"Just sit right back and you'll hear a tale" of a time when television shows began with awesome TV Theme Songs. "Sometimes you want to go where everybody knows your name" and sometimes you want to go back to when TV Theme songs were special. "Here's a story... of a lovely" time when TV Theme Songs served to identify, distinguish and set the stage for the television program that followed. "You take the good, take the bad, take them both and there you have" what unfortunately has become a lost artform. "Believe it or not", sadly it seems no effort or pride is taken in the TV Theme Song ever since Seinfeld proved a short synth-bass riff could be used instead. “Schlemiel! Schlimazel! Hasenpfeffer Incorporated!” This regular feature may not "make all our dreams come true", but it will remember some of the best TV Theme Songs from years past (with a focus on the '80s decade). "Come aboard, we're expecting you."
This time we will cover the theme song for Mr. Belvedere titled "According To Our New Arrival". "Streaks on the china, never mattered before, who cares." Mr. Belvedere debuted in March of 1985 and ran for six seasons and 117 episodes on ABC. It stars Christopher Hewett in the title role, but also stars one of my all-time favorites Bob Uecker. The show's theme song was written by Gary Portnoy and Judy Hart-Angelo who also wrote the incredible theme song for Cheers which you can find out about in this previous TV Theme Songs article.
"According to Our New Arrival" was actually composed in 1984 for a rejected television pilot called Help, but luckily they kept it handy and it worked perfectly for Mr. Belvedere. Portnoy ended up performing the Cheers theme song himself, but for this one they decided to have it performed by ragtime singer Leon Redbone. Having Redbone sing the song definitely gave it a unique sound especially as far as TV Theme Songs went. Here are the opening credits of Mr. Belvedere featuring “According To Our New Arrival” performed by Leon Redbone…
Mr. Belvedere surprisingly did not place within Nielsen's Top 30 shows at any time during its six-season run. However it did have a relatively solid ratings base, often winning its time slot, and is an under-rated '80s sitcom in my opinion. It also certainly has an under-rated theme song as well. "According to our new arrival, life is more than mere survival. We just might live the good life yet."
Hope you enjoyed tuning in for another "episode" of TV Theme Songs!