predictably, Aphex Twin. An alternative take on the mid-Noughties music scene and all the better for it.
46. The Royal Tenenbaums (2001)
Wes Anderson’s films have all been accompanied by superlative soundtracks, so we could have easily plumped for, say, Rushmore or The Life Aquatic With Steve Zissou. But in terms of synergy, The Royal Tenenbaums trumps the lot. Featuring The Clash, Paul Simon, Nico, Elliot Smith, Bob Dylan, Velvet Underground and a score composed by long-time Anderson cohort Mark (Devo) Mothersbaugh, this is wonderful stuff. A magical listen that conjures up the film, but can still stand alone.