ABKCO announces ‘Big Little Lies’ Season 2 physical soundtrack

ABKCO’s hit soundtrack featuring Leon Bridges, Jim James, Charles Bradley & Willie Nelson available in Oct

ABKCO Music & Records will release Big Little Lies (Music from Season 2 of the HBO Limited Series) on CD October 4th and 2 LP vinyl on October 18th. A special pink 2 LP vinyl edition, limited to 1,000 copies for North America will also be available exclusively through independent stores October 18th. Released digitally in July by ABKCO, it reached No. 7 on Billboard’s Soundtrack Album Sales chart.

Based on Liane Moriarty’s bestselling book, and starring Reese Witherspoon, Nicole Kidman, Laura Dern and Shailene Woodley, Big Little Lies is a darkly comedic series that tells the tale of three mothers whose seemingly perfect lives unravel to the point of murder. Originally intended as one-season miniseries it was renewed for a second season with show creator David E. Kelley writing the episodes, Andrea Arnold directing and Academy Award winning actress Meryl Streep joining the cast.

Since its 2017 premiere, Big Little Lies has received overwhelmingly positive critical response. The New Yorker describes the series as “gorgeous, sensual, and seductive,” declaring it “the year’s best surprise.” Time asserts that the cast “brought life to emotions near-impossible to talk about.” The use of music is particularly integral to the storytelling – Variety pointed out “the producers’ use of songs and specific artists as a connective tissue from season to season and even episode to episode.” Esquire noted that “every music choice sheds a bit of commentary into the story, whether it’s in the mind of a character or streaming from their laptops.”

Big Little Lies (Music from Season 2 of the HBO Limited Series) leans heavily on soul music past and present. Included are the Spinners’ Top 5 hit from 1972 “I’ll Be Around,” “Until You Came Into My Life” by Ann Peebles (1974) and “Great Big Bundle of Love” – a lesser known 1970 single by Los Angeles soul institution Brenton Wood. Recorded in 1979, Donnie and Joe Emerson’s “Baby” from their self-released album Dreamin’ Wild, existed in total obscurity before the reissue label Light In The Attic gave it new life earlier this decade. Similarly, soul crooner Charles Bradley was discovered late in life; the timeless sound of 2013’s “Let Love Stand a Chance” featuring Menahan Street Band would fit well in soul music’s golden era.

Another musical motif on Big Little Lies (Music from Season 2 of the HBO Limited Series) is the genre-blurring cover song. Jazz singer Cassandra Wilson’s rendition of Neil Young’s somber “Harvest Moon,” indie rockers POP ETC’s take on Fleetwood Mac’s “Dreams,” and country legend Willie Nelson’s duet with daughter Paula Nelson on Creedence Clearwater Revival’s “Have You Ever Seen the Rain” present fresh and interesting takes on familiar tunes. The latter hit No. 1 on Hollywood Reporter’s Top TV Songs chart in July.

The tune stack includes “Good Thing Gone” from Elle King’s 2018 album Shake the Spirit and Phoebe Killdeer and the Short Straws’ “The Fade Out Line” (of which the deep house remix by The Aventer was an international hit in 2014.) There is also a trio of brand new, previously unreleased tracks. These include Christina Vierra and The Ryan Rehm Band’s recording of “Piece of My Heart” (first released by Erma Franklin and, most famously, recorded by Janis Joplin with Big Brother and the Holding Company), Grammy Award winning R&B artist Leon Bridges’ original number “That Was Yesterday” and My Morning Jacket’s Jim James with “Why Can’t We Live Together,” a new interpretation the 1972 hit by Timmy Thomas, its composer.

Big Little Lies (Music From The HBO Limited Series), the soundtrack for the original season is still available from ABKCO. It earned Susan Jacobs an Emmy Award for Outstanding Music Supervision and was pushed back into the top 20 on the Billboard Soundtrack Album Sales chart in July. Like Big Little Lies (Music From Season 2 of the HBO Limited Series), it features music from Leon Bridges and Charles Bradley, as well as tracks from Alabama Shakes, Irma Thomas, Martha Wainwright and cast member Zoë Kravitz.

CD | 2 LP vinyl | Limited Edition Pink 2 LP

1. I’ll Be Around – The Spinners (Episode 1)
2. Good Thing Gone – Elle King (Episode 2)
3. Harvest Moon – Cassandra Wilson (Episode 1)
4. Until You Came Into My Life – Ann Peebles (Episode 6)
5. The Fade Out Line – Phoebe Killdeer and The Short Straws (Episode 1)
6. Great Big Bundle of Love – Brenton Wood (Episode 2)
7. Let Love Stand A Chance – Charles Bradley (feat. Menahan Street Band) (Episode 2)
8. Baby – Donnie & Joe Emerson (Episode 5)
9. Dreams – POP ETC (Episode 4)
10. That Was Yesterday – Leon Bridges (Episode 7)
11. Why Can’t We Live Together – Jim James (Episode 4)
12. Have You Ever Seen The Rain – Willie Nelson feat. Paula Nelson (Episode 7)
13. Piece of My Heart – Christina Vierra and The Ryan Rehm Band (Episode 7)
14. Shake Sugaree – Elizabeth Cotten and Brenda Evans (Episode 6)

Buddy Iahn
Buddy Iahn

Buddy Iahn founded The Music Universe when he decided to juxtapose his love of web design and music. As a lifelong drummer, he decided to take a hiatus from playing music to report it. The website began as a fun project in 2013 to one of the top independent news sites. Email: info@themusicuniverse.com