Drummer Cafe Community Forum

Mr. A mentioned the Flintstone's theme in a recent post.  That got me thinking about how great that song is - and how much fun it probably would be to play.  Another favorite of mine is the theme from The Jetsons.

Any others?

Barney Miller
The Tonight Show (circa Johnny Carson)

After the Jetsons, the best theme is the old Bob Newhart show!  

I Dream of Jeannie - good drums in that one.

(Jim prepares to show his age...)

"In no particular order..."

Barney Miller
Peter Gunn
Mission Impossible
The Bob Newhart Show
The Bill Cosby Show ("Hikky-Burr")
Sanford And Son
The Saturday Night Live theme @1975

That is my favorite and not just because of the cowbell either.

Seconded.  Such a crisp theme and a flawless change.

Another favorite would be the theme from The Many Loves Of Dobie Gillis.  Not only is it associated with a finely-pedigreed series of short-story inspired teleplays, but it's also a good example of jazz choral singing (a favorite of mine).  

And, a late seconding for James's suggestion of the 1975 SNL theme.  Why, oh why did the phased Rhodes piano have to become so dated?

I like the Green Hornet theme a lot.

Well, I suppose I could hum the rhythm part...

The OLD Dave Letterman theme..circa early 80's..with, of course, Anton Figg's  signature drum fills...
That 70's Show..

Just to name a few I like

Family Guy Theme

CSI: Miami Theme ( I believe it is Won't Get Fooled Again by The Who)

That 70s show Theme

Oh oh!! I got one--Hawaii 5-0--always loved that one. And the song from "Kimba the White Lion" that I watched when I was a kid. Good ol' Japanese anime from the 70's.

robyn _{"kimba the white lion is his na-a-ame!"}

The theme from Mannix
Theme from The Avengers
Theme from S.W.A.T

i missed mr. a's comment on this one. there's a local bi-weekly big band that plays at a local jazz club that plays a version of this at a break-neck pace. great tune and always a crowd pleaser.

bigbill

Please do a search, bigbill, for this recent reference.  It really was classic!!!!!!!!

Jeffersons <good upbeat song to cover>
Happy Days
Barney Miller <spankin'!>

Most of my favorites have been mentioned ... I haven't seen these yet:

Route 66 - love the piano

Speed Racer

Our Gang/Little Rascals

Red Skelton Show

The Prisoner

Johnny Quest (http://www.classicjq.com/info/JQFAQ.shtml#tech.2) (click for some more info and another link to a nice interview with Hoyt Curtin)

Yeah, I forgot about the humming. I think Trilok Gurtu might hum it note for note tho.

oooh, love the Johnny Quest main title (Thanks for the interesting link!)

one of my more obscure personal favorites - The Name of the Game (written by a young Dave Grusin - mainly in 7/4)

The Odd Couple.

Mission: Impossible

Both very cool.

Oh you said Hummable.

How about:

Star Trek
Three's Company
Angie
Diff'rent Strokes

Anything from the 90's ABC TGIF lineup (hey, you said hummable, not good!)

The tunes from Barney Miller and Sanford and Son are fa-fa-funky...  ;D

I always liked the Night Court song. Cool bass line.

HERE (http://www.tvland.com/theme_songs/) is a page with a whole bunch of goodies on it.

(if you get busted by your boss while listening to the theme from The Incredible Hulk or something, don't blame me)  ;)

I find these to be very hummable

Munsters

Addams Family

Gilligans Island

most of my faves have already been mentioned [i loved mannix!] other cool ones were Get Smart, What's Happening?, Streets of San Fran, Starsky & Hutch, Good Times, MASH. There's another one -- maybe Barnaby Jones? -- i liked. i think the main melody was played on a french horn. it had a haunting feel to it i dug.

one i always disliked: Taxi. man, that theme made me so sad!

more recently, i like the theme from 'curb your enthusiasm.' i appreciate that they took the time to write a real theme song, not just throw in some stock fake-funk thing, which is what most shows do. the show is hysterical, and the theme song really fits.

Ah yes.  "Angela", Bob James.  It was, if I recall correctly, written for the third episode, where Alex meets on a blind date with a depressed, overweight woman.  This would presumably explain the melancholy tone of the piece.

As much as I appreciate the soundtrack of the series, I do find it (and the show in general) very depressingâ€"which I'm sure is somewhat intended.

Perry Mason.

PM used to come on at about 11:00 at night.  The theme song used to scare me to death.

Nowadays I think it's a cool tune.

Heres my list:

Get Smart
The A-Team
AirWolf
Simon & Simon
Magnum PI (can't really hum that one)
That 70' Show (after the first season)
Hawaii 5-0
Benny Hill
Cheers
Knight Rider
Alfred Hitchcock Presents
Hong Kong Phooey
Beverly Hillbillies
Dukes of Hazzard
Greatest American Hero
Inspector Gadget
The Monkees
Family Guy
Futurama
Fresh Prince of Bel Air
Saved By The Bell

Can't you tell I was a child of the 80's?

Have Gun - Will Travel

There's the opening dramatic orchestral lick, that reappears in the episode when he shows his calling card.

Then there's the "Ballad of Paladin" sung at the end.

"Paaaal-a-din"

That show was on recently right as I came home from work.  I never saw the opening dredits or heard the opening theme.  For minths I thought the show was called "Palladin".

How bout Rockford Files, very hummable.

wow, forgot that one. it's funny -- the minute i saw the name, the tune came to me. that was a cool show.

Yes and I like the guitar solo too.

Scooby Doo

Welcome Back Kotter

A version of "Yakety Sax".  I prefer it to the Boots Randolph version.  Pretty notey, though I can still hum most of it. :)

Incidentally, Benny Hill was a drummer, and he was even featured in a skit playing bongos with a fine one-handed tabla-like roll.  I don't think the audience caught on to the exact difficulty of what he was doing.

WOW, I'm surprised that I've only seen one mention of "Streets of San Francisco" on this thread.  I used to love that song and I have never found the original recording available - just a lot of cheap imitations.  Does anyone know if it exists???

And of course Hawaii 5-0 was great!

<in my best mr. a voice>

a quick google search turned up:

http://www.kfcplainfield.com/sound/streetsf.wav

sounds like the real deal

 ;D

Mrs. DaveFromChicago suggests:  Quantum Leap

But I think its only because she thinks Scott Bakula is cute.

She's right!!! ;D

Mmmm...Rockford Files, Get Smart, MASH, The Monkees...good stuff! I had the biggest crush on Mickey Dolenz  ;D  He was the "drummer", too, wasn't he?  ;)

robyn

Funny thing to think about, so many of the themes mentioned are written by Mike Post, now theres a guy with a unique and incredibly successful music career along with Danny Elfman, the Kings of Theme.

Oh and has anyone mentioned the MacGyver(sp?) theme?

Paul Shaffer did an album called "Coast to Coast" with the whole band (Fig on drums) that has the "Late Night" theme on it, track 1. Also many originals & changed cover tracks with guest stars like Eric Burdon, Koko Taylor (wang dang doodle), Will Smith, the whole gamut of pop/rock/soul/rap/R&B music on it, even intermixed in the same song. I got it on cassette first and replaced that with CD. Highly recommended.

Boomerweps

That song gets to you after a while.....

When I started the thread I was mostly thinking back to older shows, but I have to admit the music from 'Queer Eye for the Straight Guy' is pretty catchy.

Speaking of older shows. . .  anybody remember '77 Sunset Strip'?  If you do, just write your answer on the back of your AARP card and drop it in the box by the door.  :)

Cookie, Cookie, lend me your comb!   ;D

heh...I knew Louis would remember that one!

I am so diturbed that with all the knowledge on this site, NONE of the drummers listed the theme from Hogans Heros!

Hello???
Rudimentary snarework as a theme song!
VERY hummable and it can also be whistled as well!

for shame kids...for shame  :-[

-RHS

Apparently we know nothiiiiinnnnnng!

Good one Dave!  :)

ROTFL!
Hoooooooogan!
 ;D
-RHS

Good ole Edd Byrnes.  

Yes, my aarp card is firmly in my wallet.

Another good one was the theme from "The Man from U.N.C.L.E.*".


* The United Network Command for Law Enforcement (good to know this kind of info is taking up valuable storage in my brain).

The Man from U.N.C.L.E. always makes my brain immediately jump into "Lancelot Link: Secret Chimp" mode.

(Lance of course worked for A.P.E. --the Agency to Prevent Evil)

Mine too, but mine is a genuine OLD FART wallet.  Old Lifelong Drummer Frequently Admits Remembering Trivia

Sorry, I couldn't find a good pic of the drummer.

(http://www.tvparty.com/bgifs8/lancebanner.jpg)

OK, forget about the monkey for a second - I want to know what brand of drums those are.  I've never seen that tom holder before.

I've never seen a mount like that eaither James.  And I've seen plenty of 60's era kits in my day.

OK, thanks a lot RHS!  I've had the Hogan's Heros theme playing in my head ALL DAY LONG!     :)

Not me!  I've got the dulcet tones of Blossom Dearie going on the old hi-fi.  I'd....uh, sing Blossom Dearie any day!

Errr, excuse me, Louis, but I think his nickname was "Kookie", not "Cookie".  

From "77 Sunset Strip":  http://www.fiftiesweb.com/tv/77-sunset-strip.htm

I remember the song, though - it was cool at the time.  I also liked the theme song to the "Captain Kangaroo" show, can ya believe it?

I think you are correct, but then again I am old and do love Oreo's   ;D

Theme from Peter Gunn (didn't get to see on tv, however Dad had it on a Henry Mancini album)(that's what we used to call vinyl) is one of the songs that made me want to be a drummer. 8)
Ooooh THAT ride cymbal!

Well then please allow me to add insult to injury!
http://www.hogansheroesfanclub.com/multimedia/sounds/hogansHeroesThemeSong.wav (http://www.hogansheroesfanclub.com/multimedia/sounds/hogansHeroesThemeSong.wav)

 :D

~RHS

And this ones for Louis..

http://www.hogansheroesfanclub.com/multimedia/sounds/schultzISeeNothing.wav (http://www.hogansheroesfanclub.com/multimedia/sounds/schultzISeeNothing.wav)

~RHS