I'd Buy That for a Dollar: Top 5 Songs Downloaded from Films

I am not what one might call a music lover. It's not that I don't listen to music; that would be silly. It's just that if I hear a song I like, I download it. I don't care to drop money on a full album I may or may not like to get one damn song. I don't seek out the new and obscure. So this digital age is perfect for a non-collector like me. And one of my favorite things is discovering songs through film soundtracks. And sometimes it's not even discovering new music, but the way a song is used in the film sticks with me to the point I HAVE to have it.

In fact, a couple of movies I've been to this summer inspired this post, because as soon as I left the theater, I immediately flipped on iTunes in the car and downloaded songs I had just heard in the movie.

So here are five of my favorites I've downloaded over the years. This list is strictly from films (t.v. shows and trailers would be two entirely different lists for another time), they were not, to the best of my knowledge, written for the films, and they are songs I downloaded individually, without the rest of the soundtrack. And I apologize for any crappy fan-made videos, as they were all I could find in some cases.

5. David Brubeck's "Take Five" - Pleasantville


I know I heard this song long before seeing Pleasantville, but it was only then that I decided to get on IMDb to check the soundtrack list so I could go and download it. It's not even a big moment in the film, but just playing nice and mellow in the background when Tobey McGuire walks into the diner where he works. Still, I had to have it.

4. Three Dog Night's "Never Been to Spain" - Scotland, PA


It's no secret I LOVE this crazy adaptation of Macbeth, particularly the soundtrack, most of which is made of Bad Company titles. However, near the end when everything is unraveling for Mac and Pat, this less played Three Dog Night tune blares over the mayhem, and it was somehow just a perfect fit.

3. Radiohead's "Talk Show Host" - Romeo + Juliet


I'm not sure iTunes was actually around when I saw Luhrmann's take on literature's most infamous star-crossed lovers, but this Radiohead tune was our introduction to the the young Mr. Montague. No doubt my raging teen hormones for a young Leo kept this one in my brain over the years till iTunes became my regular music source.

2. The Subways' "RocknRoll Queen" - RocknRolla


I was completely obsessed with this song for like a year. Seriously, I had it has my ringtone AND my alarm to wake up to every single morning. I love the film as a whole, but the scene where Johnny Quid beats the hell out of the bouncer outside the club as the band rages on is one of my favorites. No, I'm not attracted to violence in film at all.

1. Nick Cave's "O Children" - Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1


If I were to make list of favorite moments from the Harry Potter film franchise, it would be an impossible task because there are too many. However, no doubt the scene when Harry and Hermione dance to "O Children" during an extremely bleak period of the seventh film would make the list. Some think it was a wink to H&H shippers, but for me it was just a nice couple of minutes for the two besties to smile while facing such depressing odds of saving the world.