Serendipity: Music from the Miramax Motion Picture [SOUNDTRACK]

Alan Silvestri (Composer)

Product Details

• Audio CD (October 2, 2001)
• Original Release Date: October 5, 2001
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Soundtrack
• Label: Sony
• ASIN: B00005OAIA
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (77 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #9,398 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

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Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

As peopled by John Cusack and Kate Beckinsale, director Peter Chelsom's romantic fable mines a familiar vein: What if a pair of attractive protagonists engaged to others suddenly found themselves madly in love? If the premise is as vintage Hollywood as popcorn and sticky theater floors, its soundtrack is smartly contemporary, a collection of new songs (by Evan & Jaron, Shawn Colvin, Wood, Heather Nova, John Mayer, and Chantal Kreviazuk) and well-selected album cuts (by Annie Lennox, Nick Drake, Bap Kennedy, David Gray) filled out with a loopy slice of vintage Louis Armstrong ("Cool Yule") and jazzy solo piano score excerpt by film composer Alan Silvestri. The tone shifts warmly amid jangly alterna-pop, folk-tinged, and quieter, more jazz/blues flavored cuts. It's tasteful, sensual stuff--and largely devoid of the cloying bathos of similar Hollywood romantic fare. -Jerry McCulley

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

129 of 129 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A Complete Soundtrack List, September 21, 2004

By	Wesley Goo "Wesley108" (Long Beach, CA) - See all my reviews

Hey All!

Serendipity is one of my favorite movies - yes, sappy and syrupy - but hey, it hit the spot. And here's a complete list of songs for those of you die-hard fans (like myself) who try to put together a REAL soundtrack:

1. Cool Yule - Louis Armstrong (opening department store scene)
2. Hark the Herald Angels Sing - Lewis Ross as the New American Guitar Ensemble
3. Moonlight Kiss - Bap Kennedy (plays from when Sara gets into the cab through the skating scene)
4. January Rain - David Gray (plays during giving of the phone number)
5.Joy To the World - Tuba Christmas ("that's a lot of tuba")
6. Fast Forward - Alan Silvestri (instrumental score music)
7. Waiting in Vain - Annie Lennox (Sara in San Francisco)
8. 83 - John Mayer - (when Jonathan is going to get hair cut)
9. "Sarah Smile" - Hall & Oats (kid on bike singing it while John is in taxi)
10. From Rusholme With Love (Serendipity Mix) - Mint Royale (Lars' music)
11. Never a Day - Wood (playing in club after Lars' finishes his set)
12. Black Eyed Dog - Nick Drake (just a clip used in scene where Halle is asleep and John is drinking beer AND after John and Jeremy see Sara's sister in the window)
13. Rose Rouge - St. Germaine (used in wherehouse w/Eugene Levy AND at the end on the plane and at beginning when Eve says "PRADA")
14. Shake It Off - Jarvis Church (Used instrumentally when Sara and Eve search driving range)
15. Charley's Prelude - Don Byron (at wedding rehearsal)
16. When You Know - Shawn Colvin (when Jonathan gets "Love in the Time of Cholera" from Halle and in cab).
17. January Rain - David Gray (used again here at the ice rink)
18. Northern Sky - Nick Drake (Jonathan and Sara meet again)
19. Cool Yule (reprise) - Louis Armstrong (back in dept. store)
20. The Distance - Evan & Jaron (during credits)
21. This Year - Chantal Kreviazuk (during credits)

Okay, hope that helps. One more little tip for you wanting the instrumental score by Alan Silvestri (i.e., When Jonathan is reading his obituary, etc.) ... The best you're going to get (I think) is doing what I did ... hook up a CD recorder to your DVD player (or VHS) and record it directly off the DVD/VHS. This way, you'll not only have the music but you may have some audio clips of dialogue too. It's fun!

Trailer Music: All instrumental music ... don't know where it's from (it may be all Alan Silvestri's) ... the only "real" song in the trailer (at least the one on the DVD) is "Babylon" by David Gray.

Hope that helps. Happy Listening!

Wesley

74 of 77 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Satisfying, November 29, 2001

By	T. Jones-Yelvington "newlesson" (Chicago) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

A good soundtrack is crucial to the execution of a well constructed romantic comedy. The best romantic comedies recognize that they are meant to be formulaic, to play upon our need for happy endings, light hearted cinematic dialogue and memorably cliched one-liners. Likewise, a good romantic comedy soundtrack plays a crucial role in manipulating our emotions.

Just like the movie, the Serendipity soundtrack passes the test w/ flying colors. The tracks are selected with careful intentionality, and it shows, both while watching the film and while listening to the album. If you've seen the movie, it is quite possible you will remember many of these tracks. That is because they are all well selected.

Bap Kennedy's "Moonlight Kiss," David Gray's "January Rain," Nick Drake's "Northern Sky," Annie Lennox's "Waiting in Vain," Shawn Colvin's "When You Know" and John Mayer's "83" are all superb. Louis Armstrong's "Cool Yule" is perfect for the obligatory upbeat vocal jazz standard which backs the opening credits of every romantic comedy. Even the album's slightly obnoxious poppish tracks -- Wood's "Never a Day," Evan and Jaron's "The Distance" and Chantal Kreviazuk's "This Year" -- are not all that offensive, and all three have grown on me.

Only a few fairly minor complaints: Why do soundtracks include titles not heard in the movie? Is this because the albums are produced before the film is edited? In the case of Heather Nova's "Like Lover's Do," I don't particulaly mind. It's a very likable song from an artist I enjoy, and is in keeping w/ the tone of the soundtrack. Brian Whitman's version of (There's) Always Something There to Remind Me, however, is completely unneccesary. Perhaps the album's weakest track, it adds absolutely nothing to an already over-covered song. If it appeared in the movie, it might be another story -- but it doesn't, and could stand to be cut from the soundtrack as well.

Also -- why is it that soundtrack songs are always placed in a different order than they appear in the film? I suppose I can understand that a purchasable album requires cohesiveness, and this often makes it neccesary to reorder the tracks. However, when I purchase a soundtrack, I do so to relive the movie -- a difficult task when the songs are out of order. And after all, the world does revolve around me and my desires -- doesn't it?

In any case, this is a strong soundtrack. I am happy to have purchased it, and even happier to have discovered some new (and well respected) artists in the process. (Nick Drake currently sits happily waiting on my wish list, and I recently burned a friend's copy of David Gray's White Ladder.)

There is a definite qualitative difference between this album and other soundtracks of its kind, and I eagerly reccomend skeptics explore it. Perhaps it will become a "happy accident."
--TIM

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars If you liked the Sitar music on Serendipity..., April 18, 2002

By A Customer

If you liked the sitar music on Serendipity, you should know it's not included on this cd. Mint Royale has a cd called On The Ropes and the song you want to check out is "From Rushmore, With Love."