Film + TV

The top 10 TV soundtracks

by Anne T. Donahue

The only thing better than an amazing TV show is a soundtrack that does it justice – and frankly, even if the series isn’t that good, killer tracks will still keep it credible.  Here are ten of our favourite television soundtracks and why they reign supreme.

Wonder Years

Joe Cocker’s version of “With a Little Help from My Friends” may not trump The Beatles’, but regardless of its “opening credits” connotations, The Wonder Years makes a musical splash from its first three minutes to the series finale.  With nearly every episode featuring iconic hits of 60s and 70s, the show becomes a musical yearbook, using its music as another character to help carry and reflect the times.  We may not have seen it as “hip” when we were younger, but anyone with respect for the classics now can finally appreciate their importance and staying power.

The O.C.

You’d be hard pressed to find someone who didn’t purchase several instalments of The O.C. soundtrack during its four season-run, and that’s because unlike the series (which was fine until season three), the tracks featured were absolutely great.  Boasting Sufjan Stevens, Death Cab For Cutie and Jeff Buckley’s unforgettable “Hallelujah” (which will never not be associated with Seth running away on a boat), indie-loving teens of the early 2000s were in all their musical glory – until the rest of the population picked up on the then-buzz bands and infiltrated the formerly underground scene.  (Yes, once upon a time, Modest Mouse concerts didn’t sell out stadiums.)

Gossip Girl

Piggy-backing on the success of The O.C. musical legacy, Gossip Girl creators delved into buzz bands and varying indie scenes to help add hipness to the Upper East Side (which, unless you’re Little J, can be a bit of a feat).  However, unlike Taylor Momsen’s rock star endeavours, the show’s soundtrack is much more accessible, featuring tracks that reflect the landscape of current underground electro, rock, pop and everything in between – and making it a little less embarrassing for those of us who spend our weeknights shaking our heads at the antics of Serena and Blair.

Glee

No, it may not be categorized as “hip”, “cool” or even “something to play obnoxiously in one’s car” (yes it is), but there’s something to be said about a series that’s launched five albums in only two seasons.  Glee caters to our current appetite for nostalgia and satisfies it with likeable covers of former pop hits, and while it’d be easy to brand each musical instalment as lame, out-of-touch or solely youth-oriented, it’s a pop culture phenomenon and undeniably addictive.  After all, any soundtrack that features saccharine covers of Journey’s “Don’t Stop Believing” or Billy Idol’s “Dancing With Myself” is something worth a listen to.

Grey’s Anatomy

Before it was a show bathed in adult contemporary and more sub-plots than a daytime soap, Grey’s Anatomy was not only a cutting edge series, but one that boasted a soundtrack that made many of us swoon, weep or develop an eclectic combination of the two.  Having opened the series with Rilo Kiley’s “Portions for Foxes”, it was a show that screamed “relevant”, and as soundtracks went on to include tracks by Tegan and Sara, Metric and The Postal Service, the oversaturation of The Fray and Snow Patrol could be ignored (and at one point, perhaps even enjoyed.)

Six Feet Under

Introspective, thought-provoking and innately refreshing, the soundtrack of Six Feet Under was just as interesting as the series itself, as each song encompassed perfectly the feelings and tone of each episode and character.  Like nearly all shows that cater to audiences who identify most with being on the periphery, the indie and underground-based tracklisting was the ultimate counterpart to the cult series.  (And frankly, you’re lying if you say you didn’t cry during Sia’s “Breathe Me”.)

Skins

While you may think sex, drugs and rock ‘n roll are reserved solely for the lives of rock stars, the viewers of Skins know better –and nothing helps carry the troubling series like the crème de la crème of the independent music scene.  With The Gossip, Bloc Party and the Yeah Yeah Yeahs making appearances on the season one instalment alone, the only thing better than watching the youth of Great Britain sabotage their lives is listening to the music that goes along with it.

Mad Men

No, the AMC geniuses haven’t given music aficionados the alternative answer to the show’s vintage setting.  Instead, they carried hits over from the early 1960s (with the likes of The Decemberists being occasionally thrown in) and embedded them in a soundtrack that does the series and setting justice.  Featuring everyone from Ella Fitzgerald to Chubby Checker, the musical counterpart is tailored to everyone who’s developed a sense of nostalgia for an era they’ve never lived in, and while it may not be The O.C. soundtrack part two, that’s okay: first of all, that soundtrack is dated, and secondly, we all know Mad Men is in a league of its own.

Flight of the Conchords

While comedy albums are relatively formulaic or good only for three to four listens before retiring them to a used CD store, Flight of the Conchords offers an alternative, providing endless songs tailored specifically to viewers who’d always intended to memorize every word and sing along at obnoxious volumes (not that anybody does that, right?)  Grammy-nominated and undeniably endearing, the ballads of Brett and Jermaine have helped make novelty albums cool again – and not only because the show is hilarious, but because the songs are actually (gasp!) good.

Buffy the Vampire Slayer

Staying true to the current craving for all things vintage, the soundtrack of Buffy the Vampire Slayer is reminiscent of a time when soundtracks were still legitimately purchased and mixed tapes were the social norm.  Featuring artists like Garbage, Guided By Voices and The Sundays, the music of the series completely encompasses not just Buffy’s badass tendencies, but the glamour-less 1990s.  And while some of us were too young to appreciate Buffy or its soundtrack during its prime (or were too little and scared to watch it at all), anyone with appreciation for music, pop culture and previous eras can blast the volume in appreciation.