And then in the new year, there's the hole that the Top 2000 leaves behind. Of course, in the following days there is a list of titles that just didn't make it to the Top 2000 and you can listen to the list yourself while streaming, but that is not the same. Fortunately, there are always enough series in which music plays a central role.
Reason enough to make five recommendations in this column!
5. Ramses – 1 seizoen, 4 afleveringen
Starting with a homegrown (Dutch) series. With songs like 'Pastorale' (together with Liesbeth List), 'Laat me' and 'Zing, Fight, Cry, Pray, Laugh, Work and Admire' Ramses Shaffy has been a regular face in the Top 2000 for years. In 2014 we are taken to the young years of Ramses Shaffy, the years in which he (together with List) becomes known and breaks through.
4. Glee – 6 seizoenen, 121 afleveringen
During high school life, a lot of music is made. From musical numbers to the music that was popular in those years (2009-2015), everything passes by. With some regularity, the link is made between the lyrics of the song being sung and what one of the main characters has experienced at that moment. The series itself has (in retrospect) a somewhat controversial and tragic aftermath. Three members of the relatively young cast are no longer among us and the atmosphere among them also did not always seem to have been good. Reason for Discovery + to release the documentary 'The Price of Glee' in 2023.
3. Nashville – 6 seizoenen, 124 afleveringen
A drama series about country musicians in America. Not my taste when it comes to music, but nevertheless I enjoyed Nashville (especially the first seasons). In an almost 'soap-like' way, we are taken into the daily lives of a number of artists who are at the top, artists who would like to go there again and artists who want to break through. All the ups and downs are visualized. Honesty requires me to say that I didn't like the last seasons that much anymore. It often felt like a repetition of moves of what had already happened in previous seasons and it just became repetitive. The only reason I finished watching the series at the time was that I had come to appreciate the music very much.
2. Pistol – 1 seizoen, 6 afleveringen
Series based on the memoirs of Steve Jones (guitarist of the Sex Pistols). I already knew the Sex Pistols, but I'm not a big fan of the music. The main reason to watch the series at the time was that my curiosity was triggered by the fact that John Lydon (better known to many as Johnny Rotten, the singer of the Sex Pistols) had some difficulty with the series (and was not consulted ) and the image the Pistols had/have. And the series certainly did not disappoint. It gives a clear picture of how Jones lived his time with the Pistols. So for once not the story from Rotten or Sid Vicious and we clearly see the ups and downs the band has had. And all that beautifully and energetically portrayed.
1. The Beatles: Get Back – 1 seizoen, 3 afleveringen
I conclude with – as far as I am concerned – the biggest recommendation from the list. As a child of the 1980s, I grew up with the music of the Beatles, but without them being together at the time. I grew up with the stories of how good they were and what their influence has been on music as a whole. This miniseries by Peter Jackson shows in three (long) parts the creation of the album Let It Be and the legendary 'rooftop' concert by the Beatles. Because the entire process was filmed at the time, we are taken into a piece of history that - in the field of music - is unparalleled and we see almost everything that we have heard and read about up to that point. We see McCartney's genius as he comes in with an idea that rapidly grows into a first draft of Get Back. We see the chemistry between band members when they make music together, but we also clearly see the cracks that exist between them and how they grow into rifts. McCartney and Lennon who clearly want to put their stamp on the songs, Harrison who feels undervalued and eventually (temporarily) leaves the band and Ringo Starr who mainly tries to keep everything cozy. As said, it's three long episodes (from 139 to 174 minutes per episode) but time absolutely flies by. Wonderful to see how the songs are created in the studio (from an idea to the song on the record), how the gentlemen interacted with each other, but above all how much fun they had in making music together (and how good they really were). An absolute must to end this list
Those were my recommendations for series in which music is central. What do you think? Which music series do you think I should watch in the new year?
