Search - Various Artists :: Singles: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack

Missed and faded glory

Sal Nudo | Champaign, Illinois | 08/23/2000

(5 out of 5 stars)

"The "Singles: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack," released in 1992, is a special album, and perfectly captures a cool time in rock and roll history. Singles was a somewhat hyped-up movie that was a tad lacking in my opinion, but this less-hyped CD lived up to the promise and talent of the Seattle rock and roll scene. Furthermore, the artists who contributed to this album had a real connection with each other, feeding off one another with a sense of purpose, community and committment to make the best music possible. Truthfully, this is one of the best rock and roll soundtracks I've ever heard.



Alice in Chains, Pearl Jam and Chris Cornell, as well as Cornell's raucous band, Soundgarden, all sound amazingly seasoned and mature on "Singles," not anything like new kids on the big-rock scene back in the early 1990s. These guys obviously spent years before this album honing their skills and craft, experiencing life in order to give us great music. This album broke some bands, but it also re-established the talent of the heavyweights like Pearl Jam, Alice in Chains and Soundgarden, all of whom roamed the earth touring at the time, churning out music and making a great name for themselves with the ease of a fluid guitar chord.



Chris Cornell's beautiful "Seasons" is incomparable, a breathtakingly reflective song that's nearly foreboding with its dim message of life and time moving on while one possibly gets left behind. "Seasons" is best absorbed and enjoyed after several listens, but many of these songs are instantly hummable. The "Singles" soundtrack offers a bit of everything: heavier "grunge" rock ("Birth Ritual," "Overblown); pop gems by Paul Westerberg ("Dyslexic Heart," "Waiting For Somebody"); a glam-rock ballad ("Chloe Dancer"); a live song ("Battle of Evermore"); old stuff by Jimmy Hendrix ("May This be Love"); and some radio-ready hits ("Nearly Lost You," "Would"). There are also some oddities and unexpected artists thrown in, perhaps to lighten the heavy grunge load that many expected at the time. Overall, the beauty of this soundtrack is in its unexpected diversity.



Smashing Pumpkins were outsiders to this project, a Chicago band that fit in like a new Hendrix perm. Many people were introduced to the Pumpkins via this soundtrack (like me), and the lucky Pumpkins did not disappoint, offering the spaced-out "Drown," a lulling, breezy track that turns deadly by the end, and ranks as one of the band's best offerings ever. For me, this was the first time I realized that music could be dreamily hypnotic, spaced-out to the max. "Drown" eerily closes the CD on a bleak and blaring note, a myriad of squealing guitars mixed with heavy base and jazzy drumming by Jimmy Chamberlain. It's the type of song that, if played until the end, would scare people out of bars by closing time. "Drown" offers no real hope, no sense of happiness to be alive or thankfulness for being included on a big-named soundtrack, yet in its raging sadness, the song actually reaffirms the dedication, heart and true feelings that all these contributing artists were pushing at the time.



Strangely, if you run down the list of artists and their songs featured on this classic album, you notice two things: either the band's shelf life has completely run its course commercially or, even sadder, the bands are completely defunct. The talented, revered and deceased Andy Wood summed it up perfectly in his beautiful soother-turned-rocker "Chloe Dancer/Crown of Thorns:" "You ever heard the story, of missed and faded glory?" Though its time has well passed, the "Singles" soundtrack remains a brooding musical gem from the Pacific Northwest."

A Sip of Seattle and cuts from bands on the rise in 1992

Jack Fitzgerald | Seattle, WA United States | 03/11/2003

(4 out of 5 stars)

"The Singles soundtrack is the companion to Cameron Crowe's 1992 film and demonstrates that movie soundtracks could be marketed as excellent compilations.The whole alternative/grunge scene really exploded in 1991, and for awhile Seattle was the hip, cutting edge place to be. By 1992, there was already some backlash, and Pearl Jam, Alice and Chains, Soundgarden and Mudhoney were not really fledgling bands, most of their members having paid their dues in smoky local clubs in the late 1980s. This disk is a great snapshot of Seattle in the early 1990s, with many of the songs written especially for this soundtrack. I think it's a great time capsule that holds up well even ten years later.Alice and Chains starts us off with "Would," a slow burn with rumbling bass, muddy guitars and haunting harmonies by Layne Staley and Jerry Cantrell. Great lead-off punch."Breathe" by Pearl Jam follows, perhaps a cut that didn't make their debut "Ten" but a fine song with cool sliding basslines, dual guitar interplay and nice drum track. Eddie Vedder displays his powerful baritone and backs himself up nicely."Seasons" is a solo piece by Soundgarden frontman, Chris Cornell, singing with only guitar accompaniment with introspective lyrics that remind one of sitting on the wall at Kerry Park on Highland Drive and overlooking Seattle."Dyslexic Heart" come from non-Seattleite Paul Westerberg, who had success with the Replacements. This song is fun grunge pop, with clever lyrics, and was the theme for the character relationships in the movie. Very popular with the girls, too.Cameron Crowe linked his relationship with Nancy Wilson and her Seattle roots for The Lovemongers cover of Led Zeppelin's "Battle of Evermore." The guitars and mandolins have a very live feel, and Ann and Nancy's harmonies blend well."Chloe Dancer/Crown of Thorns" comes from Mother Love Bone, whose singer, Andrew Wood, was an early casualty from overdose before his band had a big breakthrough. Jeff Ament and Stone Gossard of Pearl Jam were also in this band."Birth Ritual" is some true metal crunch from Soundgarden, all feedback, distortion and Cornell's pipes at full throttle."State of Love and Trust" by Pearl Jam is a more urgent performance than "Breathe" and rocks harder."Overblown" by Mudhoney is another great rocker with brain-bashing drums, from a band that never received the national attention of many other Seattle bands, but stayed true to its course and rattled the walls of many a club."Waiting for Somebody" is another Paul Westerberg tune that's musically similar to "Dyslexic Heart" but not quite as catchy."May This be Love" is a somewhat obscure Jimi Hendrix tune, another homage to a Seattle hero, with some trippy guitars, vocals and lyrics."Nearly Lost You" is one of the sleepers here, and one of my favorites. Fantastic guitar/drum interplay and outstanding throaty vocals by Mark Lanegan. Screaming Trees were true flannel-wearing guys from the eastern Washington cow town of Ellensburg and used to play at barn parties for local school kids.The disk closes with "Drown" by the Smashing Pumpkins, another non-Seattle band, but one that was part of the initial grunge movement, with layers of distorted guitars and Billy Corgan's trademark vocal style.It's interesting to see where these groups and individual members are at now, and how the music all goes in cycles."

Better Days

Brian | chicago, il | 08/16/2001

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I was really young when this soundtrack came out, so I missed it, along with the heyday of all the bands on it... still, to add to the cliche, this is the best soundtrack of the nineties, and probably the best soundtrack ever... I used to think the crow soundtrack took that honor (it did have two very amazing songs by the cure and nin), but this is just overall better. "state of love and trust", "chloe dancer/crown of thorns", "drown", "would?" - the list goes on. amazing. wish mtv still played music like this - wish new bands still made music like this... as a piece of youth known for limp bizkit and n sync, i feel truly cheated..."