The 30 Best TV Theme Songs of the Millennium

20. Smallville

Clark Kent was the teen who would one day become Superman, but at the same time, a young man trying to come to terms with his powers and responsibilities. The theme, Remy Zero’s Save Me, perfectly encapsulated this as it represented the sentiment of the countless characters who needed Clark’s help or Clark’s own daily struggles.

19. Blue Bloods

The triumphant return to a network series by Tom Selleck, Blue Bloods also features New Kid on the Block Donnie Wahlberg (my wife’s favorite part of the show). The theme song is a short, sweet instrumental that really sets the stage for the intensity of this one-of-a-kind family police procedural.

18. Malcolm in the Middle

The 90s alternative band, They Might Be Giants, make their first appearance on this list with their song Boss of Me, a track that won them a Grammy for Best Song Written for a Motion Picture, Television or Other Visual Media. A music video was made for this song which featured some of the characters from the show.

17. Breaking Bad

Breaking Bad’s southwest-influenced theme invokes an emotional response as it bursts onto the screen, then it’s gone as quickly as it arrived.

16. Band of Brothers

Beautiful intro to a beautifully done miniseries.

15. CSI: Crime Scene Investigation

The theme to this long running show is Who Are You? by the legendary rock band The Who. I’ve never been into this show much, but did watch a marathon of it while my wife was in the middle of 55 hours of labor.  She eventually hated this theme.

14. The Big Bang Theory

Following with the recent traditions of turning to an established band to perform their theme, Chuck Lorre (instead of composing the theme himself as he did with Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles- see: 25 Greatest Theme Songs of the 90s), turned to the Barenaked Ladies.

13. The Colbert Report

The name of this theme (Baby Mumbles by Cheap Trick) is unrelated to the political satire of the show itself, but that’s what makes it perfect.

12. Reno 911!

The clips shown during the Reno 911! opening theme very by season, and are always a brilliant addition to the song. Unfortunately couldn’t find a clip, but here is the song:

11. Chuck

Parts of Cake’s Short Skirt/Long Jacket served as the upbeat theme for NBC’s Chuck.

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