TV Music
‘Blindspot’ and some of television’s other music moments.
Some of the greatest and most artistic television moments come in the moments put to music. How I Met Your Mother, Castle, and The Blacklist repeatedly produce epic “music moments.” The music supervisor, the individual in charge of pairing music with movies and television shows, is one of the most underrated roles in the world of on-screen entertainment, as they’re tasked with finding accompaniment that matches the scene(s) both lyrically and musically, while obtaining and fulfilling all contractual specifications that come with using the music. Last year Marah Eakin did an interview with Alexandra Patsavas, whom she deems the first “‘famous’ music supervisor.” In the interview, Patsavas described her job as “fun; it’s terrific fun. But it has a budget and a time frame and, more than anything, the music supervisor is a part of the creative team that the executive producer or showrunner on a TV show or the director on a film—in most cases we are really carrying out their vision in every aspect of how the project or the film or the television show looks, sounds, feels. A big part of the job is licensing things, obtaining right, and those rights are very specific. We are clearing songs to a scene description, for an exact amount of time for a certain rights package. It’s not like, ‘Gosh, that’s cool. Wasn’t that cool?’” One of the most recent and best executed examples of Pastavas’ (and any music supervisor’s) vision came in the NBC “crime drama” Blindspot.
The show is heading into its second season this Wednesday (September 14), but it (namely, music supervisor Liza Richardson) has already produced an incredible wealth of “music moments,” most memorably the ending of Season 1, Episode 9 (1x09). The scenes are a surprising culmination of events, with one of the team’s perps getting murdered in jail, Zapata ripping her “wire” in half and dropping it down a drainage grate, and, most shockingly (even though we should’ve seen it coming), the murder of Patterson’s boyfriend, David. It’s all set to Mindy Jones’ cover of the Pixies’ song “Where Is My Mind.” Ashley Johnson, the actress who plays Patterson (you might remember her as little Chrissy Seaver in Growing Pains), does a brilliant job bringing to life one of the best supporting characters to have been created in the past year. In addition to the music choice and Johnson’s acting, the talented cast’s little idiosyncrasies and ability to feed off of each other’s energy as they perform help make the scene the powerhouse that it is. The fact that Weller looks to Jane immediately after Patterson finds out that her beloved has just died speaks volumes. This sequence is an epic and exemplary use of music in television history, and (much like the following moments) serves as one of the most successful executions of “TV music moments” in the Golden Age of Television.
When I first pointed out how impactful the existence of “music moments” in television can be to a friend, she immediately brought up Lost, as she so often does. She remembered sitting on her couch, humming along as Hurley listened to one of his songs (in this case, Damien Rice’s “Delicate”) that she and audiences had gotten so used to, when suddenly his CD player dies. She told me that it was just as jarring for him as it was for the audience, possibly even more so since being stranded on an island wasn’t yet their reality.
While it turned problematic in the second half of the third and most recent season, The Blacklist continually churns out epic music moments. The first was a “double feature” of sorts, which came at the end of the pilot episode. Jim James’ “State of The Art (A. E. I. O. U.)” plays as Liz begins to rip up the carpet in her home and clean away her husband’s blood, only to find a hidden chest under the floorboards, which holds multiple passport identities with her husband’s photo, as well as a gun and a few other essentials that no elementary school teacher needs to have. The scene switches to the “F.B.I. High Value Detainee Site,” where Liz finds Red in his cell, only for him to say, “You’ve discovered something curious about your husband, haven’t you, Lizzy?” Hugo’s cover of Jay-Z’s “99 Problems” immediately starts to play as viewers get a last look at Liz, who appears angry, confused, and a little bit intrigued, and then Red, who’s almost smiling, before the screen cuts to black, while the music continues to play.
Another incredibly powerful moment from The Blacklist comes when Red heads to Liz’s (and the rest of her FBI squad’s) rescue when they’re held hostage during an all-out high security prison break, determined to “get her back” despite the overwhelming danger of the situation. He’s in complete protective mode as the Brothers Bright’s “Blood On My Name” plays, which the scene—Red and eventually Liz kicking ass—is timed perfectly to. Most recently, following a multi-episode arc of Liz and Red running from authorities as co-conspirators in a crime that only Liz committed, Agent Ressler chases down Liz, his former partner, to George Ezra’s “Blame It On Me.” The scene is beautiful as Dembe, Red, and even Ressler show the love they have for Liz in their respective ways, trying to protect her because they all know that she will be murdered if she goes to prison. We also get to briefly see the conflict and emotion between Agents Samar Navabi and Aram Mojtabai.
This song — this scene, really — is the equivalent of making it to the car just before it starts pouring outside.
The Good Wife is another show that’s absolutely filled with stellar music pairings, but the one that stands out the most is Audra Mae’s cover of Whitesnake’s “Here I Go Again” in Season 3, following charges against Will Gardner being dropped and Alicia and Will’s relationship not getting leaked to the public. It was just such a happy moment for two people who truly deserved the best, and was filled with their private (in Alicia’s case at home with her kids) and very public (the rest of the firm was celebrating with Will and Diane as the two danced) happiness.
In the first episode of Law & Order: SVU Season 16, Kat Dhalias’ “Gangsta” plays while one of the squad’s perp’s is “cleaning house,” killing off (or trying to) witnesses and co-conspirators. At the very end, right as the song drops off, Olivia Benson calls her babysitter just in time to hear open fire at the playground where her son is (it was just a scare tactic; no one was actually harmed, but it still shocked viewers into Benson’s reality). This song—this scene, really—is the equivalent of making it to the car just before it starts pouring outside. SVU, while not necessarily heavy on the music features also had a beautiful sequence in the Season 8 finale, set to a German lullaby.
I fell in love with FX’s The Americans within the first scene of the pilot episode. While the show often provides top notch music accompaniment, I’ll always admire the seamless way in which it uses contemporary music in a Cold War era show. The opening sequence, where viewers first see Elizabeth and Philip Jennings acting as KGB agents and not the docile American parents they pretend to be, of 1x01 was set to Fleetwood Mac’s “Tusk” (a band that the show often utilizes), which set the tone for the rest of the episode, season, and series.
Castle has always been a big — and successful—proponent of “music moments,” even excelling in the music chosen for short episode promos. Some of the most memorable scenes from the series are set to music. In one of the final scenes in the first episode of the series, OneRepublic’s “Stop and Stare” plays as Castle watches Beckett walk away, awe-struck by her existence and the fact that she turned him down on a “dinner debrief,” before panning to him typing excitedly with inspiration for his new book. This was the beginning of one of the greatest love stories on TV and it was executed perfectly. In 2x13 “Sucker Punch” the show uses Pearl Jam’s “The End” when Beckett shoots Coonan and then talks with Castle, where she admits that she’s gotten used to him “pulling her pigtails”. This was the first time that we’ve seen Beckett cry and the moment when Castle realizes shit, I’m in love with her. In the final moments of Season 2, the show has one of its iconic “just missed each other” moments, with Sarah Jackson-Holman’s “Into the Blue,” a song which is the epitome of if only.
In the fifth episode of the following season, after Castle and Beckett get back on even footing to the tune of many great musical accompaniments, the two indulge in their inner romantics as they watch two people totally in love go against all odds and try to pull off a prison break. Martha sums up the situation when she comments on Castle’s current relationship with his second ex-wife, saying, “The question is this: when you come right down to it, would you be willing to break her out of prison? Because that, my boy, is true love.” Castle has no answer, but at the end of the episode, as Esposito jokes about only looking out for himself if they were imprisoned, Beckett casually says, “Don’t worry, Castle. I’d get you out.” Jules Larson’s “You Know It’s True” plays in the background as she walks away, looking to Castle in confusion, as he stares at her in realization before following.
Season 3 is rich in music, but 3x22, “To Love and Die in L.A.,” is absolutely filled with song based scenes. The first comes with Sloan’s “The Other Side,” where Beckett seductively gets out of the pool, soaking wet and wearing a skin-tone bathing suit, to try and lure the target in an undercover operation (it worked on Castle and the audience, too). The second happens in the suite where Castle and Beckett are staying, where they gaze lovingly at each other and share “platonic” compliments over a nightcap. It’s when they realize just how deep in they are with each other that the music goes from generic background to Josh Ritter’s “Come and Find Me.” Beckett quickly excuses herself for the night as the music grows louder, and both engage in one of the most sexual-tension fueled TV moments where both characters are still wearing all of their clothes and are on opposite sides of a door. It almost seems like Castle will be the one to “just go for it” as he stares longingly at the closed door, but Beckett is the one to open the door of her room instead, only to catch Castle’s own door closing. The final moment of episode is set to Pearl Jam’s “Just Breathe,” as Beckett and Castle head back to New York after catching the killer. It was a difficult case for Beckett, as they were searching for the murderer of one of her former NYPD mentors, and as Castle sleeps she reads a letter that the deceased had written for her, which points out that this (at the time still platonic) thing that “[she] and Castle have is real,” and that “the last thing you want is to look back on your life and wonder if only.”
Season 4’s iconic moment (really, it’s an iconic moment for Castle as a series and television in general) is 4x23, AKA “Always,” AKA the episode where Castle and Beckett finally get together. Following one of the “great Caskett fights” and Alexis’ valedictorian speech at her high school graduation, Andrew Belle’s (featuring Erin McCarley) “In My Veins” bleeds into Robert Duncan’s (the man who composed most of the original series music) familiar piano accompaniment titled “Always,” along with the rain and thunder that add both visual elements when Beckett shows up at Castle’s loft soaking wet and seeking forgiveness, and audible details as the thunder claps when they finally take that plunge together.
The show is full of other memorable music moments, but most recently (in what would end up being Castle’s final season), episode 8x05, “The Nose,” ended on a scene which was arguably one of the best things to come out of Season 8. During the completely out of character separation episode arc, Castle struggles to determine if Beckett still loves him (despite her repeated assurances that she does), and he takes it upon himself to consult with a homicide witness with an incredibly heightened sense of smell. The entire episode is hilarious and loving, a classic Castle product, and ends with Low’s “Into You,” as Beckett heads back to the loft to pick up some more of her clothing. Stana Katic’s stellar acting and Mia’s (the one with the nose) monologue to Castle (“Beckett still loves you… with a passion, and you don’t have to measure pheromones to sense that. I’ve spent my career manufacturing the aromas of love for perfumes and colognes, but they’re all just forgeries like that painting. What you and Beckett have… now that’s the genuine article.”) completes the scene and gives the audiences a glimpse of the Castle they fell in love with in the first place.
Bones introduced me to a lot of good music while I still watched it (which is to say, through Season 9), but there were two moments in particular that make TV history. In the final scene of the Season 5 finale (when I think that Booth and Bones should’ve actually gotten together), Dr. Brennan’s lab members come to see her off as she heads to Indonesia for what was supposed to be one year. Just as you think that the goodbyes are over, Agent Seeley Booth is standing in the distance in his army fatigues, having snuck off base to say a final goodbye to his parter, and Cam says what we were all thinking: “Oh my God…” In the scene, the two come towards each other and end up holding hands, but everything has changed, and they both know it, and it’s only backed up by One Eskimo’s “Kandi.” When Booth and Brennan finally get married in Season 8 (the final highlight of a series that backs up the Seven Season Theory), psychic Avalon Harmonia (played by Cyndi Lauper) sings Etta James’ “At Last,” which is truly the epitome of the Booth/Brennan relationship. Combined with the squints’ impromptu costumes and the beautiful vows (Brennan’s was a brilliant throwback to Season 2), the episode was a wonderful and genuine reminder of what was at the heart of the show.
There are countless Spotify playlists attempting to chronicle the abundant number of songs that have appeared in Grey’s Anatomy over the years. Perhaps most memorable and iconic is Snow Patrol’s “Chasing Cars,” which has become the Grey’s “the love of life has just died” anthem. We first heard it in 2x27, when Denny died (Izzie Stevens’ patient and fiancé), and then the again with Sleeping at Last’s rendition in 11x21 when Meredith has Derek unplugged.
How I Met Your Mother was one of the most music filled shows on television. What stands out to me most in the nine year history of HIMYM, isn’t the brilliant use of Band of Horses’ “The Funeral” or The Shins’ “Simple Song”; rather, it was the juxtaposition of ACDC and Robin grappling with her infertility. Earlier in the episode, during a discussion with Lily, Robins says, “Of course, it’s, it’s one thing not to want something; it’s another to be told you can’t have it. I guess it’s, it’s just nice knowing that you… you could, some day, do it, if you changed your mind. But now, all of a sudden, that door is closed.” Robin comes back to the apartment to find Ted still there, with Christmas lights set to blink in time to ACDC’s “Highway to Hell,” and proceeds to hug him and sob into his neck without having to explain why she’s so upset. The scene ends with the usual future Ted voiceover, where he tells his kids, “Your aunt Robin never did become a pole-vaulter. But she did become a famous journalist, a successful businesswoman, a world traveler. She was even briefly a bullfighter—that’s a funny story, I’ll get to that one later. But there was one thing your aunt Robin never was; she was never alone.” Every time I hear “Highway to Hell” it does what TV’s music moments are supposed to do: it brings me back to this moment in an instant and lets me feel a little less alone, too.
