Strong TV Songs: Animated Edition

It's time for something a little different, as Kirk takes a look at the theme songs from some of the most beloved animated TV shows of all time.

This super-sized episode focuses on five different pieces of music, each of which is the theme for a different animated show. It's a ton of music in a variety of styles, full of frantic key shifts, earwormy melodies, bodacious drum fills, and a surprising number of saxophone solos.

FEATURED SONGS, IN ORDER:

• "The Simpsons Theme" by Danny Elfman, 1989
• "Duck Tales" by Mark Mueller, 1987
• "Rescue Rangers" by Mark Mueller, 1989
• "A Cruel Angel's Thesis" from Neon Genesis Evangelion, by Hidetoshi Satō, Neko Oikawa, and Toshiyuki Omori, 1995
• "Tank!" from Cowboy Bebop, by Yoko Kanno, 1998

ALSO REFERENCED/DISCUSSED:

• "Maria" from West Side Story's 2009 Broadway cast recording, by Leonard Bernstein
• The Batman: The Animated Series theme by Danny Elfman
• "The Disney Afternoon Theme" and "Monkey In Your Tank" performed by The Disney Afternoon Studio Chorus
• "A Cruel Angel's Thesis: Bike Horn Cover" by Alex Small-Butera on YouTube
• "Front Burner" arranged by Sammy Nestico for the Count Basie big band
• "Cat Blues" and "Sax Quartet" from the Cowboy Bebop soundtrack, both by Yoko Kanno

OUTRO SOLOIST: Rob Reich

This episode's outro soloist is the fantastic bay area pianist/accordionist Rob Reich. Rob performs all over the place with a bunch of different groups, and is a total pleasure to see play. He's got a bunch of albums you can check out and contributes to an array of interesting projects (Live silent-film scores! Circus music!) and experiments. Find more at his website, http://www.robreich.com/.

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AUGUST 2019 WHOLE-NOTE PATRONS

Caleb Rotach - Chad Barnard - Dan Apczynski - Dave Florey - Glenn - Sara Walsh

AUGUST 2019 HALF-NOTE PATRONS

Alexander Polson - Andre Bremer - Andrew Lee - Arjun Sharma - Bill Thornton - Brett Douville - Brian Amoebas - Chas Lednicky - Earl Lozada - Emily Williams - FlSHBONES - Forrest Chang - Jaehoon Jeong - James Johnson - Jasmine Fellows - Jeff Dixon - Jeffrey Olson - John and Sharon Stenglein - Jon O’Keefe - joujou - Justin Liew - Justin McElroy - Kevin Morrell - Kevin Pennyfeather - Kyle Simons - Max Schechter - Melanie Stivers - Michael Blackwell - Mueller - Nate from Kalamazoo - Nicholas Schechter - Nick Clements - Ravy Vajravelu - Richard Toller - Shane DeLeon - Tim - Tom Clewer - Tom Lauer

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