“The Sting” Original Soundtrack Recording

Today’s Cool Album of the Day (#687 in the Series) is the Original Soundtrack Recording from the Academy Award Winning Motion Picture, The Sting.

The Sting was one of my favorite movies of all time.  It’s also one of my favorite soundtracks of all time.

The Sting starred Paul Newman and Robert Redford and was set in the Chicagoland area beginning in the late 30’s.

The soundtrack featured the great ragtime styling of Scott Joplin.  Here, Joplin’s music is recreated by pianist Marvin Hamlisch.  Hamlisch also added some original compositions to the mix.

Scott Joplin was born in 1867 and lived until 1917. His popularity peaked posthumously after The Sting hit the big screen. He was awarded a Pulitzer Prize for his opera Treemonisha in 1976, and a movie based on his life starring Billy Dee Williams was released in 1977.

The hit song from the soundtrack was “The Entertainer” but I always felt that the best song from the soundtrack was “‘Solace.”

Track Listing

1. “Solace” (Joplin) – orchestral version
2. “The Entertainer” (Joplin) – orchestral version
3. “The Easy Winners” (Joplin)
4. “Hooker’s Hooker” (Hamlisch)
5. “Luther” – same basic tune as “Solace”, re-arranged by Hamlisch as a dirge
6. “Pine Apple Rag” / “Gladiolus Rag” medley (Joplin)
7. “The Entertainer” (Joplin) – piano version
8. “The Glove” (Hamlisch) – a Jazz Age style number; only a short segment was used in the film
9. “Little Girl” (Madeline Hyde, Francis Henry) – not in the final cut of the film
10. “Pine Apple Rag” (Joplin)
11. “Merry-Go-Round Music” medley (traditional) – “Listen to the Mocking Bird” was the only portion of this track that was actually used in the film, along with the second segment of “King Cotton”, a Sousa march, which was not on the album
12. “Solace” (Joplin) – piano version
13. “The Entertainer” / “The Ragtime Dance” medley (Joplin)

The Sting Soundtrack reached #1 on the Billboard Top 200 Album chart.

The Entertainer peaked at #3 on the Billboard Hot 100 Singles chart.

Marvin Hamlish was awarded a Grammy for Best Pop Instrumental Performance

Here’s Scott Joplin’s original version of ‘The Entertainer’ followed by ‘Solace’ and ‘Pineapple Rag.’

BONUS VIDEOS:  Two Great Scenes From ‘The Sting’