Good Tunes: The Rembrandts, 'I'll Be There for You'

Yes, it’s the theme song from Friends: “I’ll Be There for You” by The Rembrandts. It’s kind of embarrassing to post it, but it is one of the songs that make me think of the summer of 1995.

It was inescapable. Not only was it on TV, it was all over the radio. It was an earworm that infected the nation. According to Wikipedia, the song “topped the Billboard Hot 100 Airplay chart for eight weeks,” meaning it was the most-played song on the radio during that time. Eight weeks!

It’s the Ford Tempo tune, the song I most associate with my babysitter’s car. It brings to mind bright, hot summer days, waiting at a stoplight along the Highway 6 bypass or searching for the closest parking spot at the City Park pool, Q103 on the radio.

It had been a long time since I heard the entire song (maybe since 1995), so I listened to it today. The second half is a surprise but very familiar.