Anyone who watches a lot of television probably has some appreciation for television theme songs and credit sequences. I love them. The good, the bad, and the dismal. They’re great for setting the tone for a show, and in some cases, offering exposition. However, it’s not that common for theme songs to be written or performed by those involved with the show. They’re usually outsourced to musicians or an existing piece of music is dissected for the purposes of creating the theme song.
With that said, today I’d like to look at the best Do-It-Yourself themes, those written or performed by the creator of the show, or one of the show’s stars. Honorable mentions include “The Brady Bunch Theme” (performed by the Brady Bunch kids), “My Two Days,” (performed by series star Greg Evigan), “Living Single,” (performed by series star Queen Latifah), “Gimme a Break” (performed by series star Nell Carter), and “The Facts of Life,” which was performed by Charlotte Rae (Mrs. Garret) the first season of the series.
Here, however, are the 12 best.
12. How I Met Your Mother — “Hey Beautiful,” Performed by The Solids, of which series creators Carter Bays and Craig Thomas are members.
11. Felicity, “New Version of You,” written by series creator, J.J. Abrams (and movie director, Andrew Jarecki, Capturing the Friedmans, All Good Things)
10. Frasier, “Tossed Salad and Scrambled Eggs,” performed by series star Kelsey Grammer (Fun Fact: They originally wanted Mel Torme).
9. 21 Jump Street, “21 Jump Street,” performed by Holly Robinson (with Johnny Depp and Peter DeLuise on back-up vocals; they say “Jump!”
8. Fall Guy, “Unknown Stuntman,” performed by series star, Lee Majors.
7. Mystery Science Theater 3000, “The Love Theme from MSTK 3000,” performed by the cast members of Mystery Science Theater 3000
6. Dukes of Hazzard, “Good Ole Boys, written and performed by the series narrator, Waylan Jennings.
5. All in the Family, “Those Were the Days,” performed by series stars Carroll O’Connor and Jean Stapleton.
4. Firefly, “The Ballad of Serenity,” written by series creator Joss Whedon.
3. The Muppet Theme Song, written by creator Jim Henson and performed by The Muppets.
2. Craig Ferguson, “The Late Late Show Theme Song,” co-written and performed by host Craig Gergusion.
1. Fresh Prince of Bel Air, “The Fresh Prince of Bel Air Theme Song,” written and performed by Will Smith.
