If you found a genie, what would your first wish be?
Without a doubt, my answer to the above question has always been my own personal entrance music. Imagine walking into the office, your home, the bus, your theme music signaling to all near and far that yes, they’re about to be blessed with your presence.
Alas, this is no fairy tale word, and the closest I can get is carrying a boombox into work (which is frowned upon, by the way) – but there’s nothing quite as unique to wrestling as entrance music.
Ever since the Fabulous Freebirds started making their entrances to, well, Free Bird, theme music has become a staple of the wrestling industry. Yes, music is integral to pretty well every sport in the world, but theme music can come to make or break a wrestler’s career. I mean, compare the Usos currently:
Awesome.
to the Usos of old:
Not awesome.
There are too many great theme songs that didn’t make this list - I already know that site boss Len is going to be upset that Shawn Michaels’ “Sexy Boy” doesn’t make an appearance – but if WWE does one thing right, it’s theme music,
Well, usually!
Here they are – my Top 10 WWE Themes, Ever!
Some Bodies Gonna Get It – Mark Henry
Starting with a bit of a curveball, Mark Henry starts the list with this Three 6 Mafia classic.
Used since his Hall of Pain days, Henry’s theme is instantly recognizable. While perhaps not as over the top as some other selections to this list, and certainly not as bombastic, the theme suits the World’s Strongest Man to a T. It’s different than any other entrance song at the moment; while there’s other hip-hop tunes spread throughout the roster, Henry’s is the only one that really stands up as a song.
Medal – Kurt Angle
It’s so, so good to hear this back on Monday Night’s.
Kurt Angle’s theme is synonymous with the American icon; ironic, seeing as Medal was originally the entrance music for The Patriot, an earlier wrestler in the then-WWF. However, it’s gone from simply being entrance music into something more. As the precursor to the “John Cena Sucks” chant during his respective theme, Medal gained its legendary status alongside the “You Suck!” chants that follow the song to this day.
It’s synonymous with Kurt Angle; even through his stints in other promotions, it felt wrong not to hear him enter to his familiar horn blasts. Now that he’s GM of Monday Night RAW, it’s great to hear again.
Oh it’s true, it’s DAMN true.
Worlds Apart – Sami Zayn
The newest addition to the list, and potentially my personal favourite.
While it may never go down as a WWE classic, there’s something about Sami Zayn’s theme that just gets me. He’s potentially my favourite current wrestler, which helps. It may be the fact that it’s played as the victory song for the Edmonton Oilers. Or, it may just be the fact it’s a catchy song, but it’s simply fantastic. It perfectly suits both the happy-go-lucky nature of Zayn’s character, as well as reflects his real-life love of punk rock and ska music.
Olé!
I Won’t Do What You Tell Me – Stone Cold Steve Austin
There’s nothing more important to a good theme tune than the introduction, and this one has the granddaddy of them all.
The sound of glass shattering has come to define so many signature Attitude Era moments; the statement may go without saying, considering that Stone Cold may be the biggest star in WWE history, but when glass broke, you knew s**t was about to go down. I’d even go so far to say it’s the defining sound of the era.
Rest In Peace – the Undertaker
There’s no more iconic entrance in WWE history than the Undertaker’s.
It’s truly incredible to see; as a wrestling fan, it’s one of my greatest disappointments that I’ll never get the chance to see the Undertaker live. While the long, slow walk to the ring may be the defining part of his entrance, where would it be without his music? Save for the American Badass years, ‘Taker has used essentially the same music since breaking into the WWE at Survivor Series in 1990.
While a legendary theme, the song has humble beginnings - said Jim Johnston, writer of the theme, “well, the first thing I thought was, ‘he’s a dead guy.’ So, he died, so it should be something sad and mournful. I started playing this really delicate little thing, high up on the piano, and started to add.”
“You think about guys who have great entrances, like the Undertaker, and they just carry this attitude and charisma out there, and just like a film is this soundtrack happening to this guys charisma; when they come together, it’s a powerful thing.”
Are you Ready? – DX
This theme was so good that I’ll bet you genuinely thought it was Rage Against the Machine until you were told it was Jim Johnston and Chris Warren.
It was hard to limit the amount of entrance songs related to Triple HHH on this list; if the guy has anything, it’s theme music.
(That, and long – ahhh – droning – ahhhhhh – promoahhhhhs. He’s like the James Hetfield of the WWE.)
“It sounded like people who were confident that they were throwing it back up in your face, and couldn’t care less what you thought about them,” said Jim Johnston, musical guru behind countless legendary WWE themes. It was the anti-authority anthem of the WWE
Break the Walls Down – Jericho
If you’ve read my blogs before, you knew that Jericho would make an appearance. It is a list, after all.
It’s impossible to imagine Jericho entering the ring to anything other than this theme; it’s a classic, through and through. I mean, check out the video below – can you imagine him debuting to anything other than his classic theme?
Shut up. No you can’t.
Jericho has gone on record asking to switch his theme at points throughout his career. McMahon’s response?
I’m paraphrasing, but it can be described as a hard no.
No Chance in Hell – Mr. McMahon
Speaking of the Chairman, his own theme deserves it’s own recognition among the greats.
Don’t lie – as soon as you read it, you pictured Vincent Kennedy McMahon’s iconic walk down the entrance ramp; I don’t think I’m amiss to say that this may be the greatest non-wrestler theme of all time.
Line in the Sand – Evolution
MOTÖRHEAD!
Say what you will about Triple HHH, but the guy always has incredible entrance music. While The Game and King of Kings are arguably more famous themes, his Evolution theme is easily my favourite; while it may be an unpopular opinion, I think it represents the high point of Motörhead’s involvement with Paul Levesque.
“I wanted to have distinct music that set a standard that no one else had; from the second you heard that first note, you knew it was (us)” said the Game himself on the theme.
Much less “metal” than the band’s two prior contributions to Trip’s entrance music, it perfectly encapsulates the swagger of Evolution; somehow, this one song worked perfectly for each of Evolution’s members. It’s truly greater than the sum of its parts.
Did I mention Motörhead?
This Fire Burns/Cult of Personality – CM Punk
What would WWE, or a blog on the subject, be without a screwy finish?
Cult of Personality, the Living Color classic, perfectly suits CM Punk. It perfectly speaks to his ego driven character on so many levels; it could just be my personal bias to the song, but it would likely be my clear favourite for favourite WWE theme of all time.
At least, it would be if it wasn’t for his original theme.
While This Fire Burns may not be quite the entrance that C.O.P might be, it will forever be tied to my favourite WWE match of all time. The Cena/Punk classic from Money in the Bank 2011 is my favourite match to date put on by Vince McMahon’s colossus, and part of that is due to the heavily partisan Chicago crowd. When Punk’s music hits, the crowd goes nuts; it’s easily one of my favourite moments in wrestling.
Don’t believe me? Check it out.
For that reason, I’ve decided to go with a dirty finish. Two themes occupy the top spot, and that’s the way it’s going to be.
That’s it, that’s all! Let me know your thoughts by tweeting me @Spennylove, or @WCSportsCA!
