Your top three movie soundtracks

Not television.
Not a song from a soundtrack.
Not from a filmed concert.
What are your three favorite theatrical movie soundtracks?

Mine are:
Ringo Starr and Harry Nillson’s Son Of Dracula
All This And World War II, featuring Beatles songs sung by various non-Beatles
Casino Royale-The one from the 60’s. Yeah, the movie itself was a hot mess, but that soundtrack is sublime.

You?

The three in the OP could have easily been my own (I had the first two albums in high school, found in the bargain bin).

Mine are:

The Big Lebowski (Great covers by the Gypsy Kings, Kenny Rogers, Townes Van Zandt, etc.)

The Zero Effect (Elvis Costello, Nick Cave, Candy Butchers, etc.)

Mishima (Philip Glass’ best work)

Tom Waits & Crystal Gayle, One From The Heart.

The Commitments.

The Last Waltz.

The Big Chill.

Little Shop of Horrors, Xanadu, and The Wall.

Xanadu would have been my fourth choice.

My number one always goes to Blow.
Boogie Nights is probably in second place.
I’m not sure about the third, I’d have to rewatch the movies, but it would likely be Pulp Fiction or Trainspotting or Goodfellas.

Also, I’m not one to link to a ‘here’s a list of what you’re asking about which will shut down any interesting conversation about the subject’, but one of my favorite youtube channels, Cinefix, has done a number of videos on music/scores/soundtracks for movies. I’m not claiming these are end all be all top 10 lists, but they’re really interesting videos in and of themselves.
Top 10 Soundtracks of All Time
Top 10 Scores of All Time
Top 10 Musical Moments of All Time

Again, I’m not saying these are definitive top 10 lists, but what I really like about them (and Cinefix, in general) is the way they explain WHY they’re so good. In these cases, WHY the music fits the movie so well and breaking down what makes it a great soundtrack.

I was going to mention something about The Wall (as a reply to you) and was double checking myself on The Wall’s wiki page. I had no idea, or at least I don’t think I did, that Bob Geldof played Pink. Which, as it always does, sends me down the Bob Geldof rabbit hole.

Speaking of hot messes:

Purple Rain

In the words of Fox Mulder: “Great album. Deeply flawed movie.”

Which is why I prefer personal lists. I can look up Top Ten lists myself, but no online list is going to tell me the personal favorites of y’all. :grin:

Sorry, yeah, that’s what I was trying to say. I’m not using those links to suggest that they ARE the best soundtracks, I just like the way they explain what makes a soundtrack good.

What I hate is when someone starts a thread on, for example, “movies where a father directed their daughter” or “movies that features second cousins as co-stars” or something else specific like that. It’ll generate interesting conversations and tangents, but inevitably someone will link to a website that lists every movie ever made that covers the exact thing we were talking about.

The Original Star Wars

Queen’s “It’s a Kind of Magic” which featured all the songs from Highlander.

Well, that’s two anyways. I could cheat and throw in the soundtrack for the video game Halo, but I won’t :smiley:

Star Wars, Star Trek 2, and Back to the Future.

La Bamba, Heavy Metal and Killer Klowns From Outer Space. Not a great movie among them, but music I’ve enjoyed and played repeatedly.

What makes a soundtrack good is if I really like the songs and performances. Bonus points if they directly enhance the movie.

Grease!
Saturday Night Fever!
Big Chill!

The Commitments
The Big Chill
American Graffiti

Lord of the Rings : The Return of the King
The Martian, the mixture between songs and the soundscapes is awesome
Then a toss up between Chariots of Fire , a classic or Trainspotting.

John Williams: I am torn between Star Wars and Jurassic Park.

Basil Poledouris: Conan the Barbarian. I listen to the soundtrack more often than I watch the movie.

Various artists: Heavy Metal.

The Empire Strikes Back

Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl

The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring

It’s hard to pick out a single favorite*, but Bernard Herrmann was responsible for numerous soundtracks that made movies better.

I wouldn’t mind if someone got me this CD set for my birthday.

*maybe “Psycho”.

Somehow, I left The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly off my list. It’s my frickin’ ringtone!