The soundtrack album topped the Billboard 200 album chart and sold more than 1.5 million copies while on chart, gaining a Platinum disc from the Recording Industry Association of America.[3] Critics from the MovieTunes website called the release "more than simply an aural souvenir of a magical movie experience. It is the cutting edge of a collaborative art-form whose time has come".[4] In his review for the music website AllMusic, journalist and critic Stephen Thomas Erlewine notes:
Designed for adult contemporary listeners, the soundtrack to the John Travolta movie Phenomenon has a cross-section of singer/songwriters, mellow blues, and synthesized soul-inflected pop. Out of all the contributors – which include such heavy hitters as Peter Gabriel, Bryan Ferry, John Hiatt, J.J. Cale, Taj Mahal, and a duet between Aaron Neville and Robbie Robertson – the standout track is "Change the World", a song Babyface wrote and produced for Eric Clapton. The two musicians work surprisingly well together, creating a laid-back, soulful number that is quietly seductive. Nothing on the album works quite as well, but it is a pleasant listen, if not a particularly memorable one.