The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants [Original Soundtrack]

1	These Days / Chantal Kreviazuk
2	Unwritten / Natasha Bedingfield
3	Black Roses Red / Alana Grace
4	If God Made You (Remix) / Five For Fighting
5	Just For You / William Tell
6	Close to You / Brandi Carlile
7	No Sleep Tonight / The Faders
8	I Want You to Know / Chantal Kreviazuk
9	Be Be Your Love / Rachael Yamagata
10	Sun's Gonna Rise / Shannon Curfman
11	Simple / Katy Perry
12	Always There In You / The Valli Girls

Barnes & Noble

It's an age-old truth: When all else fails, you've got your friends -- and your jeans. Alexis Bledel, the doe-eyed star of Gilmore Girls, shares the silver screen with three other talented young actresses to bring Ann Brashares' bestselling books to life. These four friends, determined to stay in touch during their first summer apart, discover a pair of jeans that magically fits each of their different frames. Thus the bonds of true friendship are tied with threads of denim -- and, as it turns out, a memorable batch of songs. From country to pop, the collection is both uplifting and sentimental, expressing the bittersweet highs and lows of being a teenager. Chantal Kreviazuk's opening track is a melodic homage to the ever-changing landscape of our lives. Earning comparisons to fellow songstress Sarah McLachlan, Kreviazuk's ethereal vocals seem right at home on this disc. Other standouts include newcomer Natasha Bedingfield, the sister of pop producer Daniel Bedingfield -- judging by the sound of her "Unwritten," with its easy vocals and uncomplicated beats, pop prowess is in the family genes. Joining in the angst-filled fun is 17-year-old Alana Grace, a newcomer who already exhibits the musical dexterity of an established singer with her ballad "Black Roses Red." Meanwhile, Five for Fighting retools "If God Made You," showcasing the vocal talents of John Ondrasik, while Rolling Stone–nominated "Artist to Watch" Brandi Carlile lends her country sound and delicate vocals to "Closer to You." And Rachael Yamagata's "Be Be Your Love" will be recognized for her signature sound, with vocals that slide from smooth to raspy to caressing, a metaphor for the act of falling in love itself. Like your favorite pair of jeans, this disc warrants repeated use. Amy Barkat

All Music Guide

The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants is a pretty standard, but also pretty enjoyable, collection of mostly singer/songwriterly, largely female pop. At its best, on tracks such as Natasha Bedingfield's sleekly playful, hopeful "Unwritten" and the hard-edged pop of the Faders' "No Sleep 2Nite," the soundtrack captures the earnestness and sass of being a teenage girl (or, at least, the film's approximation of that). Indeed, the diary-like intimacy of Alana Grace's "Black Roses Red" and Chantal Kreviazuk's "These Days" and "I Want You to Know" might be too painfully earnest for anyone but teenage girls, but they're still sweet, heartfelt songs. The earnest guys on Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants don't fare quite as well as the earnest young women, however; while William Tell's "Just for You" is more nondescript than bad, on Five for Fighting's oddly egotistical "If God Made You" -- which features the excruciating line "If God made you, he must be in love with me" -- the earnestness spills into sappiness (and creepy sappiness at that). For every overdone song like the Valli Girls' "Always There in You," which emphasizes the film's (and soundtrack's) chick-flick with training wheels vibe, there's a track like Rachel Yamagata's smoky, flute-and-accordion-embellished "Be Your Love" that gives young women, who are presumably the target audience for the film and its music, some credit for having fairly sophisticated tastes. Katie Perry's quirky "Simple" and Brandy Carlile's pretty, vaguely countrified "Closer to You" are two of the album's other standout tracks. The soundtrack might have been even better if it showed more sisterhood with an all-female collection of artists, but it's pleasant enough to work as a musical souvenir for fans of the film. Heather Phares