I love the 90s....Soundtracks!

Soundtracks to movies, musicals and TV shows comprised a lot of my 90’s music collection. I listened to them often (and still do) for the variety of songs and the way they were arranged to capture the feel of the show. I wanted to share some of my favorite 90's soundtracks with you today.

“Clueless”: After seeing this movie in the summer of 1995, I immediately had to get the soundtrack! There was one song I loved in particular, “Supermodel” by Jill Sobule. They play it when Tai is getting her makeover. However, the other songs are a lot of fun too. There’s a modernized version of “Kids in America” that kicks off the soundtrack. I also like “Shake Some Action,” “Change,” and “The Ghost in You.” There are a few songs with heavier beats and more of a rap feel, but they don’t take away from the enjoyment of the soundtrack overall.

“Wayne’s World”: The first time I heard “Bohemian Rhapsody” by Queen was in this movie. (This kind of makes me sound younger than I am!) I loved the song so much that it fueled me into buying the soundtrack. I wasn’t disappointed with my purchase though. “Bohemian Rhapsody” got me more interested in Queen and I started listening to more of their music, as a result. In the meantime, I also fell in love with “Dream Weaver” and “Ballroom Blitz.” (I believe it was a cover that was done by Tia Carrere in the movie.) This soundtrack even made me appreciate heavy metal and some big hair bands.

“Reality Bites”: I may have mentioned this soundtrack when I first talked about “Stay” by Lisa Loeb and Nine Stories. I originally got the soundtrack for that song, but then enjoyed the other songs too and couldn’t stop playing it. There’s “Spin the Bottle” by Juliana Hatfield, “Locked Out” by Crowded House, “Bed of Roses” by The Indians and an 80’s classic, “Tempted” by Squeeze. There are also the classics from the movie: “My Sharona” and “Baby, I Love Your Way.” I even enjoyed “All I Want is You” by U2. I don’t like U2, but I’ll make an exception for this song. I recently got the soundtrack on CD so I could listen to it in my car. It’s fun for driving around and road trips. It makes me think of my college years a lot too.

“10 Things I Hate About You”: I originally got this soundtrack because I love Letters to Cleo’s version of “I Want You to Want Me.” Then the rest of it was great too and it captured the mood of the movie. “Even Angels Fall” by Jessica Riddle is always enjoyable to listen to. Letters to Cleo even does a cover of “Cruel to Be Kind” and I like their version of that song too. Other standouts are “Your Winter” by Sister Hazel, “The Weakness in Me” by Joan Armatrading and “War” by The Cardigans. The songs fit perfectly into the movie, which makes for a great soundtrack overall.

“Empire Records”: This used to be my workout music when I was in college. There are a lot of fast and upbeat songs that I enjoy listening to. I originally got the soundtrack before I even saw the movie. It just looked enticing and I figure that a movie about a record store would have a lot of good music. Unfortunately, they left off “Say No More, Mon Amor” by Rex Manning. Just kidding…that was only slightly cheesy! “Till I Hear it From You” by Gin Blossoms and “A Girl Like You” by Edwyn Collins were pretty popular around the time the soundtrack came out. However, all the songs are worth listening to. I may have to dig out my cassette and listen to this one again soon. (Or find it on CD for my car!)

“Pulp Fiction”: Not only was I surprised by how much I liked this movie, but I fell in love with the soundtrack around the same time. I think I originally got it because of “Son of a Preacher Man” by Dusty Springfield. However, all the songs on this soundtrack have their own unique feel and each contribute to the movie in different, but memorable ways. I remember singing “You Never Can Tell” with a friend at a Rocky Horror convention (the same friend with whom I sang Jewel songs). I also used to joke about “Flowers on the Wall” with a friend in college because we never could understand the words and would replace them all with “watermelon” till we got to the main chorus. I still love “Let’s Stay Together” by Al Green, “Girl, You’ll be a Woman Soon” by Urge Overkill and “If Love is a Red Dress (Hang Me in Rags)” by Maria McKee. I think I’ll always associate “Misirlou” with this movie. My CD is mixed up somewhere in my collection, but something tells me I should listen to it again!

Disney music: My cousin worked for Disney records when I was growing up, so we usually got all our soundtracks from him. There were some great Disney movies out in the 90’s and some had equally great soundtracks. This includes “Beauty and the Beast,” “Aladdin,” and “The Lion King.” “The Lion King” was the first soundtrack to be written and compiled by a famous rock musician. I even like how Elton John put his own versions of some of the songs at the end. “Can You Feel the Love Tonight” is so beautiful and romantic and I love how he made it even more so with his radio edition. BATB was done by Ashman and Menken, who also did “The Little Mermaid” and “Little Shop of Horrors.” Sadly, Howard Ashman passed away. Tim Rice took over as lyricist for Aladdin. After “The Lion King,” Disney soundtracks seemed to go downhill. They didn’t have the same feel as before. I liked “Hercules,” and maybe one or two songs from other soundtracks. I was disappointed that “Tarzan” didn’t have any songs sung by the actual characters. It was like a music video to Phil Collins songs. Disney’s most stand-out soundtrack (which also, according to my cousin, was a best seller) is “Newsies.” It’s about a bunch of paperboys in the early 1900’s, but the music is so much fun to listen to. Their first number, “Carrying the Banner,” has a Broadway feel. I love “Seize the Day,” for both the lyrics and the rhythmic music. Ann Margret even sings a few songs. For a while, I would listen to it all the time. Then I put it aside until 2002, when my (now) husband decided that we should learn about “Newsies” to impress our (soon-to-be) sister-in-law. It was her favorite movie. We now listen to the soundtrack on road trips. It has become a staple in our music collection.

Last, but definitely not least...

"Rent": I got the Original Broadway Cast recording of “Rent” for Hanukkah in 1996. I only knew a couple of songs at the time, but heard good things about it and was excited to receive it as a gift. After I got back from my trip to NY that winter, I started listening to it and getting to know the songs and characters. By spring break of junior year of college (in 1997), I had practically memorized this CD (both discs) and was addicted to it. My sister and I would act out all the songs together. I finally got to see “Rent” in December of 1997, a year after I had received the soundtrack. I felt like I knew the characters and it was like visiting with old friends. It was so hard not to sing along. I still love this soundtrack and still know all the words to the songs. “Rent” has played such a big role in my life for such a long period of time.