The 25 Best Music Moments from Veronica Mars

For January’s Scooter Hall of Fame inductions I always induct a “first ballot” honoree from ten years ago and now that it has been a decade since Veronica Mars hit the small screen, that was a easy no brainer for the potential first ballot inductees from 2004 than Veronica Mars (sorry The College Dropout, Lost, and Dodgeball, you will have to wait a couple months or so; well except Lost, you will probably never get in). But since I have wasted quite a lot of virtual ink on the show over the past decade, instead of the usual fluff piece, I thought I would look back with another list (I have already done the 10 Best Veronica Mars Episodes) by looking back at the best music moments from the show.


1. We Used to Be Friends (Theme Song) (Seasons 1 and 2): I am typically morally opposed with licensing song as a theme song. Seriously, what does The Who have to do with investigating crime scene investigators? But The Dandy Warhols song with its shiny exterior and darker lyrics, fit so perfectly with the show to the point where it was even used as dialogue halfway through the first season. The less said about the third season remix, the better.

2. One Way Or Another (Clash of the Tritons): Lily Kane ended up being the one who would go onto starring in multiple musicians, but it is a shame this is one of the few times we have heard Kristen Bell sing on screen. Seriously, get this girl in front of a mic more often.

3. Adelaide (Donut Run): Rarely do I ever to the internet after an episode but the song the end of Donut Run the best hour of the second season, did just that. A fitting soundtrack to the end of the Duncan Kane era on the show.

4. Private Eyes - Private Eyes (Remastered) (Weapons of Class Destruction): Vincent Van Lowe is by far the best recurring character on the show, and more entertaining than some that were in the main cast. And our first introduction to Vinny was a good one when he caught Ronnie trying to eavesdropping on him and instead of just crushing the bug, he decided to serenade her with his favorite Hall and Oates song.

5. Ashes (Normal Is the Watchword): After missing the bus, Veronica is cruising down the PCH on the back of Weevil’s bike only to see the bus she miss sink to the bottom of the ocean over the lines, “I sink like a stone, I lost my control.” Brilliant. It is a shame the Embrace song was not a bigger hit here.

6. The Virgin Suicides Soundtrack (Donut Run): Everyone has their breakup playlist and Ronnie busted out The Virgin Suicides Soundtrack to sell her fake breakup to Duncan including How Can You Mend a Broken Heart by Al Green and The Air I Breathe by The Hollies.

7. Right Here, Right Now (Spit and Eggs): Sure in retrospect, the Fatboy Slim could have been a spoiler for who the Heart rapist is (certainly the DJ would have a dance song as the background for his rapes), but it definitely fit the mood.

8. Bad Day (The Bitch Is Back): Ronnie warned Dominick Desante that he would regret not giving her the name of the person that e-mailed his the video of her. So after maxing out his credit card right before a big date and stealing his wheels, Vee serenaded him with the Daniel Powder one hit wonder to top things off.

9. Veronica (Rashard and Wallace Go to White Castle): See Veronica, be nice to someone and the lead singer of Spoon may serenade you with Elvis Costello.

10. What's Left of Me (Postgame Mortem): You rarely see Nick Lachey on a list of “best music” anything, but his song was responsible for one of the funniest moment of season three when an eleven year old dedicated the song on behalf of Logan to Veronica, and the look on Ronnie’s face was priceless.

11. One Week (Show Me the Money): Sure, on the surface, being Canada in the dorms Around the World party may see lame, but stock the fridge with Molson’s, thrown in an “eh” at the end of every sentence and everyone has a good time. And I am sure the Barenaked Ladies is better than anything they are playing in Germany.

12. Busted (President Evil): Over three season, Ronnie took down jocks, fratboys, cheerleaders, and even a movie star, but maybe the most entertaining come up pence was when she snapped back her necklace from a annoying elementary school student that her father robbed from Vee with Johnny Cash playing in the background.

13. Papa Was a Rolling Stone (Blast from the Past): What do you say to the absentee dad you never knew you had when your mother tells you he was a junkie cop who could not raise a kid? You do not say anything, you just sing a few lines from the Temptations classic like Wallace did.

14. Love Hurts (Cheatty Cheatty Bang Bang): At the start of the second season, Ronnie took a job at Java the Hutt where they regularly had karaoke night and one of the first singers was Courtney Taylor-Taylor, lead singer of The Dandy Warhols (their song Smoke It also was featured in the episode) who provide the theme song, singing the Nazareth classic.

15. The 80’s Dance (Ruskie Business): One of my favorite scenes in the series, forget Logan, Deputy Leo was Ronnie’s greatest boyfriend and here is where it all started, soundtracked by The Fixx, Cindi Lauper, and Spandau Ballad with Vee dressed up as Madonna (only Ronnie can pull of crimped hair) and Leo doing his best Crockett (possibly Tubbs) impression.

16. Run (Nobody Puts Baby in a Corner): This episode ends very creepy with Veronica and Duncan finding Meg’s sister locked in the closet, they get arrested and set free by Sheriff Lamb who did not take kindly to kids being locked up (he heard the same speech by his father). The creepiness was only heightened by the Air song playing in the background.

17. It Never Rains In Southern California (The Bitch Is Back): Le sigh.

18. Sway (Pan B): I always thought Logan was horrible for Ronnie but this was still a great moment and song.

19. My Before and After (Debasement Tapes): Paul Rudd dropped by in an episode as a washed up alternative rocker Desmond Fellows of the nineties group My Pretty Pony who has resigned his life on the nostalgia circuit with the tapes of his deceased band mate’s vocal tracks playing beside him while he gives half hearted performances. When Piz forces him to perform an original, this is what Fellows performed (which in reality is an obscure Cotton Mather’s song).

20. Escape (The Pina Colada Song) (My Big Fat Greek Rush Week): When smoking out bad guys, Ronal Regan would blare Van Halen on a loop, George W. Bush opted for Rage Against the Machine. Wallace and his guards went with a more inhumane root torturing Logan and his terrorists with Rupert Holmes.

21. I Hear the Bells (Look Who’s Stalking): See above but even I have to admit Logan’s epic speech was awesome. Plus Ronnie loves this song and so do I.

22. Rump Shaker (Welcome Wagon): We had not see Dick all summer after his brother flung himself off the roof of the Neptune Grand, so how is he introduced in season three? Interrupting an anti-rap rally wearing nothing but a Union Jack Speedo and a ski mask and blasting the classic one hit wonder. I expected nothing less from Dick.

23. Don't Stand So Close to Me (Mars vs. Mars): Of course when a student admits to having an affair with a teacher she is going to get taunted with The Police song even if the song is twice as old as the girls singing it.

24. True Colors (My Big Fat Greek Rush Week): As Ronnie prepared to go into the den of debauchery that was the sorority life, she is instead greeted by a capella renderings of the Cyndi Lauper classic.

25. Folsom Prison Blues (The Rapes of Graff): Veronica once shot a man in Reno just to watch him die, unfortunately it was a bit of a letdown.


Aside from the Tin Anniversary, Veronica Mars will have another milestone in 2014 as the movie will be released March 14 of this year. The first trailer is supposed to hit the internets today and I will add that here when it does.