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In this double-length episode, I explore the long and prolific career of TV theme composer extraordinaire, Mike Post. His influence on TV theme music cannot be underestimated, beginning with his collaboration with his longtime partner Pete Carpenter (1973-1986), and then on up to his stellar solo career as a theme composer thereafter. This surveys covers all 51 of the shows in which Mike Post composed or co-composed the theme music, including the following series:
GRIFF (1973-74) [opening theme]
TOMA (1973-74) [opening theme]
THE ROCKFORD FILES (1974-80) [1974-75 opening theme]
BAA BAA BLACK SHEEP/THE BLACK SHEEP SQUADRON (1976-78) [opening theme]
RICHIE BROCKELMAN, PRIVATE EYE (1978) [opening theme]
THE WHITE SHADOW (1978-81) [opening theme]
THE DUKE (1979) [opening theme]
240-ROBERT (1979-81) [pilot opening theme]
BIG SHAMUS, LITTLE SHAMUS (1979) [opening theme]
-Commercial Break-
TENSPEED AND BROWN SHOE (1980) [opening theme]
MAGNUM, P.I. (1980-88) [episode 6 of season 1-1988 opening theme]
HILL STREET BLUES (1981-87) [opening theme]
THE GREATEST AMERICAN HERO (1981-83) [opening theme]
TALES OF THE GOLD MONKEY (1982-83) [opening theme]
THE QUEST (1982) [opening theme]
THE A-TEAM (1983-87) [opening theme]
HARDCASTLE AND McCORMICK (1983-86) [1983-84/1985-86 opening theme] [1984-85 opening theme]
-Commercial Break-
BAY CITY BLUES (1983) [opening theme]
RIPTIDE (1984-86) [opening theme]
HUNTER (1984-91) [1987-88 opening theme]
STINGRAY (1986-87) [opening theme]
L.A. LAW (1986-94) [opening theme]
WISEGUY (1987-90) [opening theme]
HOOPERMAN (1987-89) [opening theme]
BEVERLY HILLS BUNTZ (1987-88) [opening theme]
UNSUB (1989) [opening theme]
-The Mystery Tune-
THE ABC MYSTERY MOVIE (1989-90) [opening theme]
QUANTUM LEAP (1989-93) [1992-93 opening theme]
DOOGIE HOWSER, M.D. (1989-93) [opening theme]
TOP OF THE HILL (1989) [opening theme]
LAW & ORDER (1990-2010) [2004-05 opening theme]
BROKEN BADGES (1990-91) [opening theme]
BLOSSOM (1991-95) [opening theme]
DISNEY PRESENTS THE 100 LIVES OF BLACK JACK SAVAGE (1991) [opening theme]
-Commercial Break-
THE COMMISH (1991-95) [opening theme]
SILK STALKINGS (1991-99) [opening theme]
TEQUILA & BONETTI (1992) [opening theme]
RENEGADE (1992-97) [opening theme]
NYPD BLUE (1993-2005) [opening theme]
TRAPS (1994) [opening theme]
ROUGHNECKS (1994-95) [opening theme]
NEWSRADIO (1995-99) [opening theme]
MURDER ONE (1995-97) [opening theme]
-Commercial Break-
BROOKLYN SOUTH (1997-98) [opening theme]
PLAYERS (1997-98) [opening theme]
LAW & ORDER: SPECIAL VICTIMS UNIT (1999-present) [opening theme]
PHILLY (2001-02) [opening theme]
LAW & ORDER: CRIMINAL INTENT (2001-11) [2001-02 opening theme]
DRAGNET/L.A. DRAGNET (2003-04) [opening theme]
LAW & ORDER: TRIAL BY JURY (2005-06) [opening theme]
BLIND JUSTICE (2005) [opening theme]
I’ve included vintage commercials for Lowenbrau, Arrid Xtra-Dri, TV Guide, and Shasta Cola. And you’ll also have fun listening to some ads that my podcasting friends provided to me to promote their own great podcasts; be sure to check them out.
Note also that I’ve added a The Mystery Tune for my intrepid listeners to test their TV theme tune memory. It’s only an excerpt of a theme for a series which ran on network television (hint: the title includes the name of an aquatic mammal). Let me know what your guess is, and if you’re correct I’ll mention you on the air during the next episode of TUBE TUNES.
Many, many thanks to Zerbinator for his continued support. His encouragement and expertise are very much appreciated by me. You can find all of his fun-to-listen-to podcasts here. And I’d also like especially to thank him for providing the opening and closing theme music for Tube Tunes; all of his fantastic music can be found here. And, again, thanks are in order for him for providing TUBE TUNES with the “We’ll Be Right Back” drops heard during the podcast. Thanks, Burford.
I would also like to again thank Rob “Flack” O’Hara and Sean Johnson for adding TUBE TUNES to The Throwback Network. It’s a great place to find just about any retro-themed podcast you can think of. Please check out the network here.
Finally, my thanks to Ferg of The Atari 2600 Game by Game Podcast. His inspiration and dedication to covering every game cartridge ever made for the Atari 2600 (I think over 1000 of them!) is what gave me the courage to begin this podcast. And his continued support and promotion of TUBE TUNES on his excellent podcast is greatly appreciated by yours truly. Please, check out his podcast, even if you’re not an Atari 2600 collector; or at least visit his website here.
Next Episode: “S01E09: Out of This World” (available April 26, 2016)
