If you only know Alf Clausen as the composer behind The Simpsons, there's no shame in that. After brief stints scoring Donny & Marie, ALF and Moonlighting, the Minneapolis-born composer made the move into animation and never looked back.
Scoring 27 of The Simpsons' first 28 seasons, Clausen brought the same cinematic sensibility to cartoons as he did to live action. From ridiculous soundtracks for Bart's twisted fantasies to tearjerking farewells for Homer's mother, his work all but defines the show's tone, mood and emotional core.
With news of his passing at age 84, now is the perfect time to reflect on Alf Clausen's most iconic musical moments from The Simpsons.
15. "Canyonero"
"The Last Temptation of Krust," Season 9
In the world of The Simpsons, TV commercials often defy convention. That's what makes Clausen's musical accompaniment for this "country pride" truck endorsed by a clown so remarkable. Sung by Hank Williams Jr., the ad's pitch-perfect Rawhide parody is so convincing you'd swear it aired during an episode of Fox & Friends.
14. "Poochie Rap Song"
"The Itchy & Scratchy & Poochie Show," Season 8
Clausen was abruptly fired in 2017, reportedly for struggling with modern styles, notably for the score to the hip-hop themed "The Great Phatsby." Whether this track's beats were meant to sound out-of-touch or not, they're a brilliant match for Poochie's failed attempt to be totally in your face. Perhaps Clausen's greatest accidental masterpiece.
13. "A Boozehound Named Barney"
"Simpsoncalifragilisticexpiala(Annoyed Grunt)cious," Season 7
Best known for leading a 35-piece orchestra to score the Simpsons' everyday life, Clausen is in his element during this dreamy lullaby sung by Mary Poppins stand-in Shary Bobbins. Strings swell and dance around Barney's surprisingly lovely voice, underscore Moe's shotgun outburst, and support Bart's promise to become a boozehound when he's 15.
12. "Gonna Paint Our Wagon"
"All Singing, All Dancing," Season 9
Kicking off a clip show focusing on The Simpsons' best musical moments (many included on this list), it's impressive that Clausen's even more absurd version of Paint Your Wagon holds its own. He pulls double duty, brilliantly parodying both Ennio Morricone's spaghetti Western scores and Joshua Logan's flair for "bloody mayhem and unholy carnage."
11. "Señor Burns"
"Who Shot Mr. Burns? (Part Two)," Season 7
Some Simpsons songs work thanks to razor-sharp humour, others for nailing the parody. And then there are the ones that shine simply because they're undeniable bangers. "Señor Burns" is one of those undeniable bangers. Written by Clausen and performed by Tito Puente and his Latin Jazz Ensemble, this slanderous mambo was righteously nominated for an Emmy.
10. "Oh, Streetcar! (The Musical)"
A Streetcar Named Marge," Season 4
Clausen shines brightest when scoring in-universe stage productions. This four-minute suite — an eternity by TV standards — accompanies a certain bewitching floozy with sweeping orchestration and jaunty piano. But anyone who's endured a local the-a-tre troupe knows that Clausen's score is far too polished for the gag to land fully.
9. "Springfield, Springfield"
Boy-Scoutz 'n the Hood," Season 5
Since this musical exists only in Bart and Milhouse's jacked-out minds, Clausen is free to push his parody of Leonard Bernstein's 1944 classic "New York, New York" to its limit. Possibly the first true musical masterpiece of the series, his orchestra perfectly captures the bombastic giddiness and panache of the duo as they go crazy Broadway style!
8. "Eye on Springfield Theme"
"Flaming Moe's," Season 3
In addition to scoring episodes and musical numbers, Clausen often composed themes for The Simpsons' many "shows within the show." The standout is the Sunset Strip-inspired theme for Kent Brockman's Eye on Springfield, featuring a face-melting guitar solo so iconic, it's been covered by dozens of Strat-wielding YouTubers. Now that's infotainment.
7. "See My Vest"
"Two Dozen and One Greyhounds," Season 5
Whether the average viewer is aware, most of The Simpsons' musical numbers are parodies of existing songs. One of the best is Monty Burns' fedora and loafers (former gophers) take on "Be Our Guest" from Beauty and the Beast. Aware of the original's charm, Clausen expertly alters the source material enough to avoid infringement but nail the satire.
6. "You're Checkin' In"
"The City of New York vs. Homer Simpson," Season 9
Clausen remains the most Emmy-nominated musician in history, with 30 nods and back-to-back wins in 1997 and 1998. The second came from the timely "Kickin' It: A Musical Journey Through the Betty Ford Center," which marked the late 1990s as a peak era for The Simpsons' music while fulfilling Marge's childhood dream of being in a Broadway audience.
5. "They'll Never Stop the Simpsons"
"Gump Roast," Season 13
Just like the show itself, Clausen's greatest moments occurred during The Simpsons' first 10 years. In one of the series' least essential episodes (another clip show), he brilliantly reworks Billy Joel's "We Didn't Start the Fire," as Dan Castellaneta hilariously recaps the program's most significant moments and expertly predicts Moe getting a cell phone.
4. "Who Needs the Kwik-E-Mart?"
"Homer and Apu," Season 5
The first time the series featured the cast bursting into an original musical number, Apu lies to the Simpsons through song, claiming indifference toward his former employer. Clausen's arrangement is deliberately jaunty and celebratory, creating space for a relentless stream of jokes. Though it lost the Emmy, the song remains a fan favourite.
3. "The Amendment Song"
"The Day the Violence Died," Season 7
A take-off on the 1976 Schoolhouse Rock! segment "I'm Just a Bill," Clausen captures the original's nuances while delivering an even sharper version. The melodies are tighter, and original singer Jack Sheldon sounds like he's having a blast. With lyrics like "If we changed the Constitution — we could make all sorts of crazy laws," it remains unfortunately relevant.
2. "Can I Borrow a Feeling?"
"A Milhouse Divided," Season 8
By pairing this song with the reveal that Kirk Van Houten sleeps in a racecar bed, The Simpsons immediately created one of pop culture's great sad sacks. To capture his downfall, Clausen crafts a limp, dated, out-of-step and out-of-tune ballad. One so strangely irresistible it somehow endears Kirk — as even hurtin' hearts need some healin'.
1. "Dr. Zaius" / "Chimpan A to Chimpan Z"
"A Fish Called Selma," Season 7
When an oral history is written about your two-minute parody song, you've clearly created something for the ages. Blending one of the show's best characters, Troy McClure, with its love of '70s pop culture and a pitch-perfect spoof of "Rock Me Amadeus," Clausen delivered legitimate theatre — and a masterpiece that will forever be tied to his legacy.