Love Actually (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) is the soundtrack album to the 2003 film Love Actually directed by Richard Curtis. The album was released through Island Records and Universal Records on 17 November 2003, and featured 20 tracks from popular artists, and including two pieces from the score composed by Craig Armstrong.
The US edition of the soundtrack removed two pieces of the score and "Sometimes" by Gabrielle and reordered the tracklist, featuring 17 tracks, as both the US and UK versions featured two instances of alternative music. The US version also replaced the Girls Aloud cover of "Jump (For My Love)" with the original by The Pointer Sisters, and replaced Maroon 5's "Sweetest Goodbye" with a medley of "Sweetest Goodbye" with "Sunday Morning".
The soundtrack was a chart topping success in the United States and United Kingdom. The soundtrack album reached number one on the UK Albums Chart, and by Christmas 2018 it had spent 348 weeks on the Chart. It reached the top forty on the US Billboard 200 in 2004 and ranked second on the Top Soundtracks chart. The album was certified "Gold" by the Recording Industry Association of America for selling 50,000 units in the United States and "Platinum" by the British Phonographic Industry for selling around 2 million units in the United Kingdom.
Reception
Heather Phares of AllMusic wrote "While Love Actually is actually far from a perfect collection of love songs, the soundtrack is pleasant enough that fans of the film will probably enjoy it on its own." Katie Moten of RTÉ wrote "Love Actually is an enjoyable listen for fans of the film, as well as hopeless romantics everywhere". Taylor Mayle of Bustle wrote "The soundtrack, much like the film, is a cup of hot chocolate on a rainy day: comforting, inviting, and invoking the same warm fuzzies you might get when looking at a newly decorated tree or snuggling in front of a fire with your special someone. And perhaps most importantly, the songs will remind you of pieces of your own life, and everything that's gotten you from one holiday season to the next."