- #JAPANESE MIGHTY MORPHIN POWER RANGERS THEME FULL#
- #JAPANESE MIGHTY MORPHIN POWER RANGERS THEME SERIES#
- #JAPANESE MIGHTY MORPHIN POWER RANGERS THEME TV#
Surely I’m not the only person my age who developed a love of distorted guitar rock from a kids’ show about color-coded superhero teens with access to giant robot dinosaurs. That’s why I have to wonder how many musicians may have been inspired by Power Rangers in one way or another. In fairness, Wasserman’s riff sounds like a sped-up version of Jimmy Page‘s main riff for Led Zeppelin’s 1969 classic “Whole Lotta Love.” All art borrows something from somewhere. But come on, you can’t tell me these opening riffs don’t sound practically identical. It’s an awesome song in its own right, featuring additional vocals from none other than Iron Maiden lead singer Bruce Dickinson. Heavy metal is nothing without the strength of a great riff, and I’m almost convinced Halford guitarists Patrick Lachman and Mike Chlasciak of Judas Priest frontman Rob Halford‘s eponymous solo project borrowed the primary riff of Wasserman’s Mighty Morphin’ theme for “The One You Love to Hate” off of the band’s 2000 debut album, Resurrection. Oddly, though, between the uncharacteristically slick production and frontman Dave Mustaine trading in his signature sneer for unrecognizably clean vocals, the original theme composed and performed by Ron Wasserman sounds more like a Megadeth song than the thrash metal legends’ take. Between the nasally vocals and the scorching guitar solo, it sounds like it could be a Megadeth track.Īs a matter of fact, Megadeth themselves covered “Go Go Power Rangers” for the soundtrack to 1995’s Power Rangers: The Movie. Okay, sure, lyrics like “they know to only use their weapons foooorrr defense” (surely a concession to parents fearful about the show’s cartoonish violence influencing their children) means it’s not as edgy as even the tamest heavy metal band, but in terms of visceral rock n’ roll energy, “Go Go Power Rangers” is still metal as hell.
#JAPANESE MIGHTY MORPHIN POWER RANGERS THEME FULL#
The tune that played over the opening credits is less than a minute long and doesn’t feature any lyrics beyond “go go Power Rangers… you Mighty Morphin’ Power Rangers!” But the full song has a complete verse-chorus-verse structure, and honestly? It rocks.
#JAPANESE MIGHTY MORPHIN POWER RANGERS THEME SERIES#
I came upon this realization a few years ago when I discovered that there’s actually a longer version of “Go Go Power Rangers” (subsequent Power Rangers series have different theme songs). That may be why so much of the music I love today is driven by blistering electric guitar wizardry. When I heard those hard-rocking rhythms, it triggered an almost Pavlovian response to get my adrenaline pumping. This idea of power brings me back to that theme song, fueled by a propulsive guitar riff leading into a flashy solo that’s reminiscent of the late-great Eddie Van Halen.
At an age when the world was confusing and scary, Power Rangers was empowering. Comic book superheroes had been indulging kids’ desire to see other kids save the day since the earliest days of the genre with timeless icons like Robin the Boy Wonder, Captain Marvel (better known these days as Shazam), and Kid Flash. I would later learn, of course, that Power Rangers was hardly unique in that respect. What kid doesn’t fantasize about saving their family, school, or friends from monsters and supervillains? Power Rangers scratches a similar itch, but in less destructive, more noble fashion. I’ve written before about how the Kaiju genre provides effective power fantasies at an age when children feel powerless. I loved Power Rangers because it was colorful, exciting, and rife with themes of childhood wish fulfillment that the superhero genre thrives on. I didn’t care about the crude special effects, dopey fight choreography, or the fact that pretty much every episode followed such a similar structure that the scripts could’ve been written with Mad Libs. I didn’t know what went on behind the scenes. Power Rangers didn’t adapt Super Sentai so much as remix it most of the action featuring the costumed heroes and villains was recycled straight from the Japanese series, with original footage of American stars Jason, Zack, Trini, Billy, and Kimberly spliced in between.
#JAPANESE MIGHTY MORPHIN POWER RANGERS THEME TV#
I would learn years later that Mighty Morphin’ Power Rangers shares most of its DNA with an earlier show called Super Sentai, an influential example of the Tokusatsu genre: Japanese movies and TV shows noted for outlandish action and bombastic special effects. But before we get into that, I need to contextualize what made me fall in love with Mighty Morphin’ Power Rangers as a toddler in the first place. Nostalgia aside, I sincerely think it’s a well-constructed pop-metal song on its own merits.
But there is one thing about the Power Rangers that I appreciate now as much as I did as a two-year-old in 1993: that kickass theme song.
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