How The Simpsons Creator Matt Groening Helped Fixed The Show’s Iconic Theme Song – SlashFilm

When “The Simpsons” was greenlit, creator Matt Groening and Fox hired the great Danny Elfman to create the opening theme. His creation has since become iconic, thanks in large part to its first few seconds, which feature a choir announcing the show title in angelic tones. This actually caused some problems, however, after Elfman and Groening realized the vocals weren’t quite right. The pair ended up making some last-minute tweaks that resulted in the show creator’s own voice being immortalized in the opening titles of “The Simpsons”

Though the series proper debuted in 1989, “The Simpsons” actually launched on sketch series “The Tracey Ullman Show.” Back then, the titular family appeared in crude shorts designed to bookend commercial breaks. These brief vignettes were the brainchild of Matt Groening, whose comic strip “Life in Hell” caught the attention of producer James L. Brooks. Brooks hired Groening to create the shorts, which quickly gave rise to a full primetime series.

When “The Simpsons” did finally air on December 17, 1989, it didn’t yet have a full title sequence. Instead, “Simpsons Roasting on an Open Fire” opened with a title card announcing it as a Christmas Special. When the second episode was broadcast however, viewers were introduced to the theme song and title sequence that would become part of the cultural wallpaper of the ’90s and beyond. That sequence contained all sorts of blink-and-you’ll-miss-it jokes, references, cameos, and of course, the great couch gags. What even some of the most dedicated fans might not have realized, however, is that Groening’s own voice also forms part of this now legendary title sequence.

“The Simpsons” has featured many musical numbers throughout its 36-year run, but the theme song remains the most memorable. During a 2015 interview with Classic FM, Danny Elfman recalled being shown a rough draft of the animation for the sequence, before writing the tune in one day, “in the car on the way home from the meeting.” That same day he recorded a demo in his home studio, and Fox must have liked it because Elfman told Classic FM that this same idea is “exactly what plays at the beginning of ‘The Simpsons.'”

Of course, the theme needed some embellishment before it was ready for primetime. So, Matt Groening joined Elfman for more extensive recording sessions, and it was during one of these that he was called upon to contribute.

In an interview with USA Today, the show creator claimed he had “a special place in [his] heart for the original ‘Simpsons’ theme,” because he sang on it. “On the day of the recording session with the orchestra and Danny Elfman, there was a trio of singers just to sing ‘The Simpsons,'” he explained. This is, of course, referencing the famous first few seconds of the theme song, where the title of the show emerges through clouds to the cherubic tones of a choir announcing the title. Groening continued:

“[They] did their job, went home and we played it back and it sounded like they were saying ‘The Simpson.’ The plural in ‘Simpsons’ didn’t come through. So Danny and I went into the recording booth and made a ‘Z’ sound and edited onto the end of ‘The Simpson,’ so it’s now ‘The Simpsons.’ I don’t think they re-recorded that part. So I think it’s us.”