The Sympathizer soundtrack includes music by Del Shannon, War and Nina Simone. This info article contains spoilers and song details for Park Chan-wook and Don McKellar’s 2024 HBO Max miniseries. Visit the Soundtracks of Television section for more soundtrack song listings, and then browse cast/character summaries in the Know the Cast section.

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The Sympathizer stars Hoa Xuande as The Captain, a Saigon police captain who secretly works for North Vietnamese communists. Robert Downey Jr. co-stars as Claude, a CIA agent. The storyline follows the main players as they develop their professional relationship in America. Composer Cho Young-wuk (Decision to Leave) scored the HBO Max miniseries; music supervisor Linda Cohen (Licorice Pizza) picked the featured needle-drops. Here’s every song in The Sympathizer, an adaptation of Viet Thanh Nguyen’s 2015 novel.

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The Sympathizer Soundtrack: Every Song in Episode 1 “Death Wish”

• “Low Rider” by War (00:08): The Captain narrates about a “particular hatred.” The Sympathizer soundtrack song continues during a transition scene. A “48 Hours Earlier” sequence begins.
• “Đừng Quên Anh Là Lính ” by Trường Hải (00:33): The track accompanies an exterior sequence. The Captain meets with Man (Duy Nguyen). Music plays from a speaker system.
• “TBA” by TBA (00:35): An exterior sequence continues. A female vocalist performs. The singer is featured again at 00:39.
• “Le cœur au bout des doigts” by Jacqueline Taïeb (00:40): The Captain navigates a home. The Sympathizer soundtrack song plays from a speaker system. The Captain talks to Lana (Vy Le).
• “TBA” by TBA (00:42): The Captain boards a bus. He hands a tape to the driver and says, “The General chose the soundtrack.” Music plays from the speaker system.
• “Runaway” by Del Shannon (00:46): Claude talks to The Captain about The General (Toan Le). He sings the tune during an exterior scene. The recorded track is featured at 00:54 during the episode’s final moments and end credits.

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The Sympathizer Soundtrack: Every Song in Episode 2 “Good Little Asian”

• “Hello L.A., Bye-Bye Birmingham” by John Randolph Marr (00:03): A travel sequence begins. The Sympathizer soundtrack song plays from a speaker system. The Captain arrives in Oklahoma.
• “Hangin’ On” by The Cantrells (00:05): The Captain enters Buckles of Texas Panhandle. He inquires about rice starch. Music plays from a speaker system.
• “I’ve Got a Happy Heart” by Susan Raye (00:20): The Captain narrates about arriving in Los Angeles. Bon (Fred Nguyen Khan) shows up with a bag of booze. Music plays from a speaker system.
• “Slop” by Charles Mingus (00:22): The Sympathizer soundtrack song accompanies an exterior sequence. The Captain talks to Sofia (Sandra Oh) at a social event. Professor Hammer (Robert Downey Jr.) discusses his “protege.”
• “Anti Love Song” by Betty Davis (00:29): A bedroom sequence begins. The Captain has sex with Sofia. Music plays from a speaker system.
• “Capricho Arabe” by Jurgen Rost (00:35): A bedroom sequence continues. Sofia tells The Captain that he is a good listener. She inquires about his mother.
• “Hai Cánh Phượng Buồn” by Thanh Tuyền (00:41): The Captain takes photographs and talks to Bon. The Sympathizer soundtrack song plays from a speaker system. The Captain and Bon pose for a photograph.
• “Hờn Trách” by Hùng Cường & Mai Lệ Huyền (00:44): The Captain navigates a social event. Music plays from a speaker system. The Captain receives a snack from The Major (Phanxinê).
• “Do I Move You?” by Nina Simone (00:57): Bon travels with The Captain. He inquires about possibly killing The Major. The track scores the episode’s final moments and end credits.

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The Sympathizer Soundtrack: Every Song in Episode 3 “Love It or Leave It”

• “I Want’ a Do Something Freaky to You” by Leon Haywood (00:02): The Sympathizer soundtrack song scores the opening sequence. The Captain drives a vehicle. Music plays from the speaker system.
• “Mưa Rừng” by Trúc Hồ Music feat. Cát Lynh (00:09): An interior scene begins. Bon visits his aunt with The Captain. Music plays from a speaker system.
• “Still a Part of Me” by The Minits (00:12): Sofia talks to The Captain. Music plays from her vehicle’s speaker system. Sofia and The Captain discuss a “longevity celebration.”
• “TBA” by TBA (00:20): The Sympathizer soundtrack song accompanies an interior sequence. The Captain arrives at a social event with Sofia. Lana performs for a live audience.
• “I’ve Got a Happy Heart” by Susan Raye (00:39): An “18 Months Earlier” sequence begins. The Captain talks to Claude. Music plays from a speaker system.
• “Doing It to Death” by Fred Wesley and the J.B.’s (00:51): Claude starts his vehicle. The Captain inquires about the music. Claude identifies the musical artists.

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The Sympathizer Soundtrack: Every Song in Episode 4 “Give Us Some Good Lines”

• “Don’t Leave Me This Way” by Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes feat. Teddy Pendergrass (00:10): The Captain talks to The General about an opportunity. The Sympathizer soundtrack song continues during a transition sequence. The Captain smokes a cigarette while driving.
• “Ain’t No Time for Stoppin'” by Fat City (00:12): Lana parts ways with The Captain. She wears an orange top. Music plays from an approaching vehicle.
• “Keep Smilin'” by Maxwell Whittington-Cooper (00:17): The music is featured during an interior scene. Movie crew members urge Jamie (Maxwell Whittington-Cooper) to sing a song. The character performs for his colleagues.
• “Đám Cưới Nhà Em” by Saigon Soul Revival (00:33): The Sympathizer soundtrack song accompanies an exterior sequence. The Captain reunites with Bon at a fake graveyard. He talks about a unique casting opportunity.
• “Heartbeat It’s a Love Beat” by The DeFranco Family feat. Tony DeFranco (00:38): The Captain walks through a movie set. He spots Bon. Music plays from a speaker system.
• “Love Me Tonight” by Paul Lenart (00:48): Niko fires The Captain. The music continues during a transition sequence. Niko shares an intimate moment with Monique (Marine Delterme).
• “Live It Up (Pt. 1 & 2)” by The Isley Brothers (00:56): The Captain talks to a superior officer. Music plays from a speaker system. The track scores the episode’s final moments and end credits.

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The Sympathizer Soundtrack: Every Song in Episode 5 “All for One”

• “Hờn Trách” by Hùng Cường & Mai Lệ Huyền (00:19): The Captain vomits. The Sympathizer soundtrack song continues during a transition sequence. The Captain eats at Madame’s Delicious Pho.
• “Dắt Nhau Vào Mộng” by Hùng Cường & Mai Lệ Huyền (00:23): A restaurant sequence begins. Music plays from the speaker system. The Captain talks to Sonny (Alan Trong).
• “Ảo Ảnh” by Vy Le & Maxwell Whittington-Cooper (00:26): Lana takes the stage as Que-Linh. She performs for a live audience. She wears a brown outfit.

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The Sympathizer Soundtrack: Every Song in Episode 6 “The Oriental Mode of Destruction”

• “Let’s Go Disco” by MFSB (00:04): The Captain talks to a comrade with a rifle. The Sympathizer soundtrack song continues during a transition sequence. Mẫn reads a letter from The Captain.
• “Free to Be… You and Me” by The New Seekers (00:10): The music is featured during an exterior scene. A female politician complains about “white trash.” She chats with The Captain.
• “The Jungle Is a Skyscraper” by Ornette Coleman (00:36): The Captain talks to Sonny. He changes a radio station. The track amplifies at 00:39.

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The Sympathizer Soundtrack: Every Song in Episode 7 “Endings Are Hard, Aren’t They?”

• “Dynomite” by Bazuka (00:02): The Captain travels on an airplane. The Sympathizer soundtrack song continues during a transition sequence. The Captain arrives in Bangkok.
• “Keep On Keepin’ On” by Rose Royce (00:04): The Captain writes about living in a “hellhole.” He arrives at a night club with Claude during a transition sequence. The music picks up at 00:09.
• “Hello It’s Me” by The Isley Brothers (00:24): The Captain talks to Mẫn. The music plays from a speaker system. Mẫn takes off a mask to reveal his scars.
• “Sài Gòn Đẹp Lắm” by Cast (00:30): An exterior sequence begins. A man sings a tune. He stops performing The Sympathizer soundtrack song to acknowledge Mẫn’s “sadistic cravings.”

Q.V. Hough (@QVHough) is Vague Visages’ founding editor.