A little while back I saw an article about NBC potentially getting back into NBA coverage after a 20 year hiatus. To be honest I'm not entirely sure why I was reading this, considering I barely watch professional basketball, but I digress. What perhaps caught my eye was the part about how, if they indeed starting broadcasting the NBA again, they might bring back the 'Roundball Rock' theme. This song is synonymous with basketball itself and I started humming it right away, though I did have a tinge of self doubt. Wanting to make sure I had the correct song I pulled up YouTube. The top result had 2+ million views and I'm so glad I watched it.
Here we see John Tesh, the man who wrote the theme. He's certainly an interesting dude. Early in his career he bounced around as a local TV reporter before becoming one of the hosts of Entertainment Tonight and a sportscaster for CBS and NBC in the 80s and 90s. But he was also an aspiring musician. Apparently he was friends with Yanni and joined a touring band put together by the Greek artist to challenge himself and get experience on keyboard in front of crowds. A few years later he composed a couple TV themes, one of which was Roundball Rock. He then left E.T. in 1996 and became a full-time musician. Since 2003 he's hosted the nationally syndicated John Tesh Radio Show.
Back to the video. As part of this concert he tells the story of how the composition came together. In short he was inspired while traveling, called himself and left a message on his answering machine, laying out the basic song structure using only his voice. Even better, he brought the machine and played the original recording for the crowd.
I don't have a ton to add to this, it's just something I wanted to share. I love the fake dribbling at the start, I love the little run he does to the piano, I do love the song. It's pretty amusing watching the instrumentalists, these legitimate musicians, smirking as they play a TV sports theme. Everything about it is so fun (and so 90's).
The best part, obviously, is that tape recording. I'm picturing him singing this, making these sounds, into the phone so he doesn't forget the idea, presumably dancing along to the tune. It's absolutely hilarious. Another thought is what it would be like trying to explain any of this to my (or any other modern day) children, especially the inquisitive eldest. Why would he have to call himself on the phone? What's an answering machine? Tape? So much, and it's only from, what, 25 years ago, will be entirely lost on every generation past ours.
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