This is going to be a little more involved than your average Playlist of the Moment post, so bear with me here.
I mentioned in the previous post that I’d be guest-posting a recap of The O.C. on Snark Squad. Voila. Writing it was a lot of fun, and both that and just reading Snark Squad’s O.C. posts in general made a bit nostalgic, so I’ve been re-watching some episodes of the show that I have on DVD.
I was first introduced to the show my senior year of college by my roommate Steph. That was Season 3, and I caught up with the previous seasons with Steph’s DVDs and bonded with my roommates over the show.
If you’ve never seen it, here’s the Reader’s Digest version: teenager Ryan Atwood, from Chino, California, gets arrested after he and his brother steal a car. Shortly thereafter, Ryan’s mother abandons him, so he calls his public defender, Sandy Cohen. Sandy lives in Orange County with his son Seth, who’s Ryan’s age, and his wife Kirsten, a rich real estate developer whose father owns most of the O.C. By the end of the third episode, the Cohens have become Ryan’s legal guardians. Over four seasons, we see all kinds of soap opera drama unfolding, particularly with Ryan and Seth’s love lives (Ryan has a tumultuous relationship with their drama queen next-door neighbor, Marissa, while Seth’s long-term crush on Marissa’s best friend Summer eventually turns into something real), but it’s also about family. It’s one of the only teen shows where the parents are not only a huge part of the show but also really good parents. You don’t have to be a poor kid from Chino with a neglectful, drunk mother to want Sandy and Kirsten Cohen to adopt you- and although I think the network intended it to be more of a Dawson’s Creek-esque teen relationship drama, the most interesting part of the show for me was always Ryan’s relationship with the Cohens. The moments that moved me the most and that were the most memorable for me were always about the love between this tough, fish-out-of-water kid and his adoptive family. This article explains everything really well.
The O.C. is kind of the perfect show for a site like Snark Squad or the late, sometimes great Television Without Pity because there is plenty to snark on (the episode I just recapped had a character faking a miscarriage and another character having a ridiculous screaming meltdown) BUT it’s also genuinely enjoyable most of the time. I feel like most statements you could make about The O.C. have a BUT in the middle of them. It’s a teenage drama BUT it’s also about the parents and the rest of the family. It’s a trashy nighttime soap BUT it also has a lot of moments that are truly moving. It’s kind of like Dawson’s Creek BUT the characters are a zillion times more likeable- a lot of characters on The O.C. start off as villains and gradually become more three-dimensional.
During the first year I blogged, The O.C. was in its final season, and although ratings had dropped, the show was having a series of fantastic episodes. You might recall these posts, where I tried to convince people to watch it so it wouldn’t get canceled. I was unsuccessful, unfortunately, but falling headlong into an obsession with a show was exactly what I needed during that crazy first year out of college. (I was living with Christiana Krump at the time, and I’m pretty sure at some point she threatened to fake-divorce me from our fake marriage over The O.C.)
Anyway! Another great thing about The O.C. was its music. It introduced me to a lot of awesome songs that to this day are among my most-played. So here’s my playlist with some of my favorite songs that have been played on the show. Some highlights:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HjHvJE1XU7E
Alexi Murdoch, “Orange Sky.” I can’t remember if I knew this song before I heard it on the show or not, but either way, I adore it. It’s so soothing I swear it lowers my blood pressure. “In your love, my salvation lies in your love.”
Patrick Park, “Something Pretty.” Aptly titled. “And I’ve known ugliness, now show me something pretty.”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RBlAdApfK9U
Placebo, “Running Up That Hill.” This show also had a lot of great covers- in fact, one of their six soundtrack albums is nothing but covers. This one, of a Kate Bush song, I like just as much, if not more than, the original.
Here’s the playlist. It’s not comprehensive, but it is a bunch of songs I like that were on the show. Welcome to my O.C. Playlist, bitch!
1. We Used to Be Friends, The Dandy Warhols
2. Caught by the River, Doves
3. Dice, Finley Quaye and William Orbit
4. Move On, Jet
5. Honey and the Moon, Joseph Arthur
6. California, Phantom Planet
7. Paint the Silence, South
8. The Way We Get By, Spoon
9. Rain City, Turin Brakes
10. How Good It Can Be, The 88
11. Forever Young, Youth Group
12. Fix You, Coldplay
13. Insomnia, Electric President
14. Hide and Seek, Imogen Heap
15. Goodnight and Go, Imogen Heap
16. Hallelujah, Jeff Buckley
17. Maybe I’m Amazed, Jem
18. A Bad Dream, Keane
19. Float On, Modest Mouse
20. Running Up That Hill, Placebo
21. California, Rogue Wave
22. Sometimes You Can’t Make It on Your Own, U2
23. Start Today Tomorrow, Youth Group
24. Life Is a Song, Patrick Park
25. Any Other World, Mika
26. The House We Live In, The Stills
27. Orange Sky, Alexi Murdoch
28. Walnut Tree, Keane
29. Saturday Morning, Eels
30. Popular Mechanics for Lovers, Beulah
31. So Sweet, Johnathan Rice
32. Trouble Sleeping, The Perishers
33. Little House of Savages, The Walkmen
34. You Got Me All wrong, dios (Malos)
35. Specialist, Interpol
36. A Lack of Color, Death Cab for Cutie
37. Hello Sunshine, Super Furry Animals
38. Something Pretty, Patrick Park
39. On the Table, A.C. Newman
40. Play, Flunk
41. Hardcore Days & Softcore Nights, Aqueduct
42. Cartwheels, Reindeer Section
43. To Be Alone with You, Sufjan Stevens
44. Fortress, Pinback
45. Scarecrow, Beck
46. Eve, the Apple of My eye, BellX1
47. The View, Modest Mouse
48. Into Dust, Mazzy Star
49. Just a Ride, Jem
50. Mr. Brightside, The Killers
51. Your Ex-Lover Is Dead, Stars
52. Every Rose Has Its Thorn, Poison
53. Blue Light, Bloc Party
54. Love You Til The End, The Pogues