- Music on The Sopranos
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The HBO television drama The Sopranos has received considerable critical attention for its effective use of an eclectic array of music.[1][2][3][4] Series creator David Chase personally selects all of the show's music with the producer Martin Bruestle and music editor Kathryn Dayak, sometimes also consulting Steven Van Zandt, who, in addition to portraying Silvio Dante on the show, also serves as guitarist for Bruce Springsteen's E Street Band.[1] The music is often selected once the production and editing of an episode is completed, but on occasion sequences will be filmed to match preselected pieces of music.[5]
Stylistically, the music on the show range from mainstream pop (Britney Spears, The Bangles) to oldies and classic rock artists (The Beach Boys, The Rolling Stones), from classic jazz and soul (Ella Fitzgerald, Ben E. King) to hip-hop (Xzibit, Time Zone), often within a single episode.[6]
Contents
Opening credits
The opening credits for each episode consists of Tony Soprano (James Gandolfini) driving from New York City to his home in North Caldwell, New Jersey. The musical accompaniment for this segment is the "Chosen One Remix" of the song "Woke Up This Morning" by the British group Alabama 3 (known in the United States as A3 for legal reasons).
End credits
Each episode's closing credits sequence features a unique piece of previously recorded music, with few exceptions. The episode "A Hit Is a Hit" uses a song by the fictional band Defiler, which was featured earlier in the episode. Three episodes feature multiple songs in the credits sequence ("Commendatori," "Whitecaps" and "Cold Stones"), while two episodes ("Full Leather Jacket" and "Made in America") have no music at all.
The following is a list of songs used at the end of each episode:
Season 1
# Episode title Song title Artist 1 "The Sopranos (Pilot)" "The Beast in Me" Nick Lowe 2 "46 Long" "Battle Flag" Pigeonhed 3 "Denial, Anger, Acceptance" "Complicated Shadows" Elvis Costello & the Attractions 4 "Meadowlands" "Look on Down from the Bridge" Mazzy Star 5 "College" "Gold Leaves" Michael Hoppé 6 "Pax Soprana" "Paparazzi" (instrumental version) Xzibit 7 "Down Neck" "White Rabbit" Jefferson Airplane 8 "The Legend of Tennessee Moltisanti" "Frank Sinatra" Cake 9 "Boca" "Buena" Morphine 10 "A Hit Is a Hit" song unnamed Defiler (fictional group) 11 "Nobody Knows Anything" "Manifold de Amour" Latin Playboys 12 "Isabella" "I Feel Free" Cream 13 "I Dream of Jeannie Cusamano" "State Trooper" Bruce Springsteen Season 2
# Episode title Song title Artist 14 "Guy Walks into a Psychiatrist's Office..." "Time Is on My Side" Irma Thomas 15 "Do Not Resuscitate" "Goodnight My Love" Ella Fitzgerald 16 "Toodle Fucking-Oo" "Viking" Los Lobos 17 "Commendatori" "Con te partirò" Andrea Bocelli "Piove" Jovanotti "Certamente" Madreblu 18 "Big Girls Don't Cry" "White Mustang II" Daniel Lanois 19 "The Happy Wanderer" "The Happy Wanderer" Frankie Yankovic & His Yanks 20 "D-Girl" "Vedi, Maria" Emma Shapplin 21 "Full Leather Jacket" none — only a ventilator and an electrocardiogram are heard n/a 22 "From Where to Eternity" "My Lover's Prayer" Otis Redding 23 "Bust Out" "Wheel in the Sky" Journey 24 "House Arrest" "You Can't Put Your Arms Around a Memory" Johnny Thunders 25 "The Knight in White Satin Armor" "I Saved the World Today" Eurythmics 26 "Funhouse" "Thru and Thru" The Rolling Stones Season 3
# Episode title Song title Artist 27 "Mr. Ruggerio's Neighborhood" "High Fidelity" Elvis Costello & the Attractions 28 "Proshai, Livushka" "I'm Forever Blowing Bubbles" Les Paul 29 "Fortunate Son" "Where's the Money?" Dan Hicks 30 "Employee of the Month" "Fisherman's Daughter" Daniel Lanois 31 "Another Toothpick" "Shuck Dub" R. L. Burnside 32 "University" "Living on a Thin Line" The Kinks 33 "Second Opinion (The Sopranos)" "Black Books" Nils Lofgren 34 "He Is Risen" "The Captain" Kasey Chambers 35 "The Telltale Moozadell" "I (Who Have Nothing)" Ben E. King 36 "...To Save Us All From Satan's Power" "I've Got a Feeling" The Campbell Brothers with Katie Jackson 37 "Pine Barrens" "Sposa son disprezzata" (from Bajazet) Cecilia Bartoli 38 "Amour Fou" "Affection" Little Steven and the Lost Boys 39 "Army of One" "#7" Aphex Twin Season 4
# Episode title Song title Artist 40 "For All Debts Public and Private" "World Destruction" Time Zone feat. John Lydon 41 "No Show" "Kid A" Radiohead 42 "Christopher" "Dawn (Go Away)" The Four Seasons 43 "The Weight" "Vesuvio" Spaccanapoli 44 "Pie-O-My" "My Rifle, My Pony and Me" (from Rio Bravo) Dean Martin and Ricky Nelson 45 "Everybody Hurts" "Take Me for a Little While" Dave Edmunds 46 "Watching Too Much Television" "Oh Girl" The Chi-Lites 47 "Mergers and Acquisitions" "When the Battle is Over" Delaney & Bonnie 48 "Whoever Did This" "The Man with the Harmonica" Apollo 440 49 "The Strong, Silent Type" "Drum Score" uncredited 50 "Calling All Cars" "Surfin' U.S.A." The Beach Boys 51 "Eloise" "Little Bird" Annie Lennox 52 "Whitecaps" "I Love Paris" (Vegas) Dean Martin "I Have Dreamed" Fantastic Strings Season 5
# Episode title Song title Artist 53 "Two Tonys" "Heaven Only Knows" Emmylou Harris 54 "Rat Pack" "Undercover of the Night" The Rolling Stones 55 "Where's Johnny?" "Earth, Wind, Water" Mitch Coodley (The Metro Music Production Library) 56 "All Happy Families..." "La Petite Mer" Thierry 'Titi' Robin 57 "Irregular Around the Margins" "Chi il bel sogno di Doretta" (from La rondine) Luba Orgonasova 58 "Sentimental Education" "The Blues is My Business" Etta James 59 "In Camelot" "Session" Linkin Park 60 "Marco Polo" "Bad 'N' Ruin" Faces 61 "Unidentified Black Males" "If I Were a Carpenter" Bobby Darin 62 "Cold Cuts" "I'm Not Like Everybody Else" (live) The Kinks 63 "The Test Dream" "Three Times a Lady" Commodores 64 "Long Term Parking" "Wrapped in My Memory" Shawn Smith 65 "All Due Respect" "Glad Tidings" Van Morrison Season 6
# Episode title Song title Artist 66 "Members Only" "Seven Souls" Material feat. William S. Burroughs 67 "Join the Club" "When It's Cold I'd Like To Die" Moby 68 "Mayham" "The Deadly Nightshade" Daniel Lanois 69 "The Fleshy Part of the Thigh" "One of These Days" Pink Floyd 70 "Mr. & Mrs. John Sacrimoni Request" "Every Day of the Week" The Students 71 "Live Free or Die" "4th of July" X 72 "Luxury Lounge" "Recuerdos de la Alhambra" Pepe Romero 73 "Johnny Cakes" "I'm Gonna Move to the Outskirts of Town" Ray Charles 74 "The Ride" "Pipeline" Johnny Thunders 75 "Moe N' Joe" "Let It Rock" Chuck Berry 76 "Cold Stones" "Home" Persephone's Bees "As Time Goes By" (from Casablanca) Dooley Wilson 77 "Kaisha" "Moonlight Mile" The Rolling Stones 78 "Soprano Home Movies" "This Magic Moment" Ben E. King and The Drifters 79 "Stage 5" "Evidently Chickentown" John Cooper Clarke 80 "Remember When" "Sing, Sing, Sing (With a Swing)" Benny Goodman Orchestra 81 "Chasing It" "Goin' Down Slow" Howlin' Wolf 82 "Walk Like a Man" "The Valley" Los Lobos 83 "Kennedy and Heidi" "Minas De Cobre (For Better Metal)" Calexico 84 "The Second Coming" "Ninna Ninna" Lullaby / Pia Calamai 85 "The Blue Comet" "Running Wild (Extended Instrumental)" Tindersticks 86 "Made in America" none - silence n/a Alternative music in Europe
In the version of the series which was aired in Europe, the music has been partially replaced for licensing reasons. European DVD editions (in case of Season One: only the 16:9 re-issue) contain these altered versions as foreign language dubs as well as the original unaltered English soundtrack in Dolby Digital 5.1.
Soundtrack compilations
The Sopranos: Music from the HBO Original Series Soundtrack album by various artists Released December 14, 1999 Genre Various Length 54:11 Label Sony Producer Various
David Chase (exec. producer)Professional reviews The reviews parameter has been deprecated. Please move reviews into the “Reception” section of the article. See Moving reviews into article space.
- Allmusic link
- Pitchfork Media (7.1/10) link
The Sopranos: Peppers & Eggs: Music from the HBO Original Series Soundtrack album by various artists Released May 8, 2001 Genre Various Label Sony Producer Various
David Chase, Brad Grey (exec. producers)Professional reviews To date, there have been two official soundtrack compilations released in association with The Sopranos. The first, titled The Sopranos: Music from the HBO Original Series, was released in 1999, and contains selections from the show's first two seasons.[7] The second, titled The Sopranos: Peppers & Eggs: Music from the HBO Original Series, was released in 2001, and contains two Compact Discs of songs from the show's first three seasons.[8]
Track listings
The Sopranos: Music from the HBO Original Series
- "Woke Up This Morning" (Chosen One Mix) — Alabama 3
- "It's Bad You Know" — R. L. Burnside
- "It Was a Very Good Year" — Frank Sinatra
- "Gotta Serve Somebody" — Bob Dylan
- "Inside of Me" — Little Steven & The Disciples of Soul
- "I Feel Free" — Cream
- "Mystic Eyes" — Them
- "State Trooper" — Bruce Springsteen
- "I'm a Man" — Bo Diddley
- "Complicated Shadows" — Elvis Costello & the Attractions
- "The Beast in Me" — Nick Lowe
- "Viking" — Los Lobos
- "Blood Is Thicker than Water" — Wyclef Jean feat. G & B
- "I've Tried Everything" — Eurythmics
The Sopranos - Peppers and Eggs: Music From The HBO Series
- "Every Breath You Take/Theme From Peter Gunn" (Mr. Ruggerio's Remix) - The Police; Henry Mancini and His Orchestra
- "Battle Flag" (Album Version) - Pigeonhed
- "I've Got A Feeling" (Album Version) - The Campbell Brothers with Katie Jackson
- "The Captain" (Album Version) - Kasey Chambers
- "Shuck Dub" (Album Version) - R.L. Burnside
- "Affection" (Album Version) - The Lost Boys
- "My Lover's Prayer" (Album Version) - Otis Redding
- "Certamente" (Album Version) Madreblu
- "Black Books" (Album Version) - Nils Lofgren
- "Frank Sinatra" (Album Version) - Cake
- "Baubles, Bangles and Beads" (Album Version) - Frank Sinatra
- "Thru And Thru" (Album Version) - The Rolling Stones
Other Music Used
Not all of the artists featured on the show made it on to one of the compilation albums. The producers are known fans of the "underground music scene" and have featured many locally relevant artists on the show. Also some of the classical pieces on the show failed to make any of the soundtrack albums; pieces by Beethoven, Luciano Pavarotti, Emma Shapplin, and even Al Di Meola were featured. Some of the lesser known artists featured include the disco artists The Hues Corporation and The Trampps & the southern rock group Gideon Smith & the Dixie Damned.
References
Notes
- ^ a b Sepinwall, Alan (March 3, 2006). "The hits keep on coming". The Star-Ledger. http://www.nj.com/sopranos/ledger/index.ssf?/sopranos/stories/hits_seasonsix.html. Retrieved 2007-02-20.
- ^ Gross, Joe (January 4, 2000). "Sharps & Flats". Salon.com. http://archive.salon.com/ent/music/review/2000/01/04/sopranos/index.html. Retrieved 2007-02-20.
- ^ Ventre, Michael (April 2, 2006). "Music another member of the Sopranos’ crew". MSNBC. http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/11994702/. Retrieved 2007-02-20.
- ^ Browne, David (May 18, 2001). "The Sopranos; Peppers & Eggs". Entertainment Weekly. http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,281317,00.html. Retrieved 2007-02-21.
- ^ Biskind, Peter (March 13, 2007). "The Family that Preys Together". Vanity Fair. http://www.vanityfair.com/culture/features/2007/03/chase200703. Retrieved 2007-03-21.
- ^ "HBO: The Sopranos: Episode Guide". HBO. http://www.hbo.com/sopranos/episode/index.shtm. Retrieved 2007-02-20.
- ^ "Amazon.com: The Sopranos: Music From The HBO Original Series". http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00003A9MG/. Retrieved 2007-02-27.
- ^ "Amazon.com: The Sopranos - Peppers and Eggs: Music From The HBO Series". http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00005AR37/. Retrieved 2007-02-27.
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