Songs and Music from "She's the One" (1996)
1. Walls (Circus)
2. Grew Up Fast
3. Zero from Outer Space
4. Climb That Hill
5. Change the Locks
6. Angel Dream (No.4)
7. Hope You Never
8. Asshole
9. Supernatural Radio
10.California
11.Hope on Board
12.Walls (No.3)
13.Angel Dream (No.2)
14.Hung Up and Overdue
15.Airport
Soundtracks, by their nature, tend to follow peculiar rules. Some are compilations in the truest sense—multi-artist samplers punctuated by orchestral interludes. Others serve as thematic companions to cinematic works, functioning less as standalone records and more as sonic appendages to a larger narrative. She’s the One, however, plays by none of these conventions. Though technically a film soundtrack, it is, for all intents and purposes, a Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers album—start to finish. The only “cinema” involved here, one suspects, is the rolling projector of Petty’s own internal jukebox.
For those unfamiliar with the movie—no loss. The film itself made little lasting impact, and Petty’s contribution here bears no obvious narrative cohesion. If there’s a storyline, it’s either deeply buried or completely irrelevant. What we have instead is an album that feels like an odds-and-ends compilation disguised as a proper release. There are multiple versions of a few tracks, several songs that fade out before they’ve properly begun, and the occasional cover—all of which gives the set a slightly fragmented, patchwork character. It is not so much a concept as a collection.
Still, within that looseness, there are moments of clarity. Walls—presented in two versions—opens the record with a kind of hazy, bittersweet optimism, while Angel Dream (also appearing twice) may be one of the most understatedly touching pieces Petty ever committed to tape. These two tracks alone provide enough emotional ballast to keep the album afloat. Elsewhere, Hope You Never and Change the Locks veer satisfyingly into revenge song territory, the former a Lucinda Williams composition so perfectly suited to Petty’s delivery that it sounds as if it were born from his own pen.
The remainder of the album, while never unpleasant, is largely inconsequential. The brevity of several tracks—many clocking in at under two minutes—prevents them from fully settling in. One senses that even Petty himself regarded the project as a diversion rather than a destination. And yet, even on a so-called throwaway release, he manages to maintain a level of craft and consistency that most artists would envy.
She’s the One may lack the narrative spine or sonic unity of Petty’s best work, but as a snapshot of a prolific artist working with low pressure and loose reins, it offers an interesting—if slightly uneven—listen. If this is what he tossed off between more deliberate projects, it speaks volumes about the depth of his catalogue. Modest in ambition, modest in result—but quietly rewarding all the same.
Go back to the main page
Go To Next Review