It’s utterly amazing to hear artists like The Smiths on soundtracks today. For me, anyhoo. Back in the mid-80s when I was a mere boy and a beardless youth, The Smiths -- while popular -- just didn’t seem to be featured on very many motion picture soundtracks. I was never quite sure if it was fear or plain old ignorance on the filmmakers’ parts that prevented Morrissey’s crooning from ever gracing a scene in any film. One of the very few times The Smiths were featured onscreen in a major motion picture was in John Hughes’ Ferris Bueller’s Day Off -- albeit the instrumental version.

20 years later, the kids that grew up saying “Hey, where the fuck are The Smiths?” are now rectifying this problem. Not only does the soundtrack for (500) Days Of Summer feature two hits from the 80s wonder band -- “There’s A Light That Never Goes Out” and “Please, Please, Please Let Me Get What I Want” -- but it even features a modern cover of the latter tune by She & Him. So naturally, the soundtrack earns high praise right there.

Additional tracks from this unconventional love story feature tracks by Regina Spektor (“Us” and “Hero”), Black Lips (“Bad Kids”), Simon & Garfunkel (“Bookends”), The Temper Trap (“Sweet Disposition”), and, of course, the mandatory “foreign-language” song (“Quelqu‘un M‘a Dit” by Carla Bruni).

The '(500) Day Of Summer' soundtrack no doubt reflects the story it accompanies, beginning with a rather happy-go-lucky feel to it (well, as happy as one can get when you’re being escorted by The Smiths). Towards the middle of the album, the overall tone becomes a little less happy-go-lucky -- but that is to be expected with any good movie soundtrack. Either way, this is a wonderful collection of hits and misses. The iTunes Exclusive Digital release contains three additional tracks (two of which are karaoke covers from the film itself).

This album is definitely worth checking out, particularly if you are a fan of The Smiths.

Tracklisting:
1. A Story of Boy Meets Girl - Mychael Danna and Rob Simonsen
2. Us - Regina Spektor
3. There Is A Light That Never Goes Out - The Smiths
4. Bad Kids - Black Lips
5. Please, Please, Please Let Me Get What I Want - The Smiths
6. There Goes The Fear - Doves
7. You Make My Dreams - Hall & Oates
8. Sweet Disposition - The Temper Trap
9. Quelqu'un M'a Dit - Carla Bruni
10. Mushaboom - Feist
11. Hero - Regina Spektor
12. Bookends - Simon & Garfunkel
13. Vagabond - Wolfmother
14. She's Got You High - Mumm-Ra
15. Here Comes Your Man - Meaghan Smith
16. Please, Please, Please Let Me Get What I Want - She & Him

iTunes Exclusive Digital Version:
17. "Here Comes Your Man" - Joseph Gordon-Levitt (karaoke w/ dialog from the film intro)
18. "Sugartown" - Zooey Deschanel (karaoke version)
19. "At Last" - Kevin Michael