The Last of Us soundtrack: All songs in the HBO show

❘ Published: 2023-03-13T17:20:31

HBO

Here’s a complete list of all the songs in The Last of Us soundtrack, including tracks from the original game’s score and music chosen just for the HBO show.

From the first trailer for HBO’s adaptation of the acclaimed video game, it was clear it was taking its source material seriously; the gentle plucking of Gustavo Santaolalla’s guitar giving way to an epic, emotional remix of Take On Me was a storm of goosebumps.

Through each episode of The Last of Us, the music isn’t just an accessory; each track is carefully chosen for different reasons, whether it’s the thematic weight of the song, establishing a sense of time, or honoring the original composer’s timeless work.

As we saw with Episode 1 and Episode 3, the power of the track chosen for the credits is enough to skyrocket an artist’s Spotify streams – so, we’ve put together a comprehensive list of all the songs in the show.

Every song in The Last of Us show

Every song in The Last of Us HBO show

We have listed every song in the soundtrack for each episode of The Last of Us HBO show, including any tracks from the scores of Part 1, Part 2, and Left Behind.

This list will be updated after each new episode has aired – so if you recognize a song but can’t quite pin it down, we’ll have the answer for you here.

Also, every episode features Gustavo Santaolalla’s ‘The Last of Us’ as its opening theme, so we won’t include it in each section.

The Last of Us Episode 1 soundtrack

Joel and Sarah in The Last of Us Episode 1

‘Tomorrow’ – Avril Lavigne
‘White Flag’ – Dido
‘Chonophobia’ – New Oblivion
‘I Can’t Believe You’re Back’ – Jad Mhanna, Roy Abdallah & Carole Aoun
‘Unstable’ – Gustavo Santaolalla
‘The Last Of Us (Astray)’ – Gustavo Santaolalla
‘Never Let Me Down Again’ – Depeche Mode

If you want to find out more about the use of Depeche Mode’s song, click here.

The Last of Us Episode 2 soundtrack

‘Hampa’ – Ari Lasso
‘Allowed to Be Happy’ – Gustavo Santaolalla

The Last of Us Episode 3 soundtrack

‘I’m Coming Home To Stay’ – Fleetwood Mac
‘White Room’ – Cream
‘Chains Of Love’ – Erasure
‘Long Long Time’ – Linda Ronstadt
‘On The Nature Of Daylight’ – Max Richter

Richter’s track is notoriously emotional, having been used in several movies and shows; most notably, it features in Denis Villeneuve’s Arrival. Find out more about its use here, and you can read more about Linda Ronstadt here.

The Last of Us Episode 4 soundtrack

Sam, Henry's little brother, in The Last of Us

‘Alone And Forsaken’ – Hank Williams
‘True Faith’ – Lotte Kestner

Kestner’s version of the classic ’80s song was the inspiration for Ashley Johnson’s cover in The Last of Us Part 2. Find out more here.

The Last of Us Episode 5 soundtrack

Henry and Sam in The Last of Us Episode 5

‘Fuel to Fire’ – Agnes Obel

You can read more about the use of Obel’s track, and where you may have heard the composer’s work before, here.

The Last of Us Episode 6 soundtrack

Tommy and Joel in The Last of Us Episode 6

‘Never Let Me Down Again’ – Jessica Mazin

This cover was performed by co-showrunner Craig Mazin’s daughter, and links back to the ending of the first episode. You can read more about it here.

The Last of Us Episode 7 soundtrack

‘All or None’ – Pearl Jam
‘Take on Me’ – A-ha
‘Just Like Heaven’ – Rockabye Baby!
‘I Got You Babe’ – Etta James
‘The Choice’ – Gustavo Santaolalla
‘Left Behind’ – Gustavo Santaolalla

The episode ends with Santaolalla’s ‘Left Behind’, mirroring the tragic ending of the original The Last of Us DLC. You can read more about it here.

The Last of Us Episode 8 soundtrack

Joel and Ellie in The Last of Us Episode 8

This episode features no well known songs.

However the final scene and credits is covered by the musical piece ‘Unbound’ by Gustavo Santaolalla, which fans will recognise from the soundtrack of The Last of Us Part 2, though this new version has an added electric guitar.

The Last of Us Episode 9 soundtrack

‘Unbroken’ – Gustavo Santaolalla
‘The Path’ – Gustavo Santaolalla

‘The Path’ plays at the end of Episode 9, mirroring the final moments of the original game. You can find out more here.

The Last of Us Season 1 is available to stream in its entirety now. In the meantime, you can find out more about Season 2 here, and check out the rest of our coverage here.