Grey's Anatomy Music: It's Not Just for Television Anymore

I was recently in the car listening to my favorite satellite radio station (The Spectrum, XM channel 28) when the song “Heart on Fire” by Scars on 45 came on. The DJ mentioned that the song was from the recently released “Grey’s Anatomy” soundtrack and that it was Volume 4 of such albums (“Grey’s Anatomy, Vol.4 (Original Soundtrack)”). Since I like that song, I decided to try the whole album.

I found that it is an eclectic mix, mostly by artists I haven’t heard of. It prompted me to add “Select Songs for Medical Television Shows” to my list of dream jobs. I did read an interview from a couple years ago with the music producer on the show, and she noted that aside from matching the music to the scene, there is also a business side: they need to work out licensing and fees every time the show wants to use a song. That was kind of a buzzkill, but it still seems like a cool job.

The songs on this album make for a great playlist. It’s different but not too “alternative” so as to be weird. I found that ABC has a music “lounge” where you can find the songs played from various episodes with a description of the scene at the time it was played. I was successful in identifying that information for most of the songs here, although a couple songs’ scene information were inexplicably absent. I was going to highlight my favorites, but I was pretty much highlighting all of them, plus some are only available on the album, so you might as well just buy it. Enjoy:

“Get Some” by Lykke Li (from the episode “Don’t Deceive Me (Please Don’t Go)”, which first aired 2/13/11) - Meredith’s alarms goes off; Derek & Alex work on a patient in the Alzheimer's trial.
“Heart on Fire” by Scars on 45 – I can’t find a specific episode that this is from, although it was used in the promotions for this current season.
“Way to the Future” by Katie Herzig (from the episode “Unaccompanied Minor”, which first aired 5/19/11) – no scene information available.
“Second Chance” by Peter Bjorn and John (from the episode “I Will Survive”, which first aired 5/12/11) - Cristina refuses to have sex with Owen. Meredith asks Alex if he has a meeting with Owen. Jackson and Lexie brush their teeth. Lucy tells Alex about Baylor. (Jackson and Lexie brush their teeth?)
“Old Fashioned” by Cee Lo Green (from the episode “White Wedding”, which first aired 5/5/11) - The DJ announces the father-daughter dance. Arizona dances. Callie Dances. Derek and Meredith hold Zola and decide to miss the wedding.
“England” by The National (from the episode “Start Me Up”, which first aired 1/13/11) - Richard presents the evaluations to Cristina, Mer, Alex, Jackson, and April. Arizona and Mark watch Sarah, Sophia, and Jared reuniting. April and Jackson watch Laurel as she appears in the kitchen. Cristina tells Owen her day was pretty good. Mer is upset she is not pregnant yet, Derek suggests they 'try more.' Arizona has a serious talk with Callie, and Callie tells Arizona some very important news. (wow, lots of detail)
1. “Stare Into The Sun” by Graffiti6 (from the episode “With You I’m Born Again”, which first aired 9/23/10) - Derek drives fast and gets pulled over. Meredith visits him at the station. (sounds fascinating)
2. “Worried About” by Lissie (from the episode “Superfreak”, which first aired 10/7/10) - Meredith invites Cristina to crawl into bed with her and Derek. (Hmm, that one sounds intriguing for prime time)
3. “Salt in the Wound” by Delta Spirit (from the episode “With You I’m Born Again”, which first aired 9/23/10) - Meredith gives Cristina her blessing. Owen and Cristina take a big step in their lives.
4. “Further” by Correatown (from the episode “Can’t Fight Biology”, which first aired 10/14/10) - April talks to Lexie about the bedroom. Derek talks to Meredith about the test results. Cristina has a surprise ready for Owen.
5. “The Infidel” by Republic Tigers (from the episode “White Wedding”, which first aired 5/5/11) – no scene information available.
6. “In Front of You” by The Quiet Kind (from the episode “Unaccompanied Minor”, which first aired 5/19/11) – no scene information available.
7. “Entwined” by Tim Myers (from the episode “I Will Survive”, which first aired 5/12/11) - Meredith and Derek watch Arizona perform Zola's surgery through the OR window. Lexie enters to find Mark holding Sofia.
8. “Both Sides Are Even” by The Boxer Rebellion (from the episode “Don’t Deceive Me (Please Don’t Go)”, which first aired 2/3/11) - Richard tells Bailey to include Ellis Grey's method in her tweets during her surgery tomorrow. Arizona walks in as Callie sits on the couch. Callie and Arizona make out and things get steamy. Mark tells Lexie news that really upsets her and Lexie walks out. Derek tells Meredith to do something for his next surgery. (sounds like a long scene)