Image from HBO Boxing Site

Every time I watch an episode of Pacquiao Hatton 24/7, I’m in awe.  In fact, all of the 24/7 ‘seasons’ have blown me away.  This is the first fight barker series (essentially, a commercial) that I’ve been floored by from top to bottom.  I want to call them documentaries, because to me, they feel like big budget documentaries.  However, I know that there’s still a lot of fluff in ’em and they’ll shy away from the harder facts.  During Calzaghe-Jones, they glossed over a few things I would have liked to know more about.

No matter. The writing is exquisite, the cinematography is breathtaking, and the music selection slays.  Actually, I think the music is probably why we won’t see 24/7 on DVD because they use a lot of great music, that seems awfully expensive. They used The Rolling Stones’ “Paint It Black” in the first episode from Pacquiao Hatton 24/7, which is probably super expensive and I have to say it’s one of the few times I’ve seen/heard that song used well. From the editing to the eventual reveal of the rickshaw driver listening to the song in his little vehicle, it was very sharp.

There’s an article up on HBO’s website that goes behind the scenes with the crew of 24/7. It doesn’t really tell me much except that they work hard, and I already knew that. I was hoping for some production insight, but that would belong on American Cinematographer or something like that. I want to know how they light these, what cameras they shoot with. I did however learn that the filming crews are six-person deals on for each fighter and they transfer the footage to New York where it is edited and that the producers worked in ‘Inside the NFL’ before which explains the quality of the writing and shooting since that’s easily the best show about football.

In any event, here’s the list of songs that I could readily find on Amazon.  Below I’ve put a player that streams the whole song so you can listen, and hopefully this silly Amazon widget works in case you like it so much you want to own one of the tracks.  My personal favorites are Band of Horses and Explosions in the Sky.  Explosions in the Sky, I’ve cut into my personal projects for years and they’re managed by a friend of mine.  The two they used in the show are nice tracks but I think I’ve always wanted to use “A Poor Man’s Memory” which has already been used in the Friday Night Lights series I’m sure or the credits to Shopgirl or something ridiculous like that. Their music’s always felt grand, emotional, and even in spite of its immense epic style, it is still intimate.

They also used a Clint Mansell track in Calzaghe-Jones 24/7 that’s from the Smokin’ Aces soundtrack, but the riff is from his score to Requiem for a Dream. Clint Mansell’s scores are always gorgeous so it’s certainly fitting here in 24/7.

Please let me know if I’m missing your favorites from the show or ones I’d like that I failed to recognize. It’s hard to remember after only a few viewings.  I’ve saved a few on my DVR but you can only hold so many HD shows.  Blah blah blah, torrent download etc.  I know.  But let’s just say I am gonna front like my involvement in the production industry means I don’t ever “steal.”  Maybe.

Again, if you liked these tracks, you can find ’em on Amazon here including a few more I tracked down from the show.

UPDATED:
Three more tracks!

NOTE on February 21, 2010:  WOW!

You guys are awesome. So this was just a lil’ blog post about my favorite songs and now it’s kind of this go-to place to find out about the music.  I can’t update it, sorry, I unfortunately have not been keeping up with any 24/7 because I travel for work and never get to watch it anymore.  However, everyone has been really stellar about replying in the comments to questions about the songs so if you have a question, post it and maybe someone might answer!  There’s been a ton of answers so far and they keep comin’ in.  I’m sorry I can’t maintain this but I may get around to doing a huge compilation of all the songs at some point, don’t hold your breath!

I will say that I did watch one episode of Jimmie Johnson’s 24/7 and I’m stark raving mad because they used one of my absolute favorite songs before I had a chance to and it was perfect for that scene.  It’s when he gets into his car at home and goes to “work” and you hear this awesome soft song saying giddyup… giddyup, well, that’s “Gallop” by Jeremy Jay.  Beautiful song.