The Notebook (CD)

All Music Guide

The Notebook which was based on Nicholas Sparks' novel about an unusual love story spanning the '40s to the present day has a soundtrack that features Aaron Zigman's score and jazz and pop from '40s greats such as Billie Holiday, Duke Ellington, and Benny Goodman. Zigman's orchestral score ranges from the serviceable ("Main Title," "Allie Returns") to the sappy ("Overture"), and, on tracks like "Noah's Journey," nods to the instrumentation of big band music without trying to recapture the feeling of it. However, the original '40s cuts are the real stars of the soundtrack; tracks such as Holiday's "I'll Be Seeing You," Ellington's "Alabamy Home," and Goodman's "Always and Always" give the album and the film more character than the score does. Songs by Glenn Miller, Rex Stewart, the Ellingtonians, and Jimmy Durante also contribute to the soundtrack's atmosphere.

- Heather Phares, All Music Guide