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“Running Up That Hill” is the strongest song moment in Stranger Things, with Kate Bush’s track woven directly into Max’s Season 4 story. Eddie’s “Master of Puppets” performance and the Clash’s “Should I Stay or Should I Go” also show how a licensed song can do more than set a mood: it can become part of the drama. This is an editorial ranking, not an official Netflix or artist list. It weighs story importance, fit with the scene, memorability, and variety across the series’ five seasons.
How this ranking works
Netflix’s complete soundtrack guide verifies which featured songs appear and where. Netflix’s interviews with the creators and music supervisor Nora Felder offer additional context for a few pivotal selections. The ordering below is a judgment about the songs’ impact in the show, not an official ranking.
This list covers pre-existing songs featured in scenes, rather than the original score by Kyle Dixon and Michael Stein. The first several entries have particularly clear connections to character or plot; later placements lean more on the guide’s confirmed inclusion and the value of representing different seasons and sounds.
The 13 best songs featured in Stranger Things
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“Running Up That Hill (A Deal with God)” — Kate Bush
Season 4 turns Bush’s song into a defining part of Max’s story. In “Dear Billy,” it is more than a soundtrack choice: it becomes part of the escape scene and a personal anthem linked to Max’s isolation and the care her friends show her. Music supervisor Nora Felder described the scene as showing Max’s strength as she battles a demon that also works as a metaphor for private struggles. Matt Duffer summarized the creative choice simply: “It has to be Kate Bush.”
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Netflix reported that the song reached one billion Spotify streams on June 22, 2023. That is a dated milestone, not a current stream count. Netflix’s feature on the song discusses its place in Max’s story.
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“Master of Puppets” — Metallica
Eddie Munson’s Season 4 finale performance is one of the show’s most memorable uses of a rock song: the scene was built around the track, and its intensity suits Eddie’s defiant, larger-than-life moment. Felder said, “I really don’t think it could have been any other song!” Netflix also reports that Metallica approved its use. The band praised the creators’ approach to music, saying, “The way the Duffer brothers have incorporated music into Stranger Things has always been next level.” Read Netflix’s account of Eddie and “Master of Puppets.”
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“Should I Stay or Should I Go” — The Clash
The Clash’s song is one of the series’ earliest examples of music becoming a plot device, rather than simply period flavor. Netflix singles it out alongside “Running Up That Hill” as a song with a role in the story. Its recurring association with Will gives the choice emotional weight without needing to turn the track into an explanation of the scene. The official song guide lists its Season 1 placements.
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“Never Ending Story” — Limahl
In the Season 3 finale, Limahl’s exuberant theme song supplies a comic, unexpectedly sweet interruption to the episode’s mounting tension. Its tonal contrast is exactly what makes the moment stick: the song briefly shifts the series from danger to an awkwardly earnest performance. Netflix’s guide places it in the finale.
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“Separate Ways (Worlds Apart)” — Journey
Journey’s dramatic, driving track appears in Season 4, Episode 8, where its arena-rock scale helps give the season’s buildup a heightened feel. The Netflix guide confirms the show placement. A remixed version also appears on the Season 4 soundtrack compilation, a separate release detail that should not be mistaken for the exact version used in the episode. Legacy Recordings lists the Season 4 soundtrack track list.
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“Heroes” — Peter Gabriel
Peter Gabriel’s version appears in Season 1, giving the series a haunting interpretation of a song already associated with courage and loss. It belongs in this ranking for its fit with the show’s early emotional register. Keep it distinct from David Bowie’s original “Heroes,” which Netflix lists separately in Season 5.
Rank #3
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“Every Breath You Take” — The Police
Netflix lists this Police song in the Season 2 finale. Its instantly recognizable sound earns it a place among the series’ notable needle drops, though the official guide establishes the episode placement rather than explaining a deeper scene interpretation.
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“When It’s Cold I’d Like to Die” — Moby
Moby’s track appears in both Seasons 4 and 5, making it a rare selection that links different parts of the series. The Netflix guide confirms those appearances; it does not, by itself, establish one single meaning for the song across both seasons.
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“Time After Time” — Cyndi Lauper
Lauper’s 1983 hit is listed in Season 2, Episode 9. Its recognizable melody offers a different texture from the show’s harder-edged rock selections and helps this ranking represent the range of music featured across the series.
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“California Dreamin’” — The Beach Boys
The Beach Boys’ version appears in Season 4, Episode 1. Its inclusion adds a distinctive vocal and stylistic color to the season’s musical palette. Netflix confirms the episode placement but does not make a broader claim about the song’s meaning.
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“Psycho Killer” — Talking Heads
Netflix lists Talking Heads’ “Psycho Killer” in Season 4, Episode 2. Its off-kilter new-wave character brings another sound into a season strongly associated with metal and arena rock. The song was not written for the series; its place here reflects variety as well as its confirmed appearance.
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“Purple Rain” — Prince
Prince’s “Purple Rain” is listed in the Season 5 finale. A finale placement makes it an important full-series inclusion, but the official guide alone does not establish that it outranks other songs from the same episode. This position reflects the ranking’s aim to include music from all five seasons.
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“Landslide” — Fleetwood Mac
Fleetwood Mac’s “Landslide” also appears in the Season 5 finale. It earns the final slot for the contrast its softer, reflective sound brings to a list that ranges from Bush and Journey to Metallica and Talking Heads. That preference for tonal variety is an editorial choice; Netflix’s guide verifies the placement.
Featured songs are not the original score
The tracks above are existing songs used in the series. They are different from the original score composed by Kyle Dixon and Michael Stein. The distinction matters when comparing fan favorites: a song attached to a character or scene answers a different question from a recurring instrumental cue.
Is there a Stranger Things soundtrack album with these songs?
Legacy Recordings released Stranger Things: Soundtrack from the Netflix Series, Season 4, including a 2LP vinyl edition. Its track list includes “Running Up That Hill” and “Master of Puppets,” as well as the remixed “Separate Ways (Worlds Apart).” It is a Season 4 compilation, not a complete collection of songs from all five seasons. Legacy’s release information and track list identify the edition and contents.
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