THEME songs for TV shows are pretty important - finding a perfectly suited piece of intro music can make or break a series. The music also becomes inextricably linked to the show in our heads - it's hard to think about The X-Files without those spooky arpeggios or even The Brady Bunch without "Here's a story...".Those two aren't on this list as I've decided to choose show themes that were songs in their own right before they became TV themes. We'll save the purpose-written themes for another time.Suicide Is Painless - The Mash (M*A*S*H*)WRITTEN for Robert Altman's 1970 film, this poignant piece was adapted as an instrumental for the hit TV show that followed the movie's success. The lyrics were written by Altman's 14-year-old son Mike and strangely the director wasn't too pertubred by his kid coming up with the song's slightly macabre refrain - "Cause suicide is painless, It brings on many changes, And I can take or leave it if I please." The track was notably covered by Manic Street Preachers.With A Little Help From My Friends - Joe Cocker (The Wonder Years)IT might seem odd to have a coming-of-age TV show with a theme song sung by a drug-frazzled dude who was so off his guts at Woodstock that he was indecipherable. But Cocker's inspired reimagining of Lennon and McCartney's ode to friendship was the perfect intro to the weekly adventures of Kevin Arnold and his buddies Paul and Winnie. The Wonder Years was a surprisingly boundary-pushing show, so have an edgy cover song as its theme wasn't a bad idea after all.The Who (CSI)THE CSI franchise hit onto a winning musical formula when it picked The Who's ball-tearer Who Are You. As the series grew, it continued the trend, picking up Won't Get Fooled Again for CSI: Miami and the classic Baba O'Riley for CSI: NY. While most TV crime shows go for either mood pieces or electronic-sounding themes, CSI bucked the trend and took the cool, retro rock path. It probably had some of the older viewers reaching for their old Who records again.Love And Marriage - Frank Sinatra (Married... With Children)IT'S hard to beat a theme song sung by Ol' Blue Eyes, and while the daily workings of the Bundy household may not have been to all tastes, using Love And Marriage was a stroke of genius. For a show about an apparently loveless marriage, it was a humourously ironic choice, something rarely seen in comedy shows at the time. The song's whimsical vibe fits nicely with the show's irreverant tone.Woke Up This Morning - Alabama 3 (The Sopranos)FOR a show about a strangely likeable crime boss, you need a theme that's brooding but cool, dark yet relatable. Enter eclectic British group Alabama 3 (yes, they're British) and this tale of an abused wife who kills her husband, from their 1997 album Exile On Coldharbour Lane. The track's gospel-meets-electro sound might not seem like the obvious choice for a Mafia drama - it must have been tempting to go with a Godfather-inspired, Nina Rota-esque theme - but Woke Up This Morning proved to be as iconic and memorable as family man Tony Soprano himself.
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