Can Love Stand The Test - Don Henley & Bonnie Raitt
The Kid In You - Krystal Marie Harris
I'm Only In It For The Money - Brian Setzer '68 Comeback Special w/ Stephen Root
Kick It Into Gear - Jennifer Paige
Straight To The Heart of Love - John Hiatt w/ E.G. Daily, Colin Hay, Don Henley, Bonnie Raitt
Bear Mountain Hop - Bela Fleck
Just The Goin' - John Hiatt
Where Nobody Knows My Name (Reprise) - E.G. Daily
So You Want To Be A Rock 'n' Roll Star - The Byrds
Friends - Elton John
Bearly Home - Chris Young
Nylon Hymn - Chris Young
The movie may not have bared its teeth at the box office, but that's no reason for the soundtrack to slip into early hibernation, especially considering the musical talent lining The Country Bears' den. Singer-songwriter J... more »ohn Hiatt owns this disc--cover him in fur, blacken his nose, and fiddle with his incisors a bit and it might as well be him peering back at you from the cover art. In addition to performing four of 14 tracks, the live "Straight to the Heart of Love" with Don Henley and Bonnie Raitt included, Hiatt wrote eight of these tunes. On a couple, you'd never guess it: Krystal Marie Harris's "The Kid in You" matches Stevie Wonder-like funk with stylish new-school R&B, and Jennifer Paige grinds out pop power on "Kick It into Gear." Hiatt contributions aside, Béla Fleck brilliantly plucks his way to "Bear Mountain Top," while the Byrds classic "So You Want to be a Rock 'n' Roll Star" and Elton John's sincerity-drenched "Friends" round out the offerings. Few soundtracks are as solidly built, track for track, especially in the G-rated sector. --Tammy La Gorce« less
The movie may not have bared its teeth at the box office, but that's no reason for the soundtrack to slip into early hibernation, especially considering the musical talent lining The Country Bears' den. Singer-songwriter John Hiatt owns this disc--cover him in fur, blacken his nose, and fiddle with his incisors a bit and it might as well be him peering back at you from the cover art. In addition to performing four of 14 tracks, the live "Straight to the Heart of Love" with Don Henley and Bonnie Raitt included, Hiatt wrote eight of these tunes. On a couple, you'd never guess it: Krystal Marie Harris's "The Kid in You" matches Stevie Wonder-like funk with stylish new-school R&B, and Jennifer Paige grinds out pop power on "Kick It into Gear." Hiatt contributions aside, Béla Fleck brilliantly plucks his way to "Bear Mountain Top," while the Byrds classic "So You Want to be a Rock 'n' Roll Star" and Elton John's sincerity-drenched "Friends" round out the offerings. Few soundtracks are as solidly built, track for track, especially in the G-rated sector. --Tammy La Gorce
R. Garrison | Acworth, Georgia United States | 07/24/2002
(4 out of 5 stars)
"John Hiatt wrote 6 of the tunes ( of which he performs 4), and co-wrote 2 others. John is one of America's best songwriters, but sadly, also one of it's best-kept secrets. Sure would be nice if this movie exposure of his music changed that!
Don Henley and Bonnie Raitt do a great duet on the Hiatt-penned "Can Love Stand The Test", and of course Hiatt does his standard great job on the four he sings, but I was underwhelmed by the two female vocalists doing Hiatt songs, Krystal Marie Harris ("The Kid In You"), and Jennifer Paige ( "kick It Into Gear"). Their versions are the reason the soundtrack lost a star, would love to hear John do these songs himself at some point.
Brian Setzer does a twist on The Devil Went Down To Georgia, providing a song of a guitar vs. fiddle battle, performed as a duet with actor Stephen Root .
I know most who read this will be non-Hiatt fans, as the fanatics like me have already grabbed the disc. I personally have to recommend picking up the Hiatt classics Bring The Family and Slow Turning to really be introduced to his best, but for sure pick up this soundtrack down the line as well. I have no complaints with it. Now, I can't wait to see the film and hear and see John Hiatt singing through a giant bear!! :)"
Hiatt meets Disney ... who knew it would work?
Sylvan L. Groth | 07/25/2002
(4 out of 5 stars)
"Okay, I am a John Hiatt fan, so forgive me if this review is a little prejudiced, or one-sided...I am so thankful that John's songs are (at least partly) recorded with the Goners (Sonny Landreth, Ken Blevins, David Ranson), and produced by Glyn Johns. When I first heard of this project, all I could imagine was Hiatt is his gravelly-voice, rough-and- ready splendour, trying to match up with a canned-sounding orchestra in typical Disney over-produced fashion. Instead, I feel the written and performed Hiatt songs on this album stand up to his own releases. The music seems organic, the words are (of course) more clever than anything I've heard Disney do, and John is in great voice.However... John's two songs performed by Jennifer Page and Krystal Marrie Harris, have been synthesized and sanitized beyond recognition as a Hiatt pen. It made my skin crawl a little to listen to them, like I was peering into some parallel universe where John Hiatt is the musical director for "American Idols," and half-talented Brittney wannabes mouth his songs in miniskirts and halter tops. (I did think that E.G. Daily did a good job with "Where Nobody Knows my Name".)This is a definite must have for Hiatt-fans based on the tracks he performed, but I also feel it is a good listen for people who just like Disney or are curious about what a singing bear would sound like. (The Elton John song "Friends" on here is an overlooked beauty, so that's worth the price of the CD, also)."
PRETTY DARNED GOOD MUSIC
PARK M PARKER | GROTON, CT. United States | 10/10/2002
(4 out of 5 stars)
"I'm one of thoes who can watch a movie or read a book over and over and over, so the more I listen to this soundtrack the more I can't wait for the release of the movie. This is one of those albums, (cd's,whatever) that makes the repeat button on my player get a severe workout, especially the song "STRAIGHT TO THE HEART OF LOVE""
Heart warming country bears
PARK M PARKER | 05/16/2004
(5 out of 5 stars)
"I'M a Mum in Queensland Australia and have just seen the movie The Country Bears, and thought what agood heart warming, family movie it was, I don"t know if there is another movie of this type ; but there should be more of them the world might be more humain if they stopped and watched somthing like this instead of wars and fighting allover the world all the time. The music was good and the way the bears move was also up lifting . I hope to see another movie soon."
Also missing...
PARK M PARKER | 10/17/2003
(3 out of 5 stars)
"Also in the movie but not on the disc, Lucinda Willims' "It's Over But I Can't Let Go". What a great song. The music made this an enjoyable movie. There's only 14 songs on the disc, it's a shame so many good ones from the film were left off."