Shrek - Music From the Original Motion Picture [SOUNDTRACK]

Various Artists - Soundtrack (Composer), John Powell (Composer)

Product Details

• Audio CD (May 15, 2001)
• Original Release Date: May 18, 2001
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Soundtrack
• Label: Dreamworks
• ASIN: B00005CF9Y
• In-Print Editions: Audio Cassette
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars See all reviews (212 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #1,237 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

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Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com
Like The Muppet Show or The Simpsons, Shrek is tiered with visual appeal, fantasy, and sophisticated humor that appeals to children and adults on two mutually exclusive levels. Judging by the soundtrack alone, there is some genuine emotion coming from this movie; Rufus Wainwright, the Proclaimers, and especially the Eels all pen winsome, longing tunes. Dana Glover's "It Is You (I Have Loved)" represents the soundtrack's requisite glossy ballad, but it's better than most, and John Powell's climactic, orchestral "True Love's First Kiss" makes one wish there was a full score to accompany this soundtrack. On the flip side, Smash Mouth cover the Monkees' "I'm a Believer" with a groovy treatment of crunchy hip-hop beats, and Leslie Carter (sister of Aaron and Nick) gives a perky performance on the Britney-esque "Like Wow!" The soundtrack squeezes the last drops of juice from the overplayed Smash Mouth hit "All Star," but other than that, it strikes a great balance between cute-but-not-precious pop hits, and more grown-up songs that are well within reach of young ears. --Beth Massa

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

23 of 25 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Fair soundtrack, but not complete... not even close!, July 17, 2001

By	Dave Y. "nobody777" (Pasco, WA USA) - See all my reviews

The movie Shrek was a masterpiece! I loved it... Laughed my fool head off. And after seeing it three times, the fourth was just as good! Great characters, great voices, great story, great animation, great comedy, and most of all GREAT MUSIC SCORE!!! Unfortunately the movie soundtrack doesn't measure up to the expectations of the movie's fans and so I must give it a mere two stars.

I (along with many others who loved this movie) was really disappointed when I discovered there was only one track of actual score from the movie on this CD. Everyone I know who saw this film said, "I love the music in this movie!" In fairness I will say that there are some cool tunes on this CD that will conjure fond memories from the film (like "I'm On My Way" by the Proclaimers, "Like Wow" by Leslie Carter, "I'm A Believer" featuring Eddie Murphy and "Hallelujah" by Rufus Wainwright), but the glory of the movie's musical aspect (as most fans will certainly agree) was its orchestra score and the haunting, ethereal vocals that accompanied. Beautiful, original melodies that helped to create and enhance the atmosphere and emotion of this movie, drawing the audience into the story, sadly didn't make it onto the soundtrack. Major bummer indeed!

Perhaps a "sequel" to this soundtrack will follow. Fans can only hope. I know I will be one of the first to grab it! Until then, this CD is only an adequate passifier, but I still dig it. Two strong stars!

16 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Great, but missing 2 things., July 17, 2001

By	D2 "DarrenTooCool" (OK USA) - See all my reviews

I docked them a star for leaving off 2 important songs.

First off, you should know that the version of "I'm a Believer" that you hear on the radio (and in the movie) is NOT the same one you get here. The radio mix is perkier and more 60s-esque, where as the album version seems a bit more edgier and harder.

Also, you may recall how prominent a role the song "Hallelujah" had in the movie. That version, the one in the movie, was by - John Cale. The version on the album is by Rufus Wainwright. WTH? That makes no sense.

I suggest you buy the CD, obtain the 2 missing tracks, and burn the real version of the soundtrack.

17 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Unexpected substitutions, January 29, 2002

By	K. Fazzari (United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I'm very disappointed that they chose to substitute different artists for some of the songs. I really liked the version of "Hallelujah" in the movie, and the version sung by Rufus Wainwright just isn't the same. I don't understand why they didn't use the original artists, or at least put some sort of warning on the cover.