The history of everything

After watching one of my favorite television shows last evening – The Big Bang Theory – I thought again of how clever the theme song is that leads into the show.   A couple weeks ago when I wrote about poets, a reader commented that songwriters also are poets.

And, of course, he is right.  The story behind the Big Bang Theory theme song is really interesting.  It seems that Ed Robertson, lead singer for the Canadian alternative rock group Barenaked Ladies, had read Simon Singh’s book Big Bang.  Singh is a British author who specializes in writing about science and math. 

 

While his band was performing in Los Angeles, Robertson talked about the book and improvised a freestyle rap about the origins of the universe – which he called “The History of Everything.”

It just so happened that the producers hoping to start the TV show were in the audience and they loved what they were hearing.  After the show, they asked Robertson if he would turn his rap into a theme song that could be used for their new show.  And, as they say, the rest is history (so to speak).

Here’s a version that shows those very clever words – a poem composed from a rap composed from the creative mind of a songwriter/poet’s enjoyment of a book written about science, history, and “the whole universe.” http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uS3qDDzgPio

 

From science writer Singh to rock band Barenaked Ladies to hit TV show – it all started with a writer’s moment.

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