32 Hit Songs You Might Have Forgotten Were Written For Movies

There are a lot of songs that you might have no idea were written for, or at least released in conjunction with a movie. Sometimes, those songs end up being more successful than the movie itself, but just as often, the songs become so iconic that people forget they were originally on a soundtrack. Artists like Radiohead, Simon & Garfunkel, Eric Clapton, Public Enemy, and many more have written some of their biggest hits for movies.

This list is a tribute to just some of the songs you may have completely forgotten, or never knew, that the tunes started out on movie soundtracks.

"The Sound Of Silence"

You probably remember that Simon & Garfunkel did the soundtrack for The Graduate, but the one song you probably associate the most with the movie is "Mrs. Robinson." Another one of the folk duo's biggest hits, "The Sound of Silence," also comes from the soundtrack.

"Exit Music (For A Film)"

This one is easy to forget that it came from a movie. "Exit Music (For A Film)," by Radiohead is probably most recognizable as part of Ok Computer, an album widely regarded as one of the best of the '90s, and indeed, one of the best all-time. "Exit Music (For A Film)," however, first appeared in Baz Luhrmann's Romeo + Juliet.

"New York, New York"

One of Frank Sinatra's most iconic songs, "New York, New York," isn't really even a Sinatra original. It was originally part of the Martin Scorsese film New York, New York, and performed by Liza Minnelli. Sinatra's version is the definitive version, for sure, but not the original.

"Tears In Heaven"

Eric Clapton had a huge career renaissance in the 1990s on the back of the huge hit "Tears In Heaven." He famously wrote the song about his son Connor, who died tragically when he fell from a window in a high-rise in New York. The song didn't appear on a Clapton album until the iconic version from his "MTV Unplugged" appearance. The song first appeared on the soundtrack for the oft-forgotten movie Rush in 1991.

"Call Me"

American Gigolo starring Richard Gere was a huge hit in 1980, and Blondie's biggest hit (or one of their biggest, anyway), "Call Me," actually comes from the movie. It's a signature song for the iconic punk/wave band, and it was co-written by Giorgio Moroder, who composed the music for the movie.

"Fight The Power"

Public Enemy was already one of the most important hip-hop groups of all time when they wrote and recorded "Fight The Power" for Spike Lee's masterpiece Do The Right Thing. Like other songs on this list, it's become a signature song for the group, but it didn't appear on an album until after it was featured in the movie.

"Raindrops Keep Fallin’ On My Head"

Burt Bacharach and Hal David wrote "Raindrops Keep Fallin’ on My Head" for the movie Butch Cassidy And The Sundance Kid." Unless you remember in the movie, you'd never expect that song, performed by B.J. Thomas, would ever come from one of the best Westerns of all time.

"Let's Go Crazy"

Dearly beloved, we are gathered here together to celebrate Purple Rain, both the movie and the soundtrack from the creative genius known simply as Prince. The album more than the movie, but the film is great. Obviously, "Purple Rain" is the song most closely associated with the movie, for obvious reasons, but do you remember "Let's Go Crazy" in the movie too? One of Prince's biggest bangers hits hard in the movie, and on the album.

"Moon River"

Fans of The Simpsons know that "Moon River" is Andy Williams' signature tune. You didn't think he was going to play it, and then BAM! Second encore! He wasn't the first to record it, though. It was written by Henry Mancini and Johnny Mercer for Audrey Hepburn to sing in Breakfast at Tiffany's. It's become a jazz standard in the years since.

"Knockin’ On Heaven’s Door"

"Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door" has become one of Bob Dylan's most iconic songs. It has famously been covered by the likes of Jimi Hendrix and Guns N' Roses. The song was originally composed by the legendary songwriter for Pat Garrett And Billy The Kid, which Dylan also appeared in.

"Take My Breath Away"

On a soundtrack as iconic as Top Gun, it's easy to forget all the bangers that came from it. Like "Take My Breath Away" by Berlin. Sure, anyone who was around in the '80s and saw the original Top Gun in theaters or on VHS might remember it, but if you're any younger, you might not have any idea.

"Independent Women, Pt 1"

The rebooted Charlie's Angels was a huge cultural hit in 2000, and part of that was because of the Destiny's Child hit "Independent Women, Pt 1." There are likely thousands of Beyoncé fans who don't realize the song was once part of a soundtrack.

“It Must Have Been Love”

Roxette had a whole slew of hits in the 1990s and one of their biggest, “It Must Have Been Love," came from one of the biggest movies of the era, Pretty Woman. The song matches the vibe of the movie perfectly.

"Gangsta’s Paradise"

Coolio's "Gangsta’s Paradise" is one of the most iconic hip-hop songs of all time. The movie it came from, Dangerous Minds starring Michelle Pfeiffer, doesn't have the reputation by a long shot. It's not that it's a bad movie, but it just hasn't had the longevity that the song has enjoyed.

“Cradle of Love”

The video for Billy Idol's "Cradle of Love" was one of the most popular in MTV history, back when MTV still played videos. The movie it came from, The Adventures of Ford Fairlane, starring Andrew Dice Clay, was not nearly as popular. For a certain demographic, the foul-mouthed comedian's lone movie that he led is a classic; for most, it's silly and stupid.

"Happy"

This one may be a little debatable for its inclusion on this list. "Happy" by Pharrell Williams was a monster hit, and it was originally on the soundtrack of another huge hit, Despicable Me 2. Fans of the franchise certainly know this, but the song became so ubiquitous, there are many fans of the song who had no idea it came from a movie.

“Say You, Say Me”

White Nights is a mostly forgotten movie about contrasting dancers (played by Gregory Hines and Mikhail Baryshnikov) from 1985. Far less forgotten is the Lionel Richie hit that first appeared in the movie, "Say You, Say Me." One reason people don't associate it with the movie first is that while it appeared in the movie, it was left off the soundtrack, so it could be included later on Richie's album Dancing on the Ceiling months later.

"Lose Yourself"

Eminem's "Lose Yourself" is one of the rapper's biggest hits, and it first appeared in his hit movie 8 Mile. It's one of those songs that you immediately know who is rapping, of course, but considering that the movie hasn't really remained all that iconic, it's easy to forget the song started on the soundtrack.

"Nobody Does It Better"

While some disagree, for me, "Nobody Does It Better" by Carly Simon is not only an amazing song, but it's the best theme song in the Roger Moore era of James Bond. Usually, the Bond theme songs share the name of the movie they come from, but for The Spy Who Loved is an exception. The name of the movie appears in the lyrics of the song, but the title is different, making it easy to forget it's a Bond theme.

“Crazy for You”

Madonna was just at the beginning of her world-changing career when she struck gold with "Crazy For You." The song, which was originally part of the soundtrack for a movie about wrestling, Vision Quest, was so successful, the movie was renamed in some countries after it.

"Against All Odds"

Phil Collins did quite a bit of soundtrack work in the 1980s, and one of his biggest hits, "Against All Odds," comes from a movie of the same name starring Jeff Bridges. The movie, about a retired athlete, isn't remembered as one of Bridges' best movies, but the song remains iconic.

"End of the Road"

Boyz II Men were one of the biggest bands of the '90s, so it makes sense they would be tapped to include a song on the soundtrack of a movie starring one of the biggest movie stars of the era. Boomerang is an underrated Eddie Murphy movie, one of the last of his truly great movies from the '80s and '90s, but still, it hasn't had the staying power of "End of the Road."

"Don’t You (Forget About Me)"

If you're like me, you listen to a lot of the First Wave channel on SiriusXM. One of the staples of '80s wave is "Don’t You (Forget About Me)" by Simple Minds, and while Gen X certainly remembers that it comes from The Breakfast Club, the song has become so iconic on its own that it's easy to forget for many.

"Eye Of The Tiger"

Survivor's "Eye of the Tiger" has become ubiquitous at sporting events and in gyms all over the world. It's easy to say it's far better known than the movie it comes from, Rocky III. Not that the third Rocky movie is forgotten, but the song is no longer associated with the movie, right?

“I Just Called to Say I Love You”

“I Just Called to Say I Love You” has become one of Stevie Wonder's signature songs, and for a guy with as many hits as Stevie, it's a wonder any of them came from a movie, but this one did. It's a mostly forgotten movie starring Gene Wilder and Kelly LeBrock called The Woman In Red.

“Because You Loved Me”

Celine Dion's biggest hit, "My Heart Will Go On," will always be associated with the movie it comes from, Titanic. Another one of her hits, “Because You Loved Me," also comes from a movie that almost no one remembers, Up Close and Personal, starring Robert Redford and Michelle Pfeiffer.

“Kiss From a Rose”

One of Seal's biggest hits in the '90s, “Kiss From a Rose," was actually first included in Batman Forever, which doesn't usually rank very highly on the list of great Batman movies, but is still a lot better than Batman & Robin.

“Stay (I Missed You)”

Reality Bites is a movie that helped define Gen X, and Lisa Loeb's hit “Stay (I Missed You)” is an iconic song from the era, but people often forget the song actually comes from the movie. Of course, it makes perfect sense when you do realize it, but still, the two are very separate in many people's minds.

"Endless Love"

The movie Endless Love is notable for being Tom Cruise's first major movie (he had a small role) and, frankly, not much else. The theme song, however, "Endless Love," by Diana Ross and Lionel Richie, remains an iconic love song that people still slow dance to all over the world.

“(Everything I Do) I Do It for You”

In 1991, there was one song that was absolutely everywhere. “(Everything I Do) I Do It for You” by Bryan Adams was a monster hit, and the fact that it comes from Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves gets completely lost in the song's history. IT doesn't seem like the kind of song that would appear in a period piece, which is probably why people don't associate it with the movie anymore.

“Kiss”

While Purple Rain was a hit, Prince's second movie, Under the Cherry Moon, was not. The purple one's hit "Kiss" is actually probably more associated with the famous bathtub scene in Pretty Woman than it is with Cherry Moon.

“Wind Beneath My Wings”

“Wind Beneath My Wings” is Bette Midler's signature song, and it comes from one her best movies, Beaches, yet people seem to forget that the two have the same origin story, but they do.