Happy Days (TV theme)

Last updated
"Happy Days"
Happy Days Pratt and McClain.jpg
Single by Pratt & McClain
from the album Pratt & McClain Featuring Happy Days
B-side "Cruisin' with the Fonz"
ReleasedMarch 1976 [1]
Recorded1975 [1]
Studio ABC, Los Angeles, California
Genre Rock, theme song
Length2:40 [1]
Label Reprise Records [1]
Songwriter(s) Charles Fox, Norman Gimbel [1]
Producer(s) Steve Barri, Michael Omartian [1]
Pratt & McClain singles chronology
""Whachersign" [2] "
(1976)
"Happy Days"
(1976)
"Devil with a Blue Dress"
(1976)

"Happy Days" is a song written by Norman Gimbel and Charles Fox. It is the theme of the 1970s television series Happy Days . [3] It can be heard during the TV show's opening and closing credits as it runs in perpetual rerun syndication.

Contents

"Happy Days" was first recorded in 1974 by Jim Haas with a group of other session singers for the first two seasons. [4] These versions were used only during the closing credits of Seasons 1 and 2, with an updated take on "Rock Around the Clock" by Bill Haley and His Comets used as the opening theme. "Happy Days" was re-recorded by Pratt & McClain at ABC Recording Studios in Los Angeles in December 1975 [5] with different lyrics for both the opening and closing credits for Seasons 3 through 10, with the duo including the song on their 1976 album Pratt & McClain Featuring Happy Days and releasing it as a single. Bobby Arvon recorded an updated version in 1983 for Season 11, with the same lyrics as the version used for seasons 3-10.

Pratt & McClain's album version of the song peaked at No. 5 on the Billboard Hot 100, [6] No. 7 on the Easy Listening chart, [6] and No. 31 on the UK Singles Chart. [7] In Canada, "Happy Days" reached No. 3. [8]

Australian band Silver Studs did a rendition of the theme for their debut album. It became their biggest hit single in Australia, reaching No. 4 in June 1976. [9]

In 2014, a re-recording of the song was used in commercials for Target. An instrumental version of the song plays in the background of some of the "Cooking with Sara" Flash games.

Personnel

Chart history

Silver Studs version

Australian group Silver Studs released a version in 1976.

Weekly charts

Weekly chart performance for Silver Studs' version
Chart (1976)Peak
position
Australia (Kent Music Report) [9] [15] 5

Year-end charts

Year-end chart performance for Silver Studs' version
Chart (1976)Position
Australia (Kent Music Report) [15] 27

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">I'll Be There for You (The Rembrandts song)</span> 1995 single by The Rembrandts, theme song of the television sitcom "Friends"

"I'll Be There for You" is a song by American pop rock duo the Rembrandts. The song was written by David Crane, Marta Kauffman, Michael Skloff, and Allee Willis as the main theme song to the NBC sitcom Friends, which was broadcast from 1994 to 2004. American rock band R.E.M. was originally asked to allow their song "Shiny Happy People" to be used for the Friends theme, but they turned the opportunity down. "I'll Be There for You" was subsequently written and Warner Bros. Television selected the only available band on Warner Bros. Records to record it: the Rembrandts. In 1995, after a Nashville radio station brought the song to mainstream popularity, Rembrandts members Danny Wilde and Phil Sōlem expanded the theme song with two new verses and included this version on their third studio album, L.P. (1995).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gonna Fly Now</span> 1977 single by Bill Conti

"Gonna Fly Now", also known as "Theme from Rocky", is the theme song from the movie Rocky, composed by Bill Conti with lyrics by Carol Connors and Ayn Robbins, and performed by DeEtta West and Nelson Pigford. Released in 1976 with Rocky, the song became part of 1970s American popular culture after the film's main character and namesake Rocky Balboa as part of his daily training regimen runs up the 72 stone steps leading to the entrance of the Philadelphia Museum of Art in Philadelphia and raises his arms in a victory pose, while the song plays. The song was written in Philadelphia. The song is often played at sporting events, especially in Philadelphia. Most notably, the Philadelphia Eagles play the song before the opening kickoff of every home game at Lincoln Financial Field.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">TSOP (The Sound of Philadelphia)</span> 1974 single by MFSB featuring The Three Degrees

"TSOP (The Sound of Philadelphia)" is a 1974 recording by MFSB featuring vocals by The Three Degrees. It was written by Gamble and Huff as the theme for the American musical television program Soul Train, which specialized in African American musical performers. The single was released on the Philadelphia International Records label. It was the first television theme song to reach No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Love Hangover</span> 1976 single by Diana Ross

"Love Hangover" is a song by the Motown singer Diana Ross, recorded in 1975 and released as a single on March 16, 1976. It rose to number one on the Billboard Hot 100 and Hot-Selling Soul Singles. It also hit number one on the Record World disco charts.

Theme from <i>Mahogany</i> (Do You Know Where Youre Going To) 1975 single by Diana Ross

"Theme from Mahogany" is a song written by Michael Masser and Gerry Goffin and produced by Masser. It was initially recorded by American singer Thelma Houston in 1973, and then by Diana Ross as the theme to the 1975 Motown/Paramount film Mahogany that also starred Ross. The song was released on September 24, 1975 by Motown Records as the lead single for both the film's soundtrack and Ross' seventh studio album, Diana Ross. Masser and Goffin received a nomination for Best Original Song at the 48th Academy Awards. Also, the song was nominated for AFI's 100 Years...100 Songs list constructed by the American Film Institute in 2004.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">True Love (Cole Porter song)</span> 1956 song by Cole Porter

"True Love" is a popular song written by American songwriter Cole Porter, published in 1956. The song was introduced by Bing Crosby and Grace Kelly in the musical film High Society. "True Love" was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Original Song. Kelly's contribution on the record is relatively minor, duetting with Crosby on only the final chorus. Nonetheless, the single is co-credited to her.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Boys Are Back in Town</span> 1976 single by Thin Lizzy

"The Boys Are Back in Town" is a song by Irish hard rock band Thin Lizzy. The song was originally released in 1976 as the first single from their album Jailbreak. It is considered by Rolling Stone to be the band's best song, placing it at No. 272 on the 2021 edition of the "500 Greatest Songs of All Time" list.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">December, 1963 (Oh, What a Night)</span> 1975 single by the Four Seasons

"December, 1963 " is a song originally performed by the Four Seasons, written by original Four Seasons keyboard player Bob Gaudio and his future wife Judy Parker, produced by Gaudio, and included on the group's album Who Loves You (1975).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">More, More, More</span> 1976 single by Andrea True

"More, More, More" is a song written by Gregg Diamond and recorded by American artist Andrea True. It was released in February 1976 as the first single from her debut album by same name (1976), becoming her signature track and one of the most popular songs of the disco era. In the US, it reached number four on the Billboard Hot 100 and spent three weeks at number three on the Cash Box chart in July of that year. In Canada it was a number one hit, and reached number five in the UK.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rhinestone Cowboy</span> 1975 single by Glen Campbell

"Rhinestone Cowboy" is a song written and recorded by Larry Weiss in 1974, then popularized the next year by American country music singer Glen Campbell. When released on May 26, 1975, as the lead single and title track from his album Rhinestone Cowboy, it enjoyed huge popularity with both country and pop audiences.

"The Chain" is a song by British-American rock band Fleetwood Mac, released on their 1977 album Rumours. It is the only song from the album with writing credits for all five members.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">If You Asked Me To</span> 1989 single by Patti LaBelle

"If You Asked Me To" is a song written by American songwriter Diane Warren and produced by Stewart Levine and Aaron Zigman. It was originally recorded by American singer Patti LaBelle for her ninth studio album, Be Yourself (1989), and also for the soundtrack to the James Bond film Licence to Kill. The song was released as the soundtrack's second single on June 12, 1989 by MCA Records. The lyrics are from the point of view of a woman who pleads to her significant other: "If you asked me to, I just might change my mind, and let you in my life forever". Three years later, Canadian singer Celine Dion covered the song for her 1992 self-titled second English-language studio album. Released as the album's second single, Dion's version topped the Canadian charts and peaked at number four on the US Billboard Hot 100.

Pratt & McClain was an American musical duo known originally called Brother Love consisting of Jerry McClain and Truett Pratt, along with various sidemen. They scored a Billboard No. 5 hit in 1976 with "Happy Days", the theme to the sitcom of the same name, written and performed in a nostalgic 1950s rock and roll style. It was their only success, making them a one-hit wonder.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Summer Breeze (song)</span> 1972 song by Seals and Crofts

"Summer Breeze" is a song written and originally recorded by American soft rock duo Seals and Crofts. It is the title track of their fourth studio album, and was released as the album's lead single in August 1972. The song reached No. 6 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in the US. In 2013, it was ranked No. 13 in Rolling Stone′s "Best Summer Songs of All Time". The song also became a hit for the Isley Brothers in 1974.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Love's Theme</span> 1973 single by the Love Unlimited Orchestra

"Love's Theme" is an instrumental piece written by Barry White around 1965. Recorded and released as a single by White's Love Unlimited Orchestra in 1973, it was one of the few instrumental and purely orchestral singles to reach #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in the United States, which it did in early 1974. Billboard ranked it as the #3 song for 1974.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Brand New Key</span> 1971 single by Melanie

"Brand New Key" is a pop song written and sung by American folk music singer Melanie. Initially a track of Melanie's album Gather Me, produced by Melanie's husband Peter Schekeryk, it was known also as "The Rollerskate Song" due to its chorus. It was her greatest success, scoring No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart during December 1971 and January 1972. Billboard ranked it as the No. 9 song of 1972. It also scored No. 1 in Canada and Australia and No. 4 on the UK Singles Chart.

Theme from <i>S.W.A.T.</i> 1975 single by Rhythm Heritage

"Theme from S.W.A.T." is an instrumental song written by Barry De Vorzon and performed by American funk group Rhythm Heritage, released on their debut album Disco-Fied. It reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart in the United States on the chart date of February 28, 1976.

"Wild One" or "Real Wild Child" is an Australian rock and roll song written by Johnny Greenan, Johnny O'Keefe, and Dave Owens. While most sources state that O'Keefe was directly involved in composing the song, this has been questioned by others. Sydney disc jockey Tony Withers was credited with helping to get radio airplay for the song but writer credits on subsequent versions often omit Withers, who later worked in the United Kingdom on pirate stations Radio Atlanta and, as Tony Windsor, on Radio London.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Then You Can Tell Me Goodbye</span> Song written by John D. Loudermilk

"Then You Can Tell Me Goodbye" is a song written by John D. Loudermilk. It was first released in 1962 by Don Cherry, as a country song and again as a doo-wop in 1967 by the group The Casinos on its album of the same name, and was a number 6 pop hit that year. The song has since been covered by Eddy Arnold, whose version was a number 1 country hit in 1968, and by Neal McCoy, whose version became a Top 5 country hit in 1996.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Beautiful Sunday (song)</span> 1972 single by Daniel Boone

"Beautiful Sunday" is a song written by Daniel Boone and Rod McQueen and performed by Boone. It appeared on his 1972 album Beautiful Sunday and was produced by Larry Page and arranged by Boone.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Pratt & Mc Lain* With Brotherlove - Happy Days". Discogs. 1976. Retrieved 14 June 2013.
  2. "Pratt & McClain | Songs". AllMusic . Retrieved 20 November 2013.
  3. "Pratt & McClain - Music Biography". AllMusic . Retrieved 14 June 2013.
  4. "Song: Happy Days". SecondHandSongs.
  5. Kirsch, Bob (7 December 1974). "Studio Track". Billboard. Retrieved 4 January 2022.
  6. 1 2 3 "Pratt & McClain - Awards". AllMusic . Retrieved 14 June 2013.
  7. 1 2 Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. p. 433. ISBN   1-904994-10-5.
  8. 1 2 RPM Top Singles, June 12, 1976
  9. 1 2 "Midoztouch Discussion Forum" . Retrieved 8 January 2015.
  10. Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 (illustrated ed.). St Ives, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book. p. 237. ISBN   0-646-11917-6.
  11. Joel Whitburn's Top Pop Singles 1955-1990 - ISBN   0-89820-089-X
  12. Cash Box Top 100 Singles, June 5, 1976
  13. "Top Singles – Volume 26, No. 14 & 15, January 08 1977". RPM . Library and Archives Canada. Archived from the original on March 19, 2016. Retrieved December 6, 2017.
  14. "Cash Box Year-End Charts: Top 100 Pop Singles, December 25, 1976". Archived from the original on October 20, 2018. Retrieved June 2, 2018.
  15. 1 2 "National Top 100 Singles for 1976". Kent Music Report. 27 December 1976. Retrieved 15 January 2022 via Imgur.