The Walking Dead soundtrack: Complete guide to all the songs featured in the show

The Walking Dead is an AMC post-apocalyptic drama. Set in a world overrun by zombies, the show centers on former sheriff deputy Rick Grimes (Andrew Lincoln) as he wakes from a coma to see that civilization has fallen.

Rick meets several survivors as he negotiates this new reality: his wife Lori (Sarah Wayne Callies), son Carl (Chandler Riggs), allies like Daryl Dixon (Norman Reedus), Glenn Rhee (Steven Yeun), and Carol Peletier (Melissa McBride). They fight not just the continual threat of walkers but also the darkest sides of mankind together.

Covering eleven seasons, The Walking Dead explores profoundly moral, survival, and human condition issues. Every character travels with personal development, grief, and resiliency. The show is unique in the field of television dramas as it deftly combines moving periods of introspection with high-action scenes.

Exploring The Walking Dead soundtrack

Music plays a pivotal role in The Walking Dead, enhancing the emotional depth and atmosphere of the series. Each season features a curated selection of songs that underscore key moments, from intense confrontations to heartfelt farewells. Below is a comprehensive list of songs featured throughout the series:

Season 1

• Space Junk – Wang Chung
• I'm a Man – Black Strobe
• Sunshine (Adagio In D Minor) – John Murphy
• Running to the Rain – Peter Gabriel
• Tomorrow Is a Long Time – Bob Dylan

Season 2

• The Regulator – Clutch
• Lazy Bones – Wooden Shjips
• Faze Wave – The Cave Singers
• Driver's Seat – Sniff 'n' the Tears
• Civilian – Wye Oak

Season 3

• Noisy Sunday – Patrick Watson
• The Parting Glass – Sung by Beth Greene and Maggie Greene
• Etude No. 3 in E Major, Op. 10, No. 3 – Frédéric Chopin
• Saturday Night Special – Lynyrd Skynyrd
• Love Bug – Baby Bee
• It Could Happen to You – Jo Stafford
• Hold On – Tom Waits
• Lead Me Home – Jamie N. Commons
• Warm Shadow – Fink
• You Are the Wilderness – Voxhaul Broadcast
• Fast and Loose – Motorhead
• Turn It Up – Ted Nugent

Season 4

• Precious Memories – The Stanley Brothers
• Serpents (Basement) – Sharon Van Etten
• Oats in the Water – Ben Howard
• The Last Pale Light in the West – Ben Nichols
• A Tear – Mussorgsky
• Average Joe – Stephen Emil Dudas
• Up the Wolves – The Mountain Goats
• Blackbird Song – Lee DeWyze
• Be Good – Waxahatchee (performed by Beth Greene)
• Maybe – The Ink Spots
• Be Not So Fearful – A.C. Newman

Season 5

• Be Gone Dull Cage – Kiev
• You Better Run – Junior Kimbrough
• Nobody's Fault But Mine – Blind Willie Johnson
• May the Work I've Done Speak for Me – The Consolers
• Bad Blood – Alison Mosshart & Eric Arjes
• Struggling Man – Jimmy Cliff (cover by Emily Kinney)
• Away in a Manger – William J. Kirkpatrick (instrumental)
• Spicks and Specks – Bee Gees
• Internet Friends – Knife Party
• Somewhat Damaged – Nine Inch Nails
• Love and Mercy – Brian Wilson (cover by Gazelle Twin)

Season 6

• Tip-Toe Thru the Tulips – Nick Lucas
• More Than a Feeling – Boston
• Action Packed – Ronnie Dee
• If My Heart Was a Car – Old 97's
• Weeds or Wildflowers – Parsonsfield
• Arsonist's Lullabye – Hozier
• Chapel – Nicole Dollanganger
• It's All Over – Johnny Cash

Season 7

• Town Called Malice – The Jam
• Easy Street – The Collapsable Hearts Club featuring Jim Biano & Petra
• Crying – Roy Orbison
• Finlandia Op 26 – Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra & Paavo Berglund
• Everythings F**ed* – Dirty Three
• Bang Bang – Janis Martin
• The Program – Ben Wise
• Everything Right is Wrong Again – They Might Be Giants
• Someday We'll All Be Free – Donny Hathaway
• Just Freedom – MIDImarc

Season 8

• Another One Rides the Bus – Weird Al Yankovic
• Paul Simon – The Russian Futurists
• At the Bottom of Everything – Bright Eyes

Season 9

• The Last Rose of Summer – Sung by Alden
• All We Ever Wanted Was Everything – Bauhaus
• Geometría del Universo – Colleen
• Space Junk – Wang Chung
• April Skies – The Jesus and Mary Chain
• I Want to Love You Baby – Peggy Scott & Jo Jo Benson
• Lydia, the Tattooed Lady – Sung by Alpha
• It's All Right Now – Eddie Harris
• Souvenir – Boygenius
• Miss Mary's Fancy – Eoghan O'Sullivan and Gerald Harrington

Season 10

• I'm So Thankful – Eugene Blacknell and the New Breed
• Walkin' After Midnight – Patsy Cline
• Care of Cell 44 – The Zombies
• Heaven I Know – Gordi
• The Turtle and the Monkey – Sung by Beta
• Spinnin' Top – The Orlons
• Come Back Alive – Delta Rae
• Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini – Sergei Rachmaninoff, John Debney and Royal Scottish National Orchestra
• When the Wild Wind Blows – Iron Maiden
• I Went to the Well – Half Moon (Beta)
• Burning Down the House – Talking Heads
• You Want It Darker – Sung by Anita Lester
• No Worries – Amateur Blonde
• Back in Black – AC/DC
• You Are So Beautiful – Joe Cocker

Season 11

• Suspicious Activity – Sheridan Tongue
• Three Speed Girl – Ervin Litkei, Martin Kalmanoff
• The Entertainer – Bernd Lhotzky
• Horror Go Round – John Rowcroft, Christopher Salt
• Deal for Yourself – Faustus
• Lester – Geoffrey Gascoyne
• Eat the Rich – Motorhead
• Loves of Monterey – Anthony Mawer
• Little Girl – Andrea Litkei, Ervin Litkei
• Cult of Personality – Living Colour
• Landslide – Fleetwood Mac

Also read: Friends soundtrack: Complete guide to all songs featured in the show

What is The Walking Dead about?

The Walking Dead is a post-apocalyptic horror drama based on the comic series by Robert Kirkman, Tony Moore, and Charlie Adlard. Developed by Frank Darabont, the series follows a group of survivors navigating a world overrun by zombies, known as "walkers."

Rising tensions among survivors forming groups with opposing ideas mirror the danger of the undead as contemporary society falls. The series looks at how survival, morality, and leadership change against constant disaster.

The narrative of The Walking Dead first revolves around Rick Grimes, a sheriff's deputy who wakes from a coma to discover the planet has changed dramatically. From zombies to brutal human opponents like the Governor and Negan, Rick and his gang encounter even more perilous challenges over time. Across seasons, the survivors locate and lose safe havens, face betrayals, and create brittle friendships.

Leadership shifts as the show goes on; villages collapse and grow, and new enemies — including the Whisperers and the Commonwealth — emerge.

After eleven seasons on AMC, premiering in 2010 and ending in 2022, The Walking Dead became a cultural phenomenon distinguished for its gritty narrative, ensemble cast, and examination of humanity under crisis. It launched a vast series, including games, online episodes, and other spin-offs.

Also read: What happened to Andrea in The Walking Dead? Character fate explored

The Walking Dead uses music to enhance its stories, using songs to make viewers feel things and draw attention to important events. Fans of The Walking Dead can stream it on Amazon Prime Video, Netflix, and Disney+.

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