The 10 most iconic music moments in television history
Most television shows wouldn’t be half as good as they were without music. Although shows like The Office and Parks and Recreation may have worked wonders without a laugh track, it’s the instruments in the background that always bring added drama to a scene. Even though plenty of iconic TV themes have been made from scratch, sometimes acts like Kate Bush have the best song already written for you.
Instead of using an orchestral score, these commercial songs worked wonders for the respective scenes. While the artist in question had no idea that the songs were going to be used for these shows when they wrote them, the lyrics coincided with what was going on on-screen a little too perfectly.
Even though a song could have been about a traditional breakup or a group of friends having a falling out, the drama gets much better when you have these songs in the back. Though some of these might be a little more on the nose than others, each of them serves an integral part in the story.
The main focus of these scenes might be to move the plot along, but it’s impossible to separate these songs from the lives of these beloved characters. The score might have its place in the world of television, but on occasion, the best songs are right in front of your face.
10 most iconic music moments in television history
‘Rockin’ Back Inside My Heart’ – Twin Peaks
Watching a show like Twin Peaks feels like looking into the other side of consciousness. While the dream pop stylings of ‘Rockin’ Back Inside My Heart’ might lull you into a meditative state, it does the exact opposite when put in context with the rest of the show.
As Julee Cruise sings the song in the middle of a shady bar, the tension is in the air once the enforcements enter through the other side of the bar. It might have been just nice ambient noise, but the song might as well be the rising tension for a supervillain in the way that Cruise’s voice shakes against the rest of the instruments.
Once the song starts to fade, and Cruise is replaced onstage by a man saying, “it’s happening again”, the whole narrative seems to stop as we pan out to the record player turning. It might seem a bit strange (because it is), but in the world that David Lynch has created, it all makes perfect sense.
‘This Woman’s Work’ – The Handmaid’s Tale
Anyone who has seen The Handmaid’s Tale has been put through the emotional ringer more than a few times. While we have cried along with Elizabeth Moss more than a few times, no one packs a gut punch quite like Kate Bush on ‘This Woman’s Work’.
After being herded off like cattle and being hung in the gallows, Bush’s soft soprano begins to tell the story for the rest of the characters. Although seeing these characters being executed is already hard to watch, knowing the song’s origin is even more of an emotional gut punch.
Bush had originally conceived ‘This Woman’s Work’ as being about a relationship as a man confronts the birth of his child and loses the innocence that he once had. The miracle of childbirth might be beautiful in Bush’s song, but for this scenario, it’s like the innocence being forced out of these characters.
‘Don’t Stop Believing’ – The Sopranos
Every good music placement comes down to the context that it’s used in the show. And while The Sopranos already had a brilliant use of ‘Dirty Work’ by Steely Dan, the final moments had you on the edge of your seat when listening to Steve Perry.
As everything seems to be winding down and the Sopranos lay back in a local diner, something doesn’t seem quite right. Once Tony puts ‘Don’t Stop Believin’ on the jukebox, though, the tension is high. When his daughter comes in panicked as if a mob murder is going to go down right here in the restaurant, things threaten to boil over. Just when everything goes to hell…cut to black.
When the producers were pitching the idea of using the song in the finale, Perry originally had them explain the premise so his hopeful song wouldn’t be soundtracking a bloodbath. Then again, when you don’t get that resolution, your mind can make everything a lot scarier than the song ever could.
‘Hurt’ – Rick and Morty
Every single aspect of Rick and Morty tends to have a little bit of tongue-in-cheek humour. When it’s time for them to get serious, they don’t pull their punches that often. And towards the end of season two, hearing Trent Reznor’s voice as Rick realises what happens is bone-chilling.
While ‘Hurt’ has become bigger than Nine Inch Nails these days, hearing that tender side of industrial music is jaw-dropping when you see how far Rick has fallen. Just like Reznor in the song, Rick has his own pile of dirt, and those final chords are like the sudden realisation of the situation..
Although the song has been eclipsed by a certain country superstar, the Johnny Cash version of this song would never have worked. Cash’s version was able to bring a little bit of levity to the whole thing, but this is the sound of hitting rock bottom.
‘Tomorrow Never Knows’ – Mad Men
The price for the rights to use any Beatles song is astronomical these days. The Fab Four have always been protective of the rights to their music, so selling it out to some random show was never going to be easy. They just needed the right idea, and Mad Men hit on something that was almost too perfect.
As Don Draper leans back in his chair and turns on his record player, ‘Tomorrow Never Knows’ comes in to throw everything out of proportion, letting the audience know that things weren’t exactly what they seemed just a second ago. This twist completely turns the show around and makes you start questioning what is going on.
Then again, that’s perfect for a song like ‘Tomorrow Never Knows’. John Lennon was singing about the kind of awareness that he got through acid that he couldn’t have seen without it. Bringing it into a show like this, it’s almost like forcibly getting your third eye opened.
‘Good Riddance’ – Seinfeld
The entire concept of Seinfeld was more than just a show about nothing. From the cutaways to Jerry’s standup routine, each episode is a good indication of where he gets his material. When it gets to the very end of the show, the producers did get a tad bit sentimental with their audience.
After the entire gang lands in jail and then carries on talking as if nothing happened, Green Day’s ‘Good Riddance’ is just the kind of sendoff you’d be looking for. Since Billie Joe Armstrong wrote the tune as a mellow breakup song, it fits in with the gang’s irritable personalities a little too well.
As we say goodbye to these characters, the strings in the background have a bittersweet undercurrent to them. It might be a relief not seeing them at each other’s throats anymore, but this song helps us remember all the good times we had instead of the horrible parts of life.
‘Breathe Me’ – Six Feet Under
If you know the premise behind Six Feet Under, you know there was only one way that the story was going to end. After spending so much time around death, we get to see the rest of the remaining cast members face their mortality as Sia’s calming voice starts singing.
While ‘Breathe Me’ starts subdued, the added tension in the song comes from every member of the cast during their final moments. Even though some of them had a more spectacular death than others, it’s fitting to see them finally find some peace as they enter the afterlife.
Despite the storyline being incredibly sad, the song almost makes everything go down easy. The song might not be able to stop these horrible deaths from happening, but seeing some of them peacefully pass away makes the whole song feel worth it. Death can be scary, and it’s nice to have Sia’s voice as a soft blanket to welcome you to the afterlife.
‘Sinnerman’ – Sherlock
Sherlock Holmes has been remade more times than most people can keep count. So when you’re about to showcase one of the detective’s greatest adversaries, you need to know how to do it. And for a man like Moriarty, ‘Sinnerman’ may as well be at the top of his personal playlist.
Although we got to know him as Jim first, seeing Moriarty go through the legal system soundtracked to Nina Simone is stunning. Moriarty might like to cause mischief, but he has a lot more class than your average villain, and Simone’s booming alto voice brings that kind of swagger that he needs.
While Moriarty might revel in this cat-and-mouse style game with Sherlock, the stylised way he walks through the courthouse contrasts terror and sexiness at the same time. This man has a lot of sins to atone for, but it just feels too good being bad.
‘Baby Blue’ – Breaking Bad
When talking about the perfect version of the anti-hero, Walter White is practically a textbook example. Though you can side with White’s actions to provide for his family, seeing him transform into Heisenberg is scarier than any crime boss. So the only way for him to go out was on his own terms.
After evading the law and living his family’s lives in shambles, White closes the door on his meth empire with Badfinger, as he walks through the meth lab he had called home for years. As much as White has made excuses, the lyrics of “I guess I got what I deserved” feels like him finally holding himself accountable for his actions.
Once the police arrive on the scene, the audience is treated to a bloody handprint and White collapsing to the floor, dying from his own gunshot wound. The era of Heisenberg might have come to an end, but the smile on his face says it all. If he was going to die, he was going to die doing what he loved.
‘Running Up That Hill’ – Kate Bush
From its first frame, Stranger Things was always meant as a love letter to classic ‘80s movies. So when the show faced its most extravagant season yet, bringing in Kate Bush to soundtrack Max’s struggles was just the right choice.
Although Eddie Munson had his fair share of epic moments jamming to Metallica on his rooftop, ‘Running Up That Hill’ sounds like it was meant for Max. She had already dealt with the death of her brother, and Bush’s lyrics about getting God to swap their places are both depressing and hopeful all at once.
As Max struggles with her emotions and gets overtaken by Vecna, Bush is also the key to her escaping. After recognising the song, Max runs through the Upside Down and evades death as Vecna is beaten… for now. It’s never easy to handle complex emotions, but this entire scene feels like a battle with depression set to music.
