"I'll Be There for You" CD Single
"I'll Be There for You" is the title theme song of the American sitcom Friends.
It is performed by The Rembrandts over the opening titles of each episode. The music was written by Michael Skloff and the lyrics were written by David Crane, Marta Kauffman, Allee Willis, Danny Wilde and Phil Sōlem.
Background[]
The Friends title theme was originally going to be "Shiny Happy People" by REM, but the band declined. The Rembrandts were selected to perform an original song because they have a similar sound to REM.
Writing and Recording[]
The verse heard over the Friends opening titles was written by Crane, Kauffman and Willis. Wilde and Sōlem of The Rembrandts then wrote the second verse and bridge.
The famous handclaps were a last minute addition, originally conceived to allow for four fast cuts during the opening titles.
The original one minute version of the song was extended to three minutes and released for sale due to its huge popularity from radio airplay. The Rembrandts had initially been reluctant but were cajoled by Warner Brothers. Lead singer Phil Sōlem said:
Our record label said we had to finish the song and record it. There was no way to get out of it.
Release[]
The song made it onto the album The Rembrandts, released in 1995, at the last moment. The song was not released as a single at first, record companies feared it would cannibalize album sales.
The song topped the Billboard Hot 100 Airplay chart for eight weeks. When the single was finally released, it reached number two in the United Kingdom and reached number seventeen on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 as the flipside to "This House is not a Home". It also reached #1 on the U.S. Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks chart.
Rarely heard on UK radio after its early popularity, the song was frequently played on UK pop radio in 2004 around the time of the series finale.
Additional lyrics were added for the 1995 LP.
Music video[]
The music video of this song was also popular worldwide, featuring all the six main stars of the show where they gradually take the singing and dancing roles of the band. The video was included as a bonus feature on several of the show's Complete Season DVD Boxsets.
Albums[]
"I'll Be There for You" has been included on the following albums:
- Friends: Music From The TV Series (1994 soundtrack compilation)
- LP - The Rembrandts (1995)
- Friends Again (1999 soundtrack compilation)
- Serial TV: Les Plus Grands Hits Des Séries TV (compilation)
- Happy Songs (compilation)
- Billboard Top Hits: 1995 (compilation)
European Maxi CD tracklist[]
- "I'll Be There for You" (3:09)
- "Fixin' to Blow" (5:03)
- "Just The Way It Is Baby" (4:06)
- "Snippets Medley" (6:46)
- Don't Hide Your Love
- End Of The Beginning
- Lovin' Me Insane
- Drowning In Your Tears
- This House Is Not A Home
- What Will It Take
Cover versions[]
American rock band The Goo Goo Dolls recorded their own version of this song which contained slightly altered lyrics, and a more uptempo, rockier sound.
"Weird Al" Yankovic made a parody of the song entitled "Theme From Home Improvement (I'll Repair For You)" to be used in his album Bad Hair Day. However, the parody was not included after the producers of Friends felt it would overexpose the theme song, and was only performed during The Bad Hair Day Tour.
Scott Bradlee's Postmodern Jukebox released a cover titled "Evolution Of The "Friends" TV Theme Song - 1920s to 1990s", with pastiches of various musical genres, such as 1920s jazz and 1980s arena rock, before The Rembrandts themselves performed the final parts to acknowledge the 90s where the song was recorded.
A 2014 promotional video made by Netflix to advertise the addition of Friends to their catalogue featured Phil Solem and Danny Wilde of The Rembrandts performing "I'll Be There For You" with acoustic guitars at Central Perk, with Gunther making coffee for them.
Ed Sheeran performed "I'll Be There For You" at The Bert Show in 2015.
Charlie Puth covered the song in 2023 in tribute to Matthew Perry.
Lyrics[]
So no one told you life was gonna be this way
Your job's a joke, you're broke, your love life's D.O.A
It's like you're always stuck in second gear
When it hasn't been your day, your week, your month, or even your year, but
I'll be there for you (when the rain starts to pour)
I'll be there for you (like I've been there before)
I'll be there for you ('cause you're there for me too)
You're still in bed at ten and work began at eight
You've burned your breakfast, so far things are going great
Your mother warned you there'd be days like these
But she didn't tell you when the world has brought you down to your knees that
I'll be there for you (when the rain starts to pour)
I'll be there for you (like I've been there before)
I'll be there for you ('cause you're there for me too)
No one could ever know me
No one could ever see me
Seems you're the only one who knows
What it's like to be me
Someone to face the day with
Make it through all the rest with
Someone I'll always laugh with
Even at my worst, I'm best with you, yeah
It's like you're always stuck in second gear
When it hasn't been your day, your week, your month, or even your year
I'll be there for you (when the rain starts to pour)
I'll be there for you (like I've been there before)
I'll be there for you ('cause you're there for me too)
I'll be there for you
I'll be there for you
I'll be there for you ('cause you're there for me too)