The music industry and television have had a long relationship. Along with variety shows and MTV, network shows aimed at teenagers such as Shindig, Hullabaloo, American Bandstand and the stillrunning Soul Train have showcased performers singing their latest hits as well as dancers interpreting the latest discs. For both record companies and artists, appearing on these shows insured sales and exposure. The hosts—the upbeat and ever-young white Dick Clark epitomized American Bandstand and the black Don Cornelius’ suave and deep-voiced persona symbolized Soul Train—also reflected the racial divide in American youth and music (see John Water’s Hairspray, 1988).

By the late 1960s, The Monkees and The Partridge Family also combined sitcoms and bands. Both shows followed the adventures of studio-created groups, and the singles that were released became the centerpiece of the show. Saturday morning cartoons geared to children, such as The Archies and Josie and the Pussycats, also became names for bands that record companies created, using studio musicians in a genre nicknamed bubblegum music.

Meanwhile, popular music was used on the soundtracks of many shows from The Mod Squad to The Man from U.N.C.L.E. Moreover, the theme song of television shows in the 1960s and 1970s became a crucial way to lend definition to the program. Themes from Peter Gunn, Perry Mason, Hill Street Blues, Mission Impossible and Hawaii Five-O became audible icons of popular culture. These instrumental pieces brought viewers back to the screen with their recognizable and infinitely catchy music (interspersed with the jingles and anthems of advertisements).

With Dawson’s Creek and other 1990s teenoriented shows, the music industry and television have found new overlaps. Soundtracks that feature pop tunes heard on the shows are available in record stores and advertised on the show. These compilation albums market both shows and artists. The role of the soundtrack—and particularly montaged scenes without dialog with the latest “hit” playing—has become key as music videos and teen dramas converge.