Pixar 'Soul' tracklist: Who wrote the score? Meet the amazing musicians behind the soundtrack

Jon Batiste said, 'I wanted to make something that had a really optimistic and melodic sort of feeling so people could hum and sing the songs'
UPDATED DEC 26, 2020
Atticus Ross, Trent Reznor and Jon Batiste (Getty Images)
Atticus Ross, Trent Reznor and Jon Batiste (Getty Images)

The Academy Award for Best Original Score winning duo for ‘The Social Network’, Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross, are all set to make magic on screen again with the Disney/Pixar film ‘Soul’. While Reznor and Ross produced the original score for the film, Jon Batiste wrote jazz songs for the film. Prior to the release of the film, the original score of the film was released, available both in digital and vinyl records. The soundtrack of the ‘Soul’ is "not of this Earth", Reznor and Ross claimed.

The acclaimed band leader of Stay Human, Batiste shared details about his songwriting experience for ‘Soul’. The 34-year-musical-prodigy said, “I wanted to make something that had a really optimistic and melodic sort of feeling so people could hum the songs and sing the songs, and also have these chords that felt like the joy of life and joy of living encapsulated in these harmonies,” explaining how he wanted to complement the score made by Ross and Reznor.

Jon Batiste performs onstage during MoMA's Twelfth Annual Film Benefit Presented By CHANEL Honoring Laura Dern on November 12, 2019, in New York City (Getty Images)

He continued, “And on top of that all that I was thinking of Trent and Atticus and their style of scoring for 'The Great Before' and 'The Great Beyond' and all of the different celestial aspects of the film, and trying to infuse these compositions with that on a subconscious level that kind of continued to evolve and grow."

"Then when the celestial aspect comes across even further, like when Joe gets into a flow state which we call ‘in the zone’ in the film, he’s tapping into that celestial plane so then the music has to shift a little bit more, leaning to that side of things. So that was a spectrum that I created for myself,” he added.

Ross, who became an official member of the band Nine Inch Nails in 2016 has also scored a  Grammy Award for Best Score Soundtrack for Visual Media with Reznor for their soundtrack in ‘The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo’. In the first half of this year, the duo gifted listeners the score for the new ‘Watchmen’ TV series which they released in three parts, followed by scoring for the critically acclaimed film ‘Mank’ with ‘The Social Network’ and ‘Gone Girl’ maker David Fincher.

Composers Atticus Ross and Trent Reznor, winners of the award for Best Original Score for 'The Social Network', pose in the press room during the 83rd Annual Academy Awards held at the Kodak Theatre on February 27, 2011, in Hollywood, California (Getty Images)

In an interview with the Heroic Hollywood, the duo spoke about the making process of the 'Soul' score in depth where Reznor said, “Our first step is always to listen and really try to understand where the filmmakers are coming from: what they’re seeing, what they’re imagining.”

He added, “We spent a lot of time discussing how you’re supposed to feel when you’re first exposed to the 'Soul' world. Then we went back to our studio, which is filled with a variety of real, imagined and synthetic instruments, and spent the first chunk of time experimenting with different arrangements and different instruments and seeing what felt emotionally right to create the fabric of this world.”

Tracklist

Check out the tracklist for ‘Soul’ below

‘Overture' – AJR
‘Brand New’ – Ben Rector
‘The Great Beyond’ – Trent Reznor & Atticus Ross
‘Falling’ – Trent Reznor & Atticus Ross
‘The Great Before/U Seminar’ – Trent Reznor & Atticus Ross
‘Jump to Earth’ – Trent Reznor & Atticus Ross
‘Terry Time’ – Trent Reznor & Atticus Ross
‘Joe’s Life’ – Trent Reznor & Atticus Ross
‘Portal’ – Trent Reznor & Atticus Ross
‘Run/Astral Plane’ – Trent Reznor & Atticus Ross
‘Lost Soul’ – Trent Reznor & Atticus Ross
‘Meditation/Return to Earth’ – Trent Reznor & Atticus Ross
‘Terry Time Too’ – Trent Reznor & Atticus Ross
‘22 is Ready’ – Trent Reznor & Atticus Ross
‘Pursuit/Terry’s World’ – Trent Reznor & Atticus Ross
‘Betrayal’ – Trent Reznor & Atticus Ross
‘Lost’ – Trent Reznor & Atticus Ross
‘Ephiphany’ – Trent Reznor & Atticus Ross
‘Ship Chase’ – Trent Reznor & Atticus Ross
‘Escape/Inside 22’ – Trent Reznor & Atticus Ross
‘Flashback’ – Trent Reznor & Atticus Ross
‘Earthbound’ – Trent Reznor & Atticus Ross
‘Thank You’ – Trent Reznor & Atticus Ross
‘Enjoy Every Minute’ – Trent Reznor & Atticus Ross
‘Just Us’ – Trent Reznor & Atticus Ross
‘Born to Play’ – Jon Batiste
‘Bigger Than Us’ – Jon Batiste
‘Collard Greens and Cornboard Strut’ – Jon Batiste
‘Joe’s Lowdown Blues’ – Jon Batiste
‘22’s Getaway’ – Jon Batiste
‘Apex Wedge’ – Jon Batiste
‘Let Your Soul Glow’ – Jon Batiste
‘Feel Soul Good’ – Jon Batiste
‘Looking at Life’ – Jon Batiste
‘Fruit of the Vine’ – Jon Batiste
‘The Epic Conversationalist/Born to Play’ – Jon Batiste
‘Celestial Spaces in Blue’ – Jon Batiste
‘Spiritual Connection’ – Jon Batiste
‘The Initial Pursuit’ – Jon Batiste
‘It’s All Right’ – Jon Batiste
‘Space Maker’ – Jon Batiste
‘Cristo Redenetor’ – Jon Batiste
‘Danceland’ – Jon Batiste
‘Epistrophy’ – Jon Batiste
‘I Let a Song Go Out of My Heart’ – Jon Batiste
‘Blue Rondo a la Turk’ – Jon Batiste

Listen to ‘Epiphany’ below:



 

Find more details on the complete tracklist here.

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