Jump to content

Cold Mountain (soundtrack)

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Cold Mountain
Soundtrack album by
Various
ReleasedDecember 9, 2003 (2003-12-09)
Studio
GenreFolk, old-time
Length62:59
LabelDMZ/Columbia
ProducerT Bone Burnett

Cold Mountain is the soundtrack for the Civil War film Cold Mountain (2003) starring Jude Law, Nicole Kidman, and Renée Zellweger. The album was nominated for two Grammy Awards and was produced by T Bone Burnett. Two songs were nominated for Academy Awards: "You Will Be My Ain True Love", written by Sting, and "The Scarlet Tide", written by Burnett and Elvis Costello. Both songs were sung by Alison Krauss.

The soundtrack consists of Appalachian, roots music, and old-time music to accompany the era of the movie. Jack White, of the rock band the White Stripes, performs five songs and appears as a troubadour in the movie.[2]

Background

[edit]

When T Bone Burnett was looking for a young musician who understood the music of Cold Mountain, the person he came up with was Jack White, a rock guitarist from Detroit who had a deep interest in blues and bluegrass music. White was acquainted with two songs that appeared on the soundtrack. When he was fifteen, he played "Sitting on Top of the World", and years later he performed "The Wayfaring Stranger" with a band. Burnett and White met and talked about music and listened to Dock Boggs, Son House, Jimmie Rodgers, and Blind Willie Johnson.[3]

With the help of John Cohen, a musicologist and founding member of the New Lost City Ramblers, Burnett continued his quest for experts on early American music. He found Dirk Powell, who played banjo, the Reeltime Travelers, an old-time music band from Tennessee, and Tim Eriksen, a vocalist and guitarist who was familiar with Sacred Harp music.[3] The song "Idumea" is an example of Sacred Harp music, also known as shape note because the notes printed on the sheet music bear shapes, such as squares and triangles, to show changes in pitch.[4] After rehearsing with the Sacred Harp singers in a studio, Burnett decided that the style was best heard in Liberty Baptist Church in Henagar, Alabama. The church's sixty-three member choir appeared on the soundtrack. "Lady Margaret", sung by choir member Cassie Franklin, appeared on the soundtrack but not in the movie.[3]

Sting wrote "You Will Be My Ain True Love" for Cold Mountain, and it was sung by Alison Krauss. Burnett and Elvis Costello wrote "The Scarlet Tide", also sung by Krauss. Both songs received Academy Award nominations for Best Original Song and Grammy Award nominations for Best Song Written for Visual Media. The soundtrack reached No. 51 on the Billboard 200 chart. As of 2004, the soundtrack has sold 260,000 copies in United States.[5] The DVD of the movie included a concert documentary with performances by some of the musicians who contributed to the soundtrack.[3]

Awards and honors

[edit]

Track listing

[edit]
No.TitleWriter(s)Performer(s)Length
1."Wayfaring Stranger"TraditionalJack White4:25
2."Like a Songbird That Has Fallen"T Bone BurnettReeltime Travelers3:13
3."I Wish My Baby Was Born"TraditionalRiley Baugus/Tim Eriksen/Tim O'Brien3:09
4."The Scarlet Tide"Burnett/Elvis CostelloAlison Krauss2:59
5."The Cuckoo"TraditionalRiley Baugus/Tim Eriksen1:39
6."Sitting on Top of the World"Lonnie Chatmon/Walter VinsonJack White3:48
7."Am I Born to Die?"TraditionalTim Eriksen2:32
8."You Will Be My Ain True Love"StingAlison Krauss2:31
9."I'm Going Home"TraditionalSacred Harp Singers2:18
10."Never Far Away"Jack WhiteJack White3:40
11."Christmas Time Will Soon Be Over"Traditional/Jack WhiteJack White3:16
12."Ruby with the Eyes That Sparkle"TraditionalStuart Duncan/Dirk Powell3:11
13."Lady Margret"TraditionalCassie Franklin3:02
14."Great High Mountain"TraditionalJack White4:33
15."Anthem"Gabriel YaredGabriel Yared3:24
16."Ada Plays"Gabriel YaredGabriel Yared3:18
17."Ada and Inman"Gabriel YaredGabriel Yared5:03
18."Love Theme"Gabriel YaredGabriel Yared3:40
19."Idumea"Traditional/Charles WesleySacred Harp Singers3:18
Total length:62:59[2]

Personnel

[edit]

Production

References

[edit]
  1. ^ Stark, Phyllis (2 June 2017). "Meet the Woman Keeping Nashville's Historic Sound Emporium Perking". Billboard. Retrieved 2 August 2024.
  2. ^ a b Monger, Jams Christopher. "Cold Mountain Original Soundtrack". AllMusic. Retrieved 6 December 2016.
  3. ^ a b c d Sachs, Lloyd (4 October 2016). T Bone Burnett: A Life in Pursuit. University of Texas Press. pp. 138–140. ISBN 978-1477303771.
  4. ^ Kennedy, Randy (23 December 2003). "For a Timeless Song Style, A Chance at the Big Time". The New York Times. Retrieved 6 December 2016.
  5. ^ "2004's Top 30 Soundtracks". Billboard. November 20, 2004. p. 93. ISSN 0006-2510. Retrieved March 19, 2022.
  6. ^ "Film in 2004 | BAFTA Awards". BAFTA. Retrieved 6 December 2016.
  7. ^ "2004 World Soundtrack Awards". ASCAP. Retrieved 6 December 2016.
  8. ^ a b "Songwriters Hall of Fame - Sting Awards". Songwriters Hall of Fame. Archived from the original on 10 March 2015. Retrieved 6 December 2016.
  9. ^ a b "Cold Mountain Credits". AllMusic. Retrieved 5 December 2016.