Best/Worst Game Show Themes

[howierules86]

Yes, I know this topic's been done before, but that was fourteen years ago and I think a new thread should be started for this. That said, my picks are the following:

BEST:
1. Jeopardy! (1984-present themes)
2. Wheel of Fortune (pre-2006)
3. Card Sharks (Perry)
4. Price Is Right (Barker/Carey)
5. $25K/$100K Pyramid (1982-88 version)

WORST:
1. Are You Smarter Than A 5th Grader?
2. Shop 'til You Drop (Roberto 2003-05 version)
3. 3's A Crowd
4. All New 3's A Crowd
5. Taboo

[Alfonzo]

Most of my least favorite themes are the ones that are sung, although Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego? and To Tell the Truth '69 are exceptions. My pics:

Are You Smarter Than a Fifth Grader?
Shop till You Drop (Roberto)
The Better Sex
To Tell the Truth (Anderson, first season with the house band)
The Video Game
The Wizard of Odds

[mechamind]

BEST:
2. Wheel of Fortune (pre-2006)

Glad to see "pre-2006" instead of just "pre-2000" or "pre-1994". While Changing Keys is a classic, I also liked the 2000-06 music package.

[jude_este]

Here are my top 5 for both best and worst theme songs, though the themes that I like best are probably what the general public would say if you were to ask them to name a game show theme.

Best:
Jeopardy!
The Price Is Right
Match Game
Family Feud
Wheel of Fortune (Count me in also in being a fan of the pre-2006 theme songs.)

Worst:
All-Star Blitz
Shop Til Your Drop (JD Roberto)
Face The Music
The Better Sex
To Tell The Truth (The theme from Anthony Anderson's first season with the house band.)

[Ccook]

Mine (showing my age)...
BEST: (in no particular order)
The Price Is Right (1961-65, "Window Shopping")
Concentration (1958-73)
The $10,000 Pyramid (the full version of this is on the Best of TV Quiz & Game Show Themes CD and kicks butt)
Press Your Luck

Worst list still being bantered about.

[gsn93]

I'm going to try and avoid some of ones already mention.

'70s High Rollers (Big band earworm goodness.)
Whew! (Another catchy music package.)
'70s Concentration (The Moog synth is just pure delight.)
Nick's Double Dare and Finders Keepers (Another Edd Kalehoff classic.)

Most of my least favorite themes are the ones that are sung

The Video Game

I'll give you that for the opening theme with the vocals, but the closing theme was just the instrumental and it's so much better. Don't have to worry about the corny lyrics. It's a shame that version is not available in the clear.

[JayC]

My picks:
5 best: The Price is Right, Wheel of Fortune (Changing Keys), Jeopardy (1984-1997), Nickelodeon Double Dare, Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego?

5 worst: Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader?, Deal or No Deal, Monopoly, Pyramid (Donny Osmond version), Hollywood Squares 2002-2004

[Alfonzo]

Thanks (I think?) for reminding me about Monopoly, All-Star Blitz and Hollywood Squares "Square Biz" themes. Three more sung themes that were not good, although I actually didn't mind Hollywood Squares  "I Love Hollywood".

[geniusinmath]

5 best would be in my opinion are:
1. $10,000 Pyramid
2. $25,000 Pyramid
3. Jeopardy (1997 theme)
4. Go
5. Camouflage (2007 theme)

5 worst would be in my opinion are:
1. Fear Factor
2. Twenty-One (1956 version)
3. Big Brother
4. Family Feud (1999 version)
5. Sports Geniuses

[ooboh]

Best themes:
Any version of Pyramid (not including 2002)
The Price Is Right (obviously)
The Match Game/Hollywood Squares Hour
Russian Roulette (game shows and rock music do mix!)
Press Your Luck
1 vs. 100 (the melody gets stuck in my head)

Honorable mentions: The Moment of Truth (the show sucked, but the music is really good), Blockbusters (1980), Family Feud (1999) (that will be controversial), Hollywood Squares (both songs from 1998-2004), Think Fast, Double Dare, really any show whose theme was composed by Edd Kalehoff

Worst themes:
Any original show currently airing on GSN (I don’t care for that synthesized generic crap)
Chain Reaction (2006) (the song is fine, the lyrics are horrid)
Jeopardy! (1984-1997) (another unpopular opinion, I liked the newer versions)
Pyramid (2002) (see GSN for reasoning)
Monopoly (again, most songs don’t need lyrics)

[Reloaden]

Best
The Match Game/Hollywood Squares Hour
The Price is right (Any Version)
Family Feud Anderson Theme
Who Wants to be a Millionaire (Original and Rave)
Weakest Link (Jane Lynch Version) Love the remix of the music.

Worst
Chain Reaction Dylan Lane version
Temptation (All New Sale) 
Lingo Bill Engvall version
Family Feud- Harvey they use the same 20 seconds of the theme
The US Chase GSN,ABC (The British Chase music is amazing its a shame Gsn,Abc refuses to use the uk music)
Who Wants to be a Millionaire-Shuffle Format

[Nate Powalie]

My 5 Best: 1. Jeopardy (2001-2008), 2. Price is Right (any), 3. Wheel of Fortune (2002-2006), 4. Family Feud (John O'Hurley theme), 5. Cash Explosion Double Play (2004-2009)
My 5 Worst: 1. The Chase US (current, should incorporate more of UK), 2. Hoosier Millionaire (2000s), 3. People Puzzler, 4. Monopoly Millionaires Club, 5. America Says

[garffreak]

'70s Concentration (The Moog synth is just pure delight.)

Yes,  you can smell the polyester just listening to that one.

BEST (in no particular order):
$10,000 Pyramid (1973)
Password Plus (1979)
The Price is Right (1972)
Supermarket Sweep (2002)
Tic Tac Dough (1978)

WORST (again, no particular order but maybe alphabetized):
All-Star Blitz (1985)
The Better Sex (1977)
Family Feud (1999)
Monopoly (1990)
Pyramid (2002)

[Briguy]

Wasn't there one theme that was criticized as being a random mismash of notes and completely insipid?

IIRC, one of those candidates was "Peer Pressure," a kids game show from 1998-1999.

Otherwise, I've nothing really to add to the "nay" list. Most game show themes fall into the great category. A couple of ones I'd love to hear in the clear, including a forgotten one:

* "Whew!" ... the opening theme from the show that (reportedly) is ending its first cycle of episodes before cycling back to wherever in the non-celebrity run ... and in the clean. (There is reportedly a YouTube clip of the "Whew!" end theme that's clean, although I don't think that is exactly "clear" as advertised.)

* "The Guinness Game," the 1979-1980 game where contestants had to guess whether a prospective world record breaker would succeed or fail at a particular stunt. (Such as eating 25 bananas in less than 45 seconds.)

Far as favorites, probably the original 1975 "Wheel Of Fortune" ("Big Wheels") ranks at or near the top.

Brian

[blozier2006]

(There is reportedly a YouTube clip of the "Whew!" end theme that's clean, although I don't think that is exactly "clear" as advertised.)

As one of the people who coughed up the $50 to get the Whew! package the legit way from TVPMM when it was being offered in 2012, I can tell you the opening and closing themes that turned up on YouTube a month or two ago are the genuine articles.