Missing Menu Commands
This is a list (a very subjective list) of scripts that perform tasks you may wish were actual iTunes, Music or TV Menu commands*. Just copy and paste 'em to your AppleScript Editor and save to the appropriate "Scripts" folder...then add a Shortcut.
Optionally, you can click the mini-AppleScript Editor icon link 
beneath each snippet to open the script in AppleScript Editor on your computer. These links use URL Protocol Messaging to safely and securely send the contents of the script to your AppleScript Editor application.
*In macOS 10.15 and later, you will need to replace "iTunes" in the snippets with either "Music" or "TV". Also, there is no guarantee that these snippets written for iTunes will work with the Music or TV apps.
- 12 Second Fade/Stop and Next Track
- Artist to Album Artist
- Choose Playlist
- Current Track to (Select Playlist)
- De-Shuffle All Playlists
- Delete Empty Playlists
- Delete Selected Playlists
- Eject iPods
- Erase Bookmark
- Jump to Playlist
- Just Played These
- Name New Playlist from Selection
- Open iTunes Scripts folder
- Play Random Playlist
- Play Random Track of Random Playlist
- Play Selected Track Once
- QuickLook Lyrics
- Remove (Album Version)
- Remove SOME TEXT From Names
- Reset Start and Stop Times
- Search Results to New Playlist
- Selected Tracks to Current Playlist
- Set Skipped Count/Skipped Date
- Show Get Info Window of a Track's File
- Skip Ahead n Seconds
- Skip and Pretend We Played This
- Stop After This Song
- Super Shuffle
- Toggle Checkmarks of Selected
- Toggle Mute
- View Current Playlist
- Virgin Again
12 Second Fade/Stop and Next Track - control
Run to initiate a 12 second fade-to-stop of the current playing track and then play the next track.
tell application "iTunes"
if player state is playing then
set stoVO to get sound volume
set diff to (stoVO / 12)
repeat
set sv to (get sound volume)
set sub to (sv - diff)
if (sub is less than or equal to 3) then
copy 0 to sound volume
exit repeat
end if
copy sub to sound volume
delay 1
end repeat
stop
copy stoVO to sound volume
next track
play
end if
end tell
Choose Playlist - control
Select, view and play a playlist by entering its name--even just a portion of it.
tell application "iTunes"
set matchFound to false
set hasList to {}
set myPlaylist to the text returned of (display dialog "Enter a Playlist Name" default answer "" default button 2)
set allPlaylists to name of playlists
repeat with thisPlaylist in allPlaylists
if thisPlaylist is myPlaylist then
set matchFound to true
exit repeat
else
if thisPlaylist contains myPlaylist then
set end of hasList to thisPlaylist
end if
end if
end repeat
if not matchFound then
if length of hasList is 0 then
display dialog "No matching playlist was found."
else if length of hasList is 1 then
set thisPlaylist to hasList as string
else
set thisPlaylist to (choose from list hasList with prompt "The following playlists contain " & myPlaylist without empty selection allowed)
if thisPlaylist is false then return
end if
end if
try
set view of browser window 1 to playlist thisPlaylist
play playlist thisPlaylist
end try
end tell
De-Shuffle All Playlists - control
Turns "Shuffle" off for every playlist. Note that iTunes 11 no longer recognizes the AppleScript shuffle command.
tell application "iTunes"
repeat with i from 1 to (index of last playlist)
try
set shuffle of playlist i to false
end try
end repeat
end tell
Delete Empty Playlists - control
Examines each user-created playlist for at least one track and deletes the ones that have no tracks.
tell application "iTunes"
set y to (get index of last user playlist)
repeat with i from y to 1 by -1
try
set thisPlaylist to user playlist i
if special kind of thisPlaylist is none then
if not (exists track 1 of thisPlaylist) then
delete thisPlaylist
end if
end if
end try
end repeat
end tell
Eject iPods - control
Run this script to eject a single mounted iPod or select from a choose box if more than one iPod is mounted.
tell application "iTunes"
try
set ipodSources to (get sources whose kind is iPod)
if ipodSources is {} then error
set ipodNames to (get name of sources whose kind is iPod)
set len to (count of ipodSources)
on error
return
end try
if len is 1 then
my eject_(first item of ipodSources, first item of ipodNames)
else
set rez to (choose from list ipodNames with prompt "Eject:" with multiple selections allowed)
if rez is false then return
repeat with ipodName in rez
repeat with i from 1 to (count of rez)
if ipodName is (item i of ipodNames) then
my eject_(item i of ipodSources, ipodName)
end if
end repeat
end repeat
end if
end tell
to eject_(d, n)
try
tell application "iTunes" to eject d
end try
end eject_
Just Played These - control
Increase the play counts of the selected tracks and set their played date to now.
tell application "iTunes"
set sel to selection
if sel is not {} then
repeat with t in sel
tell t
try
set played count to (get played count) + 1
set played date to (get current date)
end try
end tell
end repeat
end if
end tell
Name New Playlist from Selection - control
The script does exactly what "New Playlist from Selection" (Command-Shift-N) does except you can enter the name for the playlist before it's created. Assign it the Command-Shift-N keyboard shortcut.
tell application id "com.apple.iTunes"
try
set sel to selection
if sel is {} then error
set opt to (display dialog "Make new playlist from selected tracks named:" default answer "" with title "Name New Playlist From Selection" with icon 1)
set newName to (text returned of opt)
if newName is "" then error
on error
return
end try
set newPlaylist to (make new playlist with properties {name:newName})
repeat with t in sel
try
duplicate t to newPlaylist
end try
end repeat
reveal newPlaylist
end tell
Play Random Playlist - control
Note that iTunes 11 no longer recognizes the AppleScript shuffle command.
tell application "iTunes"
set randomPlaylist to user playlist (random number from 1 to ((index of last user playlist) as integer))
set view of front browser window to randomPlaylist
-- un-comment to shuffle the playlist first
(*
tell randomPlaylist
repeat 5 times
set shuffle to false
set shuffle to true
end repeat
end tell
*)
play randomPlaylist
end tell
Play Random Track of Random Playlist - control
Note that iTunes 11 no longer recognizes the AppleScript shuffle command.
tell application "iTunes"
set randomPlaylist to user playlist (random number from 1 to ((index of last user playlist) as integer))
set view of front browser window to randomPlaylist
-- un-comment to shuffle the playlist first
(*
tell randomPlaylist
repeat 5 times
set shuffle to false
set shuffle to true
end repeat
end tell
*)
play some track of randomPlaylist
end tell
Play Selected Track Once - control
Select a track, run the script, the selected track plays and stops
tell application "iTunes"
set sel to selection
if sel is not {} and length of sel is 1 then play item 1 of selection with once
end tell
QuickLook Lyrics - control
Run this while a song is playing or while a track is selected to view its lyrics--if any--in a QuickLook window.
tell application "iTunes"
try
if player state is playing then
tell current track to set {nom, art, lyr} to {name, artist, lyrics}
else
if selection is not {} then
tell item 1 of selection to set {nom, art, lyr} to {name, artist, lyrics}
end if
end if
if lyr is "" then error
on error
return
end try
end tell
set tempfile to (((path to application support from user domain) as text) & art & " " & nom) as text
try
set fileRef to (open for access tempfile with write permission)
write lyr to fileRef
close access fileRef
on error
close access fileRef
end try
do shell script "qlmanage -p " & quoted form of POSIX path of tempfile & ";
rm " & quoted form of POSIX path of tempfile & ";"
Selected Tracks to Current Playlist - control
Select some tracks and they will be copied to the currently playing playlist.
tell application "iTunes"
if player state is not stopped then
set curPlaylist to current playlist
if curPlaylist is not view of front browser window and class of curPlaylist is user playlist and not smart of curPlaylist and selection is not {} then
try
duplicate selection to curPlaylist
display dialog "Tracks copied." buttons {"Thanks"} default button 1 giving up after 10
end try
end if
end if
end tell
Skip Ahead n Seconds - control
Change the "differential" property to the number of seconds you want the current track to skip ahead to. Useful for skipping over commercials and what not.
property differential : 120 -- seconds
tell application "iTunes"
if current track exists then
if player position is greater than start of current track and player position is less than ((finish of current track) - differential) then
set player position to (player position + differential)
end if
end if
end tell
Skip and Pretend We Played This - control
Increment the Play Count of the currently playing track and set its Last Played Date to "now", and, irregardless of acomplishing that, advance to the next track in the current playlist. (I have a Smart Playlist that live updates to tracks not played in the last 8 weeks. If a song from it is playing that I don't want to hear again for another 8 weeks, I run this script while it's playing, it leaves the Smart Playlist, and the next song plays.)
tell application "iTunes"
if player state is not stopped then
try
set theTrack to current track
tell theTrack
set originalSkipCount to (get skipped count)
set played count to (get played count) + 1
set played date to (get current date)
end tell
next track
set theTrack's skipped count to originalSkipCount
end try
end if
end tell
Stop After This Song - control
Stops iTunes after current playing songs ends
tell application "iTunes"
if player state is playing then
try
set curTrack to current track
if class of curTrack is URL track then return
set curPos to player position
stop
play curTrack with once
set player position to curPos
end try
end if
end tell
Super Shuffle - control
Shuffle no longer accessible as of iTunes 11. Select a playlist and run this script to super-shuffle the tracks. For more super-ness, change the 7 in "repeat 7 times" to as large a number as you can stand.
tell application "iTunes"
tell view of front browser window
if special kind is not Party Shuffle then
repeat 7 times
set shuffle to false
set shuffle to true
end repeat
end if
end tell
end tell
Toggle Checkmarks of Selected - control
tell application "iTunes"
set sel to selection
if sel is not {} then
repeat with aTrack in sel
tell aTrack
try
set enabled to not (get enabled)
end try
end tell
end repeat
end if
end tell
Toggle Mute - control
Alas, as of iTunes 9.1 the only way to mute the audio in iTunes is via AppleScript.
tell application "iTunes" to set mute to (not mute)
View Current Playlist - control
Selects the playlist containing currently playing track. Same as Command-L without current track being selected.
tell application "iTunes"
if player state is not stopped then
set view of front browser window to (get current playlist)
end if
end tell
Show Get Info Window of a Track's File - file
Select a track and run this script to display its file's Get Info window in the Finder.
tell application "iTunes"
set sel to selection
if sel is not {} and length of sel is 1 then
my openInfo(get location of item 1 of sel)
end if
end tell
to openInfo(l)
try
tell application "Finder"
open the information window of l
activate
end tell
end try
end openInfo
Open iTunes Scripts folder - miscelaneous
Open the iTunes Scripts folder (~/Library/iTunes/Scripts) and make it frontmost.
tell application "Finder"
open folder ((path to home folder as text) & "Library:iTunes:Scripts")
activate
end tell
Current Track to (Select Playlist) - playlists
tell application "iTunes"
if player state is not stopped then
set curTrack to current track
with timeout of 300 seconds
set thePlaylist to (choose from list ¬
(get name of every user playlist whose smart is false and special kind is none) ¬
with prompt "Copy \"" & (name of curTrack) & "\" to..." OK button name ¬
"This Playlist" without multiple selections allowed) as text
if thePlaylist is "false" then
return
else
set thePlaylist to playlist thePlaylist
end if
end timeout
try
if not (exists (some track of thePlaylist whose database ID is (get curTrack's database ID))) then ¬
duplicate curTrack to thePlaylist
end try
end if
end tell
Delete Selected Playlists - playlists
Displays a list of user playlists from which you select those you want to delete.
tell application "iTunes"
set listOfPlaylists to (get name of user playlists whose special kind is none)
set deleteThese to (choose from list listOfPlaylists as list with prompt "Select Playlists to delete..." with multiple selections allowed)
if deleteThese is false then return -- operation canceled
repeat with thisPlaylist in deleteThese
try
delete playlist thisPlaylist
end try
end repeat
end tell
Jump to Playlist - playlists
Enter a name or first few letters of a playlist and the script will try to select it in the main browser window.
tell application "iTunes"
repeat
set searchForThis to text returned of (display dialog "Enter the name or first few letters of the playlist you want to view:" default answer "")
if searchForThis is not "" then exit repeat
end repeat
try
set view of front browser window to (get (first playlist whose name starts with searchForThis))
on error
display dialog "None of your playlists seem to begin with " & searchForThis buttons {"Cancel"} default button 1
end try
end tell
Search Results to New Playlist - playlists
Creates a playlist containing the results of a search using the search term as the playlist's name.
tell application "iTunes"
set searchString to text returned of (display dialog "Enter text to search for:" default answer "" default button 2)
set searchResult to search library playlist 1 for searchString
if searchResult is not {} then
set newPlaylist to (make new playlist with properties {name:searchString})
repeat with t in searchResult
try
duplicate t to newPlaylist
end try
end repeat
set view of front browser window to newPlaylist
else
display dialog "No result." buttons {"Cancel"} default button 1
end if
end tell
Artist to Album Artist - trackinfo
Copies the text in the Artist tag to the Album Artist tag of each selected track.
tell application "iTunes"
if selection is not {} then
set sel to selection
repeat with t in sel
try
set fixed indexing to true
tell t
set album artist to (get artist)
end tell
end try
end repeat
end if
end tell
Erase Bookmark - trackinfo
Resets the bookmark time of the selected tracks to 0.0.
tell application "iTunes"
set sel to selection
if sel is not {} then
repeat with aTrack in sel
try
set bookmark of aTrack to 0.0
end try
end repeat
end if
end tell
Remove (Album Version) - trackinfo
Some Amazon MP3 tracks come down with their names appended with "(Album Version)". This will remove that text from the Song Names of the selected tracks.
tell application "iTunes"
set sel to selection
if sel is not {} then
repeat with aTrack in sel
try
tell aTrack to set name to my replaceChars(get name, " (Album Version)", "")
end try
end repeat
else
display dialog return & "No tracks are selected..." buttons {"Cancel"} default button 1 with icon 0 giving up after 15
return
end if
end tell
on replaceChars(txt, srch, repl)
set AppleScript's text item delimiters to the srch
set the item_list to every text item of txt
set AppleScript's text item delimiters to the repl
set txt to the item_list as string
set AppleScript's text item delimiters to ""
return txt
end replaceChars
Remove SOME TEXT From Names - trackinfo
Enter text to be removed from each selected track's name, eg: " (Previously Unreleased)".
tell application "iTunes"
set sel to selection
if sel is not {} then
set myText to ""
repeat until myText is not ""
set myText to text returned of (display dialog "Enter text to remove from selected tracks' names:" default answer "")
end repeat
repeat with aTrack in sel
try
tell aTrack to set name to my replaceChars(get name, myText, "")
end try
end repeat
else
display dialog return & "No tracks are selected..." buttons {"Cancel"} default button 1 with icon 0 giving up after 15
return
end if
end tell
on replaceChars(txt, srch, repl)
set AppleScript's text item delimiters to the srch
set the item_list to every text item of txt
set AppleScript's text item delimiters to the repl
set txt to the item_list as string
set AppleScript's text item delimiters to ""
return txt
end replaceChars
Reset Start and Stop Times - trackinfo
Set the Start and Stop times to their default.
tell application "iTunes"
set sel to selection
if sel is not {} then
repeat with t in sel
tell t
try
set {start, finish} to {0, -1}
end try
end tell
end repeat
end if
end tell
Set Skipped Count/Skipped Date - trackinfo
iTunes will only increase a track's skipped count if it is skipped during the first 2 to 20 seconds of play. This script will correctly set the skipped count and skipped date no matter when and advance to the next track.
tell application "iTunes"
if player state is not stopped then
set theTrack to current track
set oldSkipCount to (get skipped count of theTrack)
next track
tell theTrack
if (get skipped count) = oldSkipCount then
try
set skipped count to (get skipped count + 1)
set skipped date to (get current date)
end try
end if
end tell
end if
end tell
Virgin Again - trackinfo
Set the played count of selected tracks to 0 and set their last played date to blank. (Versions of iTunes before v8.1 must set the played date property to a date.)
tell application "iTunes"
if selection of front browser window is not {} then
set sel to selection of front browser window
repeat with this_track in sel
try
set played date of this_track to missing value
--> pre v8.1 use date "Wednesday, June 16, 1993 12:00:00 AM"
set played count of this_track to 0
end try
end repeat
end if
end tell
