246 replies to this topic

[Eric83]

I love soap openings, and they are unique from other shows. I love all of them, my favorite of all-time has to be Hold On to Love. That was the GL theme used from 1991-2002.




Here are others that I love:


Y&R "Porn Theme" 1999-2003


What are some of you guys' favorite soap openings? You can also discuss some of the soaps current openings. Which ones need an update or complete revamp?

Have fun discussing all your favorite openings past and present.

Edited by ga68153, 19 February 2010 - 02:07 PM.

[Eric83]

Days of Our Lives Melaswen Opening



OLTL Opening 1986

[Sindacco]

I loved Sunset Beach's Opening.

[All My Shadows]

[Mr. Vixen]

Sunset Beaches was pretty sweet....It really reminded me of the opening from the later years of the original 90210....Which might have something to do with the fact that I always thought 90210's opening looked very soap-ish.

[JtSmarts]

Days of Our Lives Melaswen Opening



OLTL Opening 1986

I love that Melaswen opening!

[AllMyDaysatGH]

I miss this AMC opening so much! Just because it had that melody that led into it...I liked that. Nowadays, the opening just randomly comes on, that annoys me for some reason LOL.
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AMC's White opening..this was my favorite one! I liked the format of it, and the song they used.
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Edited by AllmyDaysatGh, 21 February 2010 - 04:03 AM.

[Mr. Vixen]

I like the current AMC opening...And I loved the first one that you posted above, AllMyDaysatGH ^^^

I never liked the white opening...

I hated that damn floating leaf....lol. And it just seemed kind of cheaply edited. AMC has had a lot of great openings, but some are just BAD...the white one was inbetween for me.

[Pine Charles]

[SFK]

This is one of those topics I could talk about all day, WoST was love. So for now I'll just mention an obscure favorite, the sexy opening theme to Another World's "Summer Desire" primetime special that aired before the Emmys in '92. It's a slow, sensuous sax solo version of "(You Take Me Away To) Another World". I like to think of it as AW's equivalent to Knots Landing's themes for seasons 9 and 10. It also reminds me of Sunset Beach's original theme (my favorite) that many considered to be "too primetime".

At 5:05:



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nCwpd7velOo=5m5s

Edited by SFK, 19 February 2010 - 03:55 PM.

[catsmeouch]

Passions had a great opening. Catchy theme song, no silly shots of cast members. Very classy.

[DaytimeFan]

This is one of those topics I could talk about all day, WoST was love. So for now I'll just mention an obscure favorite, the sexy opening theme to Another World's "Summer Desire" primetime special that aired before the Emmys in '92. It's a slow, sensuous sax solo version of "(You Take Me Away To) Another World". I like to think of it as AW's equivalent to Knots Landing's themes for seasons 9 and 10. It also reminds me of Sunset Beach's original theme (my favorite) that many considered to be "too primetime".

At 5:05:

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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nCwpd7velOo=5m5s

You know what, I was going to instinctually say my favorite soap openings were for DAYS and Y&R (several for Y&R, namely the 80s one where Katherine has a necklace clasped around her neck looking like an utter bitch and the 2003 Porn Opening featuring Jess Walton's epic whore hair toss) but then you reminded me of the Another World Summer Desire opening. So seductive and it features the absolute best screen shot of Jensen Buchanan in it.

I actually really liked all of AW's openings when I think of it.

[SFK]

Compare Capitol's original* opening sequence to the disco-tinged primetime Italian opening, complete with cast credits:

U.S. Original:



Eye-talian:



*These aren't truly the original credits, there were some different shots of the monuments and such in the first version.

Edited by SFK, 19 February 2010 - 04:05 PM.

[YurSoakinginit]

I love both the Peabo Bryson vocal version AND the instrumental that preceded it. The original theme was composed by Dave Grusin (who most notably composed the theme for St. Elsewhere), and was orchestrated without the specific lyrics yet in mind. You can hear what a great piece the instrumental version is, even on its own.





No offense to Lee Holdridge, composer of OLTL's current theme, but I think Grusin's theme music is so much better and that it, combined with images of characters & Llanview landmarks (particularly when enhanced by the lyrics), gave One Life to Live an actual identity.

Edited by YurSoakinginit, 19 February 2010 - 06:55 PM.

[AllMyDaysatGH]

http://www.youtube.c...player_embedded

I miss when AMC had that little melody before it's opening came on!! It drives me crazy whenever I hear it! Man, i want that sound back, LoL. I could see it leading into today's opening!

Edited by AllmyDaysatGh, 19 February 2010 - 05:26 PM.

[Mr. Vixen]

I miss when AMC had that little melody before it's opening came on!! It drives me crazy whenever I hear it! Man, i want that sound back, LoL. I could see it leading into today's opening!

ITA.

I like the opening they use today...But I liked the little pre-melody!

[EricMontreal22]

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SOOO good. I love andmiss how the vamp would start in the last scene of the prologue and then fade into the opening with the little chime happening justas the light turned on. A few times in the past few years they have vamped the opening theme but it's random--I wish they'd do it again.

The white AMC opening wasn't bad, but was a step down.

The GL theme in the first post is a classic, I agree and should have been updated not replaced (I feel the same way about ATWT's oh so dramatic and 80s synth opening).

And I know I'm in the SHARP minority but I vastly prefered Sunset Beach's first opening even if it was very Melrose (which was the point afterall, to do a Melrose type show in the afternoon)

[Mr. Vixen]

I always thought the original Port Charles opening was kind of nice.

Sunset Beach's was great, too.

DAYs is so historic though, that I think everyone loves it.

GH's faces of the heart is one of my favorite tunes of all time...I dont mind the new one, but the original tune will always be one of my faves.

[EricMontreal22]

I get the sharp nostalgia for the 80s OLTL theme, but I think it's too cheezy to work now... Still, it sticks in your head so much, maybe it could be updated so much. I admit I LOVE the Gottlieb 90s theme--it's SOOO over the top soapy/romance novel even that when I got into OLTL in 92, even though I was 11, it slightly embarassed me. LOL but I love it, I admit.



Of course it was obviously based on the shortlived Loving opening from before that:



I actually love the very simple original Loving opening (this was after they added a pointless chime sound effect)



It's reminiscent of the original AMC theme and I think that was on purpose since early Loving seemed to be trying to emulate the 70s AMC before it went to an hour, in tone.

Not sure about either vocal opening--of course when I watched as an avid fan the L O V I N G vocal was used and I liked it--the 80s brief vocal opening is so bombastic, I think it's a bit much (with ridiculous vocals by Johnny Mathis--the non vocal works better).

Oh and I loved their mystery opening:

[EricMontreal22]

Y&R's is by far, though, my fave soap theme tune (ironic it was taken from a movie). It's just a gorgeous piece of music, though I think I liked the early openings best--the 70s pencil drawing ones and the 80s photos-done-to-look-like-those-drawings ones

I like OLTL's early 80s one too--that used their 70s theme but had the more elgant shot of the bird flying past the sun.

I never watched the show (wish I had), but I LOVE Santa Barbara's whole opening credit. I don't think it could be argued by anyone that it wasn't obviously trying to emulate the opening of Dallas, Knots, Dynasty--all those popular primetime shows at the time, both in music (though this was scored for synth of course not a high cost orchestra) and montage.