Last night, JTM and I were having a good conversation over Skype on a number of different topics, and one was on past shows that perhaps deserve a redux since "Hawaii Five-0" and "Magnum P.I." have gotten their second lives. I was suggesting anything from the Quinn-Martin productions of the 1970s such as "The Streets of San Francisco" and "Cannon". But then JTM came up with a great suggestion of his own..."Mannix".
Ahhh...good ol' Joe Mannix. I still vividly remember the opening credits from my childhood. Armed with street smarts, charm, fists and a great theme song, he could thank Lalo Schifrin for that last one. Yup, Schifrin is the same fellow behind another legendary theme, the one for "Mission: Impossible". As much as "Mission: Impossible" the theme was all about the action and derring-do of the IMF, the "Mannix" theme was all class and cool (although I've been reading about how violent the show was) as if the song was relating Joe going for dinner and dancing with his date after a resolution of a case.
Earlier today, I wrote the article for Koh Suzuki's（鈴木こう）"Sa-Ra-Vah Street" in which I mentioned another Suzuki, trombonist Hiroshi Suzuki（鈴木弘）. He's already gotten some representation on "Kayo Kyoku Plus" through "Romance" from his 1975 album "Cat". Then, I decided to try out some more of that album and thoroughly enjoyed the first track "Shrimp Dance".
I read one comment on YouTube for the entire album in which the person felt like that the album would be the ideal song to walk to during a foggy day in his/her native San Francisco. Well, listening to "Shrimp Dance" on its own, I felt as if that song would be perfect for a TV show featuring someone as tough as nails as Joe Mannix. Despite that title, "Shrimp Dance" sounds totally landbound in a grimy downtown somewhere where the cynical private eye loves his booze ice-cold and his jazz volcano-hot...and he has an insatiable appetite for garlic shrimp. Unfortunately, that would make any attempts at romance rather tenuous...unlike Mannix's situation. Joking aside, all those instruments together (sax, bass, trombone, trumpet, etc.) help make that gumshoe character and his dogged attempts at justice.
Anyways, also have a listen to the full version of the theme from "Mannix". Perhaps someone from Hollywood might read this and make JTM's dream come true.
'Shrimp Dance' is a great song. I'm inclined to agree with your take that it would make for perfect BGM to those crime dramas of yesteryear.
ReplyDeleteI've been trying to track down the intro to a live action Japanese TV show from the 1970s or thereabouts. It appears to be a Mission: Impossible type of show centered around a group of agents. I recall that the first guy shown was wearing glasses and turns toward the camera, then it shows the other characters, one of which was a girl in a dojo with a samurai sword. The theme gives off a frenetic energy with its fast-paced bongo playing and urgent horns. The show was sort of like others from around that time like 'Seibu Keisatsu'. Does any of that ring a bell?
Hello, Michael.
DeleteThat opening sequence unfortunately doesn't ring a bell with me, but your description reminds me of the openings for shows such as "G-Men 75" (https://kayokyokuplus.blogspot.com/2015/03/shunsuke-kikuchi-theme-from-g-men75.html) and "Daigekito Mad Police '80" (https://kayokyokuplus.blogspot.com/2019/10/you-explosion-band-theme-from-daigekito.html).
I knew it would be a long shot. Maybe that show had a limited run and therefore wasn't as well known. Will continue my investigation. If by chance I happen upon it I'll let you know. It's worth it just for its theme song alone, believe me.
ReplyDeleteLet me know how your research goes. I'd be interested in finding out what this show was all about.
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