My Name is Earl - The Album 2006   Shout Factory   Buy It Now

You know those soundtracks that get released to coincide with a popular television show. Most of them just have tracks that aren’t even a part of the series, sometimes even artists who have written tracks that are to kind of get the feeling of the show. Well, that’s the not the case, and this soundtrack does in fact feature songs that can be heard throughout the first season of the show; it’s the soundtrack for My Name is Earl.

If you don’t know the show, then you don’t know what you’re missing, and I suppose that the soundtrack getting released was simply a matter of karma, just like everything else in the series. My Name is Earl has quite an eclectic collection of songs that you may have noticed in the first season, or maybe they just blended in so well that it became part of the comedy.

There are some tracks that are classics, like Jerry Reed’s “East Bound and Down,” featured in the series of course, but probably best known by many as the theme from Smokey and the Bandit (a movie that there are threats of remaking.) How about a bit of Sammy? Reed is featured again later on the soundtrack with his song “Amos Moses.” Sammy Davis Jr. is included with “Smoke! Smoke! Smoke! (That Cigarette.)” Given the nature of the series, not having a bit of Skynard would be a sin, and the classic rock staple “Gimme Three Steps” has a perfect home here.

A little old school rap isn’t a bad thing to add I suppose, and I think we all remember what Randy’s favorite song is; if so that just pop this CD in and “Bust a Move.” There’s also Rob Base and D.J E-Z Rock, “It Takes Two,” featuring what might be one of the most sampled drum beats of all time.

There are new tracks on the CD as well, but they were featured in the series, and the insert does show you which episodes you can watch to hear them (as well as all the others.) Uncle Kracker is featured covering “The Weight,” there’s Matthew Sweet version of “Livin’ Thing,” and while I’m not a big fan of Sweet (not in the least actually) his version of the classic song isn’t half bad. John Hiatt performs the well-known “Instant Karma” while Van Nuys covers Nina’s “99 Red Balloons,” but in English, not German.

There are plenty of other tracks that are going to be familiar to most, though I’m a bit disappointed to see that The Doors weren’t included, but I’m sure that’s not an easy license to include on a soundtrack like this (though they managed to get it for the series.) Should you buy the soundtrack? Of course you should. It’s just a matter of karma.
 

-mike-