If all else fails, then it's time to kick butt! The TV series spun out of the successful 1970 film by Robert Altman; that movie featured a version of Suicide Is Painless complete with lyrics. The theme opens with portentous classical sounds, and then kicks into full-on sci-fi disco. ... You can hear a few tracks off that record via NPR's Tiny Desk Concert series… In 2004, it won an … The show had five definitive spin-offs (a couple of which spun off their own shows). He hit with The Odd Couple and followed with phenom Happy Days. The Love Boat was part of ABC’s hugely successful Saturday night lineup, airing ahead of fellow hit Fantasy Island. No Star Trek?! It was the first TV theme to have its sound rooted in synthesizer. Glad to see “Cheers” was included, but “The Facts of Life”? Incorporating electric guitar and some very 1970s keys, “The Rockford Files” had a four-month chart run in 1975, eventually hitting No. Lee Majors, having worked with Larson on The Six Million Dollar Man, signed on to play Seavers and even sang the theme song. Visionary film director David Lynch did the unthinkable in 1990. The 25 Greatest TV Theme Songs of All Time: Spoken-Word. Based on the hugely successful A Song of Ice and Fire novels by George R.R. The popular Redd Foxx/Demond Wilson sitcom featured the catchy funk of Quincy Jones. Missing from this list has to be Knight Rider, Party of Five, E.R., Blue Bloods, all the CSI’s even NCIS. Your email address will not be published. The following list contains scores or songs which are the primary theme music of a television series or miniseries. This series' track was noticeably more upbeat than that of Jimmy Neutron but still had the same pop-rock vibe the band is known for. What Is the Dreamy 'Narcos' Theme Song Really About? Lynch, Frost, and much of the cast revived the series on Showtime in 2017. Musical side-note: the late regular cast member Roxie Roker (Helen Willis) is the mother of rock star Lenny Kravitz. The No. For Part 3, read The 40 Greatest Animated TV Series Theme Songs. This is the worst list of all time, this was probably made by some 90 year old. Incredibly, the theme lives on, having been appropriated by NBC for its Olympics coverage since 1996. Veronica Mars ran three seasons, had a film continuation released in 2014, and will return for a multi-episode run on Hulu this year. Uploaded to YouTube by Ldolcebimbp francesco.C. only lasted two seasons. In one of the theme songs that actually states the show’s premise, “The Ballad” explains how the S.S. Minnow got lost in a storm with seven very different people aboard. Of course the same can be said for the even more awful 2010-20?? Fun note: the spoken “neat,” “sweet,” and “petite” were supplied by Lurch himself, Ted Cassidy. The short first season was a critically praised, must-watch hit. But these are easily top five, in my opinion. The theme’s lyrics reference the hardships that the Evans family faced in the projects, notably the hard-to-hear-unless-you-know-the-words “hangin’ in a chow line.”. Your support helps us preserve a great American legacy. It is used in almost every episode except for a few specials such as The Making of ZOOM and America's Kids Respond. The indisputably awesome funk-driven theme song, however, was a No. The show was led by Martin Landau and Barbara Bain (who were married at the time and had starred in Mission: Impossible together) and shot in the U.K. 5. This theme joins The Fall Guy theme (and many others) in expressly describing what the show is about. 10 on the Hot 100 in 1981. The fantastic one was the harder rock, jazzy, sexed-up version found under Del Shannon-Runaway (Crime Story) where the lyrics were altered and updated. Also, Dr. Who should be much higher IMHO. Again, it goes very well with the flavour of the series. Thanks to the guitar and bass tones on the track, it’s considered an entry in the surf rock genre; it’s been covered by acts like Jan & Dean, The Who, The Kinks, The Jam, and Eddie Vedder (with his daughter, Harper). Legal drama Perry Mason’s theme had a jazzy swagger that befitted the character borne from Erle Stanley Gardner’s detective stories (some of which ran in The Saturday Evening Post). Widely praised by a variety of publications and websites, it’s generally considered among the best of TV show theme music throughout the history of the medium. Re-recorded for the series by Fee (and re-recorded again for later spin-off, The Golden Palace), the tune is now indelibly associated with Dorothy, Sophia, Rose, and Blanche. We revisited the history of The X-Files in September 2018 for the show’s 25th anniversary. No Star Trek or Hart to Hart is criminal. The theme was composed by Grainer, but the studio wizardry of Delia Derbyshire and Dick Mills incorporated the electronic sounds that made it legendary. Ironside featured Burr’s wheelchair-bound crime solver and a theme by the legendary composer and producer Quincy Jones. 20 in A Major, D. 959, Rondo: Allegretto, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=List_of_television_theme_music&oldid=1015805986, Short description is different from Wikidata, Wikipedia articles with style issues from January 2021, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License, This page was last edited on 3 April 2021, at 17:34. Space: 1999 didn’t have a long run, but it left behind several generations of fans. With the second season, the theme gave way to the familiar, unsettling theme by Marius Constant. Lear didn’t shy away from controversial topics or blue-collar characters, and Good Times was an exemplar of that. It had a short U.K. run but became an unexpected hit in the U.S. during summer reruns under the name Secret Agent. The 50 Best TV Theme Songs of All Time 1. The show also had the distinction of being one of the few hour-long American series to employ a laugh track. The J-pop theme “Just Communication” by pop duo Two-Mix is by turns propulsive and introspective, which are the two dominant moods of the series. This was just one facet of Thicke’s incredibly diverse career that ran the gamut from composer to singer to talk show host to lead actor on the successful sitcom Growing Pains. The show was a huge hit and launched Smith into an even more successful film career. Song explains the plot? All Rights Reserved. Oy, vey! version of ‘Hawaii 5-0’!! Raymond Burr headlined two much-loved dramas with highly regarded theme songs. Piano Sonata No. Both of those are in the Spoken Word List; the link is at the top of this story. Along with writer Mark Frost, he created a TV series for a major broadcast network. Two-Mix also did the main song “White Reflection” for the wrap-up film, Mobile Suit Gundam Wing: Endless Waltz. Those lyrics were written by the director’s son, who was only 14 at the time. ER? Jim Rockford was conveyed in this terrific number by Mike Post and Pete Carpenter. Where’s the classics Green Acres and The Beverly Hillbillies? The Dallas theme, an improbable blend of western film tropes and disco, remains instantly recognizable. Packed to bursting with synth, electric guitars, and Cuban rhythms, the piece aimed to evoke the titular city, action, and fashion all at the same time. (Turtles!) The album itself hit No. The elder Altman would later note on The Tonight Show that the song’s use in the film and TV series had subsequently earned his son over $1 million in royalties. Veronica Mars but not Star Trek? Impossible Missions Force trivia tidbit: In the 1980s series, Phil Morris plays the son of the character that his father, Greg Morris, played on the original series. It won two Grammys in 1986. 1 hit for Rhythm Heritage and sold over a million copies. They're the world's most fearsome fighting team (We're really hip!) Five years after "Jimmy Neutron" aired on Nick, "Phineas And Ferb" debuted on rival network the Disney Channel, with Bowling for Soup adding another theme song to their repertoire. Dallas is way to low, it should be in the top five at least if not number one. Thank you for another excellent article. One of the most memorable themes ever is one of the simplest. However, the rights holder wanted too much money for the song so Semper ended up not being able to use it. The tune, set against a spare opening of mafia underboss Tony Soprano driving home through New Jersey, evokes the dark tone of the series. This prompted a resurrection of the show that ran from 1964 to 1968. what happened to “Bonanza”? I myself would have swapped out a couple of Troy’s choices (no hard feelings…) for the ‘MacGyver Opening Credits/Scene (Intro) 1080 Full HD’ and ‘TJ Hooker-Ultimate Intro’. It’s very of its time, but awesome lives forever. Required fields are marked *. (4!) (Turtles!) The theme, Falling, was derived from a song that Lynch and his frequent collaborator Angelo Badalamenti wrote for singer Julee Cruise. 2! Both fantastic lists, yet I think I like the ‘Spoken-Word’ list better. Thanks for putting these together. Although we can't say if they were originally intended to do so, a show's theme song has the power to take you back to a (hopefully) simpler, happier time. It’s a daunting task. Mutant chain reaction. (Turtles!) The theme itself ran in its original form until 1992; since then, occasional and subtle changes in pacing and instrumentation have been made, but it’s still a classic. (3!) With subtle variations, it was used in the original series, the 1988 revival, and at varying points in each film of the Tom Cruise franchise. The Rembrandts co-wrote the original minute-long version of the tune with Friends producers David Crane and Marta Kauffman, Kaufman’s husband Michael Skloff, and musician Allee Willis. Not sure how/why the “Fresh Prince” theme was even chosen at all, but oh well. Your job's a joke, you're broke, you're love life's DOA. I’m on the search for such info. Law and Order (original)? Saturday night live? The Facts of Life actually spun off from Diff’rent Strokes, so it was logical to have Burton, Thicke, and Loring write both themes. The Saturday Evening Post is a nonprofit organization funded primarily by our members. Six movies (and counting). Then there are the dissonant piano chords, the 808s and dramatic strings. Happy Days generated a remarkable seven spin-offs (two of which were animated). However, on this earlier program, Thicke sang lead. Troy, Troy, Troy…. Music was an integral element of the show, with classic and current hits splashed across every episode of its run. They Might Be Giants might be considered the MVPs of the TV theme song genre, having also written the themes to kids cartoons “Mickey Mouse Clubhouse” and “Higglytown Heroes.” Plus, it … They get stuck in our head, we sing them without noticing, and we remember them fondly after a series has ended. The surf-inspired theme for monster comedy The Munsters received a Grammy nomination in 1965. The “I’ve been seen with Farrah” line was a reference to Majors’ then-marriage to Farrah Fawcett of Charlie’s Angels; she also appeared in The Fall Guy pilot. (Turtles!) Check. 10. Friends Theme Lyrics I'll Be There for You Lyrics by the Rembrandts. The theme, Falling, was derived from a song that Lynch and his frequent collaborator Angelo Badalamenti wrote for singer Julee Cruise. A giant of educational programming and the generator of countless beloved characters (and the proving ground for The Muppet Show), the show has won an unbelievable 189 Emmy awards during its run. However, Season 2 only aired on Netflix. The theme, which is actually called “Yo Home to Bel-Air,” puts the show’s premise and Smith’s talent on full display. From season 2 on, the theme was performed by co-writer Loring, known for her role on Days of Our Lives and her later hit song Friends and Lovers. Why not 500? Country legend Waylon Jennings nailed the spirit of a show about car chases and misadventures with his plot-explaining anthem. The song describes the set-up of the Yakko, Wakko and Dot's zany adventures and also introduces several of the other major characters on the show. There's no one better. The majestic main theme is by composer Ramin Djawadi, whose body of work includes creating additional music for Hans Zimmer scores for movies like Iron Man, Batman Begins, and Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl. 21 on the pop chart and hit the top of the Hot 100 Country chart in 1980. The memorable track with a single lyric (“Batman!”) paired wonderfully with the animated intro, evoking the campy and comedic tone of the show. Morton himself passed away in 1991, but we have a feeling that this tune is never going away. Someone was a genius. Joss Whedon gets a lot of credit for revitalizing genre TV. manner of writing? https://www.saturdayeveningpost.com/2019/09/the-25-greatest-tv-themes-of-all-time-part-2-spoken-word/, And our animated list is here: https://www.saturdayeveningpost.com/2020/03/the-40-greatest-animated-tv-series-theme-songs/.