I’ve been in a little bit of mourning this week, since True Blood ended its first season last Sunday. As I understand it, season one will be available on DVD May 12, 2009, with season two premiering that month, as well. You can pre-order the DVD through Amazon right now.
While I’ve been in mourning, I’ve had the theme song playing on a tape loop in my head. I decided to investigate and see what I could find out about the song.
According to this Mahalo site on True Blood music, the theme song, “Bad Things,” is a 2005 country music single from singer/songwriter Jace Everett (you can see a video of him singing the song on The Tonight Show here). 
The song is hip, jazzy, and twangy, and it’s the perfect theme for True Blood. I don’t know how Alan Ball and his team do it, but they always manage to pick perfect music for their shows. They did it with Six Feet Under, too, with the music meshing perfectly with the images. Let’s take a walk through the True Blood theme song:
It begins with a quick image of a creature in the bayou water. I thought maybe it was a catfish, but now I’m not so sure. We travel above the water, quick shot of an alligator (?), and down a dusty road flanked by run-down shacks.
Religion plays heavily into the theme song, with images of black women decked out in church garb and crosses, probably singing an old-time hymn, intermingled with a Lucky Liquor store and cops breaking up a riot.
Other images include a vicious-looking snake, an abandoned car in the bayou (my husband says it’s either an old Cadillac or an Imperial), a kid with strawberry jam all over his face (I’m guessing it’s jam), a stripped carcass hanging on a porch, a roadkill possum with blood smeared all over it, a sign proclaiming “God Hates Fangs,” people in intense prayer, a frog being snapped shut into one of those carnivorous plants, some “healers” laying hands on people, a half-violent baptism in the water, and possibly a brief scene of Ku Klux Klansmen, including children.
All of this is interspersed with images of sexy women doing sexy things, and I love how the action is sped up and slowed down throughout the song, such as the dead animal who completely deteriorates in about two seconds (see photo above). “Uneasy” is the word I’d use to describe the theme song with all of these images. As if anything could happen, and probably will.
And, of course, the central image for everything is there, as well — those blood-red lips inhaling a plume of smoke. Here’s the True Blood theme song again. Do you love it as much as I do?
Clacked by Jane Boursaw 
on Nov 30, 2008 @ 10:06 EST5EDT
i completely agree with you, jane, i too love jazzy creepy title theme.
i think it’s worth mentioning that the title sequence is created by Digital Kitchen (https://www.d-kitchen.com) the same company that made the main title design for Dexter, Six Feet Under, Nip/Tuck, Rescue Me, Dead Like Me, Wonderfalls, Ghost Whisper, and House. they are the coolest in the industry imo.
i can’t believe we have to wait till summer for the new season, i just started wearing my winter cloth for gods sake!
To paraphrase Mike Gundy, “I’m a man, I’m 23,” but I close my eyes when that dog pops up on screen. I love the song and the title sequence though. I don’t think it’s a stretch to call it the best title sequence on TV.
I also completely agree — the musical style really fits well with the setting, the images with the plot, and the lyrics with the general “vampire mystique”. It’s almost hard to believe the song wasn’t created for the show specifically, it’s so perfect.
The car left to rot in the woods is a 1962 Cadillac. I am trying to find out where this car is, if anyone can help. My husband likes to take photos of old cars wrapped up in nature and rotting. Not to mention, he himself owns a 62 caddy – so this excites him.