Jan Hammer - Miami Vice Theme [OFFICIAL VIDEO] 

No doubt, the opening for shows like Miami Vice, Magnum PI, Airwolf etc. were outstanding. I even miss the Jeffersons. It's good to be a kid again.

@@RommelsAsparagus As I have said elsewhere, theme tunes were like an event in themselves in those days.

Yours or mine?

second only to the theme of SWAT

This theme, WAS WHAT THE 80S WAS IN JUST 2 MINUTES!

Him and Georgio Moroder

@@elitecombatfitnesscentral6170 And Harold Faltermeyer. How ironic and interesting that all three hail from the very small area in Central Europe perhaps like 300km apart (Prague, Munich and Tirol).

And Alan Silvestri too.

Did not know he was in one of the episodes

Not one of the greatest THE GREATEST!!!

No show intro was so fast ,exciting and thrilling. A ride all by itself

@@whateveritwasitis This and the Original Hawaii 5-0 theme -

@@cheskybaba4864 Miami Vice is the greatest TV show of all time and my favorite

Probably the greatest

100%

Yup. Got it!

Well I mean if you were an elderly person back then or lived in a rural area I'm sure you would've been overwhelmed by all the technology.

Couldn’t agree more. I honestly believe we peaked in the 80’s. The 90’s were great and we levelled off. The 00’s were a slow decline and the ‘10’s up to now have been an absolute car crash. Take me back to the mid/late 80’s please 🙏🏻

Yes its crazy how much the world has changed this was pre internet cell phones were just coming out on the market now it'd a.i running our lives and we are all cyborgs now walking around with our smart phones all the time😢

Was it ever

@shellyweiers121 A-team and night rider eat your heart-out.

Knight rider, Airwolf and magnum p.i. good as well. Also Axel F.

It’s not a song. Songs have lyrics. This doesn’t. It’s a tune.

De las mejores series de todos los tiempos no solo por sus argumentos también por su música y porque impusieron moda de lo mejor

​@@guyharrison909A team

Speedboats, sport cars and sun-kissed skins

Ja 14

Just dont know they messed that movie up so badly

It's funny but I can remember every bit of the opening credits.

​@@simonchandler1735You're not alone.

@@simonchandler1735Me too. Loved Monday nights at 22:00.

Me too! I thought i was alone feeling that ! Lol

And entirely done on a synthesizer.

@Teal VR Hahahahahahahaha 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣

It's the linear non linear syncopation between the timbale pattern and the bass drum pattern that I love if that makes any sense.

@@mikestanley9176guitar part too?

Nov 9, 1985 (had to look it up for the exact date) I was listening to Casey Kasem's countdown that morning. I thought yeah buddy!!!

@@muffs55mercury61 Casey Kasem Was And Still Is The King Of The Countdown.

@@raymondmalcuit8361 Yes he is ! Great memories for many years. In the 80s back home they started airing it twice a day so if we missed one then we could catch it later. Fortunately all but a small few of the broadcasts still survive.

Yeap, hit #1, but only stayed there for a week because it was knocked out by "We Built This City" by Starship.

But of course! Anything else would be uncivilized...

Apparently the basis of this track even pre-dates the making of Miami Vice. He handed Michael a tape with a demo on it. To ever hear that demo would be amazing.

@@80sandretrogubbins25Micheal man knew how to handle it everyone ate off that buffalo 🦬

Dude I totally drove a trans Am and had a Coke problem

I'm watching this with my 12-year-old son right now. I am also 46 and verbatim just set out loud what I saw in your comment. Absolutely insane!

Same there such an inspiration thats why i live in Miami For a While 😊

#YEPP!

I am 46 also lol. I watched Miami Vice religiously back in the day as well as Knight Rider and Airwolf. Just recently bought the series on dvd and been binge watching lol. God I miss the 80's and being young again.

I'm 44 and I remember it like it was yesterday !!! 😆 I had the Miami Vice soundtrack on tape and listened to it every night !

I so agree! Jan has indeed such talent when it comes to a TV show which needs music, and the Fairlight is his weapon of choice. He would use the CMI for apparently from 1984 to 1989 and his legacy lives on! Without his superb genius Miami Vice wouldn’t air in the 80s!

@@jamiemiles1979 This theme was the first to go to #1 on the charts in 20 years. Can anyone here name the previous champ?

@@a.barnard3205 I'm going to guess the theme to the original Hawaii Five-O

more iconic than knight rider?

@@jeremysaint2911 Good question - I guess both are very much famous :)

Yeah how good was that. Just all of it.

The jiggle inside the bikini top wasn't bad either. :)

@@swalk813 The two girls walking away from the camera for me ;)

It did indeed. The show was never the same after he left.

And cocaine - lots of cocaine.

no, i think you're just getting old 🤷

lmfao

Haha I love the last part, layered synth, I didn't know what it was actually called, but it sure sounds amazing!

And shooting at helicopters with a pistol.

Welcome to the 80s genx here grow up watching is show as kid

Can't forget Airwolf, KR, and Murder she Wrote.

Your mother has raised you well.

Kamaráde, Jan pochází z České republiky a jeho oba rodiče byli v Jazzové hudbě velmi nadaní, otec významný lékař a hudebník, maminka zpěvačka... syn je skvělý po nich... je to další Čech, co dobyl Ameriku...ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-j8h4Iubgrog.html maminka Vlasta Průchová, s otcem jen zvukový záznam nebo rozhovor...ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-_ejJtkliFik.html ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-jAQbHA6HVEs.html nechte si to od Čechů v USA přeložit...

At least no Sox attire anyways😊

@@phillm156 MV arrire was AWESOME! No socks, designer pants, jackets, shirts. & of course FERRARI automobiles; esp. the TESTAROSSA!!!

Yes it is ✅

Gotta go with the Hawaii 5-0 theme song as the most recognizable and greatest theme song from a cop show.

Hill Street Blues and Rockford Files as well…

Dont forget baywatch theme also.. think its also amazing!

Hell yeah!!

When this comes on my Spotify playlist, the volume goes all the way up and my right foot sinks to the floor. Same thing happens when Eminence Front comes on 😆

@@samschossig334 I used to blast Eminence Front same as this while coming back from work. Excellent choice of music.

@@clone-2322 it’s my favorite song of all time. There’s just something about it. It’s an absolute masterpiece, and same to you! 😁

Now all you need is to be cruising down the Florida coast.

Very, VERY good, pal…!

Not Paramount.... This show was Universal at it's peak.

@@shaneharrisnj3484 That's not what he meant by "paramount"...

@@StuntFan I know, I was being Funny...

@@shaneharrisnj3484 Oh, was it a pun? Sorry then, lol

@@StuntFan yup. It's a corporate pun 😅

Hello ,how are you doing?

All in all, he did quite well in the video. As you said, he was a brilliant composer, but hardly an actor.

still is

still great in 2022

I think he did in a episode too.

He’s here…. Lol

@@mr_demeanor6008 ah really? Do you know the title?

@Durwood Same with the late great Jeff Porcaro of Toto! Looked more like a teacher than a world famous rock drummer!

When you make soundtracks this amazing you're allowed to look as geeky as you wish.

So much irony for feeling like you can judge who’s a “geek”, music videos are filmed in two stages, the musical and (vocals, optional) are recorded pre rolling, and then lip / instrument syncing is carried out after the song is made. I feel like he wasn’t all involved in this.

Lol, yeah looks like George from Seinfeld

Gotta love the programming.

What is Fairlight CMI Programming?

@kfurt9513 The Fairlight CMI is the synth used in the video and song. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fairlight_CMI#Series_II:_1982%E2%80%931985

@@toddphillips5590 thanks 👍. Now I know what all of that was. What kinds of machines or software are used these days for the same kind of work, i.e. synthesizing music?

👌

Now they just said.

The 2 in the bikinis a tree perfect !!

It is a great composition.

The video is intentionally cool too 😆

@@yasserressay7755 Intentionally cool? Jan Hammer is so cool, he can just turn his cool on and off at will.

this is a Diamond Opus , one of the best electronic music of the 80s

You're welcome and thank you for your support!!!

Well...

@philaman1972 It sure did. Name anuther 80`s show: NIGHT RIDER? Nope. STINGRAY? Uh-uh. HARD CASTLE & McCORMICK? MAGNUM P.I.? Pretty ok but, it aint MV. MV wins.

His outfit too

Yes Miami Vice was one of those shows that defined the '80s. I still get the goose pimples when watching one of their DVDs and of course hearing the music. Almost like time travel.

As much as like Crockett's theme, i wish this got played in radio instead. I was born in 1988, so i'm too young to remember the 80s.

He's here.

This is the finest theme song ever!!

How's it simple? It's pretty involved and there's quite a lot going on.

CMI - Computer Musical Instrument

He DID use a guitar; likely he sampled himself playing one into the Fairlight, or if it was easier for him, why wouldn't he just directly play the rhythm part as shown on the video? The lead part admittedly was done on keyboard, but NOT the Fairlight's; an external controller from another manufacturer was used, again as shown on the video. Those guitar sounds were recorded samples, NOT synth sounds, and the Fairlight probably didn't come from the factory with them installed.

@@jtsotherone JUPITER -8!! ROLAND. Listen closely to its TONE. Now... listen to JUMP! by VAN HALEN! Same synth.

I think it's a CMI IIX

@@silverseraph8233 Fairlight!! 🔨 HAMMER, since it was an in thing synth then, had to have used a YAMAHA dx. That thing was everywhere.

VH-1 played the video many times back in the 80s .

Yep. This theme song is almost as good as the theme for Hawaii Five-O and they are both equally famous and memorable.

@@zz449944 BETTER!! Not almost as good. Better.

The fills and cross over fills are delightful

@@aaronhellinger6185 I don't really care what they're called, as much as I do about how it sounds. Which, is just as I described it.

You sound uneducated when you’re trying to sound educated. Music is hard

The easiest thing for him was probably getting the Minimoog guitar sound just right, but that was only because he had been doing that for years before Michael Mann even thought of "Miami Vice." Jan was a true pioneer of the keyboard player-as-guitar-hero movement :)

Add to that the pressure of doing a new set of tracks every week.

@@80ssynthfan48 I was just about to bring that up.

This soundtrack was so powerful that it made you time travel back into the mid ‘80s while driving a late ‘80s car.

@@ibelieveicansoar 🤣

Jiggling yes. Whoppers no.

Jiggling Whopper Juniors 🍔 at best.

Yes Sir!...and don`t forget his time with Mahavishnu Orchestra !