Editing Mike Post

{{Short description|American composer and record producer}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=March 2025}}
{{Infobox musical artist <!-- See Wikipedia:WikiProject_Musicians -->
| name                = Mike Post
| image               = Mike Post (born 1944) in a 2024 interview for Popdust.png
| image_size          = 
| caption             = In a 2024 interview
| background          = non_performing_personnel
| birth_name          = Leland Michael Postil
| alias               = 
| birth_date          = {{Birth date and age|1944|09|29}}
| birth_place         = [[Berkeley, California|Berkeley]], California, U.S.
| origin              = [[Los Angeles]], California, U.S.
| genre               = {{nobr|{{hlist|[[Rock music|Rock]]|[[Pop music|pop]]|[[Soul music|soul]]|[[theme music]]}}}}
| instrument          = {{hlist|[[Singing|Vocals]]|[[guitar]]|[[bass guitar]]|[[keyboard instrument|keyboards]]|[[piano]]}}
| occupation          = {{hlist|Producer|[[songwriter]]|musician|composer|arranger}}
| years_active        = 1964–present
| label               = 
| website             = {{URL|https://mike-post.com/}}
}}
'''Mike Post''' (born '''Leland Michael Postil'''; September 29, 1944) is an American [[composer]], best known for his television [[theme music]] for various shows, including ''[[The White Shadow (TV series)|The White Shadow]]''; ''[[Law & Order]]''; ''[[Law & Order: Special Victims Unit]]''; ''[[The A-Team]]''; ''[[The Byrds of Paradise]]''; ''[[NYPD Blue]]''; ''[[Renegade (TV series)|Renegade]];'' ''[[The Rockford Files]]''; ''[[L.A. Law]]''; ''[[Quantum Leap (1989 TV series)|Quantum Leap]]''; ''[[Magnum, P.I.]]''; ''[[Hill Street Blues]]'', and [[Mammoth (TV series)|''Mammoth'']].<ref name=tvacademy>{{cite interview |url=https://interviews.televisionacademy.com/interviews/mike-post |title=Mike Post |interviewer=Stephen J. Abramson |date=25 May 2005 |work=[[Academy of Television Arts & Sciences|Television Academy]] |location=Burbank, CA}}</ref><ref name=freshair>{{cite interview |url=https://www.npr.org/1994/04/20/1107619/musician-and-television-composer-mike-post |title=Musician and Television Composer Mike Post |interviewer=Terry Gross |date=20 April 1994 |work=[[Fresh Air]]}}</ref><ref>{{cite magazine |url=https://variety.com/2024/artisans/news/law-and-order-composer-mike-post-new-bluegrass-and-blues-album-1235950558/ |title='Law & Order' Composer Mike Post Creates New Bluegrass and Blues Album |last=Burlingame |first=Jon |date=29 March 2024 |magazine=[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]}}</ref> He was also the producer of the ''[[Van Halen III]]'' album by the band [[Van Halen]].

==Early musical career==
Post's first credited work in music was cutting demos using two singing sisters, Terry and Carol Fischer. With Sally Gordon, they went on to become [[The Murmaids]]. Their first single, "[[Popsicles and Icicles]]" (written by [[David Gates]]), was a number 3 hit song in January 1964.{{Citation needed|date=December 2022}}

Post also provided early guidance for the [[garage rock]] band [[The Outcasts (Texas band)|The Outcasts]] while in [[recruit training]] in [[San Antonio]], [[Texas]]. He was the songwriter and producer for both songs on the band's first single, released in 1965, and also arranged a local concert where they served as the back-up band.<ref>Review from ''Fuzz, Acid and Flowers'', partially reproduced on ''Dennysguitars.com/outcasts1.html''</ref>

He won his first of five [[Grammy Award]]s at age 23 for Best Instrumental Arrangement on [[Mason Williams]]' "[[Classical Gas]]",<ref name=Grammys>{{cite web |url=https://www.grammy.com/artists/mike-post/5806 |title=Mike Post |access-date=19 April 2024 |website=[[Grammy Awards]]}}</ref> a number 2 hit song in 1968. He is also credited as the [[record producer]] for Williams' LP that included that song, ''The Mason Williams Phonograph Record''.

Billed as the Mike Post Coalition, their track "Afternoon of the Rhino" became a sought-after [[Northern soul]] track.<ref>{{cite book |first=Stuart |last=Maconie |year=2004 |title=Cider With Roadies |edition=1st |publisher=Random House |location=London |isbn=0-09-189115-9 |page=69}}</ref> The single peaked at number 47 in the [[UK Singles Chart]] in August 1975.<ref>{{cite book |first=David |last=Roberts |year=2006 |title=British Hit Singles & Albums |edition=19th |publisher=Guinness World Records Limited |location=London |isbn=1-904994-10-5 |page=432}}</ref>

Post also worked with [[Kenny Rogers]]<ref name=tvacademy /> and produced the first three albums he recorded with his country/rock group [[Kenny Rogers and The First Edition]] (between 1967 and 1969). Post also produced [[Dolly Parton]]'s hit album ''[[9 to 5 and Odd Jobs]]'' in 1981. In 1997, he produced [[Van Halen]]'s ''[[Van Halen III]]'' album.

==Television theme music==
One of his first jobs in television started when he was 24, as the musical director on ''[[The Andy Williams Show]]''.<ref name=freshair /><ref name=tvacademy /> Another early job was writing the theme music for the short-lived detective series ''[[Toma (TV series)|Toma]]'' in 1973, but his big breakthrough (together with co-composer [[Pete Carpenter]]) came in the following year with his theme song for ''[[The Rockford Files]]'', another series by producer [[Stephen J. Cannell]]. The theme also got cross-over [[Top 40]] radio airplay and earned a second Grammy for Post.<ref name=Grammys /><ref name="Enotes Bio">{{cite web |url=http://www.enotes.com/contemporary-musicians/Post-Mike-biography |title=Who is Mike Post, and what were his contributions to music? |website=Enotes |access-date=15 August 2019}}</ref>

''The Rockford Files'' theme became a Top 10 hit in both the U.S. (number 10) and Canada (number 8).<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.bac-lac.gc.ca/eng/discover/films-videos-sound-recordings/rpm/Pages/image.aspx?Image=nlc008388.4004&URLjpg=http%3a%2f%2fwww.collectionscanada.gc.ca%2fobj%2f028020%2ff4%2fnlc008388.4004.gif&Ecopy=nlc008388.4004 |title=Item Display - RPM - Library and Archives Canada |website=Collectionscanada.gc.ca |date=1975-08-02}}</ref> It ranks as the 85th biggest U.S. hit of 1975,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.musicoutfitters.com/topsongs/1975.htm|title=Top 100 Hits of 1975/Top 100 Songs of 1975|website=Musicoutfitters.com}}</ref> and the 84th biggest Canadian hit of 1975.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.collectionscanada.gc.ca/rpm/028020-119.01-e.php?&file_num=nlc008388.4057a&type=1&interval=50&PHPSESSID=9rcle2uno9iqd7fp29i24m0c30 |title=Item Display - RPM - Library and Archives Canada |website=Collectionscanada.gc.ca |date=1975-12-27 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160320034511/https://www.collectionscanada.gc.ca/rpm/028020-119.01-e.php?&file_num=nlc008388.4057a&type=1&interval=50&PHPSESSID=9rcle2uno9iqd7fp29i24m0c30 |archive-date=2016-03-20 |url-status=dead}}</ref>

Post subsequently won Grammys for Best Instrumental Composition for the themes of the television shows ''[[Hill Street Blues]]'' in 1981 and ''[[L.A. Law]]'' in 1988 as well as another Grammy in 1981 for Best Instrumental Performance for the ''Hill Street Blues'' theme, which also reached number 10 in the U.S.<ref name=Grammys /><ref name="Enotes Bio"/>

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Post won an Emmy for his ''[[Murder One (TV series)|Murder One]]'' theme music, and had previously been nominated for ''[[NYPD Blue]]'', among others. He has won [[Broadcast Music, Inc.]] Awards for the music for ''L.A. Law'', ''[[Hunter (1984 American TV series)|Hunter]]'', and the various ''[[Law & Order]]'' series. The theme for ''[[The Greatest American Hero]]'' (co-written with Stephen Geyer) is one of the few television themes to reach as high as number 2 as a single record on the [[Billboard Hot 100|''Billboard'' Hot 100]].<ref name="Enotes Bio"/> The "dun, dun" sound effect he created for the [[Law & Order (franchise)|''Law & Order'' franchise]] has entered popular culture<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.nydailynews.com/entertainment/tv/examining-legendary-dun-dun-sound-law-order-article-1.2790190 |title=Examining the legendary 'dun, dun' sound from 'Law & Order' on the anniversary of the pilot episode |author=Dan Gunderman |date=13 September 2016 |newspaper=New York Daily News}}</ref> and he has written variations on it for each new series.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.nbc.com/nbc-insider/law-order-theme-song |title=Everything to Know About the Law & Order Theme Song |last=White |first=Jessica |date=20 August 2023 |website=[[NBC]] Insider}}</ref>

At the peak of his career, Post was the go-to composer for all of the series created by Donald P. Bellisario, [[Steven Bochco]], Stephen J. Cannell and Dick Wolf. Due to the considerable amount of music to be created, Post operated an office with multiple staff composers, among them [[Walter Murphy]], [[Velton Ray Bunch]], Frank Denson, [[Jerry Grant (composer)|Jerry Grant]] and [[Greg Edmonson]], all composing side by side in cubicles. Each would write music cues to complement specific scenes from each show in Post's signature style.{{citation needed|date=July 2016}}

Other TV music works include ''[[The A-Team]]''; ''[[Baa Baa Black Sheep (TV series)|Baa Baa Black Sheep]]''; ''[[Blossom (American TV series)|Blossom]]''; ''[[The Commish]]''; ''[[Doogie Howser, M.D.]]''; ''[[The Greatest American Hero]]''; ''[[Hardcastle and McCormick]]''; ''[[Hooperman]]''; ''[[Hunter (1984 American TV series)|Hunter]]''; ''[[Magnum, P.I.]]''; ''[[NewsRadio]]''; ''[[Profit (TV series)|Profit]]''; ''[[Quantum Leap (1989 TV series)|Quantum Leap]]''; ''[[Renegade (TV Series)|Renegade]]''; ''[[Riptide (American TV series)|Riptide]]''; ''[[Silk Stalkings]]''; ''[[Stingray (1985 TV series)|Stingray]]''; ''[[Tales of the Gold Monkey]]''; ''[[Tenspeed and Brown Shoe]]''; ''[[The White Shadow (TV series)|The White Shadow]]''; ''[[Wiseguy (TV series)|Wiseguy]]''; the BBC series ''[[Roughnecks (TV series)|Roughnecks]]''; and ''[[Philly (TV series)|Philly]]''.

In 1994, Post scored the ''[[Diagnosis: Murder]]'' episode "How To Murder Your Lawyer", designed as a backdoor pilot for a lawyer series.{{citation needed|date=June 2017}}

In 2014, Post composed the score for the fake TV pilot ''Caged Heat'' in the ''[[All Hail the King]]'' short film for [[Marvel Studios]].<ref>{{cite web |last1=Campbell |first1=Josie |title=Ben Kingsley talks 'All Hail The King' before fans gets sneak peek at 'The Winter Soldier' |url=https://uproxx.com/hitfix/ben-kingsley-talks-all-hail-the-king-before-fans-gets-sneak-peek-at-captain-america-the-winter-soldier/ |website=Uproxx.com |date=25 February 2014 |access-date=15 December 2018}}</ref>

In 2024, Post composed the theme music for [[BBC2]] sitcom ''[[Mammoth (TV series)|Mammoth]]'', having initially met show creator [[Mike Bubbins]] when being interviewed on a BBC Radio Wales show.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Bennett |first=Steve |title=Mammoth's 1970s wardrobe is my wardrobe... |url=https://www.chortle.co.uk/features/2024/04/09/55372/mammoths_1970s_wardrobe_is_my_wardrobe |access-date=2024-04-17 |website=Chortle |language=en}}</ref>

==''Inventions from the Blue Line''==
In 1994, Post released a [[Compact disc|CD]], called ''Inventions from the Blue Line''. The CD contained several of his well-known themes, featuring ''NYPD Blue'' and also including ''Law & Order'', ''Silk Stalkings'' and ''Renegade''. In the liner notes, he discussed his late father, Sam Postil, and the admiration for law enforcement officers that Sam instilled in Mike. He also referred to police in the traditional nickname of "blues", as in ''[[The Thin Blue Line (emblem)|The Thin Blue Line]]'' (referring to the police in general and to police camaraderie). One of the tracks is called "The Blue Line", which Post calls "the [[wikt:comradery|comradery]] theme".

==In popular culture==
The [[Pete Townshend]] song "Mike Post Theme", which alludes to the ubiquity of Post's work in television theme music, appears on [[The Who]]'s 2006 album, ''[[Endless Wire (The Who album)|Endless Wire]]''.

==BMI Foundation: ''The Pete Carpenter Fellowship''==
[[File:Mikhail_Tarasov_%26_Mike_Post.jpg|thumb|220px|David LaChance, Mike Post, [[Broadcast Music, Inc.|BMI]]'s Linda Livingston and Universal Music Group producer/writer [[Svoy]]]]

In 1989, [[Broadcast Music, Inc.]] Foundation and Mike Post established ''The Pete Carpenter Fellowship'' in memory of the late [[Pete Carpenter]], who was Post’s co-composer of television scores and themes including ''[[The Rockford Files]]'' (for which they won a Grammy), ''Hunter'', ''Riptide'', ''[[Hardcastle and McCormick]]'', ''[[Magnum, P.I.]]'' and ''[[The A-Team]]''. ''The Pete Carpenter Fellowship'' is an annual, competitive residency for aspiring television, film and video game composers.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://bmifoundation.org/programs/info/pete_carpenter_fellowship|title=Pete Carpenter Fellowship: for aspiring film, television, and video game composers|website=Bmifoundation.org|access-date=15 August 2019}}</ref>

==Discography==

===Albums===
* 1969: ''Fused'' (as The Mike Post Coalition); [[Warner Bros.-Seven Arts]] (LP)
* 1975: ''Railhead Overture''; [[MGM Records|MGM]] (LP)
* 1982: ''Television Theme Songs''; [[Elektra Records|Elektra]] (LP)
* 1988: ''Music from L.A. Law and Otherwise''; [[Polydor Records|Polydor]] (LP)
* 1994: ''[[Inventions from the Blue Line]]''; [[American Gramaphone Records|American Gramaphone]] (CD)
* 2024: ''Message from the Mountains & Echoes of the Delta''<ref>{{Cite news |last=Burlingame |first=Jon |date=March 29, 2024 |title=''Law & Order'' Composer Mike Post Creates New Bluegrass and Blues Album |url=https://variety.com/2024/artisans/news/law-and-order-composer-mike-post-new-bluegrass-and-blues-album-1235950558/ |access-date=July 4, 2024 |work=[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]}}</ref>

===Charting singles===
The following singles credited to Mike Post charted on the U.S. [[Billboard Hot 100|''Billboard'' Hot 100]] chart<ref>{{cite book |first=Joel |last=Whitburn |author-link=Joel Whitburn |title=Joel Whitburn's Top Pop Singles 1955–1990 |year=1991 |publisher=Record Research Inc |location=Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin |page=455}}</ref> and/or on the Adult Contemporary chart:
*"[[The Rockford Files (theme)|The Rockford Files]]" (number 10, 1975; AC number 16)
*"[[Manhattan Spiritual]]" (number 56, 1975; AC number 28)
*"[[Theme from The Greatest American Hero (Believe It or Not)]]" (number 2, 1981; AC number 3)<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.billboard.com/charts/hot-100|title=Top 100 Songs &#124; Billboard Hot 100 Chart|website=Billboard.com|access-date=15 August 2019}}</ref>
*"The [[Hill Street Blues (theme)|Hill Street Blues]]" (number 10, 1981; AC number 4)
*"[[Magnum, P.I.]]" (number 25, 1982; AC number 40)
*"Theme From L.A. Law" (AC number 13, 1988)

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
{{Commonscat|Mike Post}}
* {{Official Website}}
* {{IMDb name|id=0006236|name=Mike Post}}
* [http://www.museum.tv/archives/etv/P/htmlP/postmike/postmike.htm Biography at Museum TV website]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20070813213339/http://arts.enotes.com/contemporary-musicians/post-mike-biography Biography On Enotes.com]
* [http://www.emmytvlegends.org/interviews/people/mike-post Mike Post Archive of American Television Interview]
*[https://www.namm.org/library/oral-history/mike-post Mike Post Interview] at [[NAMM Oral History Program|NAMM Oral History Collection]] (2016)

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Post, Mike}}
[[Category:1944 births]]
[[Category:21st-century American composers]]
[[Category:Record producers from California]]
[[Category:American television composers]]
[[Category:Epic Records artists]]
[[Category:Grammy Award winners]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:American male television composers]]
[[Category:Musicians from Berkeley, California]]
[[Category:Primetime Emmy Award winners]]
[[Category:21st-century American male musicians]]
[[Category:20th-century American composers]]
[[Category:20th-century American male musicians]]