REPUTATION, the annotated soundtrack
Hello! I just found out that my website has a blog feature! Uh-oh!
A while back I posted a link to a playlist I made for REPUTATION (available now in all good bookshops in the UK, out April 5th 2022 in the US đ) but Instagram wasnât a particularly good place to explain all my musical choices, so I present to you: REPUTATION, the annotated soundtrack.
PLEASE EXERCISE CAUTION - THIS ANNOTATED PLAYLIST CONTAINS SPOILERS FOR THE ENTIRE BOOK.
Georgiana - From "Pride & Prejudice" Soundtrack
I feel like I donât need to explain this one. Itâs the piano piece that Darcyâs little sister plays in P&P 2005, and itâs perfect âoh, here comes our plucky protagonist, skipping down the lane!â music for the beginning of a film. Georgiana Ellers wasnât named for Georgiana Darcy, but it was very convenient when it came to finding appropriate music. Here comes Georgiana! Not skipping, but not not-skipping! Why is she in a lane? For the aesthetic, of course!
Off the Radar - Noga Erez
I stole this one from an episode of Dickinson, which I really recommend if you like the REPUTATION vibes. Dickinson has REPUTATION vibes in spades, because itâs historical with a modern twist and very much my sense of humour. This is a song about nobody giving a shit about you. VERY Georgiana.
Crimson and Clover - Joan Jett & The Blackhearts
Oh, this song. This song sounds like falling a little bit in love with somebody you just met over a stolen bottle of Cognac to me. Itâs that delicious, heady rush that you feel when you get just a taste of somebody and you immediately know you need more of them. This is Francesâs intro music.
Pretty Great - Fickle Friends
If I added up all the hours Iâve spent pogo-ing around my living room to this song in the past year and a half, youâd be worried about me. My flatmates certainly are. This, to me, is the perfect party songâpunchy and fun and euphoric, but with a healthy dose of longing and emotion threaded in there too. Georgiana goes to a party! Georgiana gains A Crush (her second crush of the book, Iâd argue, but Iâm just the author)! I donât think of this as being just a romantic song. I think itâs more about falling in love with all of it; Frances, her friends, the lifestyle & that ELUSIVE feeling of belonging.
Make Out in My Car - Sufjan Stevens Version Moses Sumney
This one is a Thomas song. He really isnât trying to go to bed with her! He really does just want to make out in his car(riage)! What you donât see in REPUTATION, because itâs told from Georgianaâs POV, is that Thomas goes home from that party and moons about the house in his dressing gown, playing the piano and thinking about his brief encounter with Georgiana. He mentions her name far too many times in casual conversation over the next few weeks, and his father knows EXACTLY whatâs up. Thomas gains A Crush!
Good Day - Nappy Roots
If youâre a die-hard Gossip Girl fan like me (I know, Iâm sorry) then youâll probably recognise this song from a key moment where Blair Waldorf and her friends are assessing their classmates to see who deserves to be part of the in-crowd. I think you can see where Iâm going with this. I tried to give Frances Campbell as much Blair Waldorf energy as possible, because the Blairs of the world are some of my problematic faves.
Infinity Guitars - Sleigh Bells
Sleigh Bells make the best weâve-lost-control-of-this-horse music Iâve ever heard. I really feel it in my BONES. It makes me want to swig champagne from the bottle and smash things and stay out past nine!!
Forget About Life - Alvvays
Some of these songs arenât linked to specific scenes but they are linked to specific vibes, and some of them are both! For instance; this song is another Thomas one, and I place it in my head at the dinner party when he and Georgiana are outside together in the rain. I also think it fits with a lot of other moments & POVs in the book, though, like ⌠for example ⌠Jane and Frances at the fair, followed up by that little moment at Bastards Cottage (just Jane and Frances in general!).
Susie Save Your Love - Allie X; Mitski
To Frances, love Jane (and Georgiana, just a little bit, because Mitski featured on the song so we get two voices) xxx
POWER - Kanye West
This is another Vibes song. Itâs one I imagine playing as Frances & co enter ballrooms and parties. Itâs a powerful party montage song! God, I love a montage.
Delicate - Taylor Swift
Iâm sorry for putting Taylor and Kanye next to each other, but a) I wanted to and b) itâs just how the timeline worked out in my head. Delicate has the line that the title of Reputation was taken from (really we came up with the title while brainstorming more generally, but T Swift was front of mind because of some other title options we explored, and I decided that we were referencing Delicate rather than the entire album). Once again itâs a song that I think works for Thomas and Georgiana AND Frances and Jane, but I originally included it for the orangery scene.
You Wouldn't Like Me - The Beths
A surprisingly perky song for the dark night of the soul, the low point at which everybody is Having A Time Of It!
Pink Light - MUNA
This is the dark night of the soul B-side, where things get less perky. The aftermath! The desperation! The exhaustion! The belief that theyâre all rotten/broken/not allowed to have nice things and that theyâve fucked it all up beyond the point of no return! I like this song for this moment because once again I think it works for a few different characters, but also because it allows them a tiny slice of hope (for a treat!) that they might be worth redemption/love (delete as applicable). Also, MUNA are the best band in the world and will likely be on every playlist I ever make.
Please ⌠- The Smiths
Thomas gets home from Haverton House, has somebody run him a massive bath, then plays this song on repeat until the water is cold (which is a LOT of plays, Thomas, because itâs not even two minutes long. Just get out of the bath, okay? Get out of the bath and we can talk).
Francis Forever - Mitski
Just one letter off being directly addressed to the recipient: a Georgiana and Frances breakup song :(
when the party's over - Billie Eilish
This gives me that gutted, hollowed-out feeling of breakups and come-downs and reckonings. Itâs a Frances song and itâs a little bit of a Jane song, too.
May I Have This Dance - Francis and the Lights
I listened to this song so many times while writing the last scene of the book that it plays in my head if I even catch a GLIMPSE of those lines. Itâs heavy but itâs hopeful, you know? Itâs ⌠acknowledging all the shit thatâs come before, but still offering your hand for a dance. In my head, it plays on as Georgiana and Thomas walk into the ballroom and dance with Betty and the Burtons.
The Canadian set - Traditional; Bjarte Eike; Barokksolistene
I have a secret: there is a post-credits scene (or I suppose actually a ⌠during-credits scene?) that runs in my head after the end of everything I write. Itâs the emotional montage at the end of the film that shows you snippets of what life is like for everybody beyond the happy ending. It plays more like a music video than anything else, and itâs always a little bit cheesy, and in this case Iâm afraid itâs mostly WEDDING-related.
Thatâs it! We made it to the end of the playlist! I hope you enjoyed this tour of my brain.