The movies we love are invariably tied to the songs and scores associated with them.

Think back to the magic felt at seeing “The Wizard of Oz” for the first time and it can make you hum “Somewhere Over the Rainbow.” Start singing “As Time Goes By” and the faces of Ingrid Bergman and Humphrey Bogart may float into your mind.

Sound and music accent and deepen the meaning in a movie. A signature song can heighten the thrills of a film, giving a sense of drama or intrigue (for example, the rolling guitar line work in the James Bond theme song).

There are many ways to make music work in a movie, but for every great soundtrack that stands apart, there are dozens of others that fall flat.

What makes the great ones stand out? For movie fans, it seems to be not only a soundtrack’s great music, but also its ability to revive the film in a listener’s mind.

“What makes a great soundtrack to me is if I can buy it and listen to it later and it takes me back into the movie,” said cinema aficionado Jeremy Higginbotham.

He said good soundtracks recall favorite scenes from the flick.

Kate Davis Chambers, head of the drama department at Liberty-Eylau High School and also a film fan, agrees. She cites the soundtrack to Spike Lee’s “Summer of Sam” as a good example. She said it brilliantly uses disco and rock music to make one recall movie scenes and the emotions in them.

And “The Big Chill,” she says, is one of the quintessential great soundtracks.

“I think the best soundtracks incorporate the mood of the film as well as the time of the film, ones that kind of get you thinking about the time period but also evoke the emotion of the film,” said Chambers.

A recently released soundtrack for the Ridley Scott film “American Gangster” exhibits some of the strengths and pitfalls that can be found in the musical accompaniment to a movie.

It’s certainly a decent soundtrack, and the movie itself uses music smartly to evoke mood and life on the streets in 1960s and ’70s Harlem. The big drawback is what’s not found on Def Jam’s soundtrack release. One of the best, most powerful scenes in the film utilizes “Amazing Grace” to magnificent effect, but it’s nowhere to be found on the soundtrack itself.

But John Lee Hooker’s “No Shoes,” Sam & Dave’s “Hold On I’m Comin’” and The Staple Singers’ “I’ll Take you There” all get the time and feel right in the film and CD.

Even a contemporary Public Enemy Song, “Can’t Truss It,” feels somehow in place when it’s used in the movie. It captures the anger and tension that boil over in the film.

Hank Shocklee contributes some fine, funky instrumental work for the album, as does Marc Streitenfeld with his score. But added on for the soundtrack’s last half, their efforts don’t feel integrated into the overall album as they are so assuredly in the film.

No matter what our opinions on specific soundtracks, it’s clear that movie lovers love songs. And that some songs are out there just waiting for the right film.