All 41 Classic 80’s Songs from the Adventureland Soundtrack

I love this soundtrack. No bones about it. Anytime you can mix David Bowie with Whitesnake, Crowded House with Poison, Wang Chung with Judas Priest, The Cure with Husker Du, Falco with Lou Reed, you know you are going to have a good time. I want to pack the family in the stationwagon and head to Wally World just thinking about it. I will be blasting Don’t Change by INXS the entire way.

When I saw the previews for Adventureland, I thought it looked hilarious. Knowing that it has a brilliant 80s soundtrack just cements the deal. Look out monstrosity of a movie theater bucket o popcorn, here I come.

There are 41 songs in Adventureland. The only bummer about the music is that the soundtrack album to Adventureland only has 14 of the songs, and you have to buy the entire album to get any of the songs.

But you are in luck. You can find downloads for the individual songs at Reelsoundtrack.com, along with the videos for them.

Here’s the complete list of songs from the movie. Update: here are all the songs in the order they appeared in the movie, with information about the scenes they were in, where I could remember them. (If you know any of the additional scenes, please post the answer in the comments.)

Original music for Adventureland by Yo La Tengo

Songs from the trailer:

Song from the commercial:

Update 4: Song from Kiis FM radio commercial (thanks to adriana_lps196)

Update 3: Pinging off of a suggestion from user eyenoise in the comments, what songs do you think would be on the bummers mixtape that James made for Em? Leave your thoughts in the comments and I will add them to the post, with links to the songs.

Update 2: One other note about the movie. It was definitely not what I expected. You think director of Super Bad + themepark and expect a rollicking good time of ridiculous laughs. Don’t get me wrong. The movie is very funny. And I liked it – a lot. But it was a lot more than I thought it would be. It’s not just a punch in the junk kind of movie (though that is a recurring theme); it’s also more cerebral, more endearing, even wrenching movie than I expected.

~ by montelutz on April 3, 2009.

27 Responses to “All 41 Classic 80’s Songs from the Adventureland Soundtrack”

  1. wow thanks for this list!

    i agree movie wasn’t anything i expected. but i loved it.

  2. uhh yeaa i love this soundtrack too..
    buut do know which song was on kiisfm radio commercial??
    something like..
    ‘ayyyyy heeeyyy ayy yeaa! what did u hear me say??’
    uhh please help me out i love that song!

  3. [...] All 41 Classic 80’s Songs from the Adventureland Soundtrack I love this soundtrack. No bones about it. Anytime you can mix David Bowie with Whitesnake, Crowded House with Poison, [...] [...]

  4. @ shellsea – are you asking about a radio promo for the movie or something in the movie? Can you tell me anything else about the song (e.g., male/female singer, guitar or other instruments playing)? That may help me pinpoint it.

  5. “Jukebox – Lou Reed/Velvet Underground song (cannot remember which one)”
    It was “Pale Blue Eyes.”
    I want to see what was on the “Bummer Songs” mix tape.

  6. For shellsea: the name of the song may be “call in the calvary” by The Shys?

  7. So I just have to say that you are mondo badass for compiling this list because after seeing this mar-veh-loos film all I want to do is lay back and swim in the film score/soundtrack. Hats off and kudos too, friend.

  8. There was a shot of the bummer tape with all of the songs listed, so when we can have the film to pause on that frame, we can get that list.

  9. thank you.

  10. This was the 1st movie I’ve gone to see twice since I can remember. The soundtrack, the storyline and the fact that the amusement park in the movie was the one I grew up near… Good Ol’ Kennywood Park in Pittsburgh, Pa. Thanks for compiling the list of songs.

  11. Great to see the full soundtrack list for what’s truly an ’80s coming-of-age classic. If anyone’s interested in getting the official (and limited) soundtrack, check out the contest at http://www.fandango.com/fandangoblogdetail_578416 , up until April 17th. Cheers!

  12. [...] There seems to be a resurgence of interest in the Replacements lately, with recent mentions in the New York Times and New York Magazine and two songs prominently featured in the movie Adventureland. [...]

  13. black swan lane’s ‘in the ether’ is a beautiful song and it’s so cool to find it in this movie!
    if you want to get black swan lane music, you can order directly from the band at http://www.myspace.com/blackswanlane. it’s an incredible cd, filled with beauty and emotion.
    they also have a new cd (with musicians from the sun and the moon) which will be out shortly.
    you can check out their vids on their myspace page and on youtube. vid links include: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GRwzrNH8ZgQ

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5BuCcaWFF5o

  14. Great stuff! Great to see the full soundtrack list for what’s truly an ’80s coming-of-age classic.http://www.danosongs.com

  15. [...] but luckily the internet has its shit together. Those sexy manbloggers (i’m assuming) over at reelsoundtrack threw down all 41 songs from the film so you can see them in list form. If I get less lazy I might [...]

  16. couldnt agree more, the movie wasnt what i expected it was better and the soundtrack alone made it for me, thanks yo la tengo! :)

  17. Can’t thank you enough for this list! Seen the film twice and can’t wait for the DVD. It truly was a thrill ride I enjoyed. I agree that the film was a perfect blend of comedy & realism. Ironic that this historic landmark was ‘run down’ on purpose for the film lol Kennywood couldn’t have been a better setting for these intriguing characters. Kristen once again nails her part, and I doubt anyone will forget Jesse & Martin’s performances anytime soon.

  18. I just saw Adventureland…what a movie! What a soundtrack. I appreciated the repetition of a couple of the songs, because that’s what happens over the course of the summer.

    Anyway, thanks for the song list…

    I was 21 in the summer of 1987 and I’ve never seen such a good job of a film representing the times as they were.

  19. New York Dolls are one of my all time favorite bands!!!!

  20. Thanks for the list yo. 80s music are the best. Loved the show. Been watching it over and over (:

  21. The version of “Love Rollercoaster” in the trailer actually is the original Ohio Players version.

  22. Some songs for the Bummer Mix…
    The Replacements – Here Comes a Regular
    XTC – Dear God
    R.E.M. – So. Central Rain
    Violent Femmes – I Know It’s True But I’m Sorry To Say
    Crowded House – Hole in the River
    Sting – Fragile
    Husker Du – Celebrated Summer

    Love the post, good work.

  23. THANK YOU EVER SO MUCH! keep on rockin in the free world
    xoxo
    ML

  24. Can someone tell me the name of the song when Em is in her car waiting for Connel in front of his house?

  25. Thank you!

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