"Hill Street Blues" | ||||
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Single by Mike Post | ||||
B-side | "Aaron's Tune" | |||
Released | August 1981 | |||
Genre | Pop | |||
Label | Elektra | |||
Songwriter(s) | Mike Post | |||
Mike Post singles chronology | ||||
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"Hill Street Blues" is a 1981 instrumental by Mike Post. It is the theme from the TV series Hill Street Blues , and features Larry Carlton on guitar.
The single spent over five months on the charts and reached number 10 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100. It became an Adult Contemporary hit in the U.S. (No. 4) and Canada (No. 29). It became Post's second Top 10 hit, matching the performance of his first hit in 1975, "Theme from The Rockford Files". The single also charted in the UK (No. 25). [1]
At the 24th Annual Grammy Awards in 1982, the song won the Grammy for Best Pop Instrumental Performance with Grammys awarded to Mike Post & Larry Carlton. [2]
Mike Post is an American composer, best known for his television theme music for various shows, including The White Shadow; Law & Order; Law & Order: Special Victims Unit; The A-Team; The Byrds of Paradise; NYPD Blue; Renegade;The Rockford Files; L.A. Law; Quantum Leap; Magnum, P.I.; Hill Street Blues, and Mammoth. He was also the producer of the Van Halen III album by the band Van Halen.
James Edward Ingram was an American singer, songwriter and record producer. He was a two-time Grammy Award-winner and a two-time Academy Award nominee for Best Original Song. After beginning his career in 1973, Ingram charted eight top 40 hits on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 chart from the early 1980s until the early 1990s, as well as thirteen top 40 hits on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart. In addition, he charted 20 hits on the Adult Contemporary chart. He had two number-one singles on the Hot 100: the first, a duet with fellow R&B artist Patti Austin, 1982's "Baby, Come to Me" topped the U.S. pop chart in 1983; "I Don't Have the Heart", which became his second number-one in 1990 was his only number-one as a solo artist.
"Classical Gas" is an instrumental musical piece composed and originally performed by American guitarist Mason Williams with instrumental backing by members of the Wrecking Crew. Originally released in 1968 on the album The Mason Williams Phonograph Record, it has been rerecorded and rereleased numerous times since by Williams. One later version served as the title track of a 1987 album by Williams and the band Mannheim Steamroller.
"A Taste of Honey" is a pop standard written by Bobby Scott and Ric Marlow. It was originally an instrumental track written for the 1960 Broadway version of the 1958 British play A Taste of Honey which was also made into the film of the same name in 1961. The original and a later recording by Herb Alpert in 1965 earned the song four Grammy Awards.
Frank Mills is a Canadian pianist and recording artist, best known for his solo instrumental hit "Music Box Dancer".
Delbert McClinton is an American blues rock and electric blues singer-songwriter, guitarist, harmonica player, and pianist.
"Devoted to You" is a song written by Felice and Boudleaux Bryant.
"Elvira" is a song written and originally recorded by Dallas Frazier in 1966 on his album of the same name. Though a minor hit for Frazier at the time of release, the song became a bigger and much more famous country and pop hit by the Oak Ridge Boys in 1981. "Elvira" is now considered one of the Oak Ridge Boys' signature songs.
"All I Ever Need Is You" is a popular song written by Jimmy Holiday and Eddie Reeves, and initially recorded by Ray Charles for his 1971 album, Volcanic Action of My Soul. The most well-known version of the song is the hit single by Sonny & Cher which, in 1971, reached No. 7 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100, and was their single of greatest chart longevity, spending 15 weeks on that chart. Their album by the same title sold over 500,000 copies reaching RIAA gold status.
"Déjà Vu" is a hit 1979 ballad written by Isaac Hayes with lyricist Adrienne Anderson, recorded by Dionne Warwick for her album Dionne which Barry Manilow produced. The song won Warwick a Grammy Award for Best Female R&B Vocal Performance at the 22nd Grammy Awards.
"Break It to Me Gently" is a pop song written by blues musician Joe Seneca with lyrics by Diane Lampert. Both Brenda Lee and Juice Newton were met with considerable success with their versions of the song.
"My Maria" is a song co-written by B. W. Stevenson and Daniel Moore. Lindy Blaskey, a music publisher at ABC/Dunhill Records, thought Moore had a possible hit with his verse and chorus, but couldn't get him to finish the song, so Blaskey took what Moore had so far and asked Stevenson to finish writing it with an additional verse. David Kershenbaum, Stevenson's producer at RCA, agreed with Blaskey that it sounded like a hit and produced and released "My Maria" as a single in August 1973. The song became a Top 10 hit, peaking at No. 9 on the US pop chart. It remained in the Top 40 for twelve weeks. In addition, "My Maria" spent one week at No. 1 on the US adult contemporary chart. The guitar portion of the track was played by Larry Carlton. A cover version by Brooks & Dunn reached No. 1 on the US country music chart and won the 1997 Grammy for Country Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal.
"Grazing in the Grass" is an instrumental composed by Philemon Hou and first recorded by the South African trumpeter Hugh Masekela. Released in the United States as a single in 1968, it followed United States trumpeter Herb Alpert's vocal performance of "This Guy's in Love with You" to the top spot on the Hot 100 chart, ranking it as the 18th biggest hit of the year. The song also reached No. 15 Adult Contemporary. Masekela included the song in his albums Grazing in the Grass: The Best of Hugh Masekela (2001), Still Grazing (2004), and Live at the Market Theatre (2006).
"Love Will Turn You Around" is a song by American country music singer Kenny Rogers. It was released in June 1982 as the first single and title track from Rogers' album of the same name. It is also the theme song to Rogers' 1982 film Six Pack. Rogers wrote the song with Thom Schuyler, David Malloy and Even Stevens.
"Lost in the Fifties Tonight (In The Still of the Night)", a single released by country music singer Ronnie Milsap. It is a medley of "Lost in the Fifties Tonight" written by Mike Reid and Troy Seals and a cover of The Five Satins' 1956 hit "In the Still of the Night", earning a songwriting credit for Five Satins lead singer Fred Parris.
"Share Your Love with Me" is a song written by Alfred Braggs and Deadric Malone. It was originally recorded by blues singer Bobby "Blue" Bland. Over the years, the song has been covered by various artists, most notably Aretha Franklin who won a Grammy Award for her 1969 rendition. Other artists who covered the song include The Band in 1973, Kenny Rogers in 1981, and most recently, Van Morrison in 2016.
"A Very Special Love Song" is the title of a 1974 song by country music singer Charlie Rich. The song was written by Billy Sherrill and Norro Wilson, songwriters who had also written Rich's 1973 hit, "The Most Beautiful Girl". The song is included on Rich's 1974 album, Very Special Love Songs.
"Theme from The Greatest American Hero" is a song composed by Mike Post with lyrics by Stephen Geyer, and sung by American singer Joey Scarbury. It serves as the theme song for the 1980s television series The Greatest American Hero. The track was later included on Scarbury's 1981 debut album America's Greatest Hero.
"One Hundred Ways" is a 1981 single released from Quincy Jones's album The Dude on A&M Records. The song features James Ingram on vocals. The song reached number 14 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 in 1982. It was a bigger Adult Contemporary hit, reaching number five in the U.S. and number six in Canada. "One Hundred Ways" received the 1982 Grammy Award for Best R&B Vocal Performance.
"The Rockford Files" is a 1975 instrumental by Mike Post and co-composer Pete Carpenter. The song is the theme from the American detective drama TV series The Rockford Files, starring James Garner. It appears at the opening and ending of each episode with different arrangements. Throughout the show's tenure, the theme song went through numerous evolutions, with later versions containing a distinct electric guitar bridge section played by session guitarist Dan Ferguson.