AFI 100 Best Songs
Wed., June 30, 11:05 AM
Did you happen to see the American Film Institute’s 100 Best Movie Songs? Somehow, it wasn’t quite what I expected, although I have to admit I don’t know exactly what I thought it would be like. I just figured it was more to my taste than something like “The 100 Best Scary Pictures.” And I thought I might glean some data for my song project
I knew I wouldn’t hear all the songs sung in full. That would take up the three hours, even without the commentary. Nevertheless, a few film clips to demonstrate the original scenes might be nice.
At the beginning they announced they were bending the rules a little. Unlike songs nominated for Academy Awards, these did not have to be songs written specifically for that movie. It makes sense. When you hear “That Old Time Rock and Roll,” don’t you picture Tom Cruise in “Risky Business”? “Unchained Melody” – a bigger hit than the movie “Unchained” – was far more impressive in “Ghost.” And “As Time Goes By” – written years earlier for a show that flopped – will forever be associated with “Casablanca.”
So I sat down with my pencil and pad, just as I used to listen to the weekly charts, and prepared to enjoy the show. “Thanks for the Memories” – poignant as ever. “The Way You Look Tonight” didn’t clearly depict the situation; it was hard to tell that Ginger Rogers’ hair was covered with shampoo. Originally that was a very funny scene, comedy you can’t discern from the sentimental lyrics.
I knew something about most of the songs. Many of them were Oscar winners, obviously, because they were good songs from the start. I was sorry not to see more of the Oscar losers, songs that kind of fall through the cracks sometimes. I thought of “True Love” and “I’ll Never Stop Loving You.” “Lovely to Look At.” “That Old Black Magic.” And more of them could have been included.
What began to tick me off was that they were including songs from Broadway plays. Oh, yes, expanding a scene from the stage to film often displays great directing and superb cinematography, but if the song came from a play, it’s still from a play. I counted nineteen songs that, in my opinion, didn’t belong on that list. That’s nineteen great movie songs that were omitted. Of course, the years were also misleading on those songs, because I consider the year of the play as the primary year of a song. Sue me.
Okay, it’s not my list. The AFI can do what it wants. So can its sponsor. The sponsor mentioned that the list was on their website, but I never found it there. (Good thing I wrote down my own.) What I found were offers to download and/or buy the songs. C’mon, you guys, I’m a do-it-yourselfer!
There’s a lot more information on the web about songs these days – far more than when I first began my database. But it’s still not in one place – and I do love relational databases, so I’ll continue my project.
What I’m looking forward to, however, is a projected series on Public Broadcasting in the fall: “Broadway: the American Musical.” Sounds like my kind of show.
