Television's Greatest Hits 70's and 80's
A look at the more notable themes of the third volume of TV theme song collections.
After releasing two volumes of TV show themes from the 1950s and 1960s, TeeVee Toons opted to release a volume featuring themes from what were, at the time, the more recent eras of television
The collection was billed as 65 themes from the 1970s and 1980s, though a few of them were themes from shows released in the 1960s that either continued into the 1970s or had new iterations released in the 1970s and 1980s. The collection followed the same pattern as the first two volumes, with a two-record or two-cassette tape collection.
As with the first two volumes, the themes were grouped into categories: cartoons, sitcoms, dramas and adventure/action. These were loose categories, though, as a few themes in each collection, didn't actually fit but happened to be notable themes from the era.
I admit it was tougher to narrow this one down to the more notable themes, given that I grew up in this era of television and, thus, found the majority of the themes memorable. But I tried to narrow it down to those that either charted high, had notable composers or are themes that most people should have no trouble recognizing.
Sesame Street: Just about every child of the 1970s and 1980s grew up watching this show, which became a mainstay on PBS to this day. Humans populated a neighborhood with a few of Jim Henson's Muppets, notably Big Bird and Oscar the Grouch, while other Muppets such as Cookie Monster and Grover shared life lessons. Every show was "brought to you by" two letters of the alphabet and a number from 1 to 9, with the live segments interspersed by animated segments educating children about those letters and numbers. The original iconic theme song is one that everyone is sure to recognize from the first note.
The Muppet Show: Plenty of shows in the 1970s and 1980s got spinoffs, in which a supporting character from one show became the featured character on another show. In this case, it was Sesame Street Muppet Kermit T. Frog (that's his original name, which got turned into "Kermit the Frog" because one pronunciation of "the" sounds like the letter T) who headlined a syndicated series, in which Jim Henson's Muppets performed a variety show at a small theater. A human guest star appeared each week, but the Muppets such as Miss Piggy, Gonzo and Fozzy Bear were the real stars. The theme song is another one most people will recognize from the start.
Scooby-Doo: The cartoon first came to Saturday mornings in 1969, then went on to become a mainstay in different iterations. It became such a mainstay of Hanna-Barbera Productions that new series continue to be released, along with animated direct-to-home-release movies and several theatrical releases. People no doubt remember the original theme from the first two seasons, but the one included on the collection is from the second iteration, "The New Scooby-Doo Movies." That featured hour-long episodes in which Scooby and the gang joined a special guest to solve a mystery, whether one from another Hanna-Barbera show (Batman and Robin, who frequented animated series at the time, made several appearances) or real-life celebrities (The Three Stooges and Don Knotts were among those who appeared in more than one episode).
Fat Albert and the Cosby Kids: Bill Cosby's fall from grace aside, his impact on television cannot be underestimated. Until The Cosby Show came along, though, his biggest hit was a Saturday morning cartoon based on his childhood friends. The show focused on life lessons for children to learn as the gang solved a problem or dealt with a situation. It had a successful run in the 1970s, then made its way into syndication with new episodes in the 1980s — and it also had a catchy theme song.
The Archies: Long before there was the CW show Riverdale, the teenagers from the long-running comic book were featured in animation on Saturday mornings. The first series was released in 1968 and focused on their garage band, with later iterations that either followed the same theme or featured the characters in U.S. historical eras. As with The Monkees and The Partridge Family, The Archies featured original songs, performed by Ron Dante and Toni White, and many were released under The Archies name, with the most notable being the 1969 No. 1 hit "Sugar, Sugar." The 1968 theme song "Everything's Archie," performed by Dante and White, is included in the collection.
Cheers: One of the longest-running series to debut in the 1980s, the sitcom was set in a Boston watering hole and will be forever associated with Ted Danson, the lead character for its entire run. The series had one of the best mood-setting themes for a sitcom, sung by Greg Portnoy (who wrote the theme with Judy Hart-Angelo). It was released as a single but, despite its iconic status, didn't chart that high. Still, it's another example of a theme somebody should remember once they hear the first notes.
Greatest American Hero: And then we come to another series that didn't last long on the air but its theme song became prominent. The show focused on high school teacher Ralph Hinkley (whose last name was changed to Hanley shortly after the assassination attempt on then-President Ronald Reagan by John Hinkley), who encounters a UFO and is presented with a suit that gives him special powers — except he loses the instruction manual. The show didn't get traction with audiences, lasting just three seasons, but the theme song as performed by Joey Scarbury rose to No. 2 on the Billboard charts.
Welcome Back, Kotter: Another show with a theme song that charted well, but in this case, the sitcom had solid success, lasting four seasons and launching the career of John Travolta. The show's creator and lead star, Gabe Kaplan, based everything around his real-life experiences at school, in which teacher Gabe Kotter returns to the high school from which he graduated to teach students from the inner city. The theme song, performed by John Sebastian, went all the way to No. 1 on the Billboard charts in 1976.
Three's Company: The sitcom about a single man who shares an apartment with two single women wasn't a favorite of critics but was loved by audiences, perhaps for the comic wit of John Ritter and the chemistry he had with Joyce DeWitt and Suzanne Somers. The show saw most of the original cast depart (Ritter and DeWitt were the only two who were with the show its entire run) and there was tension among actors behind the scenes — a contrast to the light-hearted comedy on the series itself. Interestingly, Joe Raposo, the composer of the show's noteworthy theme song, also composed the theme to Sesame Street.
Happy Days: Trivia time: The theme song for the first two seasons of the series set in the 1950s was a popular song in that decade. Bill Haley and The Comet recorded a new version of "Rock Around the Clock" specifically for the TV show, which first focused on Richie Cunningham and his dealings with his friends and family. The show was retooled over time to more prominently feature Henry Winkler's character Fonzie — and with it came a new opening theme song. Actually, it wasn't quite new as snippets of the "Happy Days" theme song did appear in the closing credits in the first two seasons, but with different lyrics. Still, the opening theme for the third season, which remained for the rest of the series' run, is the one most associated with the show.
Laverne and Shirley: Multiple spinoffs of Happy Days (to include a pair of animated series) made their way onto TV screens, but the most successful of them was this show that was often paired with Happy Days. The title characters were featured on Happy Days for a few episodes, then got their own show that was set in the same time frame as the show from which it spun off. In this case, the show got its own theme song from the start and it charted in the top 40. While the show primarily focused on the title characters, there were several episodes in which Happy Days characters appeared, including a crossover that served as the premier for Happy Days' seventh season and Laverne and Shirley's fifth.
All in the Family: Considered groundbreaking at the time, the sitcom produced by Norman Lear and Bud Yorkin focused on a working-class couple who were dealing with the changing times, often when it came to their grown children and their neighbors. The theme song was unique in that Carroll O'Connor and Jean Stapleton, who portrayed Archie and Edith Bunker, would sit at a piano and sing the lyrics with Stapleton playing the tune, the two reminiscing about how "we could use a man like Herbert Hoover again." Like Happy Days, the show spawned multiple spinoffs.
The Jeffersons: And among those spinoffs of All in the Family, this one proved to be the most popular, lasting longer than the show from which it spun off. George Jefferson, a neighbor of the Bunkers, ran a successful dry-cleaning business and was able to move into an upscale neighborhood, in which he and his wife Louise had to deal with their own neighbors, who happened to be an interracial couple, something you seldom saw on a TV series at the time. The theme song, sung by Ja'Net DuBois with a gospel choir, does a great job of explaining the good fortune that smiled upon George and Louise.
Sanford and Son: Quincy Jones did a good job setting the mood for Ironside, and with this sitcom, he did it again. Redd Foxx and Desmond Wilson portrayed a father and son who ran an antique and junk shop, with the father having to put up with the schemes his son devised to hit it big. Jones' iconic theme song “Street Beater” just fits with the show's setting. There may be a reason why the decision was made to feature a clip of the show in the 1970s scenes for the movie X-Men: Days of Future Past.
M*A*S*H: A 1970 black comedy film based on a 1968 novel led to one of the longest running sitcoms in TV history. The show, which premiered in 1972, focused on the 4077th Mobile Army Unit Surgical Hospital South during the Korean War and aired until 1983. It gained high accolades, including Alan Alda winning Emmys for acting, writing and directing on the show. The song "Suicide Is Painless" was featured in the 1970 movie and included lyrics, but the version used on the TV show omitted the lyrics.
Dallas: Prime time soap operas had aired on TV before the 1970s, but it wasn't until 1978 that one of them had staying power — and in this case, a series that lasted 14 seasons. The focus of the show was the Ewing family, who had built quite the fortune through their family ranch and their dealings in the oil industry. J.R. Ewing, portrayed by Larry Hagman, was the center of it all, a ruthless, scheming man who often clashed with his brother Bobby, who was less willing to do business the way his brother did. The theme song might be described as a mixture of urban and rural tones, all while being appropriate for a show based in Texas. (For you younger people who never saw the show, be sure to ask your parents about "who shot J.R.?")
Wonder Woman: The third DC superhero to get a live-action TV series that had modest success, Lynda Carter was case in the title role of the Amazon superhero who came to the United States to aid in the fight in World War II. Over time, the series featured the title character in situations other than the war, to include what was modern times back when the show aired. The show lasted just three seasons but the theme song is easily remembered.
The Love Boat: Set on an actual ocean liner with real-life paying passengers sometimes used as extras, the show featured not only a regular cast headlined by Gavin McLeod, but guest celebrity stars who took on the role of passengers who faced travails that usually were about a love story. The crew of The Pacific Princess (that is, the actors who played the crew) were usually the ones giving advice to the guests. Jack Jones sung the theme song, which any fan of the series certainly remembers.
Miami Vice: The second album with music from a TV series to achieve platinum status, it featured multiple singers who had appeared on the 1980s police drama that starred Don Johnson and Phillip Michael Thomas. The show itself represented a change from the typical police drama that focused on the gritty side of law enforcement, as Miami Vice went for a more upscale presentation. As for the music, the likes of Phil Collins, Tina Turner and Glenn Frey contributed songs to the album -- most were from their own albums, but Frey did record an original tune for the TV show's album, "You Belong to the City." But it was the theme by Jan Hammer that made it all the way to No. 1 on the Billboard charts.
SWAT: When you talk about the gritty side of law enforcement, the 1970s version of the show may exemplify that. The show, a spinoff of another police drama called The Rookies, was based on actual special forces units in many cities, but it was so violent that a lot of parents complained to ABC, the network that aired it. The show lasted just two seasons, but funk band Rhythm Heritage covered the show's theme song and it went to No. 1 on the Billboard charts. The theme on the collection, though, was taken from an airing of the show.
Baretta: Robert Blake of "Our Gang" held the lead role in this series about a police detective who used unconventional methods to investigate crimes, including his talent as a master of disguise. Rhythm Heritage covered the theme song, "Keep You Eye on the Sparrow," for its album that included the theme from SWAT, but it was Sammy Davis Jr. who recorded the theme for the TV show itself. Baretta owned a bird but it wasn't a sparrow — it was a cockatoo.
Hill Street Blues: Here's another example of a police show which focused on the grittier side, particularly the realization that officers might not always survive their encounters. The series focused on the Hill Street Station and how the officers dealt with life in an urban ghetto. It didn't take long for the show to become popular with viewers and to gain acclaim, as it won eight Emmys for its second season. Mike Post composed a number of themes for 1980s TV shows, but the theme he composed for this show is one of his most notable, as it reached No. 10 on the charts.
Magnum PI: As Hawaii Five-O went off the air after a 12-year run, CBS rolled out another show set in Hawaii, this one featuring Tom Selleck, who to that point was known as the "Marlboro Man" for his appearances in ads for Marlboro cigarettes. Selleck's character, Thomas Sullivan Magnum, dealt with crime in the underworld of Hawaii but the presentation differed from Hawaii Five-O, to include Magnum dressed in Hawaiian shirts and driving a borrowed Ferrari as he went about his investigations. As with Hawaii Five-O, the theme song to Magnum PI does a good job of setting the mood.
The Rockford Files: Another theme by Mike Post, but he was joined by Pete Carpenter in composing the memorable theme from the 1970s private eye show starring James Garner. Unlike Magnum PI and Miami Vice, solving crimes was anything but glamorous for Jim Rockford (Garner's character), as he lived in a Malibu Beach trailer and he often didn't charge his clients because of his heart of gold. The theme song is distinctive and, like the Hill Street Blues theme, made it to No. 10 on the charts.