"One Week" Soundtrack Lyrics

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“One Week (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)” – Album Guide to Tracks and Key Scenes

Overview

What if a diagnosis became a playlist—and the country itself turned into a chorus? One Week (2008) follows Ben (Joshua Jackson) on a spur-of-the-moment motorcycle ride from Toronto to Tofino, and the soundtrack rides shotgun. The film treats songs like postcards: each one stamped with a landmark, a choice, a small piece of courage.

The album leans hard into Canadian indie: Sam Roberts, Stars, Great Lake Swimmers, Wintersleep, Patrick Watson, Melissa McClelland & Luke Doucet, Joel Plaskett, Sunparlour Players, and more. Their tracks don’t decorate scenery—they parcel out Ben’s interior weather. A folk standard threads through three key beats; score cues keep the engine warm between needle-drops.

The listening arc mirrors the road: departure jitters → prairie quiet → mountain reckoning → Pacific clarity. Rock and indie-pop underline motion and bravado; hushed folk carries the doubts; chamber-like score cues slip into the pauses where Ben admits what he wants. According to the production notes, music was designed to be “an essential part” of the film’s episodic, montage-friendly structure—songs as waypoints, not wallpaper.

Genres & themes in phases: indie-rock & alt-pop — speed, escape, bravado; modern folk & torch — memory, apology, a hand on the shoulder; ambient/chamber score — breath between decisions; a 19th-century lament — identity and belonging stitched across a continent.

How It Was Made

Writer-director Michael McGowan set out to feature Canadian artists on- and off-screen, building a “Who’s Who” lineup across labels and scenes. Music supervision came from Jody Colero and Marco DiFelice, who cleared a mix of familiar names and new discoveries to mirror Ben’s coast-to-coast odyssey. Joel Plaskett was even woven into the shoot as a downtown Toronto busker to keep the city’s music beating inside the frame.

Composer Andrew Lockington kept the score intimate—acoustic textures, piano, and the hush of late-night reflection. He tracked parts at the CBC on the same piano associated with Glenn Gould, an intentional nod to the film’s Canadian spine. A recurring thread, “Un Canadien errant,” was arranged and produced for the film as a contemporary folk pillar that could carry both nostalgia and resolve. Per the film’s music section, the finale’s version was rebuilt to feel more anthemic after two earlier in-story uses.

Tracks & Scenes

“Un Canadien errant” — Melissa McClelland & Luke Doucet (arr. Andrew Lockington)
Where it plays: Three separate beats: young Ben sings a version for his parents (diegetic memory); later, the tune threads a scene with Tracey in the West; and it returns as an anthemic end-credits coda newly reworked in studio.
Why it matters: A 19th-century exile song reframed as a modern pilgrimage—belonging, loss, and the courage to keep moving.

“A Million Dollars” — Joel Plaskett
Where it plays: Downtown Toronto street scene early in the journey. The camera finds a busker (Plaskett himself) as Ben moves through a crowd, the song folding the city’s heartbeat into his first steps.
Why it matters: A sly diegetic cameo that turns a soundtrack cut into street air—Ben’s leap begins with a local voice.

“Hard Road” — Sam Roberts
Where it plays: Kickoff momentum during the departure stretch—engine idle to open highway, cut to roadside gas and the first wrong turn. Non-diegetic drive fuel.
Why it matters: The literal/metaphorical title does the heavy lifting: it’s not just distance; it’s difficulty.

“Calendar Girl” — Stars
Where it plays: A bittersweet montage when Ben considers what he’s leaving—photos, plans, a life on rails. The song’s glow contrasts with the mess he’s made by bolting.
Why it matters: Dreamy synths, clear eyes; the show of confidence that still trembles a little.

“Imaginary Bars” — Great Lake Swimmers
Where it plays: Prairie drift at blue hour; telephone poles pacing the frame, a voice-over nudge from the narrator. Non-diegetic, hushed, wind in the mix.
Why it matters: You can be alone and still feel fenced in—this track names that feeling without saying a word.

“Weighty Ghost” — Wintersleep
Where it plays: After a hard truth lands, the song shoulders the silence—Ben watches the land roll by and finally breathes. Non-diegetic, CODA energy.
Why it matters: A fan-favorite needle drop, it reframes the trip as reckoning, not escape.

“The Great Escape” — Patrick Watson
Where it plays: A luminous interlude in the Rockies; cinema-quiet images do the talking while the falsetto sketches altitude.
Why it matters: The film’s softest epiphany—freedom doesn’t always shout.

“Skyway Bridge” — Melissa McClelland
Where it plays: Early-journey Ontario stretch; signage, steel trusses, afternoon light. Non-diegetic but geographically on-the-nose, a wink for locals.
Why it matters: Place as lyric—memory anchored to infrastructure.

“Pacifist’s Anthem” — Sunparlour Players
Where it plays: Small-town stopover with a friendly kitchen table; stringed instruments and stomp-box rhythm bring the room together.
Why it matters: Community as waystation; the song says “stay” even as the road says “go.”

“Blackwinged Bird” — Emm Gryner
Where it plays: A reflective West-coast beat as Tracey’s path crosses Ben’s; non-diegetic, all atmosphere and ache.
Why it matters: An artist from the film’s cast echoing the story in her own song—life bleeding into the soundtrack.

Notes & Trivia

• McGowan wrote scenes to specific songs—Plaskett’s “A Million Dollars” guided a pivotal decision beat, then he cast Plaskett as the busker.
• “Un Canadien errant” appears three times, culminating in a re-imagined end-credits take produced by Lockington with Doucet & McClelland.
• Lockington recorded piano at the CBC on the same instrument associated with Glenn Gould.
• Music supervision by Jody Colero & Marco DiFelice connected indie labels, managers, and artists across Canada.
• Gordon Downie (The Tragically Hip) cameos on the road; Joel Plaskett and Emm Gryner also appear in-story.

Music–Story Links

When Ben bolts, “Hard Road” gives him permission to be reckless—then makes him pay attention. When he stalls in prairie quiet, “Imaginary Bars” reveals a fence you can’t photograph. “A Million Dollars” doesn’t just play; it lives in the frame, turning a city corner into an audio cue. And every return of “Un Canadien errant” reframes his trip: first as memory, then as encounter, finally as promise.

Reception & Quotes

Critics split on the film’s sentiment, but the soundtrack’s Canadian focus drew notice—both as texture and as theme. Some heard “wallpaper,” others heard a diary written in songs. The album landed on streaming soon after release, where fans rebuilt the road trip as playlists.

“The soundtrack is wallpapered with Canadian singer-songwriter tracks that are nice, but tend to blur together.” — Variety

“The movie’s real strength comes from… the landscape and the third-person narration.” — Toronto Star

Per streaming listings, an official compilation collects many of the film’s key songs alongside the score’s recurring theme.

Interesting Facts

• The film uses both diegetic performances (street busker, childhood sing-along) and non-diegetic montage cuts.
• “Un Canadien errant” dates to the 1840s; the film treats it as a national memory you can hum anywhere.
• Score cues were intentionally small—guitar, piano, quiet percussion—to avoid competing with the indie songs.
• Several featured artists (Stars, Wintersleep, Patrick Watson) were cresting in international buzz right as the film opened.
• The soundtrack compilation appeared digitally soon after the Canadian theatrical run, making region-specific tracks easier to find abroad.

Technical Info

• Title: One Week (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)
• Year: 2008 film; soundtrack release followed (digital compilation appeared in 2009)
• Type: Movie soundtrack — songs & selections from original score
• Composer (score): Andrew Lockington
• Music Supervision: Jody Colero; Marco DiFelice
• Select Featured Artists: Sam Roberts; Stars; Great Lake Swimmers; Joel Plaskett; Melissa McClelland & Luke Doucet; Wintersleep; Patrick Watson; Sunparlour Players; Emm Gryner; Selina Martin; Kupek (Bryan Lee O’Malley)
• Notable Recurring Theme: “Un Canadien errant” — three scene placements incl. end-credits version
• Availability: Streaming album (digital); retail/press materials list detailed song credits; region-specific physical editions vary

Questions & Answers

Is the music mostly Canadian artists?

Yes. The soundtrack was curated to spotlight Canadian musicians on and off camera, fitting the cross-country story.

Who composed the original score?

Andrew Lockington, who kept the palette intimate—acoustic textures, piano, and space for reflection.

What’s the folk song that keeps returning?

“Un Canadien errant,” arranged/produced for the film and heard three times, culminating in a new end-credits performance.

Does anyone perform in the film?

Yes—Joel Plaskett appears as a street performer; Emm Gryner features on screen; the story also includes a childhood sing-along moment.

Is there an official album?

A digital compilation titled “One Week (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)” gathers many featured tracks and cues.

Canonical Entities & Relations

Subject	Relation	Object
Michael McGowan	directs	One Week (film)
Andrew Lockington	composes score for	One Week (film)
Jody Colero & Marco DiFelice	music-supervise	One Week (film)
Joel Plaskett	appears as	busker; contributes “A Million Dollars”
Melissa McClelland & Luke Doucet	perform	“Un Canadien errant” (end-credits version)
Wintersleep	perform	“Weighty Ghost” (featured in film)
Stars	perform	“Calendar Girl” (featured in film)
Sam Roberts	performs	“Hard Road” (featured in film)
Great Lake Swimmers	perform	“Imaginary Bars” (featured in film)
Mongrel Media	distributes	One Week (Canada)

Sources: Mongrel Media press kit; Spotify album listing; Wikipedia (film); Variety review; Toronto Star review; Ringostrack entry; The Thunderbird feature.

November, 18th 2025

'One Week' is a 2008 Canadian drama film directed by Michael McGowan and starring Joshua Jackson, Liane Balaban, and Campbell Scott. The film debuted at the Toronto International Film Festival on September 8, 2008 and was released theatrically on March 6, 2009. Learn more on Wikipedia visit movie profile on Internet Movie Database

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