Today, TV theme songs just don't have the same pop that they used to have. Back in the day, they had real style, and they almost told a whole story in the little time they had before the show started. You could make an entire mix tape of nothing but great themes and play it at a party and it would get the place jumping. Here are some of those great songs that still slap, all these years later.
Magnum, PI
One of the best shows of the '80s deserved one of the best theme songs and Magnum, PI has one. Did you know the one we all love, written by theme song master Mike Post and jazz musician Pete Carpenter wasn't the original? The classic didn't actually become the theme until mid-way through the first season. The original one, written by Ian Freebairn-Smith wasn't bad, but the producers made a good call in changing it up.
Barney Miller
A lot of classic themes start with a great bass line, but few have the style and pizazz of the line that starts the Barney Miller theme. Played by bassist Chuck Berghofer, for a theme written by Jack Elliott and Allyn Ferguson, it immediately immerses the viewer into the vibe of the show. A true classic.
Welcome Back, Kotter
The theme to Welcome Back, Kotter, written by the lead singer of The Lovin' Spoonful, John B. Sebastian, was a huge hit in the summer of 1976. The song went all the way to #1 on the charts and remains a favorite to many. The show is mostly remembered for two things, helping launch the career of John Travolta, and the theme song.
Sanford And Son
Leave it to a genius like Quincy Jones to compose one of the all-time great themes that is certainly to get you on your feet and dancing. The theme to Sanford and Son is a stone classic that has endured far longer than the show ever did. The show was great, but the theme is an all-timer.
Dallas
Every Friday night when I was a kid, I was allowed to stay up to watch the intro to Dallas before bedtime. I loved the song so much that while I had no idea what the show was about, I still needed to hear the theme every weekend. Written by composer Jerrold Immel, the song is a perfect blend of late '70s disco and '80s synth.
Good Times
The late, great Norman Lear produced a slew of classic TV shows in the '70s and '80s, and most of them had great theme songs. Take, for example, the theme to Good Times. Written by Dave Grusin and the team of Alan and Marilyn Bergman, and performed by the duo of Jim Gilstrap and Blinky Williams, the song sets the perfect tone for the show.
CHiPs
For a kid in the 1980s, there was nothing cooler than CHiPs. The intro, with the California highway patrolmen on their bikes and the big brass sound and funky bass line of the theme, written by John Parker, signaled the upcoming hour of police excitement perfectly.
Knight Rider
Composer Stu Phillips did a ton of TV score work, but by far his most remembered piece is that futuristic, funky theme to Knight Rider, which he co-wrote with series creator Glen A. Larson. Decades later, the tune continues to live on in songs like "Turn It Up (Remix) / Fire It Up" by Busta Rhymes and "I-E-A-I-A-I-O" by System of a Down.
Starsky & Hutch
The theme to Starsky & Hutch changed over the years. The original, in the first seasons, isn't remembered at all, but the theme from the rest of the seasons, though altered a bit over the years, is still beloved. Written by saxophonist (and former member of The Blues Brothers) Tom Scott, it is as '70s as a song can get and matches the show's aesthetic brilliantly.
Charlie's Angels
No TV show has ever been cooler than Charlie's Angels. Its legacy is so great that a small franchise of Charlie's Angels movies emerged decades after it went off the air. The theme, composed by theme music legend Jack Elliott, oozes the same cool that the show did with its smooth jazz sound.
Hill Street Blues
Nobody has a resume for writing TV hit songs like Mike Post. The composer scored multiple Top 40 hits in the '70s and '80s and even a couple that landed in the top 10. The Hill Street Blues theme was one, reaching #10 on the Billboard charts in 1981.
Miami Vice
Musician and composer Jan Hammer is a legend in the jazz world. In the broader world, he's known mostly for his brilliant theme song to Miami Vice. The song hit #1 on the charts in 1985 and scored Hammer two Grammys for "Best Instrumental Composition" and "Best Pop Instrumental Performance." Truly one of the all-time greats.
What's Happening!!
Henry Mancini wrote more than 20 TV theme songs and contributed to dozens of movie soundtracks. One of his best is also one of his most underappreciated, the theme to What's Happening!!. It couldn't be more different than his most well-known songs, like the theme to The Pink Panther, but the whimsical number fits the vibe of the show perfectly.
L.A. Law
Mike Post wrote a banger when he composed the stylish theme song to the ultra-stylish L.A. Law in the 1980s. It's based around a steady beat and a sax intro that is guaranteed to get stuck in your head after just one listen. It's a show you should check out if you love Suits and has great theme music.
227
One of the more underrated shows of the '80s was 227. Because it flies so far under the radar in modern times, so does its excellent theme song, called "No Place Like Home." Written by Ray Colcord and performed by the star of the show, the great Marla Gibbs, it deserves to be better remembered.
Cheers
No list like this would be complete without the theme to Cheers. Truly an old-time banger, and a song that is a sure-fire way to get a great sing-a-long going. Co-written by Gary Portnoy and Lucy Hart-Angelo, "Everybody Knows Your Name" (which Portnoy also performed) had a longer version of the theme that was a minor hit on the charts and won an Emmy.
The Rockford Files
Mike Post is the unofficial champion of TV theme song composers and one of his best is the super-'70s sounding theme to the James Garner show The Rockford Files. It defines the way theme songs sounded in that era and it's just perfect for the show.
The Muppet Show
There isn't a more perfect theme song to match a show's vibe than the theme to The Muppet Show. It's bold and bombastic, smart and funny... it's everything you expect from a theme co-written by the legendary Jim Henson (along with composer Sam Pottle). It's time to raise the curtain.
One Day At A Time
Songwriter Jeff Barry has written or co-written dozens of hit songs, working out of the famous Brill Building in New York. He also co-wrote the theme to One Day At A Time alongside his wife and writing partner Nancy. It's no surprise the song is so great and matches the hit show so well. The tune, called "This Is It" is so good, it was used again (sung by Gloria Estefan) for the rebooted version of One Day At A Time.
The Dukes Of Hazzard
There is plenty of controversy surrounding The Dukes Of Hazzard, like the Confederate flag on the roof of a car named after a Confederate general, but there should be no controversy surrounding its theme song. Written and performed by country legend Waylon Jennings, "The Dukes of Hazzard (Good Ol' Boys)," was a #1 hit on the country charts, and now, all these years later, a true classic.
Three's Company
The theme to Three's Company asks us to "come and knock on (their) door," and that's exactly what everyone did during the show's run. It's that iconic guitar lick that leads into the verse that really slaps, though. Composer Joe Raposo nailed that.
The Jeffersons
Admit it, as soon as you saw this you immediately started singing "Well, we're moving on up!" Everyone loves the theme to The Jeffersons. Everyone. While the comedy in and of itself is one of the best sitcoms in television history (even if the show never even hit 100 episodes), the theme song has taken on a life of its own.
WKRP In Cincinnati
A TV show about a fictional rock radio station better have a great theme song, and WKRP In Cincinnati definitely does. Evoking what it's like to "live on the air in Cincinnati," the song, written by Tom Wells and show creator Hugh Wilson, features one of the best bass lines in TV history.
Diff'rent Strokes
For many in Gen X, there is no bigger show in their collective memories than Diff'rent Strokes and the theme song is a major reason why. Not only was the show on weekly on NBC, it was in syndication for years. The theme, written by Alan Thicke (yes, that Alan Thicke), Al Burton, and Gloria Loring, told the whole backstory of the show perfectly each time it was on.
Full House
Composer Jesse Frederick was the go-to guy for theme songs for the series that were part of ABC's TGIF lineup, including Family Matters and Step by Step, but his masterpiece is the theme to Full House. Frederick performed the original version, and Carly Rae Jepson was brought in to record the version used in the Netflix reboot Fuller House, which wrapped up after five seasons in 2020.
Airwolf
Airwolf is pure 1980s and that extends to the theme song, which is a synth-driven banger by composer Sylvester Levay. Levay was also quintessential '80s, scoring or co-scoring soundtracks for movies like Cobra, Scarface, Flashdance, and many more.
Night Court
Bass lines play an important role in TV theme songs, especially the ones that slap hard. Nothing slaps harder, literally, than the theme to Night Court. It's no surprise it was composed by Jack Elliott, who is also responsible for the funky themes to Barney Miller and Charlie's Angels.
Hawaii Five-O
One can't hear the Hawaii Five-O theme song and not immediately think of surf and sand. The song evokes the spirit of the show (both the original and the reboot) like few others do. Written by Morton Stevens, it's been reworked and recorded by different artists over the years, but its core is the same. Those drums!
The Mary Tyler Moore Show
The Mary Tyler Moore Show was all about female empowerment and that goes double for the theme song, written by Rock and Roll Hall of Fame member Sonny Curtis. The chorus is an anthem; "You're gonna make it after all!" says everything a viewer needs to know about the show. Add in Mary Tyler Moore's hat toss at the end and you've got a pure classic.
Mission: Impossible
Composer Lalo Schifrin won a Grammy for his original version of the Mission: Impossible theme song in 1967, and the song has lived on and on for decades since. It's been re-recorded, remixed, sampled, and covered countless times over the years, including for the movie franchise starring Tom Cruise, of course.
Speed Racer
The theme to the original 1960s version of Speed Racer has all the drama and excitement that the anime show brought into homes every day for decades in American syndication. The melody was written by Nobuyoshi Koshibe for the Japanese version, with the American lyrics written by producer Peter Fernandez, who was responsible for bringing the show to the U.S.
Fish
Jack Elliott has written some of the best TV themes of all time, so it makes sense that while the Barney Miller spinoff Fish, starring Abe Vigoda, only lasted 35 episodes, the theme still lives on in the minds of fans. It is even referenced (appropriately) by the band Phish in their song "Wombat."
For some shows, it's hard to imagine a different theme, like how The Office almost had a completely different one. It just wouldn't be the same. The '90s and beyond have had some great ones, but there is nothing like those retro themes that really slap like those from the '70s and '80s.
