entrancementquik

The following list contains scores or songs which are the primary theme music of a television series or miniseries.

They are sorted alphabetically by the television series' title. Any themes, scores, or songs which are billed under a different name than their respective television series' title are shown in parentheses, except in cases where they are officially billed as 'Theme from [Series' Name]', '[Series' Name] Theme', etc., which are omitted. This list does not include television series whose broadcast run was less than ten episodes (i.e. a 'failed' series) unless officially designated as a television miniseries. In cases where more than one piece of music was used for the main theme during the broadcast run of a television series (Baywatch, Happy Days, Starsky and Hutch, etc.), only the most widely recognized score is referenced.

0 - 9[edit]

• 2 Broke Girls ('Second Chance') - Peter Bjorn & John
• 24 - Sean Callery
• 227 ('There's No Place Like Home') - Ray Colcord performed by Marla Gibbs
• 30 Rock - Jeff Richmond
• The 4400 ('A Place In Time') - Amanda Abizaid
• 7th Heaven - Steve Plunkett
• 77 Sunset Strip - Mack David and Jerry Livingston

A - B[edit]

• The A-Team - Mike Post and Pete Carpenter
• Absolutely Fabulous ('This Wheel's on Fire') - Bob Dylan and Rick Danko (performed by Julie Driscoll, Ade Edmondson and Debbie Harry)
• Adam-12 - Frank Comstock
• The Addams Family - Vic Mizzy
• The Adventurer - John Barry
• The Adventures of Black Beauty ('Galloping Home') - Denis King
• The Adventures of Pete & Pete ('Hey Sandy') - Polaris
• The Adventures of Rin Tin Tin - Stanley Keyana
• The Adventures of Superman - Leon Klatzkin
• The Adventures of William Tell - Gioachino Rossini, lyrics were added by Harold Purcell and were sung by David Whitfield.
• Adventure Time ('Island Song') - Ashley Harrison
• Airwolf - Sylvester Levay
• AKBingo! (Aitakatta) - Yasushi Akimoto & Bounceback; Performed by AKB48
• Alfred Hitchcock Presents ('Funeral March of a Marionette') - Charles Gounod
• Alice ('There's a New Girl in Town') - David Shire, Alan Bergman and Marilyn Bergman (performed by Linda Lavin)
• All in the Family ('Those Were the Days') - Lee Adams and Charles Strouse (performed by Carroll O'Connor and Jean Stapleton); closing theme ('Remembering You') written by Roger Kellaway and Carroll O'Connor
• All That -TLC
• Allsång på Skansen (Sing-along at Skansen, Sveriges Television) ('Stockholm i mitt hjärta' translation: 'Stockholm In My Heart') - Lasse Berghagen
• Ally McBeal ('Searchin' My Soul') - Vonda Shepard
• The Alvin Show - Ross Bagdasarian Sr.
• The Amazing Race - John M. Keane
• Amazing Stories - John Williams
• Amen (TV series) ('Shine On Me') - performed by Vanessa Bell Armstrong
• American Bandstand ('Bandstand Boogie') - Charles Albertine (alt. version with lyrics by Barry Manilow and Bruce Howard Sussman)
• American Dreams ('Generation') - Emerson Hart
• The Andy Griffith Show ('The Fishin' Hole') - Earle Hagen, Herbert Spencer and Everett Sloane
• Angel ('Catharsis of Sufferance') - Darling Violetta
• Animaniacs - Richard Stone and Tom Ruegger
• The Ant and the Aardvark - Doug Goodwin
• A.N.T. Farm ('Exceptional') - China Anne McClain
• The Archie Show ('Sugar, Sugar') - Jeff Barry and Andy Kim (performed by The Archies)
• Arthur - Ziggy Marley
• Ask the Family ('Acka Raga') - Joe Harriott and John Mayer
• Atlantic Grand Prix Wrestling ('Let There Be Drums') - Incredible Bongo Band
• Auf Wiedersehen, Pet ('That's Livin' Alright') - Joe Fagin
• Austin & Ally ('Can't Do It Without You') - Ross Lynch (seasons 1-3) Ross Lynch and Laura Marano (season 4)
• The Avengers - John Dankworth (series 1,2,3) - Laurie Johnson (series 4.5.6)
• Bad Girls Club ('Love Me or Hate Me') - Lady Sovereign
• Baretta ('Keep Your Eye on the Sparrow') - Dave Grusin and M. Ames Performed By Sammy Davis, Jr.
• The Barkleys - Doug Goodwin
• Barnaby Jones - Jerry Goldsmith
• Barney Miller - Jack Elliott
• Barney & Friends ('Barney is a Dinosaur') - Philip A. Parker; performed by an anonymous child chorus. ('I Love You' (closing song)) - Lee Bernstein; performed by the cast.
• The Baron - Edwin Astley
• Batman - Neal Hefti
• Battlestar Galactica (1978) - Stu Phillips
• Battlestar Galactica (2004) - Bear McCreary
• Bay City Blues - Mike Post
• Baywatch ('I'm Always Here') - Jimi Jamison
• Beat Bugs ('All You Need Is Love')John Lennon, Paul McCartney (composers)
• Beauty and the Beast (1987) - Lee Holdridge
• The Benny Hill Show ('Yakety Sax') - Boots Randolph
• The Beverly Hillbillies ('The Ballad of Jed Clampett') - Paul Henning (performed by Flatt & Scruggs; sung by Jerry Scoggins)
• Beverly Hills, 90210 - John E. Davis
• Bewitched - Howard Greenfield and Jack Keller
• The Big Bang Theory - Barenaked Ladies
• Big Love ('God Only Knows') - Brian Wilson and Tony Asher (performed by The Beach Boys)
• The Bionic Woman - Jerry Fielding
• B. J. and the Bear ('B.J. McKay') - Glen A. Larson; performed by Greg Evigan
• Black Sheep Squadron - Mike Post and Pete Carpenter
• Bleach - Orange Range
• Boardwalk Empire ('Straight Up and Down') - The Brian Jonestown Massacre
• Bobby's World - John Tesh
• The Bold and the Beautiful ('High Upon This Love') - Jack Alloco and David Kurtz; performed by Dionne Warwick
• Bonanza - Jay Livingston and Ray Evans
• Bottom - ('Bb's Blues') - B.B.King
• Boon ('Hi Ho Silver') - Jim Diamond
• Booker ('Hot in the City') - Billy Idol
• Bosom Buddies ('My Life') - Billy Joel
• Bosch ('Can't Let Go') - Caught a Ghost
• Bourbon Street Beat - Mack David and Jerry Livingston
• Brutally Normal ('Green Light') - Jeremy Toback
• The Brady Bunch - Frank De Vol and Sherwood Schwartz (performed first season by The Peppermint Trolley Company; seasons 2-5 by the Brady Bunch Kids)
• The Buccaneers - Edwin Astley
• Buck Rogers in the 25th Century - Stu Phillips
• Buffy the Vampire Slayer - Nerf Herder
• The Bugs Bunny Show ('This is It-The Bugs Bunny Overture') - Mack David and Jerry Livingston
• The Bugaloos - lyrics by Norman Gimbel, composed by Charles Fox, performed by The Bugaloos cast
• Burns and Allen ('Love Nest') - lyrics by Otto Harbach, composed by Louis A Hirsch

C - D[edit]

• Cagney & Lacey - Bill Conti (later arrangement of Conti's theme done by Mark Snow)
• Candid Camera ('Smile, You're On Candid Camera') - Sid Ramin
• Cannon - John Carl Parker
• Caprica - Bear McCreary
• Captain Nice - Vic Mizzy
• Car 54, Where Are You? - John Strauss and Nat Hiken
• The Carol Burnett Show ('I'm So Glad We Had This Time Together') - Joe Hamilton
• Casper the Friendly Ghost - Winston Sharples
• The Champions - Tony Hatch
• Charles in Charge - David Kurtz, Michael Jacobs, & Al Burton; performed by Shandi Sinnamon
• Charlie's Angels - Jack Elliott
• Charmed ('How Soon Is Now?') - Love Spit Love
• Cheers ('Where Everybody Knows Your Name') - Gary Portnoy and Judy Hart Angelo (performed by Gary Portnoy)
• Cheyenne - William Lava and Stanley D. Jones
• Chicago Hope - Mark Isham
• Chico and the Man - José Feliciano
• China Beach - ('Reflections') - Diana Ross & the Supremes
• CHiPs - John Parker (season one; season two & onward theme arranged by Alan Silvestri; rejected, un-used theme by Mike Post)
• Chuck - ('Short Skirt, Long Jacket') - Cake
• Cimarron Strip - Maurice Jarre
• The Clothes Show ('In the Night') - Pet Shop Boys
• Clueless - ('Ordinary Girl') - China Forbes
• Code Lyoko ('A World Without Danger') - Franck Keller and Ygal Amar
• Code Monkeys ('Code Monkey') - Jonathan Coulton
• The Colbert Report ('Baby Mumbles') - Cheap Trick
• Combat! - Leonard Rosenman
• Community - ('At Least It Was Here') - The 88
• Cop Rock ('Under the Gun') - Randy Newman
• Cops ('Bad Boys') - Inner Circle
• Corner Gas ('Not a Lot Going On') - Northey Valenzuela
• Cory in the House - Kyle Massey
• The Cosby Show - Grover Washington, Jr.
• The Courtship of Eddie's Father ('Best Friend') - Harry Nilsson
• Cowboy Bebop ('Tank!' / 'The Real Folk Blues') - Yoko Kanno, performed by The Seatbelts
• CPO Sharkey - Peter Matz
• CSI: Crime Scene Investigation ('Who Are You') - Pete Townshend; performed by The Who
• CSI: Cyber ('I Can See for Miles') - Pete Townshend; performed by The Who
• CSI: Miami ('Won't Get Fooled Again') - Pete Townshend; performed by The Who
• CSI: NY ('Baba O'Riley') - Pete Townshend; performed by The Who
• Curb Your Enthusiasm 'Frolic' by Luciano Michelini
• Dad's Army ('Who Do You Think You Are Kidding, Mr. Hitler?') - Bud Flanagan
• The Daily Show ('Dog on Fire') - Bob Mould; performed by They Might Be Giants
• Daktari - Shelly Manne
• Dallas - Jerrold Immel
• Damages ('When I Am Through With You') - The VLA
• Danger Man - Series 1 'The Danger Man Theme' Edwin Astley, series 2–4 'High Wire' Edwin Astley, series 2–4 in the US as Secret Agent, 'Secret Agent Man' theme composed by P.F. Sloan and Steve Barri, and recorded by Johnny Rivers.
• Daniel Boone - Vera Matson and Lionel Newman
• Dark ('Goodbye') - Apparat
• Dark Shadows - Bob Cobert
• Dave's World ('You May Be Right') - Billy Joel, performed by Southside Johnny
• Dawson's Creek ('I Don't Want to Wait') - Paula Cole
• Deadwood - David Schwartz
• Defiance - Bear McCreary
• Definition ('Soul Bossa Nova') - Quincy Jones
• Dennis the Menace - William Loose and John Seely
• Department S - Edwin Astley
• Designing Women ('Georgia on My Mind') - performed as an instrumental by Doc Severinsen
• Desperate Housewives - Danny Elfman
• Devious Maids - Edward Shearmur
• Dexter - Rolfe Kent
• Diagnosis: Murder - Dick DeBenedictis
• Dick Turpin - Denis King
• The Dick Van Dyke Show ('Keep Your Fingers Crossed') - Earle Hagen; unused lyrics by Morey Amsterdam
• A Different World - Stu Gardner, Bill Cosby and Dawnn Lewis (performed by Aretha Franklin)
• Diff'rent Strokes - Alan Thicke, Al Burton, and Gloria Loring
• Dirty Little Secret ('Dirty Little Secret') - The All-American Rejects
• Doctor Who - Ron Grainer, originally arranged by Delia Derbyshire
• Dodger, Bonzo and the Rest ('Our House') - composed by Madness Performed by cast
• Dog the Bounty Hunter - Ozzy Osbourne
• Doogie Howser, M.D. - Mike Post
• Dragnet - Main Theme ('Danger Ahead') by Miklós Rózsa; 'Dragnet March' by Walter Schumann; 1967 closing theme by Lyn Murray
• Dragon Ball Z (1996 English dub) - Main Title ('Rock the Dragon') by Ron Wasserman and Jeremy Sweet
• Drake & Josh ('I Found a Way') - Drake Bell
• The Drew Carey Show ('Cleveland Rocks') - The Presidents of the United States of America
• The Dukes of Hazzard ('Good Ol' Boys') - Waylon Jennings
• Dynasty - Bill Conti

E - F[edit]

• Early Edition - W. G. Walden
• ECW Hardcore TV ('This is Extreme!') - Harry Slash & The Slashtones
• Ed ('Next Year') - Foo Fighters
• Ed, Edd n Eddy - Patric Caird
• Electric Circus ('Hang On Here We Go!') - Jet Fuel featuring Aleah D'Kos and K-os
• Ellery Queen - Elmer Bernstein
• Emergency! - Nelson Riddle and Billy May
• Empty Nest ('Life Goes On') - John Bettis and George Tipton, performed by Billy Vera
• Enterprise (Faith of the Heart') - Russell Watson / End Credits piece by Dennis McCarthy
• Entourage ('Superhero') - Jane's Addiction
• The Equalizer - Stewart Copeland
• ER - James Newton Howard
• Everybody Hates Chris - Marcus Miller
• Everybody Loves Raymond - Rick Marotta and Terry Trotter
• The Facts of Life - Al Burton, Gloria Loring and Alan Thicke
• The Fairly OddParents - Ron Jones and Butch Hartman
• Falcon Crest - Bill Conti
• The Fall Guy ('The Unknown Stuntman') - Lee Majors
• Fame - Dean Pitchford and Michael Gore
• Family Affair - Frank De Vol
• Family Guy (opening with a parody of the All In The Family theme) - Walter Murphy
• Family Matters ('As Days Go By') - Jesse Frederick
• Family Ties ('Without Us') - Jeff Barry and Tom Scott (performed by Johnny Mathis and Deniece Williams)
• Farscape - Guy Gross
• Father Ted ('Songs Of Love') - The Divine Comedy
• The F.B.I. - Bronislaw Kaper
• Film 2015 ('I Wish I Knew How It Would Feel to Be Free') - Billy Taylor Trio
• Firefly ('Ballad of Serenity') - Sonny Rhodes
• Firing Line ('Brandenburg Concerto No. 2 in F Major, Third Movement, Allegro assai') - Johann Sebastian Bach
• Flamingo Road - Gerald Fried
• The Flintstones ('Meet The Flintstones') - Hoyt Curtin, William Hanna and Joseph Barbera
• Flipper - Henryk Wars and 'By' Dunham
• The Flying Nun ('Who Needs Wings to Fly?') - Dominic Frontiere
• Forever Knight - Fred Mollin
• Formula One (BBC) - ('The Chain') - Fleetwood Mac
• The Four Just Men - Francis Chagrin
• Frasier ('Tossed Salads and Scrambled Eggs') - Bruce Miller (performed by Kelsey Grammer)
• French and Saunders - Rowland Rivron
• Friday the 13th: The Series - Fred Mollin
• Friday night Dinner - ('Animal') - Miike Snow
• Friends ('I'll Be There For You') - The Rembrandts
• The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air - DJ Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince
• F Troop - William Lava and Irving Taylor
• The Fugitive - Pete Rugolo
• Full House ('Everywhere You Look') - Jesse Frederick
• Futurama - Christopher Tyng
• The F Word - Babybird

G - H[edit]

• Game of Thrones - Ramin Djawadi
• Game Shakers ('Drop That What') - Kel Mitchell
• George of the Jungle - Stan Worth, Sheldon Allman
• Get A Life ('Stand') - R.E.M.
• Get Smart - Irving Szathmary
• Gideon's Way - Edwin Astley
• Gidget ('[Wait Till You See] My Gidget') - Howard Greenfield and Jack Keller (performed in the pilot episode by The Four Freshmen and by Johnny Tillotson in all other episodes)
• Gilligan's Island ('The Ballad of Gilligan's Isle') - Sherwood Schwartz and George Wyle (performed first season by The Wellingtons; seasons 2 and 3 by The Eligibles)
• Gilmore Girls ('Where You Lead') - performed by Carole King and Louise Goffin
• Gimme a Break! - Nell Carter
• Girl Meets World - Sabrina Carpenter and Rowan Blanchard
• Girlfriends - Angie Stone
• Gogglebox('Perfect World') - Kodaline
• The Golden Girls and The Golden Palace ('Thank You for Being a Friend') - composed by Andrew Gold, performed by Cindy Fee (during Girls) and an unknown male performer (during Palace)
• Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C. - Earle Hagen
• Good Luck Charlie ('Hang in There Baby') - Bridgit Mendler
• The Good Place - David Schwartz
• Grandstand ('News Scoop') - Len Stevens
• Grandstand - Keith Mansfield
• The Greatest American Hero ('Believe It or Not') - Mike Post and Stephen Geyer (performed by Joey Scarbury)
• Green Acres - composed by Vic Mizzy; performed by Eddie Albert and Eva Gabor
• The Green Hornet ('Flight of the Bumblebee') - Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov; orchestration by Billy May; conducted by Lionel Newman; trumpet solo by Al Hirt
• Grey's Anatomy ('Cosy in the Rocket') - Psapp
• Grounded for Life - Ween
• Growing Pains ('As Long As We Got Each Other') - John Bettis and Steve Dorff (performed by B. J. Thomas and Jennifer Warnes)
• Gun ('Happiness is A Warm Gun') - John Lennon and Paul McCartney; performed by U2
• Gunsmoke ('Old Trail') - Rex Koury
• Hannah Montana ('Best of Both Worlds') - Miley Cyrus
• Happy Days - Charles Fox and Norman Gimbel
• Hardcastle and McCormick ('Drive') - Mike Post and Pete Carpenter
• Harry's Game - Clannad
• Hart to Hart - Mark Snow
• Have Gun – Will Travel ('The Ballad of Paladin') - Johnny Western, Richard Boone, and Sam Rolfe
• Have I Got News For You - Big George
• Hawaii Five-O - Morton Stevens
• Hawaiian Eye - Mack David and Jerry Livingston
• Here's Lucy - Wilbur Hatch
• Higglytown Heroes - ('Here in Higglytown') - They Might Be Giants
• Highlander: The Series ('Princes of the Universe') - Queen
• Highway Patrol - David Rose (as 'Ray Llewellyn')
• Hill Street Blues - Mike Post
• The Hills ('Unwritten') - Natasha Bedingfield
• Hogan's Heroes - Jerry Fielding
• Home Improvement ('Iron John's Rock') - Dan Foliart
• Homeland - Sean Callery
• The Honeymooners ('You're My Greatest Love') - Jackie Gleason
• How I Met Your Mother ('Hey Beautiful') - The Solids
• House ('Teardrop') - Massive Attack
• Human Target - Bear McCreary
• Hunter - Mike Post and Pete Carpenter

I - J[edit]

• I Dream of Jeannie - Season 1 theme by Richard Wess; seasons 2-5 by Hugo Montenegro and Buddy Kaye
• I Love Lucy - Eliot Daniel
• I Married Joan - Richard Mack
• I Spy - Earle Hagen
• I'll Fly Away - W. G. Walden
• iCarly ('Leave It All to Me') - Miranda Cosgrove and Drake Bell
• The Inbetweeners ('Gone Up in Flames') - Morning Runner
• The Incredible Hulk ('The Lonely Man') - Joe Harnell
• The Inspector (Theme from A Shot in the Dark) - Henry Mancini
• Inspector Morse - Barrington Pheloung
• Interpol Calling - Clifton Parker
• The Invaders - Dominic Frontiere
• The Invisible Man (1958) - Sydney John Kay
• Ironside - Quincy Jones
• It's a Living - Composed by George Aliceson Tipton, performed by Leslie Bricusse
• It's About Time - Sherwood Schwartz, George Wyle and Gerald Fried
• It's Garry Shandling's Show - Joey Carbone
• The Jack Benny Program (end credit theme, 'The J & M Stomp') - Mahlon Merrick
• The Jackie Gleason Show ('Melancholy Serenade') - Jackie Gleason
• JAG - Bruce Broughton
• Jake and the Never Land Pirates - Loren Hoskins and Kevin Hendrickson
• Jennifer Slept Here - Composed by Perry Botkin, Jr., written by Clint Holmes, Ann Jillian, Joey Murcia, and Bill Payne, performed by Joey Scarbury
• The Jeffersons ('Movin' On Up') - Ja'net Dubois
• Jeopardy! ('Think Music') - Merv Griffin
• Jessie ('Hey Jessie') - Debby Ryan
• The Jetsons - Hoyt Curtin, William Hanna and Joseph Barbera
• Jimmy Kimmel Live! - Robert Goulet
• Joan of Arcadia ('One of Us') - Joan Osborne
• John from Cincinnati ('Johnny Appleseed') - Joe Strummer & the Mescaleros
• Johnny Staccato ('Staccato's Theme') - Elmer Bernstein
• Jonny Quest - Hoyt Curtin
• Just Say Julie - The Usual Suspects
• Just the Ten of Us ('Doin' it the Best I Can') - Bill Medley
• Justified - Jason Keaton and Oscar Owens

K - L[edit]

• KaBlam! ('Skaternity') - The Toasters (affiliated as The Moon Ska Stompers)
• Kath & Kim ('The Joker') - sung by Gina Riley
• Kath & Kim (U.S.) ('Filthy/Gorgeous') - Scissor Sisters
• Karen - Jack Marshall and Bob Mosher (performed by The Beach Boys)
• The King of Queens ('Baby All My Life I Will Be Driving Home To You') - Billy Vera
• King of the Hill - The Refreshments
• King's Crossing - Jerrold Immel
• Kingdom Hospital ('Worry About You') - Ivy
• Knight Rider - Glen A. Larson and Stu Phillips (later arrangement of theme was done by Don Peake)
• Knots Landing - Jerrold Immel
• KonoSuba (Fantastic Dreamer) - Machico
• Kung Fu - Jim Helms
• The L Word ('The Way That We Live') - Betty
• L.A. Law - Mike Post
• La Femme Nikita - Mark Snow
• Laguna Beach: The Real Orange County ('Come Clean') - Hilary Duff
• Land of the Giants - John Williams
• Las Vegas ('A Little Less Conversation') - Elvis Presley (remix by Junkie XL)
• Lassie - Les Baxter
• Laverne & Shirley ('Making Our Dreams Come True') - Charles Fox and Norman Gimbel (performed by Cyndi Grecco)
• Law & Order - Mike Post
• Leave It to Beaver ('The Toy Parade') - David Kahn, Melvyn Leonard and Mort Greene (Season 6 arrangement by Pete Rugolo)
• Legend of the Seeker - Joseph LoDuca
• Lie to Me ('Brand New Day') - Ryan Star
• Life As We Know It ('Sooner or Later') - Michael Tolcher
• Life Goes On (A cover of The Beatles' 'Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da') - Patti LuPone and the rest of the cast
• Lipstick Jungle ('The Bomb') - Bitter:Sweet
• Little House on the Prairie - David Rose
• Living Single - Queen Latifah
• Lizzie McGuire - 'We'll Figure It Out' - Angie Jaree
• The Lone Ranger ('William Tell Overture') - Gioachino Rossini
• Lost in Space - John Williams (two themes)
• Love, American Style - Charles Fox and Arnold Margolin (performed first season by The Cowsills; seasons 2-5 by the Ron Hicklin Singers)
• The Love Boat - Paul Williams and Charles Fox (performed by Jack Jones)
• Love Live! - μ's
• Love of Life ('The Life That You Love') - Carey Gold
• The Lucy Show - Wilbur Hatch

M - N[edit]

• M*A*S*H (Suicide Is Painless) - Johnny Mandel and Mike Altman
• MacGyver - Randy Edelman
• Mad About You ('Final Frontier') - Ernest Gold
• Mad Men (A Beautiful Mine) - RJD2
• Magnum, P.I. - Ian Freebairn-Smith (Season 1); Mike Post and Pete Carpenter (remaining seasons)
• Makin' It - David Naughton
• Malcolm in the Middle ('Boss of Me') - They Might Be Giants
• Mama's Family ('Bless My Happy Home') - Peter Matz; unused lyrics by Vicki Lawrence
• The Man from U.N.C.L.E. - Jerry Goldsmith
• Man in a Suitcase - Ron Grainer
• Man of the World - Henry Mancini
• Maniac Mansion - Jane Siberry and Mary Margaret O'Hara
• Mannix - Lalo Schifrin
• Marcus Welby, M.D. - Leonard Rosenman
• Married.. with Children (Love and Marriage) - Sammy Cahn and Jimmy Van Heusen; performed by Frank Sinatra
• The Mary Tyler Moore Show ('Love is All Around') - Sonny Curtis
• Match Game ('A Swingin' Safari') - Billy Vaughn
• Matlock - Dick DeBenedictis
• Maude ('And Then There's Maude') - Donny Hathaway
• Maverick - David Buttolph and Paul Francis Webster
• Mayberry R.F.D. ('Mayberry March') - Earle Hagen and Carl Brandt
• McHale's Navy - Axel Stordahl
• Medical Center - Lalo Schifrin
• Melrose Place - Timothy Truman
• Miami Vice - Jan Hammer
• The Midnight Special ('Midnight Special') - Johnny Rivers
• Mighty Morphin Alien Rangers - Ron Wasserman
• Mighty Morphin Power Rangers ('Go Go Power Rangers') - Ron Wasserman
• Mike & Molly ('I See Love') - Keb' Mo'
• Millennium - Mark Snow
• Minder ('I Could Be So Good For You') - Dennis Waterman
• Miraculous: Tales of Ladybug & Cat Noir('It's Ladybug') - Cash Callaway and Wendy Child, Brittnee Belt, Laura Marano, and Lou and Lenni Kim
• Mission: Impossible - Lalo Schifrin
• Mister Ed - Jay Livingston and Ray Evans
• Mock the Week - ('News of the World') - The Jam
• The Mod Squad - Earle Hagen
• Mom ('Overture' from Ruslan and Lyudmila) - performed by Mikhail Glinka
• Monday Night Football ('Heavy Action') - Johnny Pearson
• Monk - Jeff Beal
• The Monkees - Tommy Boyce and Bobby Hart (performed by The Monkees)
• Monty Python's Flying Circus ('Liberty Bell March') - John Philip Sousa
• Moonlighting - Al Jarreau
• The Mothers-in-Law - Jeff Alexander
• Mr. Belvedere ('According to Our New Arrival') - Leon Redbone
• Mr. Lucky - Henry Mancini
• The Munsters - Jack Marshall
• Murder One - Mike Post
• Murder, She Wrote ('JB Fletcher's Theme') - John Addison
• My Favorite Martian - George Greeley
• My Mother the Car - Paul Hampton
• My So-Called Life - W. G. Walden
• My Three Sons - Frank De Vol
• Mystery Science Theater 3000 - seasons 0-5 Joel Hodgson, seasons 5-10 Michael J. Nelson
• The Nanny ('The Nanny Named Fran') - Ann Hampton Callaway
• Nanny and the Professor ('Nanny') - The Addrisi Brothers
• NBA on NBC ('Roundball Rock') - John Tesh
• NBC Mystery Movie - Henry Mancini
• NBC Nightly News ('The Mission') - John Williams
• NCIS - Numeriklab
• NFL on CBS ('Posthumus Zone') - E. S. Posthumus
• NFL on Fox - Scott Schreer
• The New Avengers - Laurie Johnson
• The New Scooby-Doo Movies - Hoyt Curtin
• Newhart - Henry Mancini
• Night Court - Jack Elliott
• Night Gallery - Billy Goldenberg (pilot) Gil Mellé (seasons 1-2) Eddie Sauter (season 3)
• Nip/Tuck ('A Perfect Lie') - The Engine Room
• Norm ('Too Bad') - Doug and the Slugs
• Nurse Jackie - Lisa Coleman and Wendy Melvoin
• NYPD Blue - Mike Post

O - P[edit]

• The O.C. ('California') - Phantom Planet
• The Rosie O'Donnell Show - Ann Hampton Callaway
• The Odd Couple - Neal Hefti
• The Office - Handbags and Gladrags
• Oh Baby - Performed by Jimmy Beavers
• Oliver Beene ('The Future Is Now') - The Solids
• Once Upon a Time - Mark Isham
• One Tree Hill ('I Don't Want to Be') - Gavin DeGraw
• Orange Is the New Black ('You've Got Time') - Regina Spektor
• Orphan Black - Two Fingers
• Out of This World (Contemporary version of 'Swinging on a Star') - performed by Kevin Kiner
• The Outer Limits (1963 TV series) - Dominic Frontiere (1) Harry Lubin (2)
• The Outer Limits (1995 TV series) - Mark Mancina
• Party of Five ('Closer To Free') - BoDeans
• The Partridge Family ('C'mon, Get Happy') - Wes Farrell, Diane Hilderbrand and Danny Janssen (performed by The Partridge Family)
• The Patty Duke Show - Sid Ramin and Robert Wells (performed by The Skip-Jacks)
• Peep Show ('Flagpole Sitta') - Harvey Danger (Season 2-present)
• Perfect Strangers ('Nothing's Gonna Stop Me Now') - David Pomeranz
• Perry Mason ('Park Avenue Beat') - Fred Steiner
• The Persuaders! - John Barry
• Peter Gunn - Henry Mancini
• Petticoat Junction - Paul Henning and Curt Massey
• Phineas and Ferb ('Today is Gonna be a Great Day') - Bowling for Soup
• The Pink Panther Show - Doug Goodwin (three themes)
• The Pink Panther Theme - Henry Mancini
• Pistols 'n' Petticoats - Composed and written by Jack Elliott and George Tibbles, performed by Elliott and Stanley Wilson
• Planet of the Apes - Lalo Schifrin
• Please Don't Eat the Daisies - Jeff Alexander
• Pokémon: Indigo League - Jason Paige
• The Price Is Right - Sheila Cole
• The Prisoner - Ron Grainer
• Psych ('I Know, You Know') - Friendly Indians
• Punky Brewster ('Every Time I Turn Around') - Gary Portnoy
• Pretty Little Liars ('Secret') - The Pierces
• Prison Break - Ramin Djawadi
• The Prisoner - Ron Grainer
• Prisoner ('On the Inside') - Lynne Hamilton
• The Professionals - Laurie Johnson
• The Protectors ('Avenues and Alleyways') - Mitch Murray and Peter Callender, performed by Tony Christie

Q - R[edit]

• Quantum Leap - Mike Post
• Queen of Swords ('Behind the Mask') composed by Spencer Proffer and Steve Plunkett (BMI); performed by José Feliciano,
• Queer Duck - RuPaul
• Quincy, M.E. - Stu Phillips
• Randall and Hopkirk (Deceased) - Edwin Astley
• Randall and Hopkirk - Nina Persson & David Arnold
• The Rat Patrol - Dominic Frontiere
• Rawhide - Ned Washington and Dimitri Tiomkin; performed by Frankie Laine
• Reba ('I'm a Survivor') - Reba McEntire
• The Rebel ('Ballad of Johnny Yuma') - Richard Markowitz and Andrew J. Fenady; performed by Johnny Cash
• The Red Skelton Show ('Holiday For Strings') - David Rose
• Remington Steele - Henry Mancini
• Rescue Me ('C'mon C'mon') - The Von Bondies
• Ricki Lake - Jellybean Benitez
• The Riches - Toby Chu
• Ripcord - Judith Pines
• Riptide - Mike Post and Pete Carpenter
• The Road Runner Show - Barbara Cameron
• The Rockford Files - Mike Post and Pete Carpenter
• Room 222 - Jerry Goldsmith
• Roseanne - W. G. Walden (later added with lyrics sung by Blues Traveler)
• Roswell ('Here with Me') - Dido
• Route 66 - Nelson Riddle
• The Royle Family ('Half The World Away') - Oasis
• Rugrats - Mark Mothersbaugh
• Ryan's Hope ('Here's to Us') - Carey Gold

S - T[edit]

• The Saint - Edwin Astley (B/W episodes); Edwin Astley, Leslie Charteris (colour episodes)
• Sam & Cat ('Just Fine') - Michael Corcoran
• St. Elsewhere - Dave Grusin
• Sanford and Son ('The Streetbeater') - Quincy Jones
• Scooby-Doo, Where Are You! - David Mook and Ben Raleigh (performed first season by Larry Markes; second season by Austin Roberts)
• Scrubs ('Superman') - Lazlo Bane (seasons 1-8), WAZ (season 9)
• Sea Hunt - David Rose (as 'Ray Llewellyn')
• Seinfeld - Jonathan Wolff
• The Sentimental Agent - Ivor Slaney
• Sesame Street ('Can You Tell Me How to Get To..') - Joe Raposo, Jon Stone, and Bruce Hart
• Sex and the City - Douglas J. Cuomo and Tom Findlay
• Shaft - Isaac Hayes
• Shake It Up - Selena Gomez
• Sherlock - David Arnold and Michael Price
• Sheriff Callie's Wild West - Mandy Moore
• To A Shining Time Station - Kevin Roth
• Sihina Wasanthayak (Sirasa TV) ('Sansara Purudada Mey') - Dinesh Subasinghe
• Silver Spoons ('Together') - Rik Howard and Bob Wirth
• The Simpsons - Danny Elfman
• Sir Francis Drake - Ivor Slaney
• Six Feet Under - Thomas Newman
• Smallville ('Save Me') - Remy Zero
• The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour - Mason Williams and Nancy Ames
• The Sonny & Cher Comedy Hour ('The Beat Goes On') - Sonny Bono
• Sonny with a Chance ('So Far, so Great') - Demi Lovato
• The Sopranos ('Woke Up This Morning') - Alabama 3
• Soul Train ('TSOP [The Sound of Philadelphia']) - MFSB and The Three Degrees
• South Park - Primus
• Spartacus - Joseph LoDuca
• SpongeBob SquarePants - Patrick Pinney
• SportsCenter - Annie Roboff
• Star Trek - Alexander Courage
• Star Trek: Deep Space Nine - Dennis McCarthy
• Star Trek: The Next Generation - Jerry Goldsmith, arrangement by Dennis McCarthy
• Star Trek: Voyager - Jerry Goldsmith
• Stargate Atlantis - Joel Goldsmith
• Stargate SG-1 - Joel Goldsmith
• Stargate Universe - Joel Goldsmith
• Starsky and Hutch ('Gotcha') - Tom Scott, seasons two and four; season one theme: Lalo Schifrin; Season three theme: Mark Snow
• Step by Step - Jesse Frederick and Theresa James
• Steven Universe ('We are the Crystal Gems') - Zach Callison, Estelle, Michaela Dietz, Deedee Magno, Tom Scharpling (Full version only)
• Steptoe and Son ('Old Ned') - Ron Grainer
• Still Standing ('You Make Me Happy') - Will Hoge
• Strange Report - Roger Webb
• The Streets of San Francisco - Tom Scott
• Sue Thomas: F.B.Eye ('Who I Am') - Jessica Andrews
• The Suite Life of Zack & Cody ('Here I Am') - Loren Ellis and the Drew Davis Band
• The Suite Life on Deck ('Livin' the Suite Life') - Steve Rushton
• Super Mario World - Mark Mothersbaugh
• Superjail! ('Comin' Home') - Cheeseburger; ('Rubber Bullets') - 10cc (pilot episode)
• Surfside 6 - Mack David and Jerry Livingston
• Survivor ('Ancient Voices') - Russ Landau
• Tales From The Crypt - Danny Elfman
• Tarzan - Nelson Riddle
• Taxi ('Angela') - Bob James
• Test Match Special ('Soul Limbo') - Booker T. & the M.G.'s
• That '70s Show ('That 70's Song') - Cheap Trick
• That Girl - Earle Hagen and Sam Denoff
• That's My Bush! - DVDA
• That's So Raven - Raven-Symoné, Orlando Brown and Anneliese van der Pol
• T.H.E. Cat - Lalo Schifrin
• Three Wishes ('Believe') - Amy Grant
• Three's Company ('Come and Knock On Our Door') - written by Joe Raposo and Don Nicholl; performed by the other Ray Charles and Julia Rinker
• The Thrills ('Extraordinary') - Mandy Moore
• Time of Your Life ('I've Just Seen a Face') - BoDeans
• The Time Tunnel - John Williams
• The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson ('Johnny's Theme') - Paul Anka
• TNA Impact Wrestling ('Megatron') - Crazy Town
• Top Gear ('Jessica') - The Allman Brothers Band
• Torchwood - Murray Gold
• Touch - Lisa Coleman and Wendy Melvoin
• Touched by an Angel ('I'll Walk With You') - performed by Della Reese
• Tour of Duty ('Paint it Black') - The Rolling Stones
• Tracey Takes On.. ('They Don't Know About Us') - Kirsty MacColl
• Trapper John, M.D. - John Carl Parker
• Tru Calling ('Somebody Help Me') - Full Blown Rose
• True Blood ('Bad Things') - Jace Everett
• True Jackson, VP - Keke Palmer
• Twelve O'Clock High - Dominic Frontiere
• The Twilight Zone - Bernard Herrmann (Season 1); Marius Constant (Seasons 2-5)
• Twin Peaks - Angelo Badalamenti
• Two and a Half Men - Lee Aronsohn, Grant Geissman, and Chuck Lorre

U - Z[edit]

• University Challenge - ('College Boy') - Derek New
• Upstairs, Downstairs - Alexander Faris
• Ugly Betty - Jeff Beal
• Underdog - W. Watts Biggers, Chet Stover, Joe Harris, Treadwell Covington
• V: The Final Battle/V: The Series - Dennis McCarthy
• V (2009 TV series)' - ('Uprising') - Muse
• Veronica Mars ('We Used To Be Friends') - The Dandy Warhols
• Victorious ('Make It Shine') - Victoria Justice
• Vikings ('If I Had A Heart') - Fever Ray
• Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea ('The Seaview Theme') - Paul Sawtell
• W5 (during the 1970s and 1980s) ('Fool's Overture') - Supertramp
• Wagon Train - Jerome Moross
• The Walking Dead - Bear McCreary
• Wall Street Week ('TWX in 12 Bars') - Donald Swartz
• Walt Disney's Wonderful World of Color - Richard M. Sherman and Robert B. Sherman
• Watership Down ('Bright Eyes') - Art Garfunkel
• Weekend World: Mountain (Nantucket Sleighride)
• Welcome Back, Kotter ('Welcome Back') - John Sebastian
• The West Wing - W. G. Walden
• What's Happening!! - Henry Mancini
• Weeds - ('Little Boxes') - Malvina Reynolds
• Wheel Of Fortune - ('Changing Keys') - Merv Griffin
• Where in the World Is Carmen Sandiego? - Rockapella
• Whiplash - Words and Music by Edwin Astley, performed by Frank Ifield
• Whirlybirds - William G. 'Bill' Loose and John Seely
• Wide World of Sports - Charles Fox
• The Wild Wild West - Richard Markowitz
• Will & Grace - Jonathan Wolff
• Wings - ('Piano Sonata No. 20 in A Major, D. 959, Rondo: Allegretto.') - Franz Schubert
• The Wire - (Way Down in the Hole)
• Wizards of Waverly Place - ('Everything is Not What It Seems') - Selena Gomez
• WKRP in Cincinnati - Steve Carlisle
• Wolfblood - ('A Promise That I Keep') - Lisa Knapp (series 1-3), ('Running with the Wolves') - Aurora (series 4-present)
• Wonder Woman - Charles Fox
• The Wonder Years ('A Little Help From My Friends') - John Lennon and Paul McCartney; performed by Joe Cocker
• The World at War - Carl Davis
• WWE Friday Night SmackDown! ('Born 2 Run') - 7Lions
• WWE Raw ('The Night') - Kromestatik
• NXT ('Welcome Home') - Coheed and Cambria
• WWE Tough Enough ('Champion') - Chipmunk ft. Chris Brown
• The X-Files - ('Materia Primoris')Mark Snow
• Xena: Warrior Princess - Joseph LoDuca
• You Can't Do That On Television -(Dixieland Jazz version of 'The William Tell Overture') - The National Press Club and Allied Workers Jazz Band
• You Don't Say! (original NBC version, 1963–69) - Rex Koury
• The Young and the Restless ('Nadia's Theme') - Perry Botkin, Jr.
• The Young Ones - Sid Tepper and Roy C. Bennett
• Zig and Zag ('Zig and Zag') - Ricky Wilson and Simon Rix
• Zoey 101 ('Follow Me') - Jamie Lynn Spears
• The Zoo Gang - Paul and Linda McCartney and performed by Paul McCartney & Wings.

See also[edit]

External links[edit]

• TV Theme Tunes A directory of TV theme tunes.
• Television Tunes The largest database of TV theme songs.

It doesn't take a Grammy winner to write a catchy theme song. You can sing along to the openings of Laverne & Shirley and Friends, even if you can't remember the names Cyndi Grecco and the Rembrandts.

Of course, if you're a TV show and you can afford a Beatles tune, by all means, go for it. It certainly helped The Wonder Years and Life Goes On stick in our memories.

But in some cases, a massive musician made a theme song for a TV show that is now forgotten by most. Perhaps the show flopped. Maybe the song is no longer used in the reruns. Or it could just be that you never realized a legend was playing the guitar on an instrumental.

We gathered some of our favorite obscure opening themes by Hall of Fame musicians. See if you recognize any of them.

1. The Beach Boys

'Karen' for Karen

In 1964, these Southern California kids were hot off a string of hit singles about surfing, cars, cheeseburgers and girls. NBC roped in the Beach Boys to harmonize the theme to its teen comedy Karen, part of trio of new sitcoms set in a Southern California apartment complex called 90 Bristol Court. 'She sets her hair with great precision,' Mike Love sang, somewhat aping The Patty Duke Show. 'And by the light of television / She can even write a book report!' Perhaps book reports were not exciting enough to lure in viewers.

Image: NBCUniversal Television

2. Harry Nilsson

'Best Friend' for The Courtship of Eddie's Father

The Courtship of Eddie's Father remains the overlooked Bill Bixby show, overshadowed by The Incredible Hulk and My Favorite Martian. This charming 1969–72 father-son sitcom utilized the sweet pop sound of Harry Nilsson to great effect. One of his best-known songs, 'Best Friend' was written specifically for the show, though it was an altered version of an older, unreleased tune called 'Girlfriend.' Nilsson never put the track on an album, surprisingly.

Image: Warner Bros.

3. Billy Joel

'My Life' for Bosom Buddies

Best remembered as Tom Hanks' big break, Bosom Buddiesoriginally used the bouncy Billy Joel ditty from 1980–82. In reruns, however, the song was replaced with 'Shake Me Loose' by Stephanie Mills. She was Dorothy in The Wiz!

Image: CBS Television Distribution

4. The Grateful Dead

Opening theme for The Twilight Zone (1985)

The Eighties reboot of Rod Serling's brilliant anthology series went for an artier approach. It opens like one of Pink Floyd's weirder moments, with shots of atom bombs, fetuses and tarantulas under eerie synthesizers. Yep, that opening was actually the Grateful Dead, with Jerry Garcia playing the iconic 'do-do-do-do, do-do-do-do' riff his guitar. The credits even payed homage to the Dead, in a way, in the credits with the flash of a Rorschach-like skull before the title.

Image: CBS Television Distribution

5. The Rolling Stones

'Paint It Black' for Tour of Duty

Every Vietnam story needs a soundtrack of righteous rock & roll. Tour of Duty — one of the great, if not the great, TV shows about the war — nabbed the perfect tune, the angsty, exotic 'Paint It Black.' The show also featured classic by Creedence, Hendrix, The Animals, The Byrds and more inside the episodes, from 1987–90. But those rights are hard to clear for reruns and DVDs. The Stones were replaced with a very '80s instrumental filled with synthetic flutes.

Image: Sony Pictures Television

6. Diana Ross and the Supremes

'Reflections' for China Beach

Another Vietnam show, another stone-cold classic. China Beach, a sort of M*A*S*H for Vietnam, went a more soulful route during its run, between 1988–91. The 1967 Motown gem was the first song billed under Diana Ross & The Supremes. Previously, the trio was simply the Supremes.

Image: Warner Bros.

7. Randy Newman

'Under the Gun' for Cop Rock

Steven Bochco created cop-show classics, giving us both Hill Street Blues and NYPD Blue. In between, he made his greatest folly, the widely panned musical police drama Cop Rock, later named as one of the worst shows of all time by TV Guide. Airing briefly in the fall of 1990, Cop Rock opened with Randy Newman pounding away on the piano. Hey, it worked wonders for Pixar later in the decade.

Image: 20th Century Fox Television

8. R.E.M.

'Stand' for Get a LifeCast of body heat movie.

We adore this forward-thinking cult classic from 1990–92. We even named it one of the 10 most rock & roll sitcoms of all time. Part of that was thanks to the theme song, R.E.M.'s shiny, happy 'Stand' from its major-label debut, Green. Certainly, that is not the most 'rock' R.E.M. song by any measure. It was the spirit of the show that was more punk.

Image: Sony Pictures Television

9. Queen

'Princes of the Universe' for Highlander: The Series

Somehow, Queen was the third choice to provide the soundtrack to The Highlander film in 1986. Both Marillion and Fish pulled out due to scheduling conflicts. Oops! Queen used much of the music to populate its 1986 album A Kind of Magic, the one with the cartoon album cover. One of those tracks, 'Princes of the Universe,' was used in the spin-off TV series from 1992–98. It was a prestigious get for a syndicated Canadian show.

Image: CBS Television Distribution

10. Carly Simon

'The Promise and the Prize' for Phenom

ABC gave Phenom every break in 1993. The sitcom was wedged between Full House and Roseanne on the schedule. Fresh off Who's the Boss?, Judith Light joined the show as the mom. And Carly Simon was commissioned to write and perform the theme song. The show did well in the ratings. Yet, despite all the love, this heartfelt tennis comedy lost out and got canceled after one season.

Image: Sony Pictures Television

11. U2

'Happiness Is a Warm Gun' for Gun

Robert Altman steered this inventive 1997 drama, an episodic crime series that followed a single pearl-handled pistol from story to story, rather than a character. Carrie Fisher, Daryl Hannah and Martin Sheen acted in it. Gun even gave James Gandolfini his first television role. U2, deep in its electro-tinged Pop phase, provided the theme, an industrial take on the Beatles classic. It lasted six episodes.

Image: ABC