The critical consensus at the end of 2000 was that it had been one of the weakest film years in recent memory. Which may have been true, despite O Brother, Where Art Thou?, the Coen brothers' delightfully warm and weird Depression-era re-telling of Homer's Odyssey. But for music lovers, 2000 was an amazing year at the movies, and it produced several excellent soundtrack compilations including Almost Famous, Dancer in the Dark, Wonder Boys, and High Fidelity. Even with such steep competition, the soundtrack album for O Brother, Where Art Thou? may be the best of the year. In order to capture the sound of Mississippi circa 1932, the Coens commissioned T-Bone Burnett, a masterful producer whose work with artists like Elvis Costello, Sam Phillips, Joseph Arthur, and Counting Crows has earned him a special place in the folk-rock hall of fame, to research and re-create the country, bluegrass, folk, gospel, and blues of the era.

Tracklisting

1. James Carter & The Prisoners - Po Lazarus
2. Harry McClintock - Big Rock Candy Mountain
3. Norman Blake - You Are My Sunshine
4. Alison Krauss - Down To The River To Pray
5. The Soggy Bottom Boys - I Am A Man Of Constant Sorrow
6. Chris Thomas King - Hard Time Killing Floor Blues
7. Norman Blake - I Am A Man Of Constant Sorrow
8. The Whites - Keep On The Sunny Side
9. Alison Krauss And Gillian Welch - I'll Fly Away
10. Emmylou Harris, Alison Krauss And Gillian Welch - Didn't Leave Nobody But The Baby
11. Sarah, Hannah & Leah Peasall - In The Highways
12. The Cox Family - I Am Weary (Let Me Rest)
13. John Hartford - I Am A Man Of Constant Sorrow
14. Ralph Stanley - O Death
15. The Soggy Bottom Boys - In The Jailhouse Now
16. The Soggy Bottom Boys - I Am A Man Of Constant Sorrow
17. John Hartford - Indian War Whoop
18. Fairfield Four - Lonesome Valley
19. The Stanley Brothers - Angel Band