Music From the Motion Picture Philadelphia
Music From the Motion Picture Philadelphia was released 30 years ago this week. Philadelphia is a legal drama released in 1993. The film was written by Ron Nyswaner and directed by Jonathan Demme. It stars Tom Hanks, Denzel Washington, and Antonio Banderas. The movie was primarily filmed on location in Philadelphia and tells the compelling and tragic story of Attorney Andrew Beckett (Tom Hanks), who hires fellow attorney Joe Miller (Denzil Washington) to sue his firm for discrimination and wrongful termination after they fired him after discovering he was gay and has AIDS.
Howard Shore scored the film, but the soundtrack includes a smattering of songs featured in the movie along with one piece of music from Shore’s score. Unlike other popular soundtracks of 90’s movies, this soundtrack includes more mature music from mostly established artists that best fit the tone and story of the movie. The soundtrack stretches back to the 80’s for most of its artists including Bruce Springsteen, Neil Young, Sade, and Peter Gabriel. But then it also includes 90’s artists Indigo Girls and …Spin Doctors? it’s a bizarre collection of songs, to be honest. Outside the outstanding dueling Philadelphia-titled songs from Springsteen and Young, it’s not super memorable either. The Spin Doctors, whom I enjoy, inexplicably cover Creedence Clearwater Revival’s Have You Ever Seen The Rain? which is a fine cover but out of place on this soundtrack.
Honestly, this was a fine background listen and reminded me I should probably re-watch this movie again sometime but other than Springsteen and Young, it’s not really my cup of tea. I can’t imagine pulling this off the rack too often in the future.
The standout is the Young track, which is used to tremendous effect at the end of the movie. Young’s haunting voice and melancholy arrangement are perfect for the scene and the song is strong enough to stand on its own as well.
Rating: 💿💿💿
Music From The Motion Picture Philadelphia CD
Music From The Motion Picture Philadelphia CD