SPOILER WARNING: The following article contains massive spoilers for Guardians of the Galaxy, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, and Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3. If you have not seen the films, we recommend screening the movies first and then enjoying this list!
Music is more closely associated with Guardians of the Galaxy than any other currently-running major franchise, and it's with good reason. Not only do classic songs play an important part in the backstory of one of the main characters, but Guardians of the Galaxy, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, and Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 are all jam-packed with amazing, beautiful, funny, and dramatic music moments. To date we've seen a great number of these sequences across the trilogy, but today we ask a specific question: which of these are the true cream of the crop?
We've weighed all of the music moments in the Guardians of the Galaxy movies thus far against each other, and what you'll find below is our rankings of the best of the bunch.
14. "No Sleep Till Brooklyn" by The Beastie Boys
When a movie sets up a massive action sequence, a hair-raising guitar riff can work magic setting up a badass tone, and James Gunn employs "No Sleep Till Brooklyn" by The Beastie Boys beautifully in the big third act of Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3. The song starts blasting as everything starts really going to hell for the High Evolutionary and the titular team gets back together, and it instantly puts a smile on one's face. The fact that the song has been used in a lot of movies (including The Super Mario Bros. Movie, which hit theaters only a month earlier than Guardians 3) dings the moment's ranking on this list, but it's still terrific.
13. "Mr. Blue Sky" by Electric Light Orchestra
Marvel Studios movies are regularly lauded for their energy and sense of fun – and James Gunn's opening credits sequence for Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 is really that in a nutshell. While your standard blockbuster would focus all of its attention on the titular team's battle against an inter-dimensional space creature, Gunn's feature breaks that particular mold by instead letting Baby Groot have the spotlight and dance his way through "Mr. Blue Sky" by Electric Light Orchestra. It's certainly a ridiculous and unforgettable way to open a comic book movie, but as we'll discuss later, that's something that this series is particularly good at.
12. "We Care A Lot" by Faith No More
The members of the Guardians of the Galaxy are not your typical heroes; they are misfit A-holes who do their best to do good while also still being a little bad. Acknowledging this, the satirical "We Care A Lot" by Faith No More fits the team tremendously well. The level of cynicism in the lyrics perhaps doesn't make it a perfect fit, but the attitude is spot on, and the song makes for tremendous intro music as Star-Lord and his friends first land on Counter-Earth and meet the High Evolutionary's creations.
11. "Hooked On A Feeling" by Blue Swede
As far as the history of the Guardians of the Galaxy franchise goes, "Hooked On A Feeling" by Blue Swede is unquestionably the most important, as it was the track that initially got everyone's attention in the blockbusters' trailers. It also happens to be part of a fantastic sequence in James Gunn's first Marvel title. It proves fantastic and wonderfully jarring background music as Peter, Gamora, Rocket and Groot first enter the Kyln, but more significantly it's used to highlight the importance of music to Peter– who demands a guard treat his cassette player with respect. It's legitimately the first moment in the franchise where we see the adult hero get emotional, and while it ends with him being abused to comedic effect, it still holds weight.
10. "In The Meantime" by Spacehog
Like "Hooked On A Feeling," "In The Meantime" by Spacehog has the distinction of being one of the main trailer songs used by Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, but it's also one of the best parts of the movie's soundtrack because of how it's used in the blockbuster. The needle drop comes as the Guardians don colorful suits and leave their ship for a trippy space walk, and the way it injects a level of cool into a scene that is equal parts beautiful and weird is pure James Gunn.
9. "O-O-H Child" by The Five Stairsteps
Before Guardians of the Galaxy's arrival on the scene, it would have been crazy to think of "O-O-H Child" by The Five Stairsteps scoring the final hero vs. villain showdown in a comic book movie blockbuster... but that's just how James Gunn rolls. The song plays after Ronan's ship, the Dark Aster, crash lands on Xandar, and while at first it seems like it's a soundtrack of disaster and doom, Peter uses it to flip the script. He starts dancing and singing along to the faintly-playing soul track, and it proves to be the perfect distraction as Rocket repairs the Hadron Enforcer. Star-Lord challenging Ronan to a dance-off is one of the unique moments that makes Guardians of the Galaxy such a special feature, and it certainly stands out as one of the funniest moments in the series thus far.
8. "I Want You Back" by The Jackson 5
James Gunn shows an impressive amount of restraint in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 by not just jamming Baby Groot down audiences' throats at every turn, because the truth of the matter is that the filmmaker got everyone hook, line, and sinker with the infantilized sequoia during the post-credits scene of the first Guardians. While the alien tree isn't quite as mobile in the sequence as he is in the aforementioned ELO opening credits from Vol. 2, he still manages to boogie hard listening to "I Want You Back" by The Jackson 5, and gets a comedic beat with Drax to boot. Knowing that Gunn provided the motion reference for Baby Groot's dance moves makes this sequence that much more enjoyable, but truly by itself it stands out as one of the best Marvel Studios end-of-feature treats to date.
7. "Creep (Acoustic Version)" by Radiohead
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 is very much Rocket's story, with the blockbuster revealing how the tiny racoon was tortured and transformed into an irascible genius, and James Gunn sets the table for the character's emotional journey perfectly from the very first scene. The lyrics in "Creep" by Radiohead very much sum up Rocket's perspective as an freak and outcast, and the extra bit of heartbreak that the acoustic version provides makes the song choice a brilliant one for the opening sequence of the 2023 MCU film.
6. "The Chain" by Fleetwood Mac
"The Chain" by Fleetwood Mac first plays in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 as Peter, Gamora, and Drax leave Rocket, Groot, and Nebula to go to Ego's planet, and then comes back during the big third act battle as the family reunites and Peter takes on his father. In case it isn't clear, James Gunn uses the song to illustrate the team as song's titular chain – and while it's a touch broken for a good portion of the movie, the bond between the members of the eponymous group is proven unbreakable as they prepare to take on Ego together at the end. The writer/director has said that this particular piece of music is really all "about the Guardians," and it's not hard at all to see what he means.
5. "Ain't No Mountain High Enough" by Marvin Gaye
Unable to cope with the loss of his mother, Peter Quill waited 26 years to open his final gift from her... but the first track of Awesome Mix Vol. 2 firmly establishes Meredith Quill as a certifiable mixtape genius. Marvin Gaye's "Ain't No Mountain High Enough," featuring the beautiful voice of Tammi Terrell, is a song all about the incredible power of love and how nothing can keep apart two people who truly care about each other... and it's exactly the song that Peter needs to hear after his final showdown with Ronan and his emotional revelation. The song also earns some bonus points because the lyrics ultimately define the bond between the Guardians of the Galaxy members as well.
4. "Brandy" by Looking Glass
Music is obviously an integral part of the entire Guardians of the Galaxy brand (hence the existence of this list), but "Brandy" by Looking Glass gets significant placement because it's the only track that gets a full-blown lyrical breakdown. Not only does the song make fantastic intro music for Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 – following Ego and Meredith as they drive around in 1980 – but it also ultimately becomes incredibly important when Ego quotes the story of the sailor who can never leave the sea behind. It's this explanation for why he does what he does that has a huge part in selling Peter to his side, and that alone pushes it to its high rank on this list – as does its place during the big reveal that it was Ego who gave Meredith brain cancer.
3. "Father and Son" by Cat Stevens
Yondu's sacrifice and funeral at the end of Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 are more than enough to have any mature, heart-carrying audience member shedding tears – but it's the use of "Father and Son" by Cat Stevens that takes this sequence to a whole other level. While something like Harry Chapin's "Cat's In The Cradle" would have been far too on the nose, James Gunn makes beautiful and elegant use of a song about a dad passing on life advice to his child just as Peter is fully accepting the reality of who his father truly was. It's certainly a somber note on which to end a big colorful blockbuster, but that just makes it all the more memorable and impressive.
2. "Dog Days Are Over" by Florence + The Machine
The emotional catharsis at the end of Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 is overwhelming. After one of their most harrowing adventures, the team reunites on Knowhere and celebrates that everyone is alive and healthy by having a big ol' fashioned dance party. And what better song could there be celebrating the end of dark times than "Dog Days Are Over" by Florence + The Machine? It's powerful to watch the beloved characters (including Drax!) release their anxieties bouncing and rollicking together, and perhaps nothing sums up the power of the sequence better than the fact that it actually made Florence Welch cry when she watched it.
1. "Come And Get Your Love" by Redbone
When you think about it, it's perhaps not great that the best music moment in the Guardians of the Galaxy series is the second scene of the whole shebang, following Peter as he dances around Morag in the first movie... but it's such a perfectly executed sequence that we just had to give it the top spot. Not only does it essentially set the tone for everything that proceeds it – showcasing Star-Lord as a fun-loving rogue who knows how to get down – but the lyrics of "Come And Get Your Love" by Redbone really sum up the most important theme in both films: love is out there for you in the universe, and all you need to do is accept and embrace it. Needless to say, it will be a challenge for Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 to top this one.
