It didn't hurt that nearly all the bands involved contributed high-quality material - although Nirvana is absent, scene stalwarts Soundgarden, their lead singer Chris Cornell (the haunting acoustic ballad 'Seasons'), Alice in Chains ('Would?,' which showed up on their subsequent album, Dirt), Mudhoney, Pearl Jam (two tracks), and Screaming Trees all weigh in with strong new cuts, as well as stylistic compatriots Smashing Pumpkins (Chicago) and Minneapolis alt-rock god Paul Westerberg (his first two charmingly playful solo songs). The soundtrack's strength was the way it was so firmly rooted in place - where future soundtrack extravaganzas simply contrived to gather as many big-name acts as possible, Singles focused specifically on Seattle-area music (quite logically, given the film's plot and setting), which gave the album the feel of a cohesive document. Singles helped crystallize the idea of the 'Seattle scene' in the mainstream public's mind, and it was also one of the first big-selling '90s movie soundtracks (it went platinum and reached the Top Ten) to feature largely new work from contemporary artists. Nirvana's Nevermind had symbolically knocked Michael Jackson off the top of the album charts at the beginning of the year, and the underground buzz about Seattle bands like Alice in Chains, Soundgarden, and Pearl Jam was beginning to find its way past circles of indie aficionados and open-minded hard rock fans and into the mainstream. The romantic comedy Singles, in part a homage to director Cameron Crowe's hometown of Seattle, was released at exactly the right time (summer 1992).

Singles soundtrack youtube