3 Classic 1990s TV Theme Songs

In the 1990s, there wasn’t an option to “skip intro.”

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But you happily sat through the intro and the iconic songs that, depending on the show, prepared you emotionally for the plot turns. Once a week, the ritual of a single episode appearing at a certain time, on a specific day carved must-see-TV into the schedules of millions of viewers.

It was the kind of communal event not unlike Tuesday’s release day at the record store. Remember when fans lined up at midnight to purchase Pearl Jam’s Vs. or Guns N’ Roses’ Use Your Illusion albums?

So the TV theme songs mattered. And ’90s television had classic soundtracks that also set future music stars’ careers into motion. David Lynch’s Twin Peaks changed modern television but also created a sonic blueprint for the dream pop of Lana Del Rey and Beach House, among others.

Also, without Twin Peaks, you probably don’t get to The X-Files. Finally, this list ends on a very different note with Friends. Many remember the ’90s for grunge and Gen-X angst, but how about a group of thriving young adults living in Manhattan apartments?

Check out three of the best 1990s TV theme songs below.

“Twin Peaks Theme” by Angelo Badalamenti (1990)

An instrumental version of Julee Cruise’s dream pop song “Falling” became the musical theme for Twin Peaks. Written by David Lynch and Angelo Badalamenti, it set the mood for the entire TV series. The track’s detuned guitar and soft production create a juxtaposition for Lynch’s macabre and surreal storytelling.

“The X-Files Theme” by Mark Snow (1996)

Mark Snow’s main title composition, “Materia Primoris,” perfectly captures the tension between curiosity and fear. Within seconds, the whistling keyboard intro became a part of 1990s culture, and you couldn’t help but think of Agents Fox Mulder and Dana Scully investigating paranormal activity. If aliens exist, this is certainly what their music sounds like.

“I’ll Be There for You” (Friends Theme Song) by The Rembrandts (1995)

Very few people who came of age in the 1990s couldn’t name this tune within a few seconds of its intro guitar licks. The nostalgic song by The Rembrandts became one of the most ubiquitous three minutes in pop culture history. However, the show’s creators wanted to use R.E.M.’s “Shiny Happy People,” but the Athens, Georgia, band declined. Instead, this power pop classic endures as a defining moment of the decade.

It’s like you’re always stuck in second gear
When it hasn’t been your day, your week
Your month, or even your year

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