Best TV Show Theme Songs of All Time

[kipper]

19 hours ago, reids said:

My Top 5:

1) Andy Griffith Show (“Let’s Go Down To The Fishin’ Hole”)

2) WKRP In Cincinnati (opening & close)

3) Mission: Impossible (original)

4) Hogan’s Heroes

5) Monk (both themes: Instrumental Gypsy Jazz & Randy Newman’s, “It’s A Jungle Out There”)

R😎

You should consider bumping one of those and inserting the  Hawaii 5-0 theme song and intro with music by The Ventures.  (the original Hawaii 5-0 not the modern remake version)

Besides the instrumental song (surf style instrumental) the editing for the show's intro is probably the best editing for TV opening ever. Fast cuts, great shots, everything right in sync with the song. 

The show I though kind of sucked; I only liked the opening. Jack Lord--- horrible actor, basically read his lines off of cue cards.

 

 

[paul carruthers]

I always preferred this original theme to the more familiar one from the following technicolor seasons everyone knows...

 

 

Edited September 19, 2020 by paul carruthers

[Brigante]

 

[paul carruthers]

 

[kipper]

Always liked this one too, but it was all about the song.

 

[luvlz2]

 

[reids]

20 hours ago, kipper said:

You should consider bumping one of those and inserting the  Hawaii 5-0 theme song and intro with music by The Ventures.  (the original Hawaii 5-0 not the modern remake version)

Besides the instrumental song (surf style instrumental) the editing for the show's intro is probably the best editing for TV opening ever. Fast cuts, great shots, everything right in sync with the song. 

The show I though kind of sucked; I only liked the opening. Jack Lord--- horrible actor, basically read his lines off of cue cards.

 

 

That’s in my top 10:

6) Hawaii 5-0 (original)

7) Beverly Hillbillies 

8 ) Happy Days (Original) - “Rock Around The Clock“ - Bill Haley & The Comets 

9) Star Trek (Original series)

10) The Wild Wild West / Seinfeld (tie)

R😎

Edited September 19, 2020 by reids

[kipper]

1 hour ago, reids said:

That’s in my top 10:

6) Hawaii 5-0 (original)

7) Beverly Hillbillies 

8 ) Happy Days (Original) - “Rock Around The Clock“ - Bill Haley & The Comets 

9) Star Trek (Original series)

10) The Wild Wild West / Seinfeld (tie)

R😎

Yes, yes, yes Happy  Days / Bill Haley. 

If you recall, in the film American Graffiti (1973) 'Rock around the Clock' was the opening song in that film too. I saw the film the first week it opened in Los Angeles in 1973. The audience was a mixed aged crowd, but when Bill Haley's Rock Around the Clock started, people were dancing in their seats and cheering. Great opening song, and it started the film off with a big splash.  So when Happy Day went to broadcast the show played Rock Around the Clock, but only for the first season. BTW, this was also a new recording by Bill Haley of the song made just for Happy Days at the time.   But in the 2nd season of Happy Days they inserted the new Happy Days song, which kind of sucked really. I think the issue was either music rights to the Bill Haley song, or they couldn't agree on a licensing fee amount.

The only reason Happy Days got picked up as a show was due to the success of American Graffiti, a film that also didn't get released because the studio didn't think it would do well  It did phenomenally well in fact. Had it not, then probably no Star Wars franchise for George Lucas. So in a way, it was Rock and Roll that made Star Wars.

 

 

[reids]

4 hours ago, kipper said:

Yes, yes, yes Happy  Days / Bill Haley. 

If you recall, in the film American Graffiti (1973) 'Rock around the Clock' was the opening song in that film too. I saw the film the first week it opened in Los Angeles in 1973. The audience was a mixed aged crowd, but when Bill Haley's Rock Around the Clock started, people were dancing in their seats and cheering. Great opening song, and it started the film off with a big splash.  So when Happy Day went to broadcast the show played Rock Around the Clock, but only for the first season. BTW, this was also a new recording by Bill Haley of the song made just for Happy Days at the time.   But in the 2nd season of Happy Days they inserted the new Happy Days song, which kind of sucked really. I think the issue was either music rights to the Bill Haley song, or they couldn't agree on a licensing fee amount.

The only reason Happy Days got picked up as a show was due to the success of American Graffiti, a film that also didn't get released because the studio didn't think it would do well  It did phenomenally well in fact. Had it not, then probably no Star Wars franchise for George Lucas. So in a way, it was Rock and Roll that made Star Wars.

 

 

Indeed. For a number of years the music is what kept the dvd of the Happy Days series from being released. Finally, replacement music was put in (much like the initial WKRP in Cincinnati dvds, until shout factory got the licensing for most of the original songs worked out, which is what really helped to make the show). 
 

R😎

Edited September 19, 2020 by reids

[kipper]

3 minutes ago, reids said:

Indeed. For a number of years the music is what kept the dvd of the Happy Days series from being released. Finally, replacement music was put in (much like the initial WKRP in Cincinnati dvds, until shout factory got the licensing for most of the original songs worked out, which is what really helped to make the show). 
 

R😎

You're right--- it may really help to make the show

There were a lot of shows which weren't really great but had great music. I think I mentioned the Michael Mann production "Tour of Duty"--great opening with the Rolling Stones 'Paint it Black'. Then throughout the show lots of great Motown and '60s rock and pop songs tying the show and the plot together. "China Beach" another one.

But many music deals are only made for the original theatrical and/or Home Entertainment release--- but only for the original home entertainment release--- which for those shows would have been on VHS.  So then for DVD or Blu-ray, or for continued syndication broadcast, the studio needs to pony up more money for who has publishing rights to the songs, and sometimes they just don't want to pay for it.  So for that show "Tour of Duty" they went back and edited in where all the original music had been a bunch of lame no name instrumental tracks.

Friend of mine was working for a media servicing company doing editing, and he said he once had a job for an Elvis film (owned by MGM at the time), and they were going to use it for Home Entertainment release but there were 3 songs they didn't own the music rights to anymore, and didn't want to pay for them so MGM wanted the 3 musical numbers just edited out of the Elvis film.  How lame is that?

Quentin Tarantino talks about his first film Reservoir Dogs and how he always knew he had to have 'Stuck in the Middle" by Stealers Wheel for that torture scene with the cop. But after all was said and done he only had a couple of thousand dollars for all the music licensing, so he basically called the company who managed the publishing rights for that song, got a lady on the phone, and then begged her to please let him use the song but for bargain basement price---and she agreed.   That song really made that scene.

Here is another one:  Back when Bill Gates ran Microsoft and the were launching whatever latest version of Windows was coming out. Gates wanted to secure the rights to use the Rolling Stones song "Start Me Up", So he contacts the Stones and asks how much, and they told him $1,000,000 which was unheard of at that price, but they just threw that out expecting a much lower counter offer, but Bill Gates just said "okay" and paid it.  After that prices for many songs went waaaaay up.

 

[reids]

44 minutes ago, kipper said:

You're right--- it may really help to make the show

There were a lot of shows which weren't really great but had great music. I think I mentioned the Michael Mann production "Tour of Duty"--great opening with the Rolling Stones 'Paint it Black'. Then throughout the show lots of great Motown and '60s rock and pop songs tying the show and the plot together. "China Beach" another one.

But many music deals are only made for the original theatrical and/or Home Entertainment release--- but only for the original home entertainment release--- which for those shows would have been on VHS.  So then for DVD or Blu-ray, or for continued syndication broadcast, the studio needs to pony up more money for who has publishing rights to the songs, and sometimes they just don't want to pay for it.  So for that show "Tour of Duty" they went back and edited in where all the original music had been a bunch of lame no name instrumental tracks.

Friend of mine was working for a media servicing company doing editing, and he said he once had a job for an Elvis film (owned by MGM at the time), and they were going to use it for Home Entertainment release but there were 3 songs they didn't own the music rights to anymore, and didn't want to pay for them so MGM wanted the 3 musical numbers just edited out of the Elvis film.  How lame is that?

Quentin Tarantino talks about his first film Reservoir Dogs and how he always knew he had to have 'Stuck in the Middle" by Stealers Wheel for that torture scene with the cop. But after all was said and done he only had a couple of thousand dollars for all the music licensing, so he basically called the company who managed the publishing rights for that song, got a lady on the phone, and then begged her to please let him use the song but for bargain basement price---and she agreed.   That song really made that scene.

Here is another one:  Back when Bill Gates ran Microsoft and the were launching whatever latest version of Windows was coming out. Gates wanted to secure the rights to use the Rolling Stones song "Start Me Up", So he contacts the Stones and asks how much, and they told him $1,000,000 which was unheard of at that price, but they just threw that out expecting a much lower counter offer, but Bill Gates just said "okay" and paid it.  After that prices for many songs went waaaaay up.

 

Yep. We can thank the Eagles for starting really high ticket prices (hell freezes over) and The Stones for starting high publishing fees (w/ gates and Microsoft)..

R😎

[paul carruthers]

 

[John M]

 

[kipper]

7 hours ago, reids said:

Yep. We can thank the Eagles for starting really high ticket prices (hell freezes over) and The Stones for starting high publishing fees (w/ gates and Microsoft)..

R😎

I never saw the Eagles live. Like many of their songs, but always thought them to be too commercial even going back to the '70s. 

Last Stones concert I saw the ticket price was only $8.  Which means I saw them long before they SUCKED.

[kipper]

6 hours ago, John M said:

 

I always like The Addams Family show better than the Munsters, but you couldn't beat The Munsters Intro----and especially the outro with the Munster Coach made by custom car builder George Barris--- part of SoCal's Kustom Kulture (hot rod fabricators and designers) which included Ed "Big Daddy" Roth. Von Dutch (Kenneth Howard), Dean Jeffries (Monkeemobile).

[paul carruthers]

 

[reids]

13 minutes ago, kipper said:

I always like The Addams Family show better than the Munsters, but you couldn't beat The Munsters Intro----and especially the outro with the Munster Coach made by custom car builder George Barris--- part of SoCal's Kustom Kulture (hot rod fabricators and designers) which included Ed "Big Daddy" Roth. Von Dutch (Kenneth Howard), Dean Jeffries (Monkeemobile).

Great theme, too! My favorite tv themes and movies are from the 50, 60s & 70s.

R😎

[kipper]

19 minutes ago, reids said:

Great theme, too! My favorite tv themes and movies are from the 50, 60s & 70s.

R😎

Magnum PI opening was pretty good--- early '80s.

Sadly the helicopter pilot in that opening was killed while filming; he was unable to pull up from the sudden dive, but they left the shot just before the disaster in anyway to the heartache of the pilot's widow.

 

[reids]

2 hours ago, kipper said:

Magnum PI opening was pretty good--- early '80s.

Sadly the helicopter pilot in that opening was killed while filming; he was unable to pull up from the sudden dive, but they left the shot just before the disaster in anyway to the heartache of the pilot's widow.

The remake of the show is pretty good, too. It’s theme is updated, but basically the same (just modern drums added). Sad to hear that about the original show. 
 

R😎 

[Virginia]

Also currently stuck in my head

 

 

 

Edited September 23, 2020 by Virginia

[Strider]

On 9/18/2020 at 4:59 PM, Brigante said:

 

Yes. Genuine classic. Stylish and thoroughly evocative of the show itself...playful, romantic, adventurous, fun. The first "Avengers" theme was by Johnny Dankworth. It was only so-so. Then, they got Laurie Johnson to compose a new theme and voilà, a classic was born.

I liked the 1965 black-and-white credit sequence, too...this was Diana Rigg's first season on "The Avengers".

 

Edited September 24, 2020 by Strider

[Virginia]

Hey Strider, you probably already knew this, but I just learned that Rachael Stirling from Detectorists is Diana Rigg's real-life daughter (Diana also played her mother on the show).  So it was cool that you shared that when you did!  

[reids]

I also liked the mysterious music theme of Dark Shadows (original ABC series). The set was actually used by ABC once the series ended and the soap, Ryan’s Hope took over. 
 

R😎

[RainbowElf]

1 hour ago, reids said:

I also liked the mysterious music theme of Dark Shadows (original ABC series). The set was actually used by ABC once the series ended and the soap, Ryan’s Hope took over. 
 

R😎

Dark Shadows is my all time favorite series, I have all the episodes recorded on VHS, I taped back in the late 90's when the show was being aired on the Sci-Fi channel, I've wanting to get the DVD box set, but it's still way too expensive.

[reids]

6 hours ago, RainbowElf said:

Dark Shadows is my all time favorite series, I have all the episodes recorded on VHS, I taped back in the late 90's when the show was being aired on the Sci-Fi channel, I've wanting to get the DVD box set, but it's still way too expensive.

Cool. It’s free on a cable network called Tubi and on certain cable tv stations like HI.

R😎