If you close your eyes and think about 1970s television, you can probably hear that piano riff. It’s a soft, rolling melody that feels like a long drive between cities. Then that voice kicks in: "Baby, if you've ever wondered..."
The WKRP in Cincinnati theme song is one of those rare pieces of media that has outlived the show’s original broadcast run by decades. It’s a staple of classic TV playlists and a karaoke favorite for people of a certain age. But honestly? Most of what we think we know about this song is a mix of urban legends and half-remembered trivia.
The Mystery of the Voice
For years, people swore they knew who was singing that opening track. There was this persistent rumor—an urban legend, really—that Richard Sanders, the actor who played the high-strung newsman Les Nessman, was the one behind the mic.
You can see why people thought that. Sanders and the actual singer have a similar vocal register. Plus, it’s the kind of meta-joke a show like WKRP would pull. But it’s totally false. Series creator Hugh Wilson eventually had to clear the air in the Season 1 DVD commentary.
The real voice belongs to Steve Carlisle.
Carlisle wasn't a household name, but he had that perfect, smooth "soft rock" vibe that defined the late '70s. He later recorded a full-length version of the song that actually cracked the Billboard Hot 100, peaking at #65 in 1981. It even hit #29 on the Adult Contemporary charts. Think about that for a second. A song about a fictional radio station in Ohio was a legitimate radio hit in the real world.
The music was composed by Tom Wells, while Hugh Wilson himself wrote the lyrics. Wilson wasn't just the "boss" making demands; he was deeply involved in the sonic identity of the show. He wanted something that captured the "packing and unpacking" lifestyle of a journeyman DJ.
That Bizarre Ending Theme
If the opening theme is a warm hug, the closing theme is a fever dream. You know the one. It starts with a heavy, distorted guitar riff and a drum beat that sounds like it belongs in a dive bar. Then come the "lyrics."
"Madna-row-sa-bartender... rock and roll... gibberish?"
For decades, fans have tried to transcribe those words. They’ve argued on forums. They’ve slowed down the tape. They’ve convinced themselves it’s a song about a bartender or a rough night in a club.
Here is the truth: The lyrics are complete nonsense.
Jim Ellis, an Atlanta-based musician who worked on the show’s incidental music, recorded the closing theme as a "scratch track." In the recording world, that’s basically a placeholder. He had the melody and the rock-and-roll energy, but he hadn't written the words yet. He just mumbled phonetically to show Wilson where the vocals should go.
Wilson loved it. He thought the gibberish was hilarious—a perfect satire of how incomprehensible rock music was becoming to the older generation. He also knew that, back then, network announcers usually talked over the credits anyway. He figured no one would really hear it.
He was wrong. Fans obsessed over it.
Why it Matters More Than Other Themes
Most sitcom themes are just exposition. The Brady Bunch explains the family tree. Gilligan’s Island tells you how they got stuck.
The WKRP in Cincinnati theme song is different because it’s a character study. It’s widely accepted—and basically confirmed by the show's narrative—that the song is told from the perspective of Andy Travis.
Andy is the "program director" who arrives in the pilot to save a failing station. The lyrics "Got kind of tired packing and unpacking, town to town, up and down the dial" aren't just catchy lines. They are the backstory of a man who has spent his life chasing a career in an unstable industry. In the Season 4 episode "The Creation of Venus," Andy even repeats those exact words in a conversation.
The song grounds the comedy in a bit of melancholy. It reminds you that these characters are real people with failed relationships and tired suitcases.
The Battle for the Music
You can't talk about the music of WKRP without mentioning the licensing nightmare.
Because the show was about a radio station, it used real hit records from the era—Blondie, The Rolling Stones, Steely Dan. When the show went into syndication and eventually DVD, the rights to those songs were astronomical.
For years, fans were stuck with "butchered" versions of the show where the iconic rock songs were replaced by generic synth music. It ruined the vibe. Imagine Dr. Johnny Fever dropping the needle on a record, and instead of a classic hit, you hear something that sounds like elevator music.
Thankfully, Shout! Factory eventually put out a "Complete Series" set that restored a huge chunk of the original music. But through all those licensing wars, the opening and closing themes remained the one constant. They were the anchors.
What You Should Do Next
If you’re a fan of the show or just a student of TV history, don't just settle for the 45-second TV edit.
- Seek out the Steve Carlisle full version. It has extra verses that flesh out the story of the narrator's nomadic life. It’s a genuinely good pop-country-rock hybrid that stands on its own.
- Listen to the "scrubbed" closing theme. There are isolated tracks of Jim Ellis’s closing theme on YouTube. Listening to it without the credit scrolls or the announcer makes the "gibberish" even more impressive—it sounds like a real song until you actually try to follow a sentence.
- Watch the "Turkey Drop" episode again. Seriously. It has nothing to do with the theme song, but it's the law. If you're talking about WKRP, you have to acknowledge the turkeys.
The WKRP in Cincinnati theme song wasn't just a jingle. It was a bridge between the world of sitcoms and the very real, often lonely world of 1970s radio. It’s why we’re still talking about it—and trying to decipher those ending lyrics—nearly fifty years later.