Queen Elizabeth II was on the throne for a sprawling 70 years—that’s a lot of cultural shifts to reign through. Her time in the monarchy has been documented in grave detail in the Netflix series The Crown. The four seasons of lauded series have primed any subsequent seasons to tackle her reign into the 21st century, which can now be looked back on in its entirety following the somber announcement of her death.
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The first season begins in the late ’40s and the latest closes out in the early ’90s. The accompanying soundtrack for the series acts as a “greatest hits” playlist for each individual decade. Below, we’re going through a few of the top picks from seasons 1-4 that highlight the duration of Queen Elizabeth’s historic reign with perfect needle drops.
1. “Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered” (The Crown Cast)
In the first season of the show, Queen Elizabeth’s sister Princess Margaret is shown singing a duet of the jazz standard “Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered” with King George, her father, for the last time before his death. The scene highlights the days before Queen Elizabeth would ascend to the throne with a somber classic from the era.
2. “Chills and Fever” (Freddie Houston)
A good soundtrack cut helps transport the viewer into a particular time and place. “Chills and Fever” by Freddie Houston does just that in the first season of The Crown. Houston typifies mid-century soul music and in return helps to sell the golden age action on screen.
3. “I’ve Never Been In Love Before” (Doris Day)
No one evokes the ’50s glamour quite like Doris Day. As her lulling vocals in “I’ve Never Been In Love Before” play out over speakers in the Royal yacht, all of a sudden everything thing feels a bit more demure—fit for a Queen.
4. “The Times They Are A-Changin” (Bob Dylan)
The times certainly ae a-changing by the time the third season of The Crown rolls around. Moving into the turbulent ’60s and ’70s, the Queen began to face backlash from the English public. The trailer for the third series features a slow-down rendition of The Bob Dylan classic, “The Times They Are A-Changin.'” Perfectly evocative of the era and the plotline, we can’t think of a better fit.
5. “Beggin’” Frankie Valli and The Four Seasons
Also in season three, viewers get a peak into the beginnings of Prince Charles (now King) and Camilla Shand’s (Queen Consort) relationship. To highlight their impassioned yet controversial relationship, the showrunners selected Franki Valli and The Four Seasons’ “Beggin’.” The song recently received a rebirth thanks to Eurovision winner Måneskin.
6. “Edge of Seventeen” (Stevie Nicks)
The fourth season of the show moves into a new decade and subsequently begins to focus on a new generation of royals. In the third episode of season 4, Diana Spencer (Emma Corrin) and her friends hit the town in London to celebrate her engagement to Prince Charles (Josh O’Connor). While they are cutting up on the dance floor, Stevie Nicks’ “Edge of Seventeen” plays in the background. Moving into a new era, the song helps to bolster a youthful, soon-to-be princess Diana.
7. “Girls on Film” (Duran Duran)
As evident by its many soundtrack appearances, “Girls on Film” seems to be a favorite of many a music supervisor. In The Crown, the buoyant ’80s hit plays behind scenes of Princess Diana rollerskating around Buckingham Palace after marrying into the royal family. Duran Duran playing out of a Walkman? It doesn’t get more ’80s than that.
(Photo by David M. Benett/Dave Benett/WireImage)
