SWC75
Bored Historian
- Joined
- Aug 26, 2011
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The Mike Hammer most people think of these days was played by Stacy Keach in the 1980’s. It had a wonderful, bluesy theme:
A friend asked me what it was called and where could he get a record or tape of it. I told him to go any record store and asked for “Harlem Nocturne”. It had actually been written decades before by a legendary jazzman named Earle Hagen.
Earle Hagen - Wikipedia
In the 1950’s, Hagen became associated with the Danny Thomas organization and began TV’s most versatile composer of TV themes. He orchestrated “Danny Boy” for Thomas’ own show, Make Room for Daddy and later wrote the themes for such diverse Thomas productions as the Andy Griffith Show, the Dick Van Dyke Show, That girl but also I Spy and The Mod Squad.
I Spy was perhaps the best of all spy shows and had an opening that was designed to do what the opening of a TV show needs to do: Grab you.
I Spy -- Theme from the 60s TV Show - YouTube
Several bands took a swing at it:
Roland Shaw: I Spy Theme Song
The Starlite Orchestra from TV’s Greatest Hits: Theme From I Spy
North German Radio Dance Orchestra: Theme from "I Spy" (From "I Spy")
I like them all.
Late Hagen wrote the loud, pounding theme for The Mod Squad:
The Mod Squad 1968 - 1973 Opening and Closing Theme
What are they running from? Maybe they are just searching for some peace and quiet.
A friend asked me what it was called and where could he get a record or tape of it. I told him to go any record store and asked for “Harlem Nocturne”. It had actually been written decades before by a legendary jazzman named Earle Hagen.
Earle Hagen - Wikipedia
In the 1950’s, Hagen became associated with the Danny Thomas organization and began TV’s most versatile composer of TV themes. He orchestrated “Danny Boy” for Thomas’ own show, Make Room for Daddy and later wrote the themes for such diverse Thomas productions as the Andy Griffith Show, the Dick Van Dyke Show, That girl but also I Spy and The Mod Squad.
I Spy was perhaps the best of all spy shows and had an opening that was designed to do what the opening of a TV show needs to do: Grab you.
I Spy -- Theme from the 60s TV Show - YouTube
Several bands took a swing at it:
Roland Shaw: I Spy Theme Song
The Starlite Orchestra from TV’s Greatest Hits: Theme From I Spy
North German Radio Dance Orchestra: Theme from "I Spy" (From "I Spy")
I like them all.
Late Hagen wrote the loud, pounding theme for The Mod Squad:
The Mod Squad 1968 - 1973 Opening and Closing Theme
What are they running from? Maybe they are just searching for some peace and quiet.
