Top Ten Music Moments on NBC’s Scrubs
In the wake of series finales from some of NBC’s most successful comedies of the last 15 years—Seinfeld, Friends, Frasier—the network that once dominated the sitcom landscape has been reduced to relying on a painfully unfunny Friends spinoff and the increasingly tiresome Will & Grace as its main draws. Fortunately, one beacon of creative comedic hope remains amidst the wasteland of predictable punchlines and soulless laugh tracks: Scrubs. The show’s visual gags, daydream sequences, and curious affinity for former Men at Work frontman Colin Hay, among other things, have made it NBC’s top comedy for four years running, even if its ratings don’t reflect that.
Scrubs builds on the blueprint laid down by series like ABC’s Sports Night in the late 1990s; it delivers the laughs for about 20 of the episode’s 22 minutes before setting the jokes aside to deliver a dramatic, thought-provoking conclusion over its final couple of minutes. Sometimes these conclusions fall flat, but more often than not, they succeed with just the right doses of endearing genuineness and believable melodrama. In other words, it tickles the X chromosomes in all the right places.
As expected, music plays a large role in these dramatic final moments. Like any series, Scrubs has established a certain style of song that shows up frequently in each episode’s final moments—acoustic guitar chords, swelling choruses and lovestruck lyrics are not uncommon. Zach Braff, who plays likeable doctor John “J.D.” Dorian in the series, copped this sound for his Grammy-winning Garden State soundtrack, though admittedly he may have had a hand in the original inclusion of artists like The Shins and Cary Brothers in Scrubs.
As often as Scrubs sticks to its musical formula though, it never hesitates to deviate from expectations when the situation calls for it. It’s a trait that extends to every aspect of the series, and makes it one of the most unique comedies on television today. The following ten moments are a few that combined music with the show’s plot and characters most memorably. Melodrama optional.
10. Rhett Miller - "Come Around" (2.18: My T.C.W.)
The final sequence in this episode showcases a common Scrubs tactic: wrapping up each separate storyline in a wordless montage. In this case, after J.D. reprimands Elliot, Turk, Carla, and Dr. Cox for complaining incessantly about their relationship problems while he’s unhappily single, each respective couple reconciles as Old 97s frontman Miller plays in the background. The beauty of this montage, which ends with J.D. lamenting, “Nothing sucks more than feeling all alone, no matter how many people are around”? You still feel a little sympathy, despite the fact that he’d turned down advances from the episode’s title character, “Tasty Coma Wife” (Amy Smart), a mere two minutes earlier. Our resilient hero J.D. eventually bounces back, hooking up with her two episodes later at her husband’s funeral.
09. The Coral - "Dreaming of You" (2.10: My Monster)
More than any other song on this list, The Coral’s irresistibly catchy single represents a significant change of pace from the Scrubs musical norm. Similarly, the plot turn that the song scores epitomizes the unpredictable nature of the show’s storylines. J.D. and Elliot, this series’ version of, say, Ross and Rachel, had been broken up for nearly a year, following a tryst that lasted all of one episode. But now, suddenly, with few hints and no foreshadowing, the bouncy bass riff and synth line in “Dreaming of You” sets off their romp around J.D.’s apartment. The lyric “I still need you, but I don’t want you now” never seemed less clichéd.
08. Journey - "Don't Stop Believin'" (3.02: My Journey)
A callback to the episode’s introduction, in which J.D. professed his love for the 80s arena-rock group by lending his falsetto to “Don’t Stop Believin”’s opening lines, the track interjects itself into the narrative in the final minutes. Scrubs has made this a habit over its four seasons; in many cases, the lyrics of the chosen song describes the situation as effectively as a dialogue could. While Journey doesn’t nail this plot spot-on, they do well enough. “Just a small town girl / Livin’ in a lonely world / She took the midnight train going anywhere” plays while a lovelorn Elliot rides a train to see potential boyfriend Sean (Scott Foley); the next shot cuts to show an equally lonely Sean while the next couplet (“Just a small town boy…”) starts up. The self-aware music selection is great—the episode’s exaggeratedly theatrical ending as the song’s chorus swells is even better.
07. Nil Lara – “Fighting For My Love” (1.14: My Drug Buddy)
The first brief Elliott/J.D. tryst I alluded to earlier took off in the final minute of this episode, to the tune of “Fighting For My Love.” After teasing at chemistry between the two characters during the show’s inaugural three or four weeks, the show had relegated them to the friend zone, seemingly indefinitely, before the sudden hookup went down in this episode. It was a welcome change from the awkward exchanges, heavy-handed foreshadowing, and the sense of inevitability that usually surrounds TV romances. Even though this one also seemed inevitable, it still caught you off-guard. “Fighting For My Love,” a typically Scrubs upbeat acoustic number provides the perfect soundtrack to the moment.
06. The Polyphonic Spree - "Section 9 (Light of Day / Reach for the Sun)" (3.19: My Choosiest Choice of All)
Not knowing beforehand that The Polyphonic Spree would appear in this episode, I didn’t pay much attention when one patient constantly expressed the desire to play with his band before they toured Europe. However, when Dr. Cox attempted to impress a fellow doctor—surprising the patient by bringing his bandmates into his hospital room to play an impromptu set—the band slowly streamed in, one by one, all decked out in identical white robes, and it clicked for me. The final minutes of the episode feature a montage that combines performance shots of the band with the final advances of the plot, effectively weaving “Light of Day / Reach for the Sun” in and out of the diegesis. I normally don’t like The Polyphonic Spree, but they work perfectly here.
05. Finger Eleven - "One Thing" (3.20: My Fault)
As overplayed as it was on radio airwaves, this Finger Eleven ballad still sounds good to me, and the final three and a half minutes of “My Fault” let it play in almost its entirety. In one of the most brilliantly written sequence of Scrubs’ four seasons, conflicts resolve in both touching and dramatic ways, from Carla and Turk reconciling their wedding issues to Elliot deciding at the last minute to ditch her plan to move in with Sean in favour of J.D. It culminates in this final exchange, right before the episode finishes:
J.D. (narrating): I think that the problem with most people who want what they can’t have is that when they actually get the thing they covet, they don’t want it anymore. But not this guy.
Elliot: “Well Dr. Dorian, you have me. You finally have me.”
(“One Thing” cuts out abruptly)
J.D. (narrating): Oh my God, I don’t want her!
Hey, it’s a comedy that, in the end, places comedy first rather than pandering to audiences who revel in the romantic conventions of so-called sitcoms. What a novel concept.
04. Colin Hay - "Beautiful World" (1.24: My Last Day)
I’m wary of my praise for Scrubs’ unconventional methods coming off a little too excessive, but bear with me as I toe that line between admiration and obsession again. In “My Last Day,” the first season’s finale, the writers didn’t just drop one bomb—they dropped every bomb. Initially, Colin Hay’s lyrics—particularly the constant “My my my, it’s a beautiful world” refrain—complement what appears to be an aw-shucks happy ending to the season. However, that’s before the track cuts out for a minute and an antagonized Jordan takes Dr. Cox’s earlier advice to “stir it up” by informing every main character of secrets and conflicts that had been stewing for most of the season. As soon as she concludes, Hay’s voice re-enters over acoustic chords, singing, “Still this emptiness persists / Perhaps this is as good as it gets.” Once again, it’s the off-screen vocalist that’s dictating the plot, as each on-screen character, one by one, wordlessly departs the scene. The final chords of “Beautiful World” reverberate with a combination of playful self-reflexivity and nostalgia for five minutes earlier, when things were far less complicated.
03. John Cale - "Hallelujah" (1.04: My Old Lady)
Using “Hallelujah” to score a crucial moment is nothing new to the television world. Virtually every show from The West Wing to The O.C. has used it at some point, and Scrubs was no exception, whipping it out in only its fourth episode. However, they do get some credit for using John Cale’s rendition rather than the Jeff Buckley version that’s suffered from a bit of overexposure. Technicalities aside, what we have here is a genuine goosebump-eliciting moment. The premise: J.D. introduces the episode by pointing out that—excepting the maternity ward and emergency room—one out of every three hospital patients dies before leaving. In a subsequent three-way split-screen, J.D., Elliot, and Turk introduce themselves to their new patients, setting up the payoff of seeing which will have their patient die on them by show’s end. The twist: Some days, the odds are worse. The sparse piano notes of “Hallelujah” play morosely in the background as each doctor has to apologize to their patient’s respective families. I’ve never watched a single episode of E.R., but I imagine this must capture what its best moments were like.
02. Josh Radin "Winter" / "Closer" (3.14: My Screwup / 4.19: My Best Laid Plans)
Another Zach Braff favourite, Josh Radin has contributed his whispered vocals and acoustic guitar plucking to two of the most memorable episodes of the series. “Winter” and “Closer” sound so similar—even down to their titles—that I had to include them as one entry here. The former track plays a critical role in “My Screwup,” an episode unanimously considered one of the show’s best. In a twist worthy of an M. Night Shyamalan film, the show’s writers mislead viewers for the episode’s entire second half, providing a jarring impact while maintaining its humour most of the way. “My Best Laid Plans,” meanwhile, offers a similarly downbeat ending, as J.D. breaks up with his girlfriend and Turk and Carla’s marriage appears on the verge of collapse. In both instances, Radin’s inconspicuous delivery and deceptively simple melodies make for poignant moments without being obtrusive. His approach isn’t spectacular, but it’s definitely memorable.
01. Jill Tracy and Cast - "Waiting for my Real Life to Begin" (2.13: My Philosophy)
Perhaps the definitive love-it-or-hate-it sequence over the duration of Scrubs’ four seasons, the final few minutes of “My Philosophy” represent the time when I felt most strongly that I was watching a show unlike any other I’d ever seen. Following up on an early conversation with J.D. in which she expresses hope that death is like a “big Broadway musical” in which “you go out with a real flourish,” one patient’s death inspires one of J.D.’s recurrent imagination sequences. In this one, death really is like a big Broadway musical, and its cast is… well, the cast of Scrubs. Six of the show’s main players, along with the late patient (played by Jill Tracy), take a turn at singing a few lines from Colin Hay’s “Waiting for my Real Life to Begin.” There even achieve a few moments of legitimately impressive harmony. It’s slightly surreal and surprisingly endearing—two traits that play a large factor in many of Scrubs’ best moments, musical or otherwise.
'Green Acres' star Eddie Albert dies at 99
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Eddie Albert was a versatile actor who moved smoothly from the Broadway stage to movies, but he found stardom as the constantly befuddled city slicker-turned-farmer in television's Green Acres.
Albert died of pneumonia Thursday at his home in the Pacific Palisades area, in the presence of caregivers including his son Edward, who was holding his hand at the time.
"He died so beautifully and so gracefully that literally this morning I don't feel grief, I don't feel loss," Edward Albert told The Associated Press.
On Green Acres, Albert played Oliver Douglas, a New York lawyer who settles in a rural town with his glamorous wife, played by Eva Gabor, and finds himself perplexed by the antics of a host of eccentrics, including a pig named Arnold Ziffel.
He was nominated for Academy Awards as supporting actor in Roman Holiday (1953) and The Heartbreak Kid (1972).
Besides the 1965-1971 run in Green Acres, he costarred on TV with Robert Wagner in Switch from 1975 to 1978 and was a semi-regular on Falcon Crest in 1988.
He was a tireless conservationist, crusading for endangered species, healthful food, cleanup of Santa Monica Bay pollution and other causes.
Albert's mother was not married when he was born, in 1906. After marrying, she changed his birth certificate to read 1908, the younger Albert said.
Rarely the star of films, Albert often portrayed the wisecracking sidekick, fast-talking salesman or sympathetic father. His stardom came in television, especially with Green Acres, in which, ironically, he played straight man. The show joined The Beverly Hillbillies,Petticoat Junction and other high-rated CBS comedies of the 1960s and '70s.
"Some people think that because of the bucolic background Green Acres is corny," Albert told an interviewer in 1970. "But we get away with some of the most incredible lines on television."
His break in show business came during the '30s in the Broadway hit Brother Rat, a comedy about life at Virginia Military Institute. Warner Bros. signed him to a contract and cast him in the 1938 film.
According to Hollywood gossip, he was caught in a dalliance with the wife of Jack L. Warner and the studio boss removed him from a film and allowed him to languish under contract.
The actor left Hollywood and appeared as a clown and trapeze artist in a one-ring Mexican circus. He escaped his studio contract by joining the Navy in World War II and served in combat in the South Pacific. He received a Bronze Star for his heroic rescue of wounded Marines at Tarawa, his son said.
Albert managed to rehabilitate his film career after the war, beginning with Smash-up with Susan Hayward in 1947.
Among his other films: Carrie,Oklahoma!The Teahouse of the August Moon,The Sun Also Rises,The Roots of Heaven,The Longest Day,Miracle of the White Stallions,The Longest Yard and Escape to Witch Mountain.
Edward Albert Heimberger was born in Rock Island, Ill., grew up in Minneapolis and worked his way through two years at the University of Minnesota.
Amateur theater led to singing engagements in nightclubs and on radio. During that time he dropped his last name "because most people mispronounced it as 'Hamburger.'"
Moving to New York, Albert acted on radio and appeared in summer stock before he broke into Broadway and the movies.
Green Acres made Albert a rich man and allowed him to pursue his causes. He established Plaza de la Raza, a foundation in East Los Angeles that teaches arts to poor Hispanics.
He helped Dr. Albert Schweitzer combat famine in Africa. He traveled the world for UNICEF. Concerned about seeing fewer pelicans on beaches where he was jogging, he went with ecologists and his son on a trip to Anacapa Island.
"We discovered that in every nest all the eggs were crushed, and nobody knew why," the younger Albert said. "They took samples and tested them, and found DDT in all the eggs. ... An entire generation of species was being wiped out."
Albert began speaking about the harmful effects of the pesticide at universities around the country, and in 1972 the federal government banned DDT.
He continued acting into his 80s, often appearing in television movies.
"Acting was a tenth of his life. The majority of his life was committed to helping other people," said his son, also an actor. "This guy was, from the absolute depth of his soul, one of the true heroes of our world."
Edward Albert, 54, who became a prominent actor in Butterflies Are Free,40 Carats and other films, said he put his career on hold for the past eight years to aid his father, who suffered from Alzheimer's disease.
On Friday, he remembered a moment several years ago in which the two sat in a garden together.
"I said to him 'You're my hero.' I saw him struggling to put together the words, and he looked at me and said: 'You're your hero's hero.' I'll take that to my ... grave."
Albert was married to the dancer-actress Margo for 40 years until her death in 1985. In addition to his son, Albert is survived by a daughter, Maria Albert Zucht, and two granddaughters.
A private funeral was planned.
Sony BMG tests technology to limit CD burning
NEW YORK (Billboard) - As part of its mounting U.S. rollout of content-enhanced and copy-protected CDs, Sony BMG Music Entertainment is testing technology solutions that bar consumers from making additional copies of burned CD-R discs.
Since March the company has released at least 10 commercial titles -- more than 1 million discs in total -- featuring technology from U.K. anti-piracy specialist First4Internet that allows consumers to make limited copies of protected discs, but blocks users from making copies of the copies.
The concept is known as "sterile burning." And in the eyes of Sony BMG executives, the initiative is central to the industry's efforts to curb casual CD burning.
"The casual piracy, the school yard piracy, is a huge issue for us," says Thomas Hesse, president of global digital business for Sony BMG. "Two-thirds of all piracy comes from ripping and burning CDs, which is why making the CD a secure format is of the utmost importance."
Names of specific titles carrying the technology were not disclosed. The effort is not specific to First4Internet. Other Sony BMG partners are expected to begin commercial trials of sterile burning within the next month.
To date, most copy protection and other digital rights management-based solutions that allow for burning have not included secure burning.
Early copy-protected discs as well as all Digital Rights Management (DRM)-protected files sold through online retailers like iTunes, Napster and others offer burning of tracks into unprotected WAV files. Those burned CDs can then be ripped back onto a personal computer minus a DRM wrapper and converted into MP3 files.
Under the new solution, tracks ripped and burned from a copy-protected disc are copied to a blank CD in Microsoft's Windows Media Audio format. The DRM embedded on the discs bars the burned CD from being copied.
"The secure burning solution is the sensible way forward," First4Internet CEO Mathew Gilliat-Smith says. "Most consumers accept that making a copy for personal use is really what they want it for. The industry is keen to make sure that is not abused by making copies for other people that would otherwise go buy a CD."
As with other copy-protected discs, albums featuring XCP (extended copy protection) will allow for three copies to be made.
However, Sony BMG has said it is not locked into the number of copies. The label is looking to offer consumers a fair-use replication of rights enjoyed on existing CDs.
COMPATIBLE FOR ALL?
A key concern with copy-protection efforts remains compatibility.
It is a sticking point at Sony BMG and other labels as they look to increase the number of copy-protected CDs they push into the market.
Among the biggest headaches: Secure burning means that iPod users do not have any means of transferring tracks to their device, because Apple Computer has yet to license its FairPlay DRM for use on copy-protected discs.
As for more basic CD player compatibility issues, Gilliat-Smith says the discs are compliant with Sony Philips CD specifications and should therefore play in all conventional CD players.
The moves with First4Internet are part of a larger copy-protection push by Sony BMG that also includes SunnComm and its MediaMax technology.
To date, SunnComm has been the music giant's primary partner on commercial releases -- including Velvet Revolver's "Contraband" and Anthony Hamilton's solo album. In all, more than 5.5 million content-enhanced and protected discs have been shipped featuring SunnComm technology.
First4Internet's XCP has been used previously on prerelease CDs only. Sony BMG is the first to commercially deploy XCP.
First4Internet's other clients -- which include Universal Music Group, Warner Music Group and EMI -- are using XCP for prerelease material.
Sony BMG expects that by year's end a substantial number of its U.S. releases will employ either MediaMax or XCP. All copy-protected solutions will include such extras as photo galleries, enhanced liner notes and links to other features.