"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 Muppet Babies. "Muppet Babies, we make our dreams come true. Muppet Babies, we'll do the same for you." The animated series debuted in September of 1984 running eight seasons and 107 episodes. You can find out more about the show's origin in this article on Muppet Babies from The Retro Network. At the least for the first few seasons, this was one of my favorite cartoons of the time. The theme song for Muppet Babies was co-written by Hank Saroyan and Rob Walsh. Saroyan was a writer, story editor, voice director and composer for several children's programs mostly from the early '80s into the mid-90s. In addition to co-writing the theme song, Saroyan also held roles of voice director and supervising story editor on Muppet Babies. Walsh had started working on some Looney Tunes projects before working with Saroyan on the Dungeons & Dragons cartoon and then joining him as conductor for Muppet Babies. After that, Walsh moved on to work with Marvel Productions, where he worked as conductor on such programs as GI Joe: A Real American Hero, Transformers, Jem, Defenders of the Earth and My Little Pony in the '80s. For the Muppet Babies theme song, they used a distinctive (and catchy) '50s doo wop style. It features lyrics sung by each of the characters including Kermit, Piggy, Fozzie, Animal, Scooter, Skeeter, Rowlf, Gonzo, Bunsen and even Beeker. Then the Nanny asks, "Is everything all right in here?" to which they all reply "Yes, Nanny." The song goes along with a fast-paced introduction of some of the adventures the characters would go on thanks to their imaginations. Here is the opening for Muppet Babies featuring the theme song...
Muppet Babies was not only a commercial success, but also a critical success during its time on the air winning four consecutive Daytime Emmys for Outstanding Animated Program from 1985-1988. "Muppet Muppet Muppet Muppet. Babies Babies Babies Babies. Make dreams come true."
Hope you enjoyed tuning in for another "episode" of TV Theme Songs!