Various Artists - Elizabethtown

Popular music has long played a prominent part in the films of director Cameron Crowe. Who can forget John Cusack’s stereo serenade in Say Anything, a bus full of burned out rockers and groupies bonding over “Tiny Dancer” in Almost Famous or Tom Cruise racing down the streets of New York to Radiohead in Vanilla Sky? These scenes have left indelible impressions on moviegoers, and it’s hard to imagine these moments without the perfect piece of music that seemed to capture the spirit of the moment and the film. Therefore, it comes as no surprise that an album of songs Crowe handpicked to accompany his latest film, Elizabethtown, is a wonderfully romantic and inspired collection. The album possesses two important qualities necessary to make a great soundtrack. First, the music showcased here not only matches the spirit and theme of the film but serves to further the theme. As the film is about coping with life, death and love and is centered on a journey across America’s heartland, Crowe deftly matches the mood of the movie and the music. The songs contained provide a great blend of folk, rock and bluegrass and each song manages to feel like a landmark on a journey through the many faces of American music. Additionally, the music selected is an appropriate mix of familiar voices (that provide the comfort feel-good movies should) and exciting, newer artists (that enable the boldness such films should also inspire). The album features quality tracks by recognizable artists like Tom Petty, Elton John, Lindsey Buckingham and The Hollies, while containing mesmerizing cuts by newer performers like Helen Stellar and eastmountainsouth. Other highlights of the record include cuts by My Morning Jacket, Ryan Adams and the album’s standout, “Long Ride Home,” by Patty Griffin, whose vocal presence is reason enough to experience the soundtrack. Elizabethtown the movie received mixed reviews from critics and patrons. There’s no denying, however, Elizabethtown the soundtrack is an album of cinematic proportions. [www.elizabethtown.com]