Question of the Week: What’s your favorite soundtrack or movie theme?

Local Spins’ Question of the Week (Feb. 4, 2021)

What’s your favorite soundtrack or movie theme?

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THE READER RESPONSES:

Angel Christman – Definitely a tie between the “Tron: Legacy” soundtrack and the “Into the Wild” soundtrack.

Brad Miller – Soundtrack: “Titanic.” “My Heart Will Go On” is imprinted and my heart was uplifted by Gaelic Storm’s “An Irish Party in Third Class.”

Jeannine Lemmon – “O Brother, Where Art Thou?” The old-timey music is great, but the lineup of artists is even better. I could listen to this over and over.

Mike Ward – “Cinema Paradiso,” by far.

Mark Sellers – “Big Bottom,” “Sex Farm,” “Stonehenge,” and the rest/

Brigitte Newberg – “Now and Then.”

Jack Clark – “Pretty In Pink.”

Mark S. Kahny – Theme from “The Apartment.” Main theme from “Out of Africa.”

Johnny Stash – “The Natural Born Killers” soundtrack is pretty damn phenomenal.

C Ann McFerrin – “Last of the Mohicans” & “Dances with Wolves.”

Paul Wyatt – “The Last Waltz” and “Philadelphia.”

Nicholas James Thomasma – Ok, those are two very different questions. For example, the “Forrest Gump” soundtrack is one of the greatest collections of popular music in existence but the theme song is just ok. Same could be said about the “Almost Famous” or “Dazed and Confused” soundtracks. Both excellent. No theme song. With that said, my favorite theme song is probably “Where Everybody Knows Your Name” by Gary Portnoy. Also known as the theme from Cheers. Shout out to Ray Parker Jr and Ghostbusters tho. That’s a catchy tune!

Daniel Ellcey – “Pump up the Volume,” “High Fidelity,” “Little Buddha,” “Empire Records.”

Ned Rouse – “200 Motels.”

Mike Niemchick – “Do The Right Thing.”

Christina Jasperse Swiney – My first favorite was “The Last of the Mohicans,” Daniel Day Lewis edition. Second was “Romeo & Juliet,” DiCaprio edition. This might give a clue to my age!

Mark Harrell – “Into the Wild.” Eddie Vedder just killed it with those songs.

Julie Bernat Swanson – “Snatch.” “Almost Famous.” “O, Brother.”

Myrna Jacobs – “The Godfather.” “The Descendents” (The Hawaiian one.)

Michael Van Denend – “The Harder They Come” –chock-full of incredible reggae artists such as Jimmy Cliff, Toots and the Maytals, and others.

Chad Michael Wedeven – “That Thing You Do!,” by a country mile.

April Jendrasiak – “Legends of the Fall.”

Bruce E. Matthews – “Legends of the Fall,” James Horner. Most anything by James Horner. Or Mark Isham: “A River Runs Through It.”

Darlene Cooper – “The Last Waltz.”

Eric Burmeister – “Good Will Hunting.” Lots of Elliott Smith and also The Waterboys, Luscious Jackson, and the Danny Elfman orchestral pieces are well placed.

Nathan Purchase – “The Batman.”

A.p. Van Portfliet – “The Blues Brothers.” “This is Spinal Tap.” “Repoman.” “Killer Klowns from Outerspace.” All have been in heavy rotation at some point in my life.

Susan Wilson Ward – “Jackie Brown.”

Ryan Hipp – “TRON: Legacy” by Daft Punk.

Barb Steffler – Curious George, “Upside Down” by Jack Johnson
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Bradley Raffenaud – “Good Will Hunting,” “Carlito’s Way,” “Lost Boys,” “The Great Rock n Roll Swindle,” so many good ones.

Ryan Johnson – “Natural Born Killers”. Great soundtrack.

Isaac Powrie – “Cowboy Bebop”

William Johnson – Great question. What I don’t see here is the great orchestral film scores represented. “Star Wars: A New Hope” was incredible. “The Adventures of Robin Hood” is such a classic and the story behind it more so. If we are looking at soundtracks with rock ‘n’ roll or pop, then for my generation, “Ferris Buehler’s Day Off” was pretty awesome. Of course, there are the great movie musicals as well. Best Theme Song: “James Bond Theme.”

Zack McCormick – Trent Reznor/Atticus Ross: “The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo”

Justin Stover – “Angus” soundtrack by a country mile.

Frank Youngman – “The Commitments”

Zack Volkers – “Tarzan.” Phil Collins didn’t have to go that hard for all of us, but he did, and we should be eternally grateful.

Rebecca Charbauski – The “Garden State” soundtrack.

Megan MacNaughton – Elmer Bernstein – “To Kill A Mockingbird”

Tom Sydloski – “Into the Wild.”

Roger Kintner – “The Blues Brothers,” “The Princess Bride,” Mark Knopfler did the soundtrack for that great movie.

Mike Dodge – “Forbidden Zone” is a great soundtrack. I really liked the soundtrack to the “Tommy” movie too, it’s like those songs were made for the artists that played them.

Barry Bazza Crawford – “Music From The Motion Picture Soundtrack ‘Until The End Of The World.’ “

Andrew Millard – If you are even considering “Titanic’s” theme song you are dead to me. If you even appreciate “Man of Constant Sorrow,” you are my friend.

Kurt Schmiege – “Small Town Murder Songs”

Rick Wylie – “The Secret Life of Walter Mitty”

Lauren Onica – “Donnie Darko”

Lisa Villarreal Wiseman – “La Bamba,” but I am biased: Huge Los Lobos fan.

Steve Secor – “Garden State.”

Justin Dore – “Back to the Future” might get both for me.

Tricia Boot – “Singles” (although the movie doesn’t hold up IMHO), “Romeo + Juliet,” “The Graduate.”

Alex Austin – “The Last Waltz,” minus the Neil Diamond song … just can’t get into that one.

Wile Preston – 1970’s “Little Big Man” starring Dustin Hoffman soundtrack by John Hammond Jr.

Adrian Mitchell – The entire “Drive” soundtrack.

Jim Harger – “Big Chill” soundtrack.

Mike Ensing – “Once Upon A Time In The West” Theme (Ennio Morricone).

Stacy Slikkers Noonan – “August Rush” soundtrack.

Steve Damstra – “Elizabethtown.”

Evan D. Rossio – “Rock and Roll High School.”

Stef Loy – Aronofsky’s “π”

Racquel Webster Viilo – “Austin Powers” soundtrack.

Chuck Carter – “Desperado”

Randy Cleves – “The Lost Boys” (INXS, Lou Gramm, Roger Daltrey, a solid Doors cover) immediately sends me back to high school.

Steve Grinczel – “Glory” or “Last of the Mohicans”

Dan May – “You Can Count on Me” soundtrack.

Ria Faber – Definitely, “O, Brother Where Art Thou.” Also, “Into the Wild.”

Mark Swanson – Lux Aeterna, “Requiem for a Dream.”

Clint Mansell – Lux Aeterna, “Requiem for a Dream.”

Paul Magnan – “Honkytonk Man,” “Crazy Heart” or “The Rose.” All great soundtracks.

Tom Reed = “Xanadu.”

Adam Bogues – You nailed it with ‘O Brother, Where Art Thou?’

Kevin Kozel – “There Will Be Blood.” Or “The Matrix.”

Irene Bullerman – “Forrest Gump.”

Richard Mulligan = I love the soundtrack to “Baby Driver.” And the soundtrack is such an important part of the story!

Timmy Lee Vandyke – “Roadhouse.” It’s Jeff Healey, I mean, ya know. “When the night comes falling,” and then there are “The Cruzados.” Healey’s cover of Canned Heat’s “On The Road Again“ is great too, but you can’t find that anywhere.

Lee Chase – “Town Without Pity.” “MC5 – A True Testimonial.”

Amy Gibbons – “MASK,” w/Cher and Sam Elliott.

Matt Kuczynski – Big fan of “No Country for Old Men.”

Scott VanderSchel – “Forrest Gump.” Not the song choices as much as the way the music tells you exactly era and time period he’s living.

Bill Van Ess – “That Thing You Do”

Melodee Van Bogelen Horsford – Well, in keeping with most of my other posts, “The Wall” by Pink Floyd.

Anthony Plumstead – “Chocolat”

Brad Vredevoogd – Does “The Last Waltz” count? “Singles,” “Grosse Pointe Blank,” “High Fidelity,” “Almost Famous.”

Brennan Heldt – I love so many, but the first film that came to mind was “Signs” by James Newton Howard. “Jurassic Park” or anything Williams is great. On that note, anything by James Horner (RIP), or especially Michael Giacchino is perfection. “Married Life” from Pixar’s “UP” is a modern classic.

Sav Accalia – “Baby Driver”!

Sheila Whittaker – “The Greatest Showman”

Drew Charles Pentkowski – “Almost Famous” or anything Ry Cooder had a hand in (“Southern Comfort,” “Crossroads”).

David Burns – “The Natural”

Christian J. VanAntwerpen – “Garden State” or “Back to the Future.” Kinda opposite spectrums but both amazing for what they are.
Leroy Theseal – “Muppet Movie” (1979).

Gail Greco-Bieri – I think “O, Brother” is a good one, as is “The Big Chill.” Then of course, the old classic musicals.

Mary Ellen Murphy – “Almost Famous.” “The Prince of Tides” soundtrack believe it or not. “East of Eden.”

Kristin Phillips Mooney – “Crazy Heart.” The soundtrack might not be the best but it is stuck in our boat player and has become our summer anthem.

Mark DeWitt – “Big Chill”

J.D. Loeks – “Forrest Gump”

Timmy Linscott – “Singles” for sure.

Stuart Poltrock – “Chocolat,” Rachel Portman

T.J. Hamilton – Another vote for “The Secret Life of Walter Mitty.”

Jamie Geysbeek – “O Brother” is incredible. I’m also a big fan of the 80s awesomeness in the “Napoleon Dynamite” soundtrack.

Mark Clay – “Guardians of the Galaxy.”

Brian Zeemering – Evanescence – “Bring Me To Life” – “Daredevil” (which won a Grammy). The entire soundtrack was good with Fuel, Seether, Finger 11, Rob Zombie/Drowning Pool, Nickleback, Moby, Hoobastank, etc.

John Serba – “Pulp Fiction.” LOVE the use of Bobby Womack’s “Across 110th Street” in “Jackie Brown.” Add me to the “Singles” Appreciation Society — highlights being two Pearl Jam gems and the greatest grunge-pop single ever, “Nearly Lost You” by Screaming Trees. “Gummo.” Sia’s “Waving Goodbye” in “The Neon Demon” is a stunner. Last time I laughed out loud to the use of a song in a movie was Tom Waits’ “I Don’t Wanna Grow Up,” playing as the Hitler Youth cavorted in the woods in “Jojo Rabbit.” Sure, “O Brother,” but the soundtrack to “Inside Llewyn Davis” is the best of any Coen Bros. film, and I’ll fistfight anyone who disagrees.LMK when you wanna talk movie scores and instrumental themes! Oh, does “Once” count? I mean, it’s a musical, which might be another category altogether. Oh crap — totally forgot this one. I’m 100 percent serious too: “Danger Zone (From “Top Gun” Original Soundtrack).

Steve Lubbinge – “Repo Man” or “Strange Days.”

Dave Joanis – “Detroit Rock City.”

Nicholas James Thomasma – I’d like to add “Fantasia” to this list of great soundtracks.

Pete Bruinsma – I haven’t paid attention to the soundtrack as a piece of collectible media for a long time, or I’d probably pick “Soul.” But I still like the OST from “Mighty Aphrodite.” Woody Allen can create a vibe.

Gregg Oonk – “Across The Universe”

Jacob Thomas Filarski – “Rocky Horror Picture Show,” of course.

Mike Council – “SuperFly” by Curtis Mayfield. The whole soundtrack album is beautiful.

Sara Nychypor – Anything by John Williams! “Indiana Jones” is a great one.

Angel Christman – Definitely a tie between the “Tron: Legacy” soundtrack and the “Into the Wild” soundtrack.

Stephen Aldrich – “Once Upon A Time In Hollywood,” hands down.

J Bradley Clark – “Into the Wild” soundtrack or “Valley Girl” soundtrack.

Dean Madonia – Wendy Carlos, “The Shining.”

Becca Mannes – “Last of the Mohicans.”

Lizzie Thibault – “Grosse Pointe Blank.”

Samil Molina Sosa – “Jackie Brown.”

Hugo Cruz – “To Live and Die in L.A.”

Mike Metzger – “Flash Gordon.”

Jim Jager – “Good Morning, Vietnam.”

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