Let’s face it, movies wouldn’t be the same without their soundtracks and some are even celebrated and remembered today because of their musical masterpieces. The right piece of movie soundtracks can induce a variety of emotions while watching movie scenes – from heartfelt, emotional romantic moments to the tense, hide-behind-a-cushion scares in horror films. Whether it’s a specially composed epic music score, or a carefully selected playlist of well-known pop songs, if done well, music can have a big impact on a movie’s audience. In this article, I have compiled some of the best music from movies over the last forty-odd years and although it was a struggle to narrow them all down, there should be something here for everyone. In no particular order, here are the top 10 movie soundtracks of all time:
Grease is the most successful movie musical of all time and its songs are still popular today! This classic movie follows the friendships and romances of a group of high school kids in the 1950s. The movie soundtrack features songs such as “You’re the One That I Want,” “Summer Nights” and “Greased Lightning,” and has sold around 28 million copies, making it one of the best-selling soundtracks of all time! “You’re the One That I Want” even went to No.1 in the US and UK charts.
2.Titanic (1997)
This epic romance-disaster film depicts a fictionalised account of the sinking of the Titanic. The movie won 11 Academy Awards including Best Motion Picture – Drama and Best Original Song, for “My Heart Will Go On” by Celine Dion, which is the film’s only song with lyrics. Titanic’s soundtrack was composed, orchestrated and conducted by James Horner and has sold around 30 million copies since shooting to the top of the charts, making it the highest-selling primarily orchestral soundtrack ever!
This 80s Box Office hit was the first ever movie to sell more than 1 million copies on home video. Dirty Dancing follows the story of Baby as she secretly learns how to dance and falls in love with her instructor, played by the much-loved Patrick Swayze. Its epic finale features a now iconic dance number to the song “The Time of My Life”, which won two accolades for Best Original Song. The movie’s soundtrack generated two multi-platinum albums and multiple singles, went on to sell 32 million copies worldwide and spent 18 weeks at No.1 in the US album charts, making it one of the most popular movie soundtracks of all time!
Saturday Night Fever is an American musical-drama film which helped to popularise 70s disco music around the world and made John Travolta a household name. Its soundtrack features several disco songs by the Bee Gees, including “Stayin’ Alive” and “Night Fever” and remains one of the best-selling soundtracks of all time with over 45 million copies sold! In the UK, the album spent 18 consecutive weeks at No.1 and in the US, it was at the top of the charts for 24 weeks straight in 1978. The movie soundtrack is also on the National Recording Registry for being culturally significant!
The Bodyguard tells the story of a former secret service agent as he takes on the job of bodyguard to a best-selling pop singer, played by music sensation Whitney Houston. The film was Houston’s acting debut and became the second highest-grossing film of 1992. Its soundtrack is the best-selling soundtrack of all time with more than 45 million copies sold! Five of its songs were hit singles for Houston, including her popular cover of “I Will Always Love You” which sold 20 million copies as a single. The album won several music awards, including Top Soundtrack Album in 1993 and Houston herself won 8 American Music Awards off the back of The Bodyguard’s soundtrack, including Best Female Artist.
This movie was the beginning of classic space media franchise Star Wars, which depicts the adventures of characters in “a long time ago in a galaxy far, far away.” First appearing on screens in 1977, Star Wars became a worldwide phenomenon and is today valued at around 42 billion dollars! Its iconic film score, composed and conducted by John Williams and performed by the London Symphony Orchestra, went on to become certified Gold and Platinum and won numerous awards including Grammys and Baftas. Star Wars’ intro music remains instantly recognisable and is one of the most memorable movie scores of all time!
This Quentin Tarantino masterpiece is an unconventional, multi-strand crime movie, which depicts several interconnected stories shown out of order. With a distinctly postmodern feel due to lots of pastiche and non-chronological sequencing, Pulp Fiction had major critical success, winning the Palme d’or for best film at Cannes Film Festival in 1995. This movie spundtracks re-uses older songs and contains a mix of American rock and roll, pop, soul and surf music, from artists such as Neil Diamond, Kool and the Gang and Chuck Berry. The soundtrack itself is equally untraditional, with many tracks omitted and some featuring dialogue alone, so the music is best experienced while watching the film!
The Lord of the Rings is an epic adventure fantasy franchise made up of three movies filmed on location in New Zealand. Based on books written by J.R.R Tolkien, the story set in the fictional world of Middle Earth, follows Frodo Baggins’ quest to destroy the One Ring in a bid to save civilisation from doom. The movies, which won 17 Academy Awards, feature original Celtic melodies composed by Howard Shore, performed by several large choirs, orchestras and vocal soloists. The films’ music, which fits the action perfectly and evokes all kind of emotions, garnered an Academy Award for Best Original Score and a Grammy for Best Score Soundtrack.
Forrest Gump is an Oscar-winning romantic drama film depicting several decades in the life of its titular character, as slow-witted, good-natured, kind-hearted man. Gump witnesses some of the defining moments of the latter half of the 20th century including the Vietnam War and assassination of President Kennedy. Its soundtrack features 32 tracks in total, including classics like Elvis’ “Hound Dog,” Aretha Franklin’s “Respect” and Lynrd Skynyrd’s “Sweet Home Alabama,” as well as Alan Silvestri’s nostalgic music score from the opening credits. This awesome movie soundtrack, featuring American artists only, has sold around 12 million copies worldwide!
This famous Disney animated musical film, follows the story of young lion Simba who is to succeed his father as King of the Pride Lands. The Lion King is the highest-grossing traditionally animated film of all time and won a Golden Globe for Best Picture, along with two Academy Awards for its music. Its soundtrack contains a music score by Hans Zimmer, as well as songs from the film by Elton John and Tim Rice such as “Can You Feel the Love Tonight” and “The Circle of Life.” The ever-popular and nostalgic “Hakuna Matata” also features on the album which went 10x Platinum in 1995 and remains the best-selling soundtrack to an animated film in the US, with over 7 million copies sold. The Lion King is now also a popular musical in the West End and on Broadway!
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