Sleepless In Seattle - Original Soundtrack

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Sleepless in Seattle: Hits and Misses

1. As Time Goes By (Jimmy Durante): Miss. Maybe I'm too young to remember the guy with the big nose and the gravelly voice, but this rendition of Herman Hupfeld's song simply irritates me.

2. A Kiss To Build a Dream On (Louis Armstrong): Hit. Satchmo, on the other hand, is a legend in American jazz -- hell, American music. His voice was gruff, yes, but he sang with ...
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3. Stardust (Nat "King" Cole): Hit. I've heard this song covered by two great singers -- Frank Sinatra and Nat Cole. Sinatra was good, and backed by the Tommy Dorsey orchestra he was fantastic. But this is my favorite version, perhaps because it's the complete song, but mainly because Nat's version is more moving.

4. Making Whoopee (Dr. John, featuring Rickie Lee Jones): Miss. I'm sorry, but I can't stand this version. ... more

I love soundtrack albums. Whether they are symphonic scores a la Star Wars or a cleverly assembled mix of songs and artists such as American Graffiti's 2-CD set, albums with the label "Music from the original motion picture" never fail to catch my attention. I don't even have to have seen the movie -- if the music is composed by, say, masters of the genre like John Williams or James Horner, they are at least considered.

And even when the film's actual music doesn't match up with its associated CD (as in "When Harry Met Sally..." ), if the songs and artists are chosen properly and the music has an emotional effect on me, I tend to overlook an album's flaws. After all, I am a card-carrying member of the Richard Blaine Association for Rank Sentimentalists.

And it is precisely because I am at heart a rank sentimentalist, Epic Soundtrax's "Sleepless in Seattle" should have been more enjoyable, or at least a bit more emotionally charged, but this Nora Ephron-Marc Shaiman produced album was more of a hit-and-miss affair at best. Yes, I like some of it, but in the end I found myself wishing I'd bought something nicer.

Unlike the similarly-themed "Music from the Motion Picture When Harry Met Sally..." there is no single artist who carries the 12-song album. Not having seen the entire film -- despite its frequent airings around Valentine's Day -- I can't say for certain if the same artists featured here (Jimmy Durante, Louis Armstrong, Tammy Wynette and Gene Autry, just to name a few) are heard in the movie's soundtrack. (While I am a big fan of movie soundtracks and do buy them because I like the movies they are from, I also buy them for just the music.)

To be fair, there are some wonderful songs in this CD. I absolutely get goosebumps when I hear the mellow, soothing voice of Nat "King" Cole as he sings Hoagy Carmichael's reflective "Stardust" -- a reverie about separation and longing. I also enjoy Louis Armstrong's rendition of "A Kiss To Build a Dream On," Carly Simon's "In the Wee Hours of the Morning" and Harry Connick's rendition of producer/composer Shaiman's "A Wink and a Smile." The mix of happy, sad and memory-triggering songs reflects (to me, anyway) the highs and lows of any romantic affair, with all the passions, smiles and tears involved.

Slightly less thrilling were several tracks, including Jimmy Durante's covers of "As Time Goes By" and "Make Someone Happy." Maybe it's because I'm just too used to listening to Dooley Wilson's classic version as heard in Casablanca, or maybe it's just that Durante's gravelly voice just doesn't seem right for "As Time Goes By." (Again, to be fair, I didn't have such a visceral reaction to the second Durante track ("Make Someone Happy:...but that's not one of my favorite selections.) And although I can sit through Celine Dion and Clive Griffin's cover of "When I Fall in Love," I still find myself wishing Shaiman and Ephron had chosen to use Nat Cole's rendition of this beautiful Edward Hayman-Victor Young song.

Sleepless in Seattle: Hits and Misses

1. As Time Goes By (Jimmy Durante): Miss. Maybe I'm too young to remember the guy with the big nose and the gravelly voice, but this rendition of Herman Hupfeld's song simply irritates me.

2. A Kiss To Build a Dream On (Louis Armstrong): Hit. Satchmo, on the other hand, is a legend in American jazz -- hell, American music. His voice was gruff, yes, but he sang with enthusiasm...and man! Could he play that trumpet!

3. Stardust (Nat "King" Cole): Hit. I've heard this song covered by two great singers -- Frank Sinatra and Nat Cole. Sinatra was good, and backed by the Tommy Dorsey orchestra he was fantastic. But this is my favorite version, perhaps because it's the complete song, but mainly because Nat's version is more moving.

4. Making Whoopee (Dr. John, featuring Rickie Lee Jones): Miss. I'm sorry, but I can't stand this version. It's the only time I've heard Dr. John, but I didn't like the stylings, the rhythm, or Rickie Lee Jones.

5. In the Wee Small Hours of the Morning (Carly Simon): Hit. On the other hand, I've loved Carly Simon's voice since I heard her sing "The Spy Who Loved Me," and I am a big fan of her music for "Working Girl," so this one gets a big thumbs up. Sultry and sentimental.

6. Back in the Saddle Again (Gene Autry): Hit. All right. So singing cowboys aren't my cup of tea, but this song is enjoyable.

7. Bye Bye Blackbird (Joe Cocker): Hit. Despite myself, I liked this song, with its almost Gospel-like R & B stylings and earnest vocals by Cocker. The background vocals were also pretty cool. Listen for awesome guitar licks and a catchy backbeat.

8. A Wink and a Smile (Harry Connick, Jr.): Hit. Jaunty, catchy, and smoothly sung by one of America's finest jazz/standards singers.

9. Stand By Your Man (Tammy Wynette): Miss. I'm usually very open minded to country songs even though it's not my favorite genre, but this song simply irritates me.

10. An Affair to Remember (Instrumental): Hit. The only non-vocal selection, Harry Warren's theme for the Cary Grant harkens back to the 1950s, yet sounds timeless.

11. Make Someone Happy (Jimmy Durante): Miss. It doesn't bug me as much the rendition of As Time Goes By, but Jimmy Durante's rendition of this song just makes me want to skip ahead to....

12. When I Fall in Love (Celine Dion & Clive Griffin): Miss. Why they couldn't use Nat "King" Cole's version, or why Clive Griffin couldn't sing this as a solo is beyond me, but I am simply not thrilled by this duet with Celine Dion. Still, if given a choice between listening to this and the previous track, I'd choose this one...reluctantly.

 

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