"Love the Coopers" Soundtrack Lyrics

---

"Love the Coopers (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)" – Album Guide to Tracks and Key Scenes

Overview

How do you score a Christmas film about people who secretly hate what their life turned into? The Love the Coopers (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) answers with a mix of hushed indie folk, classic Christmas standards and bruised Bob Dylan cuts. The movie runs on a familiar premise — four generations of a dysfunctional family gathering for Christmas Eve — but the soundtrack digs underneath the tinsel to score regrets, near-misses and quiet reconciliations.

The album, released in November 2015 as a various-artists compilation, opens with Robert Plant & Alison Krauss on “The Light of Christmas Day,” slides into Fleet Foxes’ “White Winter Hymnal,” and then alternates between soul (Otis Redding’s “Merry Christmas Baby”), folk-rock (Dylan’s “Girl from the North Country” and “If Not for You”), and Nina Simone’s gospel-soaked take on “To Love Somebody.” Nick Urata’s score cue “Fear of Silence” sits among these as the one overt piece of film scoring on the album, tying the compilation back to his original music for the picture. Apple’s listing and label press blurbs both frame it as an official soundtrack anchored by that Plant/Krauss reunion and a carefully curated wintery mix.

On top of the 13 album tracks there is a longer in-film playlist: Sting’s “Soul Cake,” Sixpence None the Richer’s “Carol of the Bells,” Sarah Jarosz’s “Ring Them Bells,” several carols performed by different choirs, and non-album cues like “My Sharona,” “I Only Care About You” and “Tears of Happiness (Chill Out Mix)” that pop up in malls, hospital corridors and family-dance montages. One soundtrack site that logs all 24 songs with scene notes shows just how much more music the film uses beyond the official CD.

Genre-wise, the score and song choices carve the story into layers. The Dylan and Simone tracks give the adults’ midlife crises a 60s–70s folk-soul weight. Modern folk and indie (Fleet Foxes, The Dodos, Sarah Jarosz) paint the younger generation’s uncertainty in cooler, more introspective colours. Traditional carols and choral pieces carry the obligatory “holiday spirit” veneer — mall Santas, church-like choirs, sentimental crescendos — which the film routinely undercuts with arguments and awkwardness. The soundtrack’s trick is to let all of those coexist without turning into a random playlist.

How It Was Made

The film is directed by Jessie Nelson from a script by Steven Rogers. Composer Nick Urata, best known as frontman of DeVotchKa and for scores like Crazy, Stupid, Love. and Paddington, provides the original score. Trade coverage in 2015 flagged that Urata would score the film, and credits on the DVD and databases list him simply as “music” or “music director.” His cues are mostly small and character-focused: acoustic guitar motifs, gentle orchestral textures, and pieces like “On the Bridge” and “Fear of Silence” that slide in between the licensed songs rather than overshadow them.

The big talking point during release was the new Robert Plant & Alison Krauss track. Republic Records handled the digital soundtrack and trumpeted “The Light of Christmas Day” as the duo’s first studio reunion since Raising Sand, with press notes highlighting that the song was written by Charles Duncan and produced by T Bone Burnett. A Led Zeppelin fan site reproduced a Republic press release listing the whole 13-track album and calling out the Plant/Krauss original as the closer for the film’s credits and the compilation.

Physically, the soundtrack came out on CD via Lakeshore Records, with their catalog entry giving a running time of about 38 minutes and confirming the same 13-track sequence. Digital platforms credit the compilation to Republic Records, a division of UMG, with a release date of 13 November 2015 — the same day the film opened in U.S. theatres. So the project effectively had a twin-release model: Lakeshore for the disc, Republic for download and streaming.

Behind the scenes on the licensing side, music clearance and legal work is credited to specialists like Toko Nagata, and a separate music editor (Nic Ratner) is listed for the film. That split is typical for a modern studio holiday film: a composer shaping the score cues, a clearance team wrestling with legacy rights for Dylans and carols, and a supervisor/label combo pulling everything into a coherent album.

Tracks & Scenes

This is not the full tracklist; it focuses on key songs and how they interact with specific scenes. Exact timestamps vary slightly by cut, so placements are described in story order rather than minute-precise marks.

"White Winter Hymnal" — Fleet Foxes
Where it plays: Used right up front in the opening credits, as we glide through snowy exteriors, shoppers, and the intercut introductions to the different Cooper family branches. The song plays non-diegetically, its layered “I was following the…” vocals washing over wide shots and quick domestic snippets.
Why it matters: Its hypnotic, circular feel sets a very different tone from a typical bombastic Christmas comedy. Instead of sleigh bells, we get a folk choir humming about repetition and falling. That is the film in miniature: people sleepwalking through the same rituals until something finally snaps.

"Merry Christmas, Baby" — Otis Redding
Where it plays: In the airport bar, when Eleanor (Olivia Wilde) first meets Joe (Jake Lacy). It plays diegetically as part of the bar’s background music: low light, clink of glasses, a TV flickering in the corner while she orders another drink and he tries to make conversation. The camera cuts between them, lingering on Eleanor’s guarded expressions as Otis’s voice curls around the room.
Why it matters: According to one detailed song-by-song breakdown, this is the track that subtly turns the bar from a holding pen into their own little snow globe. Redding’s gravelly warmth gives their banter a softness it otherwise wouldn’t have; the lyrics about wanting to be with someone for Christmas echo Eleanor’s irritation at being judged for arriving “alone.”

"To Love Somebody" — Nina Simone
Where it plays: Still at the airport, as Eleanor and Joe ride the moving walkway with shared earphones, swapping personal histories and half-truths. The song plays non-diegetically (but as if it could be what they are listening to), the camera tracking alongside them while the terminal’s noise drops under Simone’s voice.
Why it matters: Simone’s version turns the Bee Gees song into a bruised confession. Layer that over Eleanor’s fake-boyfriend scheme and Joe’s soldier background and you get a romantic set-up that already feels strangely honest. The track is a good example of the film using an older song to deepen new characters rather than just decorate the scene.

"Soul Cake (A Soalin')" — Sting
Where it plays: Mid-film, as Bucky (Alan Arkin) finds out that Ruby (Amanda Seyfried) has quietly quit her job at the diner and kept it from him. The sequence cuts between their fraught conversation and wider shots of the town in winter. The song plays over the scene, coming in right as Bucky’s disappointment surfaces.
Why it matters: The arrangement is old-English carol by way of Sting — hand drums, chant-like vocals, minor-key shadings. It underlines Bucky’s sense that his traditions (including his daily lunches with Ruby) are slipping away. A cheery standard would have made this a sitcom beat; “Soul Cake” makes it feel like a little personal ritual dying.

"Carol of the Bells" — Sixpence None the Richer
Where it plays: Over a montage of the younger Cooper grandson Bo hunting for the perfect gift, rushing through crowded shops and staring down shelves of toys. The band’s airy, harmony-heavy take plays non-diegetically, with the familiar “ding, dong” figure weaving around the clatter and chatter of the mall.
Why it matters: The choice of a modern alt-pop version instead of a strictly choral recording keeps the film’s musical palette contemporary while still giving Bo an almost mythic, “quest” feel. His little mission is treated with as much musical seriousness as the adults’ relationship crises, which is sincere in a way the movie needs.

"Ring Them Bells" — Sarah Jarosz
Where it plays: In the hospital after Bucky’s collapse. The doctor tells the family that he is improving, and the tension in the waiting room finally loosens a notch. Jarosz’s gentle, mandolin-laced version of the Dylan song plays as relatives move between corridors, coffee machines and doorways, checking on each other.
Why it matters: The lyric about ringing bells “for the time that flies” feels almost too on-the-nose, but Jarosz sings it with enough restraint that it works. The track gives the hospital scenes a fragile hopefulness, bridging the gap between scare and relief without tipping into mawkishness.

"Fear of Silence" — Nick Urata
Where it plays: In one of Emma’s (Marisa Tomei) most vulnerable moments: she confesses to Officer Percy (Anthony Mackie) that she swallowed a piece of stolen jewellery, and later, in the hospital, admits how afraid she is of being alone. The cue sits under their conversation, mostly quiet strings and piano with a few uneasy chord shifts, then follows her into the scene where she finally comes clean to her family.
Why it matters: It is the score’s title statement: this family fills every silence with noise — jokes, arguments, rituals — because empty space forces them to confront the truth. Urata’s cue is one of the places where the soundtrack steps away from famous songs and lets the original score do the emotional lifting.

"Buckets of Rain" — Bob Dylan
Where it plays: In the kitchen, during one of Charlotte (Diane Keaton) and Sam’s (John Goodman) fiercest arguments. As their attempt at one last “perfect” Christmas dinner slips, the song plays in the background; dishes are moved, voices rise and fall, kids hover at the edges. It may be diegetic (from a stereo in another room) or just slightly above the action, but either way it sounds like something they would both have on an old playlist.
Why it matters: Dylan’s lyrical shrug — “life is sad, life is a bust” — is exactly where their marriage is when we meet them. The fact that it plays under a domestic fight rather than a montage or flashback keeps the moment grounded: this is what long-term disappointment actually looks like, scored by someone who has sung about it for decades.

"Joy to the World" — The O’Neill Brothers
Where it plays: Over the Santa-photo sequence, as Hank (Ed Helms) works his seasonal mall job and watches children scream and squirm in the red suit’s lap. The track is an instrumental piano arrangement; the bright, steady chords clash humorously with the chaos of kids crying and parents overreacting.
Why it matters: The irony here is straightforward but effective. A soothing instrumental “Joy to the World” under a line of meltdown-prone toddlers and a dad who just lost his job pushes the film toward satire without abandoning the warm surface.

"If Not for You" — Bob Dylan
Where it plays: At the end of the film, when the extended family, now through the worst of the revelations, ends up dancing in the hospital cafeteria as muzak morphs into something looser and everyone lets go a little. Dylan’s song plays as a non-diegetic capstone while we see reconciliations, new connections and Bucky watching from a short distance.
Why it matters: A song whose chorus is literally “If not for you…” doing the heavy lifting in a film about messy family dependence is not subtle, but it is emotionally honest. It also keeps the finale from turning into a full-blown Christmas-pop blowout; instead, it feels like an after-hours gathering that happens to be caught on film.

"The Light of Christmas Day" — Robert Plant & Alison Krauss
Where it plays: Over the closing credits, after the cafeteria dance and the narrator reveal. The scene cuts from the family to wider winter images and then to titles as the song’s opening line — “Snow falling right on time” — lands. It is purely non-diegetic, but it feels like the last word from outside the Cooper clan, watching them from above.
Why it matters: Recorded specifically for the film (as several music articles emphasise), the track functions as an epilogue that is more reflective than celebratory. Plant and Krauss sound like they are singing for everyone who just survived the holiday, not just this one cinematic family. The song is the album’s anchor and the film’s soft landing.

Non-album and trailer cues
Where they play: Beyond the official compilation, the film uses additional songs: “I Only Care About You” (Xu Fengming) in a hospital corridor where Eleanor follows Joe, “Tears of Happiness (Chill Out Mix)” over a late montage when everyone seems briefly okay with each other, “My Sharona” in a more comic, high-energy beat, and various choir-led carols that don’t make the CD. Trailer cuts lean heavily on the Plant/Krauss track alongside edited snippets of “White Winter Hymnal” and generic trailer percussion.
Why they matter: These tracks widen the musical world past the polished album. They also explain why some fans go hunting through online cue lists — the CD alone doesn’t fully represent what you hear in the theatre.

Notes & Trivia

• The film’s UK and Ireland title is Christmas with the Coopers; in Italy it was released as Natale all’improvviso, and in Germany as Alle Jahre wieder – Weihnachten mit den Coopers.
• The Christmas Specials Wiki and other fan sites highlight “The Light of Christmas Day” as the film’s signature song, even though it plays only over the credits.
• “White Winter Hymnal” was already something of a seasonal indie staple before the movie; its use here pushed it further into holiday-playlist territory.
• The Bob Dylan presence is heavy: the full film includes “Girl from the North Country,” “If Not for You” and “Buckets of Rain,” plus versions featuring Johnny Cash on some listings.
• A soundtrack-spotter article listing all 24 songs points out that some online uploads mix in the wrong “Fear of Silence” (a metal track) instead of Nick Urata’s cue.

Music–Story Links

The music in Love the Coopers is mapped pretty cleanly onto character arcs. Eleanor and Joe are the Dylan and Simone characters: their airport strand gets “Merry Christmas, Baby,” “To Love Somebody,” “Girl from the North Country” and “If Not for You,” all songs about flawed adults circling commitment. The mix tells you their story is meant to be bittersweet, not a simple meet-cute.

Sam and Charlotte’s marriage gets the wearier Dylan material. “Buckets of Rain” under their kitchen fight is basically a commentary track: life is sad, they made mistakes, and yet there is still affection in the way they spar. When the film finally lets them drop the pretense of the “perfect Christmas,” the music shifts away from ironic carols and into something closer to the hopeful end of Dylan’s catalogue.

Bucky’s scenes with Ruby sit on songs like “Soul Cake” and “Ring Them Bells,” which are technically about broader spiritual concerns but, in context, sound like his own fear of losing connection. You feel that in how the songs surround his hospitalisation and his quiet, half-removed presence in the cafeteria dance at the end.

Emma’s theft-and-confession subplot leans more on Nick Urata’s score. “Fear of Silence” and related cues underline that her real crime is not a stolen necklace but years of unspoken resentment and insecurity. By giving her mostly instrumental backing rather than famous tracks, the film keeps her story close and personal instead of turning it into a gag.

Finally, the children’s experiences — Bo’s quest for a present, the Santa-photo meltdown, the eventual group dance — are bound to carols and lighter arrangements: “Carol of the Bells,” “Joy to the World,” choir pieces. The soundtrack treats their emotional stakes with respect but scores them in a simpler musical language, mirroring how the kids see the world compared with the adults.

Reception & Quotes

As a film, Love the Coopers drew mostly negative notices. Aggregators put it in the “generally unfavorable” zone, with Rotten Tomatoes’ consensus noting that the talented cast and “bittersweet blend of holiday cheer” were let down by a cloying script. Metacritic’s score sits just above 30 out of 100, while CinemaScore’s audience poll hit a respectable B−, suggesting that regular viewers were kinder than critics.

The soundtrack, though, usually gets singled out as a plus. Articles on the Plant/Krauss single and fan write-ups of the album often describe the music as more thoughtful than the film around it. It functions almost like an alt/roots Christmas compilation that happens to double as a film tie-in.

“Republic Records will release the Love the Coopers official soundtrack album… the soundtrack includes the studio reunion of Robert Plant and Alison Krauss on their Christmas original ‘The Light of Christmas Day’.”

— label press information reproduced on a Led Zeppelin fan forum

“Love the Coopers has a talented cast and a uniquely bittersweet blend of holiday cheer in its better moments, but they’re all let down by a script content to settle for cloying smarm.”

— Rotten Tomatoes critical consensus (paraphrased)

One Czech review notes that the film has “good soundtrack features… alongside a number of hits past and present,” even as it gives the movie a low star rating.

— Prague-based review summary

Several music writers now mention “The Light of Christmas Day” in lists of underplayed modern Christmas songs, often without even referencing the film by name.

— online Christmas-music column

The soundtrack album itself never became a blockbuster seller, but between streaming and the Plant/Krauss single it has carved out a small, steady niche as a slightly moodier holiday playlist than you might expect from a studio family comedy.

Interesting Facts

• There are effectively two primary releases: a Lakeshore Records CD (running about 38 minutes) and a Republic Records digital compilation; both share the same 13 tracks and sequence.
• “The Light of Christmas Day” was recorded specifically for the film and released as a standalone digital single as well as part of the album.
• Bob Dylan’s presence is so strong that some soundtrack fans jokingly refer to the movie as “the one with all the Dylan Christmas feelings, plus a dog narrator.”
• Multiple online databases list 24 or 30 songs used in the film — nearly double the official album’s track count — which is why fan-made “complete soundtrack” playlists are common.
• Nick Urata’s cue “On the Bridge” appears here after previously surfacing on another film score; he often reworks themes across projects, giving his work a signature melodic fingerprint.
• German and Italian titles for the movie lean harder into Christmas branding than the U.S. one, but the soundtrack album keeps the original English title globally.
• Because the movie has become a minor cable and streaming staple in December, the soundtrack gets a yearly usage spike even without fresh physical editions.

Technical Info

• Album title: Love the Coopers (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)
• Main work: Love the Coopers (titled Christmas with the Coopers in some territories)
• Year (film): 2015 (U.S. release November 13, 2015)
• Year (album): 2015 (digital release November 13; CD shipping early December)
• Type: Various-artists soundtrack with one score cue
• Composer (score): Nick Urata
• Key artists on album: Robert Plant & Alison Krauss, Fleet Foxes, Otis Redding, Bob Dylan, Sting, Nina Simone, The Dodos, Sixpence None the Richer, Sarah Jarosz, Tamika Lawrence, Molly June, Wes Hutchinson, Nick Urata
• Labels: Republic Records (digital compilation, UMG); Lakeshore Records (physical CD, catalog 34577)
• Running time (CD): approx. 38 minutes 25 seconds (13 tracks)
• Key non-album film tracks: “I Only Care About You” (Xu Fengming), “Tears of Happiness (Chill Out Mix)” (Psytrotune), “My Sharona,” additional carols by London Fox Children’s Choir and others
• Film studio / distributors: CBS Films; distributed by Lionsgate in the U.S. and various partners internationally
• Film music credits: Music by Nick Urata; music editor Nic Ratner; music clearance/legal by specialists such as Toko Nagata
• Box office (film): roughly $42–44 million worldwide on a reported budget of $17 million
• Critical reception (film): generally unfavorable reviews; Rotten Tomatoes around the high-teens approval; Metacritic score near 31/100; CinemaScore audience grade B−

Canonical Entities & Relations

Subject	Relation	Object
Love the Coopers (film)	is directed by	Jessie Nelson
Love the Coopers (film)	is written by	Steven Rogers
Love the Coopers (film)	has music by	Nick Urata
Love the Coopers (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)	is a soundtrack to	Love the Coopers (film)
Love the Coopers (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)	is performed by	Various Artists
Robert Plant & Alison Krauss	perform	“The Light of Christmas Day (From ‘Love the Coopers’ Soundtrack)”
Charles Duncan	wrote	“The Light of Christmas Day”
T Bone Burnett	produced	“The Light of Christmas Day”
Republic Records	released	the digital Love the Coopers soundtrack compilation
Lakeshore Records	released	the physical CD edition of Love the Coopers (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)
Bob Dylan	performs	“Girl from the North Country,” “If Not for You” and “Buckets of Rain” featured in the film
Nina Simone	performs	“To Love Somebody” featured in the film and on the album
Sting	performs	“Soul Cake (A Soalin’)” featured in the film and on the album
Fleet Foxes	perform	“White Winter Hymnal,” used in the film’s opening credits and on the album
The Dodos	perform	“Companion,” included on the album and used in the film
Sarah Jarosz	performs	“Ring Them Bells,” used in the hospital sequence and on the album
CBS Films / Lionsgate	distribute	Love the Coopers theatrically

Questions & Answers

Is the Love the Coopers soundtrack just a Christmas compilation, or is it tailored to the film?

It is curated quite specifically for the film. While it works as a winter playlist on its own, the choices — especially the Robert Plant & Alison Krauss song, the Dylan cuts and the Simone track — are placed against particular characters and scenes rather than being generic seasonal picks.

How many songs are in the movie versus on the official album?

The official album has 13 tracks, mostly well-known artists plus one Nick Urata score cue. The full film uses around two dozen songs, including extra carols, a few non-album pieces like “I Only Care About You” and “Tears of Happiness (Chill Out Mix),” and alternate versions of some Dylan tracks.

Who composed the original score for Love the Coopers?

Nick Urata composed the original score. He is the frontman of DeVotchKa and has scored films such as Crazy, Stupid, Love., Paddington and several other character-based comedies and dramas.

Was “The Light of Christmas Day” written specifically for the movie?

Yes. It is an original song written by Charles Duncan and recorded by Robert Plant & Alison Krauss for this film, produced by T Bone Burnett. It was released as a single tied to the soundtrack and features prominently over the closing credits.

Where can I listen to the Love the Coopers soundtrack today?

The physical CD can be hard to find, but the compilation is available on major streaming platforms and digital stores under the title Love the Coopers (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack), usually credited to Various Artists and filed in the Soundtrack or Holiday category.

Sources: film credits and production notes; English, German, Italian and Portuguese Wikipedia entries for the film; Apple Music and Amazon soundtrack listings; MovieMusic and label data for the album; soundtrackradar and Whatsong cue lists with scene descriptions; IMDB soundtrack and credits; press and fan write-ups on “The Light of Christmas Day” and the album.

Funny Christmas comedy – what could be better for this holiday? Especially if, but funny moments, there is plenty of lyrical melancholy added. And you will even be worried after those who were admitted to the hospital. Olivia Wilde, Marisa Tomei, Amanda Seyfried, Diane Keaton, Ed Helms, John Goodman and Alan Arkin – this is not a complete list of those who made this film fantastically rich with their wonderful acting. Olivia Wilde has a stunning purring voice and constantly demonstrates it. Not for nothing, men on many continents get crazy over her. Besides career of an actress, she is also a model and that only adds to her points in the race for the title of queen of hearts. Diane Keaton is one of the most experienced actresses here and she is the winner of numerous awards, including the Oscar and Golden Globe. The number of her other awards and nominations is so big that it must have a separate page. More experienced that her in number of roles in movies are Alan Arkin, who is over 80 years (he also has one Oscar) & John Goodman, who is everywhere he can – in movies, on TV, in theater, computer games and has number of roles collectively more than previously mentioned two. Owner of Golden Globe & Emmy and not Oscar, but it’s a matter of time. Look at DiCaprio who also doesn’t have it, but this is not the subject of jokes, or mentions, because this would be impolite. In general, such shrilly-professional actors will not make you worry that the movie will be bad. It was narrated by Steve Martin, and the music created by fantastic Nick Urata – a man who understands the sound. The collection is replete with music from Bob Dylan & our holidays will definitely be wonderful in the company of To Love Somebody or Ring them Bells. The main topic is The Light of Christmas Day, which is for the trailer.

November, 13th 2025

Find more about "Love the Coopers" movie: IMDb, Rotten Tomatoes, Wikipedia

---

A-Z Lyrics Universe

---