This Week's Playlist #75 - The Succession edition
5+2 opening themes of my favorite TV shows.
Hello everyone!
This Week's Playlist - Season 2, episode 22.
Last Sunday was the final episode of Succession after 4 seasons.
It is a gripping drama following the cutthroat Roy family, as the kids are battling for control of their father's global media empire (any resemblance with Rupert Murdoch is purely coincidental), exposing the dark side of wealth, power, and family dynamics.
The combination of an exceptional cast (mainly Brian Cox, playing Logan Roy, the father), production (the whole series has been shot on 35mm), and storytelling made it one of the most exciting shows to watch in the last couple of years (at least for me :-)) And we're left now with an epic ending which, without going into spoilers, leaves us with thought-provoking commentary on contemporary society.
Another trademark of the show is its opening theme, a mesmerizing neo-classical piece mixing old classical piano with a hip-hop beat.
I paid homage this week by picking up some of my other favourite TV show opening songs. And I'm adding 2 songs as these are short.
See you next week.
TL;DR: I'm running a musical newsletter with a new guest sharing 5 songs each week.
There is a YouTube link for each of the songs on the cover, and here are the playlists for each streaming platform:
Tidal (coming soon)
Deezer (coming soon)
The Handsome Family - Far From Any Road (True Detective)
The opening song of True Detective, the crime series, with the stellar first season starring Woody Harrelson and Matthew McConaughey.
Jace Everett - Bad Things (True Blood)
Maybe one of the most underrated shows of the 2010s.
True Blood is a supernatural drama set in a world where vampires live openly among humans, and are in need for blood (either human or synthetic). The story is evolving in the fictional town of Bon Temps, Louisiana, with a very gloomy atmosphere perfectly served with this dark country song.
Sia - Breathe Me (ending of Six Feet Under)
A closing track for this one.
Another cult HBO serie: the life of the undertakers family and their funeral home and the memories of each of their clients.
This sound was the soundtrack of the last scene of the season finale, which brought many of us fans to tears :-)
Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds - Red Right Hand (Peaky Blinders)
Nick Cave's haunting voice perfectly fits the gloom and grim post-WWI mafia environment in Birmingham with the Peaky Blinders gang and the Shelby family.
The Blind Boys Of Alabama - Way Down In The Hole (The Wire)
Another classic (which I admit I have yet to watch) with this reinterpretation of the Tom Waits classic. Each season opens with a different version of the same original classic. I'll let you do the digging on that one.
Brian Eno - Top Boy Theme (Top Boy)
One of my favourite British TV shows (before it got bought by Drake and Netflix). A gritty British crime drama that delves into the underworld of drug dealing and street gangs in East London. It portrays the harsh realities of urban life, exploring themes of loyalty, survival and is supported by this very cold and hypnotic theme from Brian Eno.
Nicholas Britell - Succession main theme (Succession)
The central theme for Succession. I'll let you go back to this newsletter intro for more details :-)
Until the next time, Godspeed!
Thomas
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Missed an episode: Here are the archives.