“You need to learn to play Luscious Lawrence’s theme song.”
My son Sam went to OVW last night for the first time. He’s a phenomenal musician who, so far, has picked up keyboard, guitar, bass, trombone, and saxophone. On the way home, his sister Lydia began telling him, not for the first time, that he needed to learn Lawrence’s signature saxophone-driven theme.
This led to a discussion of OVW theme songs in general, and an interesting observation: by an large, the wrestlers of OVW all have great theme songs. To be more specific, they have actual songs that are easily distinguished from one another and tell you a great deal about each character.
Luscious Lawrence has that smooth, almost sleazy saxophone with the lounge keyboard and bass underneath.
Tony Gunn’s theme is driving rock with a screaming vocal that demands fans sing along.
Jack Vaughn sounds like he’s walking out to the theme song from a local 1980’s wrestling television program.
The Outrunners sound like they’re making their entrance to some primo outtakes from the Miami Vice soundtrack.
Words fail me to describe the operatic diva Shalonce Royal’s new theme, other than to say it is quite uniquely her.
I could go on an on.
My dear friend, the late Hurricane JJ Maguire, wrote many of the classic WWF themes from the 1980s with his writing partner Jimmy Hart. They and Jim Johnston set the standard for what a wrestling theme should be.
It needs to be clearly recognizable within the first few notes or sounds.
It needs to tell you a story, specifically, who the wrestler is.
It needs to be as unique and distinct as the wrestlers themselves.
This isn’t a post meant to denigrate any of the big companies who spend way more money on theme songs than independent wrestlers can afford. This is just to share an observation by my kids. OVW wrestlers have great theme songs. They are as distinct as the wrestlers themselves, and they are highly enjoyable. It’s an old school way of doing business, and it still works.
Lydia’s only been a handful of times with me, but on the way to the show, she didn’t just tell her friend and brother who were tagging along what to expect. She sang about it.
“You’re also going to see, Shotgun Tony Guuuuuuuuuuuunnnnnn!”
When it comes to pairing songs with wrestlers, right now, the OVW roster might truly be “The Best There Is.”