Mike Post is an American composer, best known for his TV theme music for various shows, including Law & Order; Law & Order: Special Victims Unit; The A-Team; NYPD Blue; Renegade;The Rockford Files; L.A. Law; Quantum Leap; Magnum, P.I.; and Hill Street Blues.
"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.
"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 1977 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 kick-off of every home game at Lincoln Financial Field.
"I'm Easy" is an Academy Award-winning song written and performed by Keith Carradine for the 1975 movie Nashville. Carradine recorded a slightly faster version that became a popular music hit in 1976 in the United States.
"Got a Hold on Me" is a 1984 song from Fleetwood Mac's keyboardist and vocalist Christine McVie. It was the first single released off her second solo album.
"Yesterday Once More", written by Richard Carpenter and John Bettis, is a hit song by the Carpenters from their 1973 album Now & Then. Thematically the song concerns reminiscing about songs of a generation gone by. It segues into a long medley, consisting of eight covers of 1960s tunes incorporated into a faux oldies radio program. The work takes up the entire B-side of the album.
"Love's Theme" is an instrumental piece written by Barry White in around 1965, and recorded and released as a single by White's The Love Unlimited Orchestra in 1973. It is one of the few instrumental and purely orchestral singles to reach No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in the United States, which it did in early 1974. Billboard ranked it as the No. 3 song for 1974. The piece was included on two albums: 1973's Under the Influence of... Love Unlimited and 1974's Rhapsody in White by the Love Unlimited Orchestra.
"Let It Whip" is a 1982 single by the Dazz Band and their biggest hit, peaking at number one on the R&B chart for five non-consecutive weeks. The single also reached number two on the Dance chart and number five on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. The song won the 1982 Grammy Award for Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals.
"Rainy Days and Mondays" is a 1971 song by the Carpenters, with instrumental backing by L.A. session musicians from the Wrecking Crew, that went to number 2 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. It's Too Late/I Feel the Earth Move by Carole King kept it from number 1. "Rainy Days and Mondays" was the duo's fourth number 1 song on the Adult Contemporary singles chart. However, the song failed to chart in the United Kingdom until it went to number 63 in a reissue there in 1993. "Rainy Days and Mondays" was certified Gold by the RIAA.
"Have You Never Been Mellow" is a song recorded by British-Australian singer Olivia Newton-John for her 1975 fifth studio album of the same name. Written and produced by John Farrar, the song was released as the lead single from the album in January 1975.
"Turn Your Love Around" is a pop/R&B single by George Benson. The song was written by Grammy winners Bill Champlin of Chicago, Steve Lukather of Toto and producer and guitarist Jay Graydon to help fill out Benson's 1981 greatest hits album, The George Benson Collection. The song won a Best R&B Song Grammy Award at the 25th Grammy Awards in 1983 for Champlin, Graydon, and Lukather as its co-writers.
"This Masquerade" is a song written by American singer and musician Leon Russell. It was originally recorded in 1972 by Russell for his album Carney and as a B-side for the album's hit single "Tight Rope". The song was then covered on Helen Reddy's 1972 album, I Am Woman. It was then recorded by American vocal duo, the Carpenters, for their 1973 album Now & Then and as the B-side of the Carpenters's single "Please Mr. Postman". Three years later, "This Masquerade" was recorded by American singer and guitarist George Benson, who released it on his 1976 album, Breezin'. Benson's version, featuring Jorge Dalto on piano, was released as a single and became the first big hit of his career.
"Only Yesterday" is a song recorded by the Carpenters. Released on March 14, 1975, the song was composed by Richard Carpenter, Kōji Makaino and John Bettis. "Only Yesterday" peaked at number four on the Billboard Hot 100 and number one on the Adult Contemporary (AC) charts, The Carpenters' eleventh number one on that chart.
"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 #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).
"Up, Up and Away" is a 1967 song written by Jimmy Webb and recorded by US soul-pop act the 5th Dimension, whose big hit version reached no. 7 on Billboard's Hot 100 in July 1967 and no. 9 on its Easy Listening chart. The single reached number one in both Canada and Australia. In 1999 Webb's song placed 43 on BMI's "Top 100 Songs of the Century".
"I'm in You" is the hit song released by Peter Frampton as a single from his album I'm in You, released in 1977. It rose to No. 2 on the US Billboard Hot 100 and No. 1 on the Cash Box Top 100 and in Canada, becoming his most successful single. The song was kept from reaching the top spot on Billboard by Andy Gibb's "I Just Want to Be Your Everything".
"Spinning Wheel" is a song from 1968 by the band Blood, Sweat & Tears, written by Canadian lead vocalist David Clayton-Thomas and appearing on their eponymous album.
"Also Sprach Zarathustra (2001)" is an instrumental by Brazilian musician Eumir Deodato, from his 1973 album Prelude. It is a heavily jazz-funk styled rendition of the introduction from the Richard Strauss composition Also sprach Zarathustra.
"Ships" is a song written and originally performed by British musician Ian Hunter. The song was first released on Hunter's fourth solo album, You're Never Alone with a Schizophrenic in March 1979, and later released as a single in August 1979. Hunter's release of the single never made the charts. The song is said to be about Ian's relationship with his father.
"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.
