You’ve hit so many notes with this post, Steve--bringing me back to my favorite shows from childhood (The Cosby Show and Family Ties were weekly staples) and touching on my present with aging parents, one with what I’m sure is the onset of dementia. And then there’s the pile of muck from last year that I have just clawed my way out of--helping my unmarried brother with stem cell transplant needs as well as getting my 21yo son into long-term treatment for his opioid addiction (can we talk about how expensive *that* was?!). I find myself needed a freaking break from being needed. I’m sure you’re there too. Please take some time for yourself.
Thanks for the comment, Holly. Yeah, I've been following a bit of your story of being a stem cell donor and your son's addiction struggles. A break from being needed! Oh my gosh, that would be so fantastic, though feels like a far-off fantasy. I guess I don't mind being needed, it's more the "needing to be needed" or "being the only one who can responsibly handle things." Or thinking that to be the case even when it's not. But for me, it truly feels like I am the only one who can help with my aunt and my aging parents, as I'm the only other living family member. There was an excellent episode of Fresh Air last week with Dr. Sandeep Jauhar, who talks of the complexities around taking care of his father who had Alzheimers. He also wrote a book about it called "My Father's Brain." Haven't read it but I plan to.
I've seen Family Times so many times and it's strange that I totally do not remember this theme song. Listening again—as for the first time—find it totally null and void of any memorable hook and lacking soul.
The TV show theme song that utterly fascinated me was Barney Miller. Driven by it's memorable bass line. A jazz fusion guitar solo sitting on top. Dated sounds but that bass... hooky as hell.
I always interpreted the theme song through the perspective of the parents. It was their love, their story, their history, and their travels into the family life as they raised kids - one of whom had different political ideals. The story was supposed to center on the parents and their relationship with the world.
I think where the song goes sideways in our memories is the rise of Michael J Fox as an actor and comedian. He kind of steals the show from the parents and it begins to center more on him and *his* relationship to the world.
I remember reading somewhere that the shift was a conflict among the cast -- the attention focus, and even the compensation of Fox.
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I’m sorry to hear about your aunt, and of course the emotional toll that takes on you as a caregiver. Take care of yourself, too.
Thanks, Jen. Yeah, I read that the original focus was on the parents and so the song was more about their relationship. But by the 10th episode of season 1 it was already clear that MJFox was the standout of the show, yet instead of recording a different, more family-oriented theme song, the producers remade the same song, even adding more soulfulness and "romantic" undertones. I didn't and don't have any issue with that at all, it's just odd to me, looking back 40-ish years later.
I am a serious Canadianophile. I lived on Vancouver Island for a year (in my 20s) and if I could I would be a dual citizen. I don't like to generalize, but you Canooks are the bomb-diggity (which I learned Perry Como coined "diggity" and the "bomb" part came from '90s era hip hop).
But what about ones with lyrics? I will probably cover the instrumental themes in a separate post. But Magnum PI was one of the best. Also Rockford Files.
The opening theme for WKRP in Cincinnati (apparently that’s the song’s “title” as well) was always my favorite with lyrics. The MASH opening, “Suicide Is Painless” which if IIRC was instrumental for the TV show, but sung in the film as part of the plot is runner up.
I hope there’s no reboot of Family Ties and I remember as a kid feeling the cringe factor of this love ballad being theme music for show about a family. It was so weird but like most kids I brushed it off and banked it somewhere deep in my consciousness never to be expelled until now. Thanks for this. I needed it. I’m sorry to hear about all the health troubles with you aunt. Can only imagine the amount of daily load of stress and worry it is creating. She’s lucky to have you. I keep doing something lately where I take a moment to say “ok got this done. This is a good thing. This is enabling x,yz. While it’s not what I normally consider as success or that accelerated outcome I desired it’s progress because bringing this information to the surface means people are now aware of something that they weren’t before. This is something. I can treat and care for myself by doing (fill in the blank)” it seems so elementary but it’s helping me get through the hard moments with a better framing than all or nothing which is my typical speed.
I would think they would do Facts of Life before Family Ties, but nothing would surprise me at this point. It could even be an animated show. And I feel less alone in recognizing the inappropriateness of the theme song. Thanks for commiserating. I do recognize all that I'm doing to help my aunt, I just wish I could trust that the people I rely on to handle things I can't do from afar would be reliable. I have control issues, but I'm willing to let go of some if I can see evidence that other people are pulling their weight.
My heart goes out to you Steve. I was lucky in that when my mom went, it was relatively quick. It was cancer, and she was tough--almost beat it, but after six years it took a sudden turn and that was it. Six weeks sitting with her and riding herd on the nurses and assistants. It has gotten much worse, of course. Our medical system was gutted by the pandemic, and the abuse a lot of nurses and doctors took drove a lot of them out for good.
Have to say, I never saw the show, and was wondering why, when I had to smack my head as I remembered, that was in the heart of my TV-free phase. Literally, thirty years without a TV in the home. One time after we (my then-housemates and I) had had guests over, two of them showed up on our doorstep a couple of days later and presented us with a TV. They felt so sorry for us that we didn't have one that they donated one. We set it up in the living room as a shrine.
So I missed a lot of pop culture that my peers take for granted, but then the world caught up in the form of the internet and now most of my friends don't have TVs--instead we zombie out in front of computers. Not sure that's actual progress, based on all the talk of how social media are destroying our kids' lives.
So what TV theme songs can I remember? The Banana Splits. Does that even count? The Pink Panther. Hawaii Five O. I Dream of Jeannie. Star Trek (the original series). Mission Impossible. Sitcoms specifically? The Odd Couple. The Flintstones.....
So, crossing fingers for you and your aunt. Have you tried sleeping with ambient music or ocean sounds playing? Works for me....
Thanks Charles. 30 years without a TV is a pretty impressive accomplishment from where I sit. I grew up in a TV-centric home. Books and music were "my thing" -- no one else in the immediate family cared at all about either. I loved TV too, just not as much. So glad I didn't grow up in the age of streaming.
You probably know that I wrote about The Banana Splits many months back. That was a tough earworm to quiet. I always loved the theme songs that tended to explain the setup for the show. Like The Flintstones and Gilligan's Island.
Ambient music and ocean sounds are strangely too quiet and meditative. I'm like Rick Rubin: we need to hear voices in order to reach slumber. (I heard him talking about it and it so resonated.)
That reminds me of a friend who moved from Bleecker St. in New York to the countryside. I asked her a few weeks later how things were going, and she said "I can't seem to sleep without the sound of bottles breaking on pavement." Now I have to go back and revisit your Banana Splits piece. La La La....oh, crap.
All my best to your aunt, of course, Steve, but as a former family-member caregiver, a gentle reminder: Take care of the caregiver. I just love how you're able to so engagingly weave personal angst and challenges with tuneage and pop culture! Man, you deserve a huger audience! Keep it the hell up!
Never saw "Family Ties"--its '80s run was right in my pop culture dead zone (plus, I was 27 when it debuted), with the middle-third of the decade spent earning my BA, then wrapping up the decade in youth ministry, utilizing my sheepskin! Was certainly aware of it, though!
Was fun to see Tom Hanks in what must've been an early role.
As for "Family Ties" remakes, I'm afraid it's true (go with me on this! It's all true, I premise!): The Keatons inherit a rubber plant, and decide to specialize in automobile wheels....that's right, it's "Family Tires." No? The Keatons buy a haberdashery, name it "Ascots, Chapeaus & Bolos." Yes, Thursday nights, it's appointment TV in "Family Ties (and Millinery)."
As for sitcom theme songs, I've always been partial to the ones attached to the shows I've loved since kidhood: "I Love Lucy" ("...and she loves me; we're as happy as two can be. Sometimes we quarrel, but then, how we love making up again.") Didn't know it had lyrics? "The Dick Van Dyke Show" with a theme written by Earle Hagen (who also composed "The Andy Griffith Show" theme, another fave). Lyrics for "Dick Van Dyke" were later provided by Morey Amsterdam (the role of Buddy in the show), and Dick has recently taken to singing it at various events (vids are numerous).
I would be remiss if I didn't mention the two sitcoms FR&B's Stephen Michael Schwartz was in....1978's "Please Stand By" and 1981's "The Music Shoppe," for which he wrote and sang the theme song (with co-stars Nia Peeples and Benny Medina). A clip from said show, and Stephen's recollections of the production, in his own words, can be found here: https://bradkyle.substack.com/p/sticking-to-script-amid-1981-cable A link to the story of "Please Stand By" can be found in that article. Thanks, Steve!
Thanks Brad. My thanks is for your causing me to soil my shirt with spat coffee after reading about “Family Tires.” It was time to re”tire” that shirt anyway!
That's a lot to deal with. I hope your Aunt Arlene bounces back. I see nyquil has a sleep aid without the cold medicine in it...I use cannabis drops occasionally.
Thanks, Toots! No cold medicine? Where's the fun in that? Yes, I do have CBD mints that I take on occasion but sometimes it's too mild. THC drops (even in combo with CBD) often do the opposite and amp me up.
And yes, quite the earworm! It's the last line and the "shalalalah" that I keep cycling on repeat!
You’ve hit so many notes with this post, Steve--bringing me back to my favorite shows from childhood (The Cosby Show and Family Ties were weekly staples) and touching on my present with aging parents, one with what I’m sure is the onset of dementia. And then there’s the pile of muck from last year that I have just clawed my way out of--helping my unmarried brother with stem cell transplant needs as well as getting my 21yo son into long-term treatment for his opioid addiction (can we talk about how expensive *that* was?!). I find myself needed a freaking break from being needed. I’m sure you’re there too. Please take some time for yourself.
Thanks for the comment, Holly. Yeah, I've been following a bit of your story of being a stem cell donor and your son's addiction struggles. A break from being needed! Oh my gosh, that would be so fantastic, though feels like a far-off fantasy. I guess I don't mind being needed, it's more the "needing to be needed" or "being the only one who can responsibly handle things." Or thinking that to be the case even when it's not. But for me, it truly feels like I am the only one who can help with my aunt and my aging parents, as I'm the only other living family member. There was an excellent episode of Fresh Air last week with Dr. Sandeep Jauhar, who talks of the complexities around taking care of his father who had Alzheimers. He also wrote a book about it called "My Father's Brain." Haven't read it but I plan to.
I've seen Family Times so many times and it's strange that I totally do not remember this theme song. Listening again—as for the first time—find it totally null and void of any memorable hook and lacking soul.
The TV show theme song that utterly fascinated me was Barney Miller. Driven by it's memorable bass line. A jazz fusion guitar solo sitting on top. Dated sounds but that bass... hooky as hell.
Same! We watched this show every week, and I really never thought about this theme song!
I always interpreted the theme song through the perspective of the parents. It was their love, their story, their history, and their travels into the family life as they raised kids - one of whom had different political ideals. The story was supposed to center on the parents and their relationship with the world.
I think where the song goes sideways in our memories is the rise of Michael J Fox as an actor and comedian. He kind of steals the show from the parents and it begins to center more on him and *his* relationship to the world.
I remember reading somewhere that the shift was a conflict among the cast -- the attention focus, and even the compensation of Fox.
-
I’m sorry to hear about your aunt, and of course the emotional toll that takes on you as a caregiver. Take care of yourself, too.
Thanks, Jen. Yeah, I read that the original focus was on the parents and so the song was more about their relationship. But by the 10th episode of season 1 it was already clear that MJFox was the standout of the show, yet instead of recording a different, more family-oriented theme song, the producers remade the same song, even adding more soulfulness and "romantic" undertones. I didn't and don't have any issue with that at all, it's just odd to me, looking back 40-ish years later.
Wish you and your aunt all the best.
Thanks for the personal story, Steve.
I've always liked Michael J Fox. He is Canadian, eh.
I am a serious Canadianophile. I lived on Vancouver Island for a year (in my 20s) and if I could I would be a dual citizen. I don't like to generalize, but you Canooks are the bomb-diggity (which I learned Perry Como coined "diggity" and the "bomb" part came from '90s era hip hop).
Sending all the good vibes I got to you & your aunt. That's a tough spot to be in.
As for TV themes, no list is complete w/o Magnum PI and Dallas on it.
But what about ones with lyrics? I will probably cover the instrumental themes in a separate post. But Magnum PI was one of the best. Also Rockford Files.
The opening theme for WKRP in Cincinnati (apparently that’s the song’s “title” as well) was always my favorite with lyrics. The MASH opening, “Suicide Is Painless” which if IIRC was instrumental for the TV show, but sung in the film as part of the plot is runner up.
https://www.songfacts.com/facts/steve-carlisle/wkrp-in-cincinnati-theme
My favorite instrumental only theme song was from the TV series “Combat!”, with slower muted riffs from that often used during scenes to set a mood
http://jodavidsmeyer.com/combat/personnel/Sound_of_Combat.html
🎶As long as we keep on givin'
we can take anything that comes our way 🎶
I had to look that up! Ha - that is a definite earworm. And wasn't expecting that answer!
It's /still/ stuck in my head!
I hope there’s no reboot of Family Ties and I remember as a kid feeling the cringe factor of this love ballad being theme music for show about a family. It was so weird but like most kids I brushed it off and banked it somewhere deep in my consciousness never to be expelled until now. Thanks for this. I needed it. I’m sorry to hear about all the health troubles with you aunt. Can only imagine the amount of daily load of stress and worry it is creating. She’s lucky to have you. I keep doing something lately where I take a moment to say “ok got this done. This is a good thing. This is enabling x,yz. While it’s not what I normally consider as success or that accelerated outcome I desired it’s progress because bringing this information to the surface means people are now aware of something that they weren’t before. This is something. I can treat and care for myself by doing (fill in the blank)” it seems so elementary but it’s helping me get through the hard moments with a better framing than all or nothing which is my typical speed.
I would think they would do Facts of Life before Family Ties, but nothing would surprise me at this point. It could even be an animated show. And I feel less alone in recognizing the inappropriateness of the theme song. Thanks for commiserating. I do recognize all that I'm doing to help my aunt, I just wish I could trust that the people I rely on to handle things I can't do from afar would be reliable. I have control issues, but I'm willing to let go of some if I can see evidence that other people are pulling their weight.
My heart goes out to you Steve. I was lucky in that when my mom went, it was relatively quick. It was cancer, and she was tough--almost beat it, but after six years it took a sudden turn and that was it. Six weeks sitting with her and riding herd on the nurses and assistants. It has gotten much worse, of course. Our medical system was gutted by the pandemic, and the abuse a lot of nurses and doctors took drove a lot of them out for good.
Have to say, I never saw the show, and was wondering why, when I had to smack my head as I remembered, that was in the heart of my TV-free phase. Literally, thirty years without a TV in the home. One time after we (my then-housemates and I) had had guests over, two of them showed up on our doorstep a couple of days later and presented us with a TV. They felt so sorry for us that we didn't have one that they donated one. We set it up in the living room as a shrine.
So I missed a lot of pop culture that my peers take for granted, but then the world caught up in the form of the internet and now most of my friends don't have TVs--instead we zombie out in front of computers. Not sure that's actual progress, based on all the talk of how social media are destroying our kids' lives.
So what TV theme songs can I remember? The Banana Splits. Does that even count? The Pink Panther. Hawaii Five O. I Dream of Jeannie. Star Trek (the original series). Mission Impossible. Sitcoms specifically? The Odd Couple. The Flintstones.....
So, crossing fingers for you and your aunt. Have you tried sleeping with ambient music or ocean sounds playing? Works for me....
Thanks Charles. 30 years without a TV is a pretty impressive accomplishment from where I sit. I grew up in a TV-centric home. Books and music were "my thing" -- no one else in the immediate family cared at all about either. I loved TV too, just not as much. So glad I didn't grow up in the age of streaming.
You probably know that I wrote about The Banana Splits many months back. That was a tough earworm to quiet. I always loved the theme songs that tended to explain the setup for the show. Like The Flintstones and Gilligan's Island.
Ambient music and ocean sounds are strangely too quiet and meditative. I'm like Rick Rubin: we need to hear voices in order to reach slumber. (I heard him talking about it and it so resonated.)
That reminds me of a friend who moved from Bleecker St. in New York to the countryside. I asked her a few weeks later how things were going, and she said "I can't seem to sleep without the sound of bottles breaking on pavement." Now I have to go back and revisit your Banana Splits piece. La La La....oh, crap.
All my best to your aunt, of course, Steve, but as a former family-member caregiver, a gentle reminder: Take care of the caregiver. I just love how you're able to so engagingly weave personal angst and challenges with tuneage and pop culture! Man, you deserve a huger audience! Keep it the hell up!
Never saw "Family Ties"--its '80s run was right in my pop culture dead zone (plus, I was 27 when it debuted), with the middle-third of the decade spent earning my BA, then wrapping up the decade in youth ministry, utilizing my sheepskin! Was certainly aware of it, though!
Was fun to see Tom Hanks in what must've been an early role.
As for "Family Ties" remakes, I'm afraid it's true (go with me on this! It's all true, I premise!): The Keatons inherit a rubber plant, and decide to specialize in automobile wheels....that's right, it's "Family Tires." No? The Keatons buy a haberdashery, name it "Ascots, Chapeaus & Bolos." Yes, Thursday nights, it's appointment TV in "Family Ties (and Millinery)."
As for sitcom theme songs, I've always been partial to the ones attached to the shows I've loved since kidhood: "I Love Lucy" ("...and she loves me; we're as happy as two can be. Sometimes we quarrel, but then, how we love making up again.") Didn't know it had lyrics? "The Dick Van Dyke Show" with a theme written by Earle Hagen (who also composed "The Andy Griffith Show" theme, another fave). Lyrics for "Dick Van Dyke" were later provided by Morey Amsterdam (the role of Buddy in the show), and Dick has recently taken to singing it at various events (vids are numerous).
I would be remiss if I didn't mention the two sitcoms FR&B's Stephen Michael Schwartz was in....1978's "Please Stand By" and 1981's "The Music Shoppe," for which he wrote and sang the theme song (with co-stars Nia Peeples and Benny Medina). A clip from said show, and Stephen's recollections of the production, in his own words, can be found here: https://bradkyle.substack.com/p/sticking-to-script-amid-1981-cable A link to the story of "Please Stand By" can be found in that article. Thanks, Steve!
Thanks Brad. My thanks is for your causing me to soil my shirt with spat coffee after reading about “Family Tires.” It was time to re”tire” that shirt anyway!
That's a lot to deal with. I hope your Aunt Arlene bounces back. I see nyquil has a sleep aid without the cold medicine in it...I use cannabis drops occasionally.
That song is quite the ear worm. Shalalalah!
Thanks, Toots! No cold medicine? Where's the fun in that? Yes, I do have CBD mints that I take on occasion but sometimes it's too mild. THC drops (even in combo with CBD) often do the opposite and amp me up.
And yes, quite the earworm! It's the last line and the "shalalalah" that I keep cycling on repeat!