Tim Burton's The Nightmare Before Christmas

Customer Reviews:

ABSOLUTELY DISGUSTING.
The stars that I have granted this CD are for the FIRST DISC ONLY. The original soundtrack to this gem of a film is one of the most majestic and beautifully macabre group of songs ever put into cinema (in this humble reviewer's opinion). This just fuels the fact that three of the five covers on the second disc are affronts to Elfman fans everywhere. Hearing some of my childhood favorites butchered by bands like Fall Out Boy and Panic! at the Disco makes me literally sick to my stomach. I love The Nightmare Before Christmas because it is DIFFERENT. It's strange, dark, and wholly original. It shouldn't be sampled by two of the most popular bands in America, who, despite what their fans might classify them as, are POP BANDS. These recordings are shameful, and should never be listened to by ANYBODY. Buy this for the spectacular first disc, and the privilege of SMASHING the second disc.
--2006-12-09

The covers are awesome...worth the full price
Even if you already have the soundtrack, you should definitely buy this special version for the covers. The demos are interesting, but not really something you'll listen to repeatedly. The covers, on the other hand, are ALL very fun. Admittedly, the weakest is probably the She Wants Revenge song. It's still fun, but it isn't up to the level of the other four. Manson, obviously, is a perfect fit for a gothic soundtrack, but surprisingly, the more upbeat covers by Fallout Boy and Panic at the Disco are a lot of fun as well. I've heard some people complain about the Fiona Apple track, but I think it comes down to whether you like Fiona Apple or not. Her cover is beautiful from my vantage point. All in all, the covers put a whole new gloss on the songs they imitate and give the vocals to some really talented bands. If you often find the soundtrack stuck in your head, this collection is a must buy.
--2006-12-08

Nightmarishly Awsome
Although I was sorely disappointed to realize the Re-Release of the 3-D version of one of my favorite movies was in "select" theatres only (who the heck selects them anyways? jerks...) I was enthused when I saw this Re-Release of the soundtrack on Amazon, Thus purchasing two copies (for myself and my fiancee.) To anyone out there who aquired this, Don't get rid of the case or the disc, pay attention to Disc 2, Tracks 8 and 9. 8 on the case is "This Is Halloween," and 9 is "Kidnap The Sandy Claws," However, when you listen to the CD itself, tracks 8 and 9 are Reversed. This May end up being some sick Ebay Collectors item! lol, but seriously Now, the CD:

1 - Marilyn Mansons cover of "This Is Halloween" is Absolutely perfect for a Tim Burton Film, He uses all different voices for all the parts which makes it even more fun to listen to.

2 - Fiona Apple. Well... I'm not a big fan, and though she does sing a little too deep for the part, it is still an alright cover.

3 - "What's This?" has ALWAYS been by far my favorite song for this Movie. My fiancee even has it set on her Cell as my ring tone lol. Fall out boy does an Awsome job of covering this song.

5 - Panic! At The Disco is one of my favorite bands. Therefore I find the cover good, however, the Manson version is Much better, and done more creativly, but Panic!'s is still a-ok by me.

4 - There's a reason I skipped this one and Saved it for last. Usually you save the best for last, in this case, the absolute worst. I agree with whoever above said that She Wants Revenge MURDERED this song, because it is my second favorite song of the Movie. This cover is the most HORRIBLE, ATROCIOUS, APPALLING, PIECE OF GARABGE I have EVER Heard. The Monotone singing, the lack of a change in Rythem at all, the bleeding of Lock, Shock and Barrel's Lines together as if they were singing on top of one another is disgusting. She Wants Revenge should pay horribly for Killing this song the way they did. I hope their plane crashes on the way to their next show. I love Danny Elfmans music, but he should be ashamed for letting them murder one of his pieces of work. Ugh.. sigh.

All in All a great soundtrack. 4.9 of 5 stars. (minus .1 for that horrid song.)
--2006-11-30

Christmas or Halloween CD?
Is this a Christmas CD or a halloween CD?
It's BOTH!

You can play certain tracks for either holiday...

Christmas
11. Making Christmas
6. Whats this?

Halloween
3. This is Halloween
13. Oogie Boogie Song
20. End Title

Love this record.
--2006-11-26

The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly
As a major Nightmare Before Christmas fan, I was very excited to get this soundtrack. I listened to it with an open mind, and found most of the covers were actually pretty good.

"This is Halloween" done by Marylin Manson. Part of "the good." I am not a big fan of Manson, but I love the beat he chose, and I love how he gave different roles different voices. The music definitely sounds somewhat "punk," but it works. I love the drums and electric guitar.

"Sally's Song" done by Fiona Apple. This is definitely "the bad." While I liked it, I feel she has too deep a voice to do this one properly, and she sounded a little whiny in some places. A slightly faster pace might have helped. The background music, though, was very lovely.

"What's This?" done by Fall Out Boy. Another "good." This one was a lot of fun to listen to. I love the use of piano and jingle bells at the beginning, and then the electric guitar coming in. I think that since the original version is fast paced, that is probably why they can get away with the use of eletric guitar. You can tell the band is having fun with it. I found myself dancing along unintentionally.

"Kidnap the Sandy Claws" done by She Wants Revenge. This one takes the cake for "the ugly." This was my favorite song in the movie, and they absolutely murdered it. They start out with this beat that you hear in a lot of punk and techno songs. They fail to use the original tune, have only one person singing most of it, and to make it worse, the singing is monotonous and slow. "Kidnap the Sandy Claws" practically depends on a fast pace. The only part I enjoyed at all was the part in the middle where for about ten seconds, they played a slightly warped version of the original tune. I actually skipped this one after the first verse when I first listened to it, then forced myself to suffer through it to see if it would get any better. It did not. I would not be surprised if She Wants Revenge were found dead one morning with lollipops shoved down their throats and a note in childish writing saying "We paid back the favor. ---LSB". Yes, it was that horrible.

"This is Halloween" done by Panic! At the Disco. The top of "the good," and by far my favorite of the covers. It begins and ends with chimes that come straight from the Nightmare Before Christmas musical snowglobes (and I hould know---I have seven), then crescendos into the main song. I love how they use classic instruments like flutes, French horns, violins, and trumpets throughout it. Another treat is hearing any "individual" part (like the Shadow on the Moon or the One Under Your Bed) sung in these whispery, slightly choir-like vocals.

For the Elfman Demos, I basically have the same opinion for all of them: it was a treat getting to hear them. A lot of them had deleted verses and references to the orignal script (for example, during "Kidnap the Sandy Claws," Danny's voice went high during Lock's verses, probably recorded back when Lock and Shock had each other's roles in the original script, but were switched later). I loved hearing him changing voices for different characters.

I want to give this CD a five, I really do, but with the "Kidnap the Sandy Claws" cover and Fiona Apple's whining, it does not deserve it. The rest, though, definitely save the CD. Those two songs aside, this CD is definitely worth the money to get.
--2006-11-26

- Disney