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Miami Vice Theme
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Featured in Episode
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Artist(s)
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Top Chart Position (Hot 100)
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1 (November 9, 1985, one week)
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Year Released
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1985
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Album
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Writer(s)
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Jan Hammer
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RIAA Certification
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NONE
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Sequence song appears
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Opening sequence and closing credits
(Brother's Keeper) Crockett chasing Tubbs across Miami (A Bullet for Crockett) Flashback to above scene |
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Previous Song
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Next Song
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The "Miami Vice Theme", also known as "The Original Miami Vice Theme" or simply "Miami Vice", is a song by Jan Hammer, featured on the album Miami Vice in 1985 and released as a single in August of that year. It first appeared over the opening credits in the Miami Vice pilot episode, "Brother's Keeper", and was subsequently used as the title music for every episode of the series, even those scored by Tim Truman after Jan Hammer left the show as composer. The track also appeared within the episodes "Brother's Keeper" and "A Bullet for Crockett".
Along with "Crockett's Theme", it is one of the most famous pieces of music Jan Hammer composed for the series.
Versions[]
At least five different versions of the track have been officially released:
- TV Version aka "The Original Miami Vice Theme", running 0:59 – the most common and well-known version of the theme, almost identical to the version used over the opening credits of every episode of the show from "Calderone's Return (Part II)" onward (previous episodes featured a slightly different, incorrectly mixed version -- see below). It can be found on the Miami Vice and Miami Vice II soundtrack albums and was also released as a B-side on the singles in 1985.
- Single Version aka "Miami Vice", running 2:26 – a longer mix of the track that was released as the 7" single; the show essentially used the last minute of this version for its opening credits. This version was also included on the Miami Vice album.
- Extended Remix, running 6:55 – a considerably longer remix of the single version, released on the 12" single. North American and Australian releases credit the remix and its edits to François Kevorkian & Ron St. Germain, but UK & European releases instead credit Louil Silas Jr. & engineer Taavi Mote.
- 12" Edit, running 4:30 – a shorter edit of the Extended Remix, released as a B-side on some singles.
- 12" Edit (short version), running 3:17 – an even shorter edit of the Extended Remix, also released as a B-side.
Somewhat confusingly, the title given to various mixes of the track have not been consistent over the years; for instance, the 0:59 TV Version has been referred to as both "The Original Miami Vice Theme" (on the Miami Vice album) and "Miami Vice Theme" (on Miami Vice II), while the single mix has been labelled both "Miami Vice Theme" and simply "Miami Vice".
In addition to the above versions released on albums and as singles, several other mixes appeared in the show itself:
- The 2:44 version used over the opening credits of "Brother's Keeper" – this is missing the distinctive synthesised lead guitar hook, and is extended beyond the credits with a lengthy percussive section that continues into the episode itself.
- The 0:57 version used over the opening credits of "Heart of Darkness", "Cool Runnin'" and "Calderone's Return (Part I)" – this is essentially a shortened version of the theme used in the pilot; it features the proper conclusion heard in all later versions, but is still missing the lead synth guitar.
- The 0:59 version used over the opening credits of all other episodes – structurally identical to the commercially released TV/Original version, but mixed slightly differently, e.g. there is less reverb, and the gated rhythm guitar is loud & clear on the right, instead of quiet and center-left. In the season 1 episodes in which this version appears, it is inconsistently mastered in mono or out-of-phase stereo.
- Several other variations have appeared over the show's closing credits.
According to Jan Hammer's manager Elliot Sears, the versions heard in early episodes that lack the synth guitar hook were the result of the sound elements not being mixed together correctly in early episodes.
Notes[]
- The "Miami Vice Theme" was one of four singles released from the album Miami Vice — the others being "Own the Night" by Chaka Khan, "You Belong to the City" by Glenn Frey, and "Vice" by Grandmaster Melle Mel. All four songs were written specifically for the TV series.
- Perhaps unsurprisingly, as well as the original Miami Vice album, the track has also been included on every Miami Vice soundtrack album since, as well as Hammer's Escape from Television album.
- The "Miami Vice Theme" was the last TV theme and the last instrumental to reach #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 until "Harlem Shake" topped the charts in March, 2013. The first Miami Vice soundtrack album spent 11 weeks at #1 on the Billboard Top 200 Albums chart, a record for a TV soundtrack that still stands. It was also the biggest selling TV soundtrack until High School Musical broke that record in 2006.
- The B-side on the 7" single release was the Jan Hammer track "Evan", first used in the episode "Evan".
- The theme was used as the opening for G. Gordon Liddy's radio show in the early 1990s.
- The video for the song featured scenes from "The Prodigal Son", "Golden Triangle (Part I)", and "The Maze", along with Jan Hammer's instrumental performances and appearance as a bad guy. He would appear in cameo roles in the episodes "One Way Ticket" and "Like a Hurricane", both times as a wedding musician.
Video[]
Jan Hammer
"Miami Vice Theme" Video
Miami Vice Theme HD
Miami Vice Theme HD The adventures of the vice squad detectives of the Miami Police Department.