The catchiest TV sitcom theme songs
They get you in the zone. CONSTANTINOS PSILLIDES picks which he thinks are the best
Everybody loves a catchy theme song. It sets the tone, maybe gives some info to the viewer, and gets you mentally to the place you need to be to enjoy what you are watching. And out of all the genres of TV, sitcoms have always had the catchiest of tunes! Since this is August and everyone is on vacation, lift your spirits with the best sitcom theme songs ever written!
Charles In Charge
Charles in Charge told the story of the titular Charles (Scott Baio), a college student who becomes a live-in babysitter for the Pembroke family. It was known for its light-hearted humour and family-friendly themes.
The theme song is iconic and sets the sitcom premise: Charles is in charge of our lives, of our days and our nights! Composed by David Kurtz and Al Burton, with lyrics by Michael Jacobs.
While light-hearted as every sitcom should be, the theme song is about the only thing good about Charles in Charge now. The lead actor took a hard right-wing turn in recent years, becoming a fringe conspiracy theorist. On top of that, actors from the sit-com set accused him of sexual harassment and molestation.
Happy Days
The granddaddy of modern sitcom, Happy Days aired from 1974 to 1984. The show was set in the 1950s and early 1960s and revolved around the Cunningham family, who lived in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. The central character of the show was Richie Cunningham and later his best friend, the cool Arthur ‘Fonzie’ Fonzarelli, played by Henry Winkler.
The theme song will live rent free in my mind until the end of time. It is physically impossible for me to hear ‘Sunday, Monday’ and not have that tune take over. Written by Norman Gimbel and Charles Fox.
This show made TV history for a number of reasons, one of them being that it gave us the term for when a TV show has run its creative course and it counts on ridiculous plots to keep audience interest.
In one episode, Fonzie and Co go to the beach and he begrudgingly accepts to jet ski, wearing his iconic leather jacket of course. To make things more interesting, Fonzie announces that he will be jumping over a shark tank. Today when a show is in decline in quality we say that it “jumped the shark”.
Where everybody knows your name
You just got off work, it’s been another crappy day and the prospect of going home is not appealing. What do you do? Well, you go where everybody knows your name and they are always glad you came!
Cheers aired from 1982 to 1993 and it is set in a Boston bar, where the quirky patrons are all familiar with each other and interact in often hilarious and sometimes emotional ways.
The theme song, Where Everybody Knows Your Name, was written by Gary Portnoy and Judy Hart Angelo and encapsulates the essence of the show, emphasising the sense of community and camaraderie among its patrons.
Cheers was a much-beloved sitcom, and it was to be expected that spin-offs would follow. After the show ended viewers got to know one of the patrons better, the always uptight Frasier! Frasier was a huge success in its own right, spanning eleven seasons.
Friends
When you go into any discussion about unforgettable sitcom theme songs, Friends has to be among the top three. Running from 1994 to 2004 Friends is not a sitcom but a global cultural phenomenon, telling the story of six 20-something friends in New York.
The iconic hit theme song, I’ll Be There For You, should be credited with a lot of the success, as it is instantly recognisable almost anywhere in the world.
The pop-rock duo Rembrandts initially wrote the song as a jingle but due to its massive success, they composed a full song!
Thank you for being a friend
While Friends nowadays draws criticism both for its tone and its writing, there is one TV show that is more celebrated and appreciated now than when it originally aired. Golden Girls aired from 1985 to 1992 and tells the story of four older women who decide to live together instead of living alone in their homes. It was almost inconceivable at the time to have a sitcom focusing on older women. The show tackled many controversial social issues, such as the importance of partnership for older people, AIDS, and LGBTQ issues.
The theme song is what the show is all about. Thank You For Being a Friend by Andrew Gold.