We all know that feeling of being sixteen and trying to find your footing in the world, feeling that the only way to be truly heard is to rebel against institutions at large (also known as your parents). Shows depicting teenage-hood, like Skins, My So-Called Life, and Dawson’s Creek have firmly marked their place in the cultural landscape. But one show captured the struggles of our teen years with no melodrama or fantasy, a show about a group of suburban teens trying to survive the complexities of everyday life — that was Paul Feig’s 1999 NBC dramedy Freaks and Geeks. Although it had minimal mainstream success against other television titans like Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Freaks and Geeks stands out as a cult classic and for good reason. Using music as another character, Freaks and Geeks is able to tell each character’s story with nuance. The seamless integration of the compilation soundtrack not only plays a temporal role in contextualizing the1980s time period, but also acts as a tool to piece together each character’s journey through adolescence.
We follow her character arc towards peace in the “not-knowing” through the transition of music from up beat classic rock, to the contemplative, poetic tunes of 1970s rock music.
I’m sailing away
Set an open course for the Virgin Sea
‘Cause I’ve got to be free
Free to face the life that’s ahead of me…
As the song suggests, Lindsay is searching for something greater than what Chippewa, Michigan and her peers can offer her. The song’s see-saw between a fast paced pop-rock anthem to the slowed intro likening to a ballad mirrors Lindsay’s sense of urgency with breaking free. Lindsay can’t stay settled. Lindsay is ready to be free from the constraints and expectations set by those around her.
It’s important to note that it’s not just the depiction of Lindsay’s character arc which benefits from the effectiveness of a compilation soundtrack. The arc of one of the show’s most intriguing characters, Daniel Desario (James Franco), is paired cleverly with the sounds of punk rock music. Since its origins, rock music has been associated with youths who seek independence, diverge from parental oversight, and challenge the conservatism of America. It’s fair to say that the nasty guitar riffs and hard hitting drum beats of early punk music didn’t sit well with traditionalists, and this kind of abrasive musical tone becomes the definition of Daniel’s identity: he’s a kid who has grown up with the pressures of his troubled family life bearing down on him. And he’s ready to push back. In the episode “Noshing and Moshing,” Daniel finds solace in the underground punk scene as his father’s ailing health, his mother on his case, and his tumultuous relationship weigh on his shoulders. Daniel struggles to express himself healthily when life doesn’t always go his way. But after purchasing a new vinyl — albeit to impress a punk girl at the local store — of Black Flag’s Damaged (1981), he listens to the song “Rise Above.” Fading diegetically and non-diegetically through his record player headphones, the music just seems to click within Daniel. The gritty instrumentation and rebellious lyrics which bark back at those above you resonate with Daniel on a spiritual level. It’s a song which, for the first time, speaks to his interior self of rising above the struggles which have permeated his life.
The use of punk rock music works in universally connecting audiences to Daniel’s character. Freaks and Geeks aired at a time when bands like Blink-182, Green Day, and Sum 41 were in the zeitgeist. These bands spoke to teenagers growing up in the late 90s and early 2000s who’re frustrated with the tribulations of being a teen in the same way Black Flag spoke to Daniel’s inner being. Music and the feelings associated with genres are used as a way of tapping into these feelings which cross generational bounds.
When we compare where Lindsay begins her journey to where it ends, we can see how her position shifts towards a point of peace in not knowing where she’s going. The band who helps her get there? Grateful Dead. In the final episode of the show, “Discos and Dragons,” Lindsay finds herself at a crossroads. She’s been accepted to a summer academic summit held at the University of Michigan with her parent’s approval. Although she’s a bright student, Lindsay finds herself lost in the thoughts of others. With the guidance of the hippy school counselor Mr. Rosso, Lindsay is encouraged to listen to the poeticism of Grateful Dead’s American Beauty album. In Mr. Rosso’s eyes, the Grateful Dead’s lyricism and sonics will quash the anxiety which anchors inside of Lindsay. Back at home, Lindsay listens to the American Beauty album. “Box of Rain” plays from her record player and it’s as if everything in life starts to become clear;. what it means to be alive and how to navigate it, questions which Lindsay once struggled to understand, now seem to suddenly make sense. She dances around her bedroom, arms spread out, a wave of calm and pure joy washes over her. The lyrics of the song read:
Walk out of any doorway
Feel your way, feel your way like the day before
Maybe you’ll find direction
Around some corner where it’s been waiting for you.
The beauty of the Grateful Dead’s lyrics is that they capture what it means to be alive. Our lives are never straight forward or fully formed. We are merely making the paths we tread on as we go. The soft guitar strum and melodic singing of Jerry Garcia, front man of Grateful Dead, contrasts significantly from the upbeat nature of “Come Sail Away.” It’s as if Lindsay has finally reached a point in her adolescence where she has accepted that the path that lays before her is a hopeful one, one of self-discovery. It is not a journey that is to be defined by anyone else besides herself. Even then, she may not fully know where she is heading — but that is okay.
In the final scene of the show, we see Lindsay board the bus to Ann Arbor to the University of Michigan. She waves goodbye to her family who believe she’ll reach the academic summit in due time. But what we later see is that Lindsay gets off the bus halfway, meeting her friend Kim (Busy Phillips) and a couple of Deadheads from their school who embark on a summer filled with Grateful Dead concerts. The scene is paired with Grateful Dead’s song “Ripple.” Looking at the lyrics of “Ripple:”
There is a road, no simple highway
Between the dawn and the dark of night
And if you go, no one may follow
That path is for your steps alone.
In this scene, Lindsay rebels against her parents. She doesn’t go to the summit like she had told everyone she would, but the depiction of rebellion isn’t paired with an aggressive sonic tone like it would have in previous episodes. Her rebellion is rooted in a calmness, a sense of self-assurance. She is on her journey to adulthood alone and it is no longer filled with the conflicting voices of those who surround her. This is a journey for her to take. The music coupled with Lindsay’s arc work in tandem to create a beautifully complex image of what it means to be young and set forth on your path towards adulthood.
When we look back at successful films and television shows, the clever use of music will always be a memorable aspect of the construction of the story. Freaks and Geeks’ compilation soundtrack is the backbone. The use of music in itself tells a story beyond what we see on screen. Despite its single season, it would be wrong to assume that Freaks and Geeks lacks depth and nuance. If anything, the creative team behind it managed to use everything at their disposal to tell compelling stories which spoke authentically to their audiences through sound.
