That catchy guitar riff…

The signature phrase…

The massive pop that follows…

The one that makes you want to bob your head or sing and hum along…

The connection that the song has with the wrestler using it…

They’re the essential pieces to a great pro wrestling theme. Over the years, we’ve heard thousands of them. A theme song can pretty much make or break a star and it defines them. It’s probably the most important quality for a wrestler. Think about it – before you ever see their look, hear them on the mic, or see how they work in the ring, you will hear their theme song. Think back to any of your favorite stars of the past and their theme song is one that you can instantly sing or hum nearly in its entirety.

After a pretty lengthy discussion with some friends, it got me thinking exactly what are the greatest wrestling themes of all time? This started off as a list of my Top 20, but after starting an Excel spreadsheet of all the ones under consideration, it turned into a Top 25, then Top 50, and where we ended up – a Top 75 Pro Wrestling Themes of All-Time.

I’ve seen these lists a million times and I’m always intrigued at how someone was able to slot one certain wrestling theme above another. It seems that the Top 10’s always include a hand-full of the same themes that are truly above all of the rest. But I’ve never actually taken the time to sit down and actually decide on my own which wrestling themes were truly the best. This is that time. Thanks to Benny, Jimmy V, Rue, Michael, and the followers of WrestleChat.net on Twitter for their input. Without all of their suggestions and personal rankings, this list probably doesn’t actually get put together.

Now, before I get listing, let me tell you the criteria. All of these themes were graded on 5 specific, equally important components.

1. The “Pop” it produces from the crowd.

2. A theme that is catchy and becomes easily familiar

3. Sing/Hum-a-long factor

4. The all-important “First Three Seconds”; You know who’s coming to the ring instantly.

5. Believability Factor; How well does the theme fit the wrestler?

A score of 1-20 was given for each component of criteria and then added together. The max score a theme could have is a 100. Also, all “themes” from ECW have been disqualified. Come on, you can find “Enter Sandman” and “Man in the Box” on any rock list of “Best 50 Rock Songs of All-Time” in Rolling Stone. There are a very few real songs used in WWE(F) or ECW that are included on the list, however. Call it ignorance, but I had to draw a line. I’d easily listen to just about any ECW theme over, say, Skinner’s theme, so why even include them on the list?

Also, I omitted multiple theme songs. Take Christian for example. He’s had multiple theme songs that people consider to be among the favorites. We went with the theme that we liked the best for that person.

With all that out of the way, I present to you the Top 75 Pro Wrestling Themes of All-Time.

75. Jimmy Snuka – “The Superfly Theme”

74. The Fabulous Rougeaus – “All-American Boys”

Seriously one of the most under-rated themes of all-time. Such an incredible theme poking fun at America.

73. Beth Phoenix – “Glamazon”

The GREATEST women’s theme of all-time. It’s so different from any other women’s theme. The song just oozes strength and, well, glamour. This is the only women’s theme on the list.

72. Crush – “Kona”

Absolutely sick guitar riff.

71. The Bushwackers – “The Bushwacker Walk”

70. Ahmed Johnson – “Pearl River Rip”

69. Psycho Sid – “Psycho Dance”

Admit it – this theme scared the crap out of you at one point. If it was enough to freak you out, it’s worth being on this list.

68. Too Cool – “You Look Fly Today”

67. Nation of Domination – “Nation of Domination”

66. Sheamus – “Written in My Face”

If I was listing favorites, this would be in my Top 10. This is a song that’s actually in my iPod. I know a new theme was just recorded for him and is supposed to debut at some point, but here’s to hoping this one stays.

65. Sting – “Seek & Destroy”

64. Owen Hart – “The Rocket”

63. JBL – “Longhorn”

62. Lex Luger – “Total Package”

Listen closely to the background music on Sportscenter or some of your favorite commercials next time you’re watching TV. I guarantee you that this theme is still used to this day on some of those.

61. RVD – “One of a Kind”

60. Yokozuna – “Sumo”

Some people may question this one, but it just had this relaxing, awe-inspiring sound to it. When this song kicked, you kinda got kicked into a mini-trance and could do nothing but focus on the mystique of Yokozuna. Perfect theme for him.59. Junkyard Dog – “Grab Them Cakes”

58. Big Show – “Crank It Up”

57. Hillbilly Jim – “Don’t Go Messing With a Country Boy”

56. Sgt. Slaughter – “Slaughter”

55. Vader – “It’s Time”

54. Brutus “The Barber” Beefcake – “Struttin and a Cuttin”

53. Mark Henry – “Somebody’s Gonna Get It”

Whether you like Henry or not, you can’t hate on his theme. From kicking ass to “splittin wigs”, this is just one of those themes that gets stuck in your head easily. He’s used this theme as both a heel and face and it’s fit both perfectly.

52. “Big Daddy Cool” Diesel – “Diesel Blues”

51. Jake “The Snake” Roberts – “Snake”

50. Christian – “Just Close Your Eyes”

Like I mentioned above – there’s a few of his theme’s that could be on this list. He’s been pretty lucky to always have some pretty great theme songs. Unfortunately, I think it’s the fact that he’s had so many good themes that didn’t allow him to be higher than 50.49. Disco Inferno – “Disco Fever”

48. The Miz – “I Came to Play”

47. British Bulldog – “Rule! Britannia”

46. Big Bossman – “Head of Security”

45. Hardy Boyz – “Loaded”

Yes, the Hardy Boyz theme song was actually called “LOADED”. Absolutely hilarious now.

44. Eric Bischoff – “I’m Back”

43. Santino Marella – La Vittoria e Mia (Victory Is Mine)

This goes in the same category as Sheamus. This theme is in my iPod. Easily one of my favorite themes of all-time.

42. Honky Tonk Man – “Cool, Cocky, Bad”

41. Rey Mysterio – “Booyaka”

40. Wolfpac – “Wolfpac Theme”

39. Goldust – “Gold Lust”

38. Batista – “I Walk Alone”

37. Razor Ramon – “Bad Guy”

36. New Age Outlaws – “Oh, You Didn’t Know?”

35. Demolition – “Demolition”

34. Tazz (WWE) – “Just Another Victim”

I remember when Tazz made his WWE debut and this theme played, everyone was talking about it. It was the absolute perfect piece of music for him and his entrance.

33. Randy Orton – “Voices”

32. Gangrel – “Blood”

In my opinion, a wrestling theme well before its time. This theme could be used right now and still be a crowd favorite. Even the entrance itself was before its time. He developed coming up from the stage long before Rey Mysterio.

31. DDP – “Self High Five”

Who cares if it’s a Nirvana rip off…this was a great theme!

30. Rick Rude – “Untitled”

29. Harlem Heat – “Rap Sheet”

28. Kane – “Slow Chemical”

27. The 4 Horsemen – “The Four Horsemen Theme”

26. Mankind – “Wreck”

I can’t tell you how close I came to listing his Cactus Jack theme instead. This one wins out due to its notoriety.

25. John Cena – “The Time is Now”

24. Chris Benoit – “Whatever”

23. Fabulous Freebirds – “Badstreet USA”

22. Legion of Doom – “What a Rush”

21. Ted DiBiase – “Everybody’s Got a Price”

20. Goldberg – “Invasion”

19. Mr McMahon – No Chance in Hell

18. Bret Hart – “Hart Attack”

17. DX – “Break It Down”

16. Mr. Perfect – “Perfection”

15. Dusty Rhodes – “Common Man Boogie”

14. CM Punk – “Cult of Personality”

I actually had this theme even higher, but I moved it down. Here’s why it makes this list so fast. CM Punk single-handedly has changed wrestling this year and added a spark to it. The two things that prompted that change was his “shoot” promo and this theme. Punk using this theme single-handedly had this song jump nearly 2,000 spots and into the Top 100 Most Downloaded songs on iTunes. The band who wrote this, Living Colour”, has loved the newfound attention.

13. Ultimate Warrior – “Unstable”

12. Edge – “Metalingus”

11. Kurt Angle – “Medal”

10. New World Order – “Rockhouse”

9. Chris Jericho – “Break The Walls Down”

8. Shawn Michaels – “Sexy Boy”

7. Triple H – “The Game”

6. Undertaker – “Graveyard Symphony”

For the record, his Ministry theme was the best version of this song he’s ever had. Not sure why he didn’t use that more often.5. Ric Flair – “Also Sprach Zarathustra”

4. The Rock – “If You Smell…”

3. Randy Savage – “Pomp & Circumstance”

2. Steve Austin – “I Won’t Do What You Tell Me”

1. Hulk Hogan – “Real American”

Bottom line, this is the greatest wrestling theme of all-time. A few people who contribute to this list felt that Steve Austin should have been number 1 due to his pop, but the pop the song produces is simply just one piece of the criteria. This theme is considered the original wrestling theme for most people. If you’re a wrestling fan over the age of 20, you can sing this entire theme word-for-word. Hands down, this is the greatest wrestling theme of all-time.

Thank you for reading this list. Please list your personal Top 10 in the comments below!

Brett Clendaniel is the owner and managing editor of http://www.WrestleChat.net.

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