BURNING THE GROUND EXCLUSIVE 1985
“Miami Vice Theme” was created and performed by Jan Hammer as the theme to the television series Miami Vice. It was first presented as part of the television broadcast of the show in September 1984 and released as a single in 1985, peaking at the number one spot on the Billboard Hot 100. It was the last instrumental to top the Hot 100 until 2013, when “Harlem Shake” by Baauer reached number one. It also peaked at number 5 in the UK, and number 4 in Canada. In 1986, it won Grammy Awards for “Best Instrumental Composition” and “Best Pop Instrumental Performance.” This song, along with Glenn Frey’s number-two hit “You Belong to the City”, put the Miami Vice soundtrack on the top of the US album chart for 11 weeks in 1985, making it the most successful TV soundtrack of all time until 2006 when Disney Channel’s High School Musical beat its record.
SIDE A:
Miami Vice Theme (Extended Remix) 6:53
Engineer [Remix] – Taavi Mote
Remix – Louil Silas Jr.
SIDE B:
Miami Vice Theme (T.V. Version) 1:00
Miami Vice Theme (12 Inch Edit) 3:16
Engineer [Remix] – Taavi Mote
Remix – Louil Silas Jr.
VINYL GRADE:
Vinyl: Near Mint
Sleeve: Near Mint
U.S. CHART HISTORY:
| Year | Single | Chart | Position |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1985 | Miami Vice Theme | U.S. Billboard Hot 100 | #1 |
| 1985 | Miami Vice Theme | U.S. Billboard Hot Adult Contemporary | #16 |
| 1985 | Miami Vice Theme | U.S. Billboard Hot Dance/Club Play | #21 |
| 1985 | Miami Vice Theme | U.S. Billboard Hot Dance Music/Maxi-Singles Sales | #7 |
| 1985 | Miami Vice Theme | U.S. Billboard Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks | #29 |
| 1985 | Miami Vice Theme | U.S. Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles | #10 |
RELEASE INFORMATION:
Label: MCA Records – MCAT 1000
Format: Vinyl, 12″, 45 RPM
Country: UK & Europe
Released: 1985
Genre: Electronic
Style: Theme, Synth-pop
Credits: Producer, Arranged By – Jan Hammer
Written-By – J. Hammer*
NOTES:
From the television soundtrack album “MIAMI VICE”
Made In England.
Find The 12″ On DISCOGS
EQUIPMENT USED:
Turntable: Pro-Ject Debut III
Cartridge: Ortofon Super
Stylus: Ortofon OM Stylus 30
Platter: Pro-Ject Acryl-It platter
Speed Control: Pro-Ject Speed Box S
Phono Pre-amp: Bellari VP130 Tube Phono Preamp
Tube: Tung-Sol 12AX7ECC803-S Gold Electron Tube
Soundcard: ESI Juli@
Record Cleaning: VPI HW 16.5 Record Cleaning Machine
Artwork Scans: Brother MFC-6490CW Professional Series Scanner
SOFTWARE USED:
Recording/Editing: Adobe Audition 3.0 (Recording)
Down Sampling: iZotope RX Advanced 2
Artwork Editor: Adobe Photoshop CS5
Click Removeal: ClickRepair (DeClick Level 3)
FLAC/MP3 Conversion: dBpoweramp
M3U Playlist: Playlist Creator
RESTORATION NOTES:
All vinyl rips are recorded @ 32bit/float
FLAC (Level Eight)
MP3 (320kbps)
Artwork scanned at 600dpi
As a big Miami Vice fan… you have no idea how thankful I am!!!
Thank you so much Paul for this great rip!!!
Best wishes,
Gonzalo
I might have said it before somewhere but to me Miami Vice was and is the best tv ever (best music of any show ever, best opening track, best opening in general and I could go on like this for a while). It’s lasting influence on tv culture has been widely discussed and the fact the music still pops up shows this show will never fade away. Thanks for this vinyl – I have most of the Jan Hammer tracks but I did not have the 1 minute tv version which is great!
SWEET! Thank you!
There is a bit of a mini mystery regarding this 12 Inch. This version is shown as being remixed by Louil Silas Jr.
There is another version, however, with same track order. The length of the 12 inch version on both is the same but it says it is remixed by François Kevorkian, Ron St. Germain. I have been trying to find out for years (if not decades) if there is indeed another 12 inch version out there or is it just mislabeled. Would anyone know?
http://www.discogs.com/Jan-Hammer-Miami-Vice-Theme/release/757127
No mystery — it’s just mislabeled on the UK edition. The Extended Remix on both the US and UK singles is indeed from François Kevorkian & Ron St. Germain. This was annoying to discover upon finally acquiring the UK release some years later. However, the 12″ Edit mixes on them are different, which made up for the initial dissapoinment. On the US version, it is just an edit of the François K mix. But on the UK single, we have what is in my opinion the best version (and the rarest of anything officially released) of the Miami Vice theme… Read more »
paul, was curious if you’d heard of this atrocious italo disco song, “The Eyes of Don Johnson”?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fw6qePVMVx4
please note, this is NOT a request for you to post this song. i just wanted to convey how big MV/DJ were at the time.
Bright T Shirts and shoes without socks..great times. Thanks Paul!
the miami vice series was great. so was this tv theme!
thanks
This was the period when we literally had a weekly new #1.
For five weeks in a row, the #1 atop the Billboard Hot 100 only reigned for 7 days.
Oh Sheila – Ready For The World
Take On Me – a-ha
Saving All My Love For You – Whitney Houston
Part Time Lover – Stevie Wonder
Miami Vice Theme – Jan Hammer
Another golden period of pop.
Thanks for your 80s gems, Paul!
What a great time in pop music. All of those #1’s deserved the top spot 🙂
For sure!
I just wished Take On Me and Saving All My Love For You had lengthier stay at the top.
Miami Vice.
Gosh, was it thát long ago?
Yeah it was that long agao lol
A classic theme tune.
Thanks Paul 🙂
You’re welcome Junior 🙂
Thanks Paul once again.
You’re welcome Omar 🙂
Another winner Paul, and Crockett’s Theme was another memorable single off the soundtrack.
Thanks Denniz 🙂
Thank you! Music here is always the classic… thank you for that Paul 🙂
You are very welcome Public Image 🙂
Awesome, I look forward to listening ti this..
Thanks as always Paul for the rip!:)
You’re welcome Ex15 🙂
Great post, Paul.
Thanks! 🙂
You’re welcome Lacatuantrophy 🙂