CD review: "Crazy Heart" soundtrack

From Friday’s Weekend Look section of The Oklahoman.

Country

Various artists “Crazy Heart: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack Deluxe Edition” (New West Records)

A cannily chosen combination of classic country, twangy blues and rootsy original songs bestow vital authenticity on “Crazy Heart,” the engrossing cinematic saga of washed-up, booze-ravaged country singer Bad Blake (Jeff Bridges).

Co-producers T Bone Burnett, a 10-time Grammy winner, and Stephen Bruton, a respected Texas guitarist/songwriter who died of cancer last year, capture the spirit of the film by tapping country pioneers like Buck Owens, Kitty Wells and Waylon Jennings. (Jennings’ “Are You Sure Hank Done It This Way,” one of my all-time favorite country hits, perfectly suits the storyline.)

Country-blues songs from George Jones, Lightnin’ Hopkins and the Delmore Brothers also convey Bad Blake’s struggle to cast off his inner demons and find redemption.