Miami Vice Theme

"Miami Vice Theme"
Japanese release cover
Single by Jan Hammer
from the album Miami Vice soundtrack
B-side
  • "Eyes"
  • "The Original Miami Vice Theme"
ReleasedAugust 1985[1]
GenreElectronic rock[2]
Length2:26
LabelMCA
Songwriter(s)Jan Hammer
Producer(s)Jan Hammer
Jan Hammer singles chronology
"Miami Vice Theme"
(1985)
"Crockett's Theme"
(1986)
Music video
"Miami Vice Theme" on YouTube

"Miami Vice Theme" is a musical piece composed 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, was released as a single in 1985, and peaked at number one 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.[3] "Miami Vice Theme" also peaked at number five in the UK and number four 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.

  1. ^ "Jan Hammer singles".
  2. ^ Smith, Troy L. (May 13, 2021). "Every No. 1 song of the 1980s ranked from worst to best". Cleveland.com. Retrieved January 30, 2023.
  3. ^ Weiner, Jonah (March 28, 2013). "On YouTube, Video Makes the Radio Star". Bloomberg Businessweek. New York. Archived from the original on March 10, 2014. Retrieved April 6, 2014.