The Simpsons Movie: The Music
Encyclopedia
The Simpsons Movie: The Music is a soundtrack album for the 2007 film The Simpsons Movie
. It was composed by German film composer Hans Zimmer
. The soundtrack was released on July 24, 2007, by Adrenaline Music Group, and peaked at #108 on the Billboard 200
chart. A limited edition version (with a donut-shaped packaging) was released on July 31, 2007. Critics have given the album generally positive reviews.
chose Zimmer to compose the film's score, as they were good friends and regular collaborators. Regular The Simpsons composer Alf Clausen
was not asked to score the film. Zimmer was composing for Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End at the same time as he did The Simpsons Movie. He told The Hollywood Reporter
that he liked "using all his creative juices at once." Zimmer felt that the score was a "unique challenge", and he had to "try and express the style of The Simpsons without wearing the audience out". He used Danny Elfman
's original opening theme
from the series, but did not wish to overuse it.
For the soundtrack, Zimmer created themes for each member of the family. Homer's leitmotif
was a major focus, and he also composed smaller themes for Bart and Marge. He turned the Spider-Pig song sung by Homer in the film into a choral piece called "Spider Pig", which was a joke he never intended to be put into the film. Zimmer also had to write foreign-language lyrics for the 32 dubbed
versions of the song when the film was released internationally. He found translating the song into Spanish the hardest to write. The same choir learned to sing the piece for each of the foreign-language dubs.
, and stayed on the chart for three weeks. It also reached number ten on Billboards Independent Albums
chart and number eight on the Top Soundtracks chart. The "Spider Pig" song from the album charted in several countries, reaching number eight on New Zealand's Top 40 Singles Chart
, fourteen on Norway's VG-lista
, twenty-three on the UK Singles Chart
, and fifty-three on the Swedish Singles Chart.
The soundtrack has received generally favorable reviews from critics. Stephen Thomas Erlewine of Allmusic wrote that "the zany, zesty work of Alf Clausen has been traded in for the lush, symphonic touch of Hans Zimmer, who manages to retain enough of the spirit of the show but gives it a full-fledged widescreen makeover. In other words, this soundtrack is a traditional score [...] and even with titles as wacky as 'Doomsday Is Family Time,' 'Thank You Boob Lady,' and 'Why Does Everything I Whip Leave Me?,' the soundtrack doesn't sound all that humorous. It merely sounds like the sweeping yet sensitive mood music to a movie. And on those terms, The Simpsons Movie is a very good soundtrack — perhaps not as clever as Clausen, but it's still light on its feet while having enough pomp and circumstance to justify being shown on such a larger screen."
The Simpsons Movie
The Simpsons Movie is a 2007 American animated comedy film based on the animated television series The Simpsons. The film was directed by David Silverman, and stars the regular television cast of Dan Castellaneta, Julie Kavner, Nancy Cartwright, Yeardley Smith, Hank Azaria, Harry Shearer, Tress...
. It was composed by German film composer Hans Zimmer
Hans Zimmer
Hans Florian Zimmer is a German film composer and music producer. He has composed music for over 100 films, including critically acclaimed film scores for The Lion King , Crimson Tide , The Thin Red Line , Gladiator , The Dark Knight and Inception .Zimmer spent the early part of his career in the...
. The soundtrack was released on July 24, 2007, by Adrenaline Music Group, and peaked at #108 on the Billboard 200
Billboard 200
The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists...
chart. A limited edition version (with a donut-shaped packaging) was released on July 31, 2007. Critics have given the album generally positive reviews.
Background
Executive producer James L. BrooksJames L. Brooks
James Lawrence Brooks is an American director, producer and screenwriter. Growing up in North Bergen, New Jersey, Brooks endured a fractured family life and passed the time by reading and writing. After dropping out of New York University, he got a job as an usher at CBS, going on to write for the...
chose Zimmer to compose the film's score, as they were good friends and regular collaborators. Regular The Simpsons composer Alf Clausen
Alf Clausen
Alf Clausen is an American film and television composer. He is best known for his work scoring many episodes of The Simpsons, of which he has been the sole composer since 1990...
was not asked to score the film. Zimmer was composing for Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End at the same time as he did The Simpsons Movie. He told The Hollywood Reporter
The Hollywood Reporter
Formerly a daily trade magazine, The Hollywood Reporter re-launched in late 2010 as a unique hybrid publication serving the entertainment industry and a consumer audience...
that he liked "using all his creative juices at once." Zimmer felt that the score was a "unique challenge", and he had to "try and express the style of The Simpsons without wearing the audience out". He used Danny Elfman
Danny Elfman
Daniel Robert "Danny" Elfman is an American composer, best known for scoring music for television and film. Up until 1995, he was the lead singer and songwriter in the rock band Oingo Boingo, a group he formed in 1976...
's original opening theme
The Simpsons Theme
"The Simpsons Theme", also referred to as "The Simpsons Main Title Theme" in album releases, is the theme song of the animated television series The Simpsons. It plays during the opening sequence and was composed by Danny Elfman in 1989, after series creator Matt Groening approached him requesting...
from the series, but did not wish to overuse it.
For the soundtrack, Zimmer created themes for each member of the family. Homer's leitmotif
Leitmotif
A leitmotif , sometimes written leit-motif, is a musical term , referring to a recurring theme, associated with a particular person, place, or idea. It is closely related to the musical idea of idée fixe...
was a major focus, and he also composed smaller themes for Bart and Marge. He turned the Spider-Pig song sung by Homer in the film into a choral piece called "Spider Pig", which was a joke he never intended to be put into the film. Zimmer also had to write foreign-language lyrics for the 32 dubbed
Dubbing (filmmaking)
Dubbing is the post-production process of recording and replacing voices on a motion picture or television soundtrack subsequent to the original shooting. The term most commonly refers to the substitution of the voices of the actors shown on the screen by those of different performers, who may be...
versions of the song when the film was released internationally. He found translating the song into Spanish the hardest to write. The same choir learned to sing the piece for each of the foreign-language dubs.
Reception
The soundtrack was released on July 24, 2007. It debuted and peaked at #108 on the Billboard 200Billboard 200
The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists...
, and stayed on the chart for three weeks. It also reached number ten on Billboards Independent Albums
Independent Albums
The Billboard Independent Albums is a chart of the highest-selling independent music albums and extended plays in the United States, compiled by Nielsen SoundScan and published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is used to list artists who are not signed to major labels...
chart and number eight on the Top Soundtracks chart. The "Spider Pig" song from the album charted in several countries, reaching number eight on New Zealand's Top 40 Singles Chart
Recording Industry Association of New Zealand
The Recording Industry Association of New Zealand is a non-profit trade association of record producers, distributors and recording artists who sell music in New Zealand...
, fourteen on Norway's VG-lista
VG-lista
VG-listen is a Norwegian record chart. It is weekly presented in the newspaper VG and the Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation program Topp 20. It is considered the primary Norwegian record chart, charting albums and singles from countries and continent around the world. The data is collected by...
, twenty-three on the UK Singles Chart
UK Singles Chart
The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ...
, and fifty-three on the Swedish Singles Chart.
The soundtrack has received generally favorable reviews from critics. Stephen Thomas Erlewine of Allmusic wrote that "the zany, zesty work of Alf Clausen has been traded in for the lush, symphonic touch of Hans Zimmer, who manages to retain enough of the spirit of the show but gives it a full-fledged widescreen makeover. In other words, this soundtrack is a traditional score [...] and even with titles as wacky as 'Doomsday Is Family Time,' 'Thank You Boob Lady,' and 'Why Does Everything I Whip Leave Me?,' the soundtrack doesn't sound all that humorous. It merely sounds like the sweeping yet sensitive mood music to a movie. And on those terms, The Simpsons Movie is a very good soundtrack — perhaps not as clever as Clausen, but it's still light on its feet while having enough pomp and circumstance to justify being shown on such a larger screen."