Various Artists

‘Music Inspired by the Film “Roma” ’ (Columbia)

Give this collection featuring songs by Beck, Patti Smith, Jesse Reyez, T-Bone Burnett and fast-rising star Billie Eilish major points for truth in titling. It truly is “inspired by” Alfonso Cuarón’s Oscar-winning paean to 1970s Mexico City: Not a single song is actually heard in the movie.

(To confuse things, there’s also a traditional Roma soundtrack album of music that is actually heard in Cuarón’s film, from ’70s Mexican singers Juan Gabriel and Leo Dan to Yvonne Elliman’s “I Don’t Know How to Love Him” from “Jesus Christ Superstar.”)

This album takes another tack, with the director inviting favorite artists to use his movie as a muse. The results are mixed: Beck’s orchestral cover of 1980s Brit band Colourbox’s “Tarantula” is pretty enough; Smith’s remake of her 1996 song “Wing” feels stately and profound.

And Eilish’s spooky “When I Was Older” and Unkle featuring Michael Kiwanuka’s prayerlike “On My Knees” are highlights. The problem is the best songs have a poetic quality without making salient connections to the film, while others, like “Psycho” by Bu Cuarón (the director’s daughter) and Ibeyi’s “Cleo Who Takes Care of You,” strive too hard to be specific.

There is a bonus, though: The dulcet bark of the movie’s scene-stealing leaping and pooping dog, Borras, is heard both in Cuidad de Mexico’s opening “Tepeji 21” and Sonido Gallo Nero’s delightful “Cumbia del Borras.”