Since cave dwellers painted pictures on the walls, mankind has been entranced with illustrated images. We love to let our imagination run wild as we watch the pictures flicker and tell their tales, and musicians have not been immune to their charms. Since the advent of modern animation, songs and musical scores have been used to help the cartoons connect with the viewer on more emotional levels that silence could never attain.
The music featured in these cartoons were, like the pictures they accompanied, were burned in the minds of viewers forever. Here’s a list of twenty-five of the coolest cases of bands paying homage to favorite music from the world of animation. We’ll start with the newest piece, a just-released album of songs dedicated to one of the hottest new cartoons to come along in recent years…
1. “Dance Bitch (The Rick & Morty Song)” by Allie Goertz
Allie Goertz doesn’t just love cartoons, she lives for them. As a comedienne she jokes about it; her Twitter account features hundreds of thousands of thoughts about it. She hosts a pair of podcasts discussing her favorite TV shows. (The Simpsons and Twin Peaks) As a musician she has written dozens of folksy songs about everything from Game of Thrones to the Steve Martin move “The Jerk”.
So it’s not much of a surprise that her latest album, “Sad Dance Songs,” is a tribute to one of her more beloved cartoon obsessions, Rick and Morty. What may raise eyebrows is her new sound, a mix pop proto-electronica and pure pop sensibilities. While the imagery can be a tad nihilistic, the beats are a complete call to the dance floor. Far beyond getting the blessing from the shows creators, producer and actor Alex Hirsch appear on the songs along with clips from episodes of the series.
Rick and Morty is the brainchild of Dan Harmon and Justin Roiland, and grew out of Los Angeles’ infamous Channel 101 Film Festival. Originally nothing more than a dark parody of the Back To The Future films, the show grew into a warped weekly series that has a world-wide following. Goertz’s love for the show sparked her creative side, and what sprang to life from that spark was something she had to share with the world.
2. “The Simpsons Theme” by Sonic Youth
Matt Groening‘s sketches pitched to the “The Tracey Ullman Show” won his honest, animated American family a recurring spot on her show. From there, a multi-billion dollar world wide phenomenon would sprout catch phrases, controversies and enough licensed products to circle the Earth with t-shirts and toys many times over. From put bumbling beer guzzling Homer, beleaguered wife Marge, young hellion Bart, nerdy Lisa and quietly sinister Maggie, they are the stars of the longest running scripted show in television history.
Over the show’s 27 years, there have been guest stars from every facet of the entertainment industry, including many musical icons. The show has long had many musical admirers lining up to participate from The Beatles, U2 and Michael Jackson, to more edgy fare like the Red Hot Chili Peppers, The White Stripes and the next entrant on our list, Sonic Youth. Sonic Youth, hailing from the Pacific Northwest, lent their voices to the episode “Homerpalooza” which featured a slew of bands, including Cypruss Hill and The Smashing Pumpkins.
Sonic Youth went above and beyond the call of duty, and worked up a short and sweet, punk powered rendition of the shows beloved theme. Check it out below!
3. “The Flintstones Theme” by James Morrison & The Schagerl All-Star Big Band
What began as a stone age send up of Jackie Gleason‘s golden age of television classic The Honeymooners became America’s first prime time hit animated series…The Flintstones. Though animation studio owners William Hanna and Joseph Barbara claimed they weren’t purposefully emulating the Honeymooners at the time they were making the show, they have since made the most obvious confessions ever by admitting it was one of their main points of reference. Their creation supplanted its original inspiration in the public consciousness.
The show’s original theme, a bouncy instrumental called “Rise And Shine” itself was replaced after the first two seasons, and the beloved sing-a-long version was introduced. It’s so much a part of our collective societal brain that you’d be hard put to find someone who couldn’t finish singing it if you simply fed them the intro “Flintstones…meet the Flintstones…” When James Morrison decided to cover it with an All Star orchestra in Germany, he knew he didn’t even NEED a vocalist for his version of the shows theme, “Meet the Flintstones.” Check out a live version of his rearrangement below.
4. “Arthur” Theme by Chance The Rapper
The educational cartoon Arthur was based on the books of Mark Brown, and followed the anthropomorphic 8 year-old aardvark through his adventures in Elwood City. The show, like it’s source material, was designed to introduce young viewers to some of the more complicated issues they were going to be facing on their march to adulthood. The shows upbeat, hopeful tone was set each episode with the theme song, written by by Judy Henderson and Jerry de Villiers Jr. and performed by Ziggy Marley and the Melody Makers.
Obviously Chicago’s Chance The Rapper has strong memories of the show, as evidenced by his gathering of Wyclef Jean, Francis & The Lights, Jessie Ware, Elle Varner, Eryn Allen Kane, The O’My’s, Peter Cottonale, and Donnie Trumpet to record a joyous version in 2014. Open the link below and open your heart.
5. “The Powerpuff Girls Theme” by Postmodern Jukebox
Craig McCracken‘s all ages pre-teen super hero trio The Powerpuff Girls won hearts and minds instantly after its debut in 1998, instantly becoming the highest viewed original program on Cartoon Network in all age groups. We watched Blossom, Bubbles and Buttercup defend “The Town” from an outlandish assortment of retro styled lunatics, villains and monster, while learning to be the best girls the could. A simplistic animation style belied a more adult edge to the stories and jokes, and it enjoyed a six year run and a strong merchandising presence that continues to this day.
New Jersey born jazz pianist Scott Bradlee has struck internet gold with his ever evolving musical sensation Postmodern Jukebox, with his videos regularly breaking ten million views. No song or genre is safe from his paint brush, as he remakes each song with an ear bent towards the classical and an eye for style. Here he is with a hand picked band ready to take on the theme to the nineties pre teen riot grrls deconstructionist classic theme to McCracken’s creation.
Let’s give a listen to Postmodern Jukebox’s take, below:
6. “Yellow Submarine” by Stary Olsa
Tracking the career of The Beatles is a bit like watching a child grow into adulthood. From their simple early creations to the complex concepts and layered nuance they found later in their career, the Fab Four never stopped pushing boundaries. Though their first foray into animation was a more standard Saturday morning kids show, their later works in the field was, like their music, far more psychedelic in its leanings. Yellow Submarine was the fourth film to feature the band, and was their first fully animated feature in which they appeared.
Though they had originally intended to do their own character’s voices, the band was limited by time to only overdubbing one scene used at the end. The songs were all theirs however, and the animation itself was both ground breaking and a large stride towards the medium being afforded the same artistic merit as live action cinema. Directed by George Dunning, the film followed an assault on a pacifistic underwater community under the protection of stylized avatars of the Beatles.
Everything else aside, this song had to be on the list for sheer time-warpedness. Stary Olsa, a Belarusian medieval folk band, was pleasantly surprised to find out that their music was being heard around the world thanks to websites like YouTube and Facebook. The success of songs like their cover of The Beatles psychedelic pop animated film “Yellow Submarine” has earned them fans on every continent. There’s a bonus version of “Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da” thrown in to double your pleasure!
7. “Animaniacs Theme” by the original voice cast members of “Animaniacs” including Rob Paulsen, Tress MacNeille, and Jess Harnell.
Warner Brothers was responsible for some of animations most beloved early characters, and in the early nineties they brought in Steven Spielberg to help them launch their newest series, Animaniacs. Centered around the conceit that the Warner Brothers characters co-existed with the studio itself, the show followed the Warner siblings, Yakko, Wakko and Dot. As the story went, the trio had been locked in the studio’s water tower since for decades, and were now free to roam and have fresh adventures.
Frequently breaking into song, dropping current pop culture references and poking a sarcastic views at some cartoon and societal conventions, the show was a hit, spawning a variety of other characters spin offs, including Pinky & The Brain. A key factor in the show was the sterling voice over work done by Rob Paulsen, Tress MacNeille and Jess Harnell. The Warner siblings were given incredibly recognizable personalities by a blend of the voice work and expressive animation style.
The trio of voice actors has been known to join symphonies for live renditions of the theme song. Watch one such performance below:
8. “Family Guy Theme” by Frank Sinatra Jr.
Seth MacFarlane‘s hilariously off kilter Family Guy established him as one of the modern animation eras most powerful comedic voices. Though the show’s often edgy, in your face humor draws numerous complaints from the more faint of heart, there’s no denying it’s lasting appeal and fearless attitude. Not even being cancelled kept the Pawtucket, Rhode Island family from the airwaves, as they stormed back from the dead to win multiple Awards and sell more DVDs than the population of the state it’s set in.
Guest star Frank Sinatra Jr. brought his old school crooning to the show for a memorable couple of appearances. When the things you’re most known for go in the descending order of:
A. Your famous Father
B. The fact that you were kidnapped and ransomed back and lastly…
C. Your singing voice…it would be easy to understand if Sinatra Jr. had been bitter and cranky. Happily, that’s not even close to the truth, and the famous son has no problem poking fun at himself, as he did on an episode of MacFarlane’s Family Guy. Check out his swinging rendition below:
9. “Spiderman Theme” by The Ramones
Marvel Comics burst on the 60’s comic book rack’s thanks largely to the popularity of their teenage super hero, the Amazing Spider-Man. Discarding the square jawed perfection that had marked previous heroes, Spidey was a modern teen with modern problems. Following his triumphs and tragedies became something even older kids started to do in droves, as the medium slowly started to lose it’s juvenile stigma. A cartoon version of his adventures took the airwaves shortly after his comic debut, and though the animation was crude, the plots and design work earned it a fond place in the hearts of a generation.
That generation grew, and four of them came together in New York to found the prototypical punk band known as The Ramones. With a stripped down sound, an aggressive air of menace and a complete lack of pretension the band took the stage by storm. Though never a great commercial giant, the band was revered by contemporaries and up and comers alike, and enjoyed a long career of tight tunes that spoke more with feeling than words. Fans of the old Spider-Man cartoon and its gloriously cheesy theme, the band redid the tune in their own trademarked manner. Starting with a countdown, The Ramones punk version of the song is directly below:
10. “Hakuna Matata” by The Original Broadway Cast
Disney‘s resurgence in the nineties was full of many instant classics, among them their reworking of Shakespeare‘s Hamlet, The Lion King. Modern techniques gave the films a fluid air that set it apart, and the story, about the orphaned prince Simba sent to exile only to return to claim his crown, resonated well with their audience. After Simba is sent from his home to live in the jungle, he encounters a meerkat named Timon and a warthog named Pumbaa who nurse him back to health and share their enlightened world view with him.
The pair accomplished this through their duet “Hakuna Matata,” a song etched in the minds of millions to this day. When the film was reimagined as a stunningly costumed Broadway musical, the song became a center piece of the production. Blending inspired approximations of their animal stars and a top notch vocal cast, the play is still selling out shows around the world. Give a listen to the original performance on the link below:
11. “South Park” by Les Claypool’s Duo De Twang
When Matt Parker and Trey Stone saw one of their crude animated short films become one of the first truly viral videos, they never imagined that they would be telling stories about South Park and its residents more than twenty years later. Yet, after countless jokes about bodily fluids, biting social commentary and one international incident later, they’re still writing about Stan, Kyle, Kenny and Cartman on Comedy Central. What started as a joke became THE joke, with a feature film and merchandising that actually includes a stuffed, singing piece of poo. As long as the world keeps turning, Parker and Stone will have fresh topics to rip into, and most folks wouldn’t have it any other way.
When they were looking for a theme song, the boys decided to aim high, and recruited alternative rock legends Primus to give them a new song for the show. They said yes, and the tune has become a part of the shows much storied musical library. The trio’s bassist, Claypool recently took to the road with his friend Bryan Kehoe for an acoustic two piece they dubbed Duo De Twang, born out of one off set from the Hardly Strictly Bluegrass Festival. The pair sat through their shows, and Claypool regularly bantered with the crowd, notably during performances of the South Park theme. Check out one such instance below.
12. “Pink Panther Theme” by Hi-Standard
After being used during the memorable animated intro sequence to Blake Edwards film The Pink Panther, Henry Mancini‘s theme song was used for an animated series featuring the movie’s friendly fictional feline. The silent cartoons were produced by noted director Fritz Freleng, and the shorts even won an Academy Award for Animation. Though the title song originally appeared in a live action film, the years since have indelibly linked the familiar slinky jazz strains of the tune with the fuzzy feline.
The song had long ago caught the ear of Japanese punksters Hi-Standard. Akihiro Nanba, Ken Yokoyama and Akira Tsuneoka formed the band in 1991, and for a majority of that decade were fierce standard bearers in the Japanese punk scene. Before the bowed out at the start of the millennium, their career saw several highlights, from opening slots for some of the biggest punk acts in the world like NOFX and their many tracks, all sung in English. One of their more fun performances didn’t require any translations though…listen to their fun and furious remake of Mancini’s classic below:
13. “Steven Universe Theme” by James Roach
Steven Universe tells the story of a young boy who discovers he’s not just half alien gem, he’s also one of the protectors of the universe. Oh…and he’s also just not that good at his job. The show, Cartoon Network’s first to be created by a woman, Rebecca Sugar, quickly found an audience and has seen its mythology include a wide variety of oddball supporting characters and magical story lines. Of particular note is the show’s overall design, a mix of pastel colors, rounded edges and seamless line weight transitions from foreground to background.
James Roach is a composer and a deconstructionist who translates and distills songs to versions that could be a part of any of the old school 8 bit video games. Remixing the catchy theme from Steven Universe proved irresistible to Roach, and his version has received a lot of love from fans of the show in the form of downloads and views,. Check it out below:
14. Adventure Time “I Remember You” by Adriana Fiqueroa
When Pendleton Ward‘s Adventure Time began, it seemed like another in a long line of “Boy and His Dog” shows, set in a bizarrely mutated post apocalyptic world. Over the years, sharp viewers started to notice an over-reaching plot to the show, a serious underpinning to match the day glow insanity of the more surface stories. The third season the show began to really delve into the history of the bizarre future world. The shows bumbling villain the Ice King’s tragic back story was fleshed out in an episode with the rock star Marceline, the vampire queen, with the two singing a heart breaking duet.
The song, “I Remember You” stands out as one of the most poignant moments in any cartoon, and fan and musician Adriana Fiqueroa found herself, like so many fans, in tears after seeing the episode. She immediately went to work redoing the song, translating it to acoustic guitar and trying to express the emotions the show had ignited in her. In a testament to the job she did, the show’s creators afforded her version ‘Official” status, allowing her to put it up for sale on various outlets here. The song contains spoilers for the show, so listen to the link below at your own risk.
15. “Linus and Lucy” by moe.
Vince Guaraldi‘s jazz score for the Peanuts Christmas Special was so perfectly captured the spirit of the characters that it became intrinsically linked to the drawings of Charles Schultz‘s beloved cast. The special was the first of many that would be produced about the long running newspaper strip, and would become a Christmas tradition for families that continues to this day. Seeing Charlie Brown, Snoopy, Lucy and the rest of the gang come to life was a magic experience, and Guaraldi’s music gave the special a soul to match it’s burgeoning heart.
The five man band moe. from upstate New York just finished their 25th Anniversary run and are headed into the second half of their third decade stronger than ever. Over the course of those 25 years they have recorded everything from rock and roll anthems, silly sing songs and …Christmas Carols? Yes, in 2002 they released Season’s Greetings From moe., a ten song collection of holiday tunes, including Guaraldi’s “Linus And Lucy.” If you haven’t already, hit play on the link below and enjoy a little Xmas cheer!
16. “Scooby Doo, Where Are You?” by Matthew Sweet
Scooby Doo, Where Are You?‘s initial run lasted 16 years over two networks, which is an awfully long time for them to still not be able to tell the difference between monster flesh and rubber masks. Luckily for viewers, it always took Fred, Velma, Daphne, Shaggy and, of course, Scooby Doo about twenty minutes to figure out who was behind each weeks diabolical plots. (Hint: Look closely at anyone whose name preceded with “Old Man”…) Viewers fell in love with the cowardly dog and his even more cowardly best friend, and would try and beat Velma in unraveling the week’s mystery. An entire generation came of age and passed their love to the next, and Scooby Doo is an icon to this day.
Matthew Sweet carved himself a niche on the nineties alternative pop scene with a mellow delivery accompanied by occasionally jangly but usually soothing guitars. His take on the Scooby Doo theme was featured as part of a mid nineties album called Saturday Morning: Cartoons Greatest Hits, along with many other great tracks, a few of which found their way on to this list. Check it out below:
17. “Cardboard Swords” by Kiernan McMullen
Few shows in history have glorified in the failures of its characters as amazingly as the Johnny Quest deconstructionist Adult Swim masterpiece The Venture Brothers. Part love letter to the design aesthetic of the mid sixties futurist movement, part ultra-violent adherent to grind house cinema all held together by the work of two men, Jackson Public and Doc hammer. Working out of a seedy office in New York City dubbed the Astro!Base, the pair have constructed a history for their character to adventure across, with stories moving up and down the time line effortlessly. With a soundtrack and incidental music by avant garde composer Foetus, the show is its own, self-contained universe of awesome.
Nashville based singer-songwriter Kiernan McMullan found himself so wrapped up in the show that he had to release his passion on the written page, penning lyrics and finally music inspired by the show and its stories. The song features a litany of references to the show that prove his geek cred beyond reproach, right down to his use of the battle cry of the titular brothers as the chorus. GO TEAM VENTURE! Indeed!
18. “The Simpsons Theme” by Green Day
Our second iteration of the Simpsons Theme comes from their first feature length film, and the modern punk rockers Green Day. Their version found its way on this list on the strength of their willingness to “Sing” the signature melody rather than play it in a brilliant call and response with the citizens of Springfield!
19. “Theme from Hong Kong Phooey” by Sublime
Scatman Cruthers was legendary for his gruff voice, so who better to voice the canine master of the martial arts, Hong Kong Phooey? Sure, the show was just a short lived parody of the Kung Fu mania that was gripping the country in the seventies. Penrod “Penry” Pooch was a police station janitor until trouble called, then he would change into his crime fighting super-hero alter ego Hong Kong Phooey. Though generally incompetent, he always managed to bungle his way to success, often aided by his cat Spot. Though only broadcast for a few months, the show and its super catchy theme etched a strong impression on the young minds of the day.
Some of those minds grew into the members of the southern California ska-rap-rock legends Sublime. Poised on the edge of super stardom, the band was unfortunately derailed by the untimely death of vocalist and guitarist Bradley Nowell. Their good natured spirit was infectious, and they were being groomed for a huge push before Nowells death. Rabid fans have devoured alternate versions and out takes, but the brightest jewel in the rarities ouvre’ is their cover of the theme, which you can hear below:
20. “South Park Theme” by Richard Cheese
We had to do one more version of the South Park Theme, if only to share with any unsuspecting folks the genius that is Richard Cheese and his band, Lounge Against The Machine! Cheese is known primarily for taking modern songs and breaking them down into troubadour-styled renditions. Check out his groovy and totally hip and happening take of the tune below:
21. “Oogie Boogie’s Song” by Tiger Army
Tim Burton had already cemented his reputation as an iconoclast film maker by the time he released his first stop motion animation masterpiece, The Nightmare Before Christmas. The charming horror filled take on holiday avatars was a stunning blend of singular art design, existential angst and big production show tunes. The biggest hook to many, however, were the richly fleshed out characters, like the hero, Jack Skellington, his lady love Sally and especially the sinister bug filled Oogie-Boogie. Oogie gets his own song when he gets a chance to torment the captive Santa Claus, and it’s mirthful delivery doesn’t completely disguise it’s malicious intent.
Psychobilly rockers Tiger Army aren’t ones for hiding malicious intent either. This hard rocking California band has a little of the surf in their DNA, but a hell of a lot more of the rock than the roll. They gravitated, some would say naturally, to the dark side, bringing their sensibilities to a cover of “Oogie Boogie’s Song.” Ditching the stage musical feel of the original, this iteration gets down and dirty, as you can hear below:
22. “Eep Opp Ork Ah-Ah” by the Violent Femmes
Having had massive success with their sitcom set in the stone age, Hanna-Barbara decided to try and recreate that luck with a family comedy set in the far future…The Jetsons. Automation had reduced father George to manning a desk and pushing a single button for his tyrannical boss, Mr. Spacely. Future technology had made life nearly effortless, and the show was fondly remembered but short lived in its original production run. In one of those early episodes, daughter Judy entered and won a song contest with her future nonsense song “Eep Opp Ork Ah-Ah (That means I Love You)” whose catchy refrain wormed its way into the head of all who heard it.
Among those carrying the genetic memory of that song were the Violent Femmes, who just recently finished celebrating their thirty fifth year of existence. Hailing from Milwaukee, Wisconsin, the band turned a star crossed opportunity to open for The Pretenders into an on again, off again three plus decade run of well crafted and lyrically crafty songs that won them acclaim and a few national hits. Their love of quirky pacing and delivery mad them the perfect band to cover this other worldly pop song from the distant future. Give it a listen below:
23. Bob’s Burgers “Electric Love” by Rabbit Troop Forever
Bob’s Burgers is yet another in the Fox Networks long run of exemplary prime time animated family sitcoms. Based around the peerless comedy voice over talents of H. Jon Benjamin, this Loren Buchard produced series follow the adventures of the Belcher family, who own and operate the titular burger joint. Father Bob aspires to a higher calling with his themed burgers, but his three children and wife are always there to bring him back down to Earth. Though set in reality, the show finds outlandishness in its storylines and creates drama and comedy gold out of thin air.
A hall mark of the show is the many musical numbers featured, with nearly every episode receiving a song that suns up and advances the plot. These tunes have inspired a number of covers, and out of the pack we selected one of the best, from Rabbit Troop Forever. Their cover of “Electric Love” reimagines rabbit ear wearing Louise’s taken down of Thomas Edison into a heartfelt pop ode that exists all its own. Have a listen below:
24. “Underdog Theme” by the Butthole Surfers
Underdog proved as tough as his namesake, lasting for 127 episodes and running for close to a decade on NBC. The original bumbling super dog, Underdog also had a mild mannered alter ego, Shoeshine Boy. Continually called to defend reporter Sweet Polly Purebred, the show followed a fairly rigid formula that would always result in Underdog standing triumphant over evil.
On the far end of the rigidity of rule following spectrum rests Texas born band the Butthole Surfers. A southern/rock/punk/psychedelic/noise art band that personified chaos, onstage and off, the Surfers were the odds on favorite to either create the next wave of music or destroy the universe. Along the way they tried to have as much fun as possible, as the video for their cover of the ‘Underdog Theme” proves below:
25. Ren & Stimpy’s “Happy Happy Joy Joy” by Wax
Watching Ren & Stimpy for the first time, viewers all had the same question on their minds…”How is this actually on television?” John Kricfalusi unleashed a animated duo unlike any every seen before. A simple minded dolt of a cat and the crankiest Chihuahua ever imagined, paired together in a surrealist nightmare version of reality. Episodes were barred from television, and national controversy was sparked over the crudity of some of the imagery, and, like all the brightest lights, it burned out far too quickly.
The Los Angeles band Wax lived a short life as well. Their two major label albums did well enough, but nothing to give the band much hope at true success and they went their separate ways. In their time though, they delivered one perfect slab of pure inspiration…a blistering, balls out punk metal revamp of the most craziest fan favorite song from the show. We saved the best for last, so click play and clear the area for the involuntary moshing sure to follow:
Well, that’s our list. Let us know if we missed any that you think should be mentioned…We’d love to find enough to do this all again!