This weekend is the Oscars, which I won’t be watching unless I happen upon it while my girlfriend is. But, since it is the Oscars, I have two soundtrack posts to put up.
I have an aversion to purchasing movie soundtracks; for the most part, soundtracks are mixed tapes made for a wider audience. The last soundtrack I obtained (note: not bought) was Garden State, like most everyone everywhere. The reason I don’t buy soundtracks is that if a song is tied to a movie, then that’s why I remember the song – not because I have made the memory of the song on my own time. I’d rather have the music be personally affecting than forced on me by Zach Braff. (This isn’t meant to be vitriol directed toward Mr. Braff; he’s just an easy target, really. The music he uses in his movies are like the Egg of Columbus to me.)
With that said, often times it’s the covers that pop up on soundtracks that intrigue me most – mostly because they’re often unable to be found elsewhere on the artist’s albums. Here are three of my favorite covers from movie soundtracks; two of the movies I haven’t even seen, but I don’t think I’m missing much by not having seen them. And for that matter, you might not be missing out if you don’t hear these covers, but they’re interesting regardless. Tomorrow I’ll have some good, non-cover soundtrack tunes. I hope everyone is enjoying the weekend.
Harvey Danger – Save It For Later (The English Beat cover) (mp3) from the 200 Cigarettes soundtrack (Note that the movie has been discontinued; this is probably the first time it’s been talked about by anyone in the decade since its release.)
The Push Stars – Bad Sneakers (Steely Dan cover) (mp3) from the Me, Myself and Irene soundtrack
Elliot Smith – Trouble (Cat Stevens cover) (mp3) from the Thumbsucker soundtrack
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