Theme from Mission: Impossible

{{Image frame

|content = { \set Score.tempoHideNote = ##t \set Staff.midiInstrument = #"electric bass (pick)" \clef bass \key g \minor \time 5/4 \relative c { \tempo 4 = 170 g4. g4. bes4 c4 g4. g4. f4 fis4 } }

|width = 300

|caption = Theme

}}

The theme is written in a Quintuple meter, which Schifrin has jokingly explained as being for mutant people with five legs.Koppl, Rudy. [http://www.runmovies.eu/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=388:mission-impossible-lalo-schifrin-on-creating-mission-impossible&catid=58:mission-impossible Lalo Schifrin on Creating Mission: Impossible], originally published in Soundtrack Magazine (volume 19, number 74, 2000), hosted at Soundtrack: The CinemaScore and Soundtrack Archives

The Morse code for M.I. is two dashes followed by two dots {{nobr| {{Morse|dash|dash|dot|dot}} }}; if a dot is one beat and a dash is one and a half beats, then this gives a bar of five beats, exactly matching the theme's underlying rhythm.{{cite web |url=https://www.nme.com/news/film/mission-impossible-simon-pegg-rebecca-ferguson-reveal-theme-secret-morse-code-3468570 |title='Mission: Impossible' stars Simon Pegg and Rebecca Ferguson reveal theme song's secret Morse Code meaning |last=Edwards |first=Chris |date=July 14, 2023 |website=NME |access-date=January 5, 2024}} It has been suggested that Schifrin consciously used the Morse code as a starting point for his composition, but this cannot be verified. Schifrin did write that he used Morse code as a method for obtaining an unusual rhythmic pattern for his theme to the film The Concorde... Airport '79.{{cite book|last=Schifrin|first=Lalo|author-link=Lalo Schifrin | title=Music Composition for Film and Television|year=2011|publisher=Berklee Press |page=43 |isbn=9781476899480}}

Schifrin's working title for the song was "Burning Fuse".{{Cite news| first=Martin | last=Chilton |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/films/features/mission-impossible-theme-tune-song-lalo-schifrin-composer-soundtrack-tom-cruise-a8630366.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220507/https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/films/features/mission-impossible-theme-tune-song-lalo-schifrin-composer-soundtrack-tom-cruise-a8630366.html |archive-date=2022-05-07 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live|title='I didn't have a clue what the show was about' – The story behind the iconic Mission: Impossible theme tune|date=November 20, 2018|work=The Independent}}{{cbignore}} Schifrin compared his writing process to writing a letter: "When you write a letter, you don’t have to think what grammar or what syntaxes you’re going to use, you just write a letter. And that’s the way it came." He estimated that he wrote the main theme in 90 seconds and completed the full arrangement in three minutes.

The actor Martin Landau, who played the character Rollin Hand on the show, attended the recording session for the theme song. "Lalo raised his wand to the musicians and I heard 'dun dun, da da, dun dun, da da' for the first time, and it was deafening", Landau recalled. "Lalo interrupted the band and said, 'no, no, it should be like this.' They resumed and before we could say anything, they had recorded it. I was stunned. It was so perfect. I came out humming that tune."

The original single release peaked at number 41 on the US Billboard Hot 100 and 19 on the magazine's Adult Contemporary chart in 1967. Also in that year, two years before Leonard Nimoy began playing the role of Paris in Mission Impossible, the theme appeared on the album Leonard Nimoy Presents Mr. Spock's Music from Outer Space. (Nimoy did not perform on the song.){{cite magazine | url=http://www.billboard.com/artist/lalo-schifrin/chart-history/2136#/artist/lalo-schifrin/chart-history/2136?f=379&g=Singles | title=Billboard: Lalo Schifrin Chart History | magazine=Billboard | access-date=March 9, 2012 }}

The theme won for the Best Instrumental Theme at the 10th Grammy Awards held on February 29, 1968.{{cite news|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=I5plAAAAIBAJ&pg=2363,138535&dq=grammy&hl=en|title=Up, Up and Away Picks Up 6 Grammy Record Awards | date=1 March 1968 | first=Mary | last=Campbell | via=Google Newspapers | work=Vancouver Sun | access-date=1 May 2011}}{{cite web|url=http://www.grammy.com/nominees/search?artist=&title=&year=1967&genre=All |title=1967 Grammy Award Winners |publisher=Grammy Awards |access-date=1 May 2011 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131012152820/http://www.grammy.com/nominees/search?artist=&title=&year=1967&genre=All |archive-date=12 October 2013 }} Schifrin also won the Grammy for Best Original Score Written For A Motion Picture Or A Television Show.{{Cite web|url=https://www.grammy.com/artists/lalo-schifrin/9997|title=Lalo Schifrin | Artist | GRAMMY.com|website=grammy.com}} In 2017, the 1967 recording of the Theme from Mission: Impossible by Lalo Schifrin on Dot Records was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame.{{Cite web|url=https://www.grammy.com/awards/hall-of-fame-award#m|title=GRAMMY Hall Of Fame | Hall of Fame Artists | GRAMMY.com|website=grammy.com}}

Schifrin's version, as performed with the London Philharmonic Orchestra, received a nomination for the Grammy Award for Best Pop Instrumental Performance for the 39th Grammy Awards held in 1997. The Clayton and Mullen version was also nominated for the same award in the same edition.{{Cite web|url=https://www.grammy.com/grammys/awards/winners-nominees/193|title=Winners & Nominees|website=Grammy Awards | access-date=January 17, 2022 }}

• 7-inch single

1. "Mission: Impossible" – 2:31
2. "Jim on the Move" – 3:12

{{Infobox song

| name = Theme from Mission: Impossible

| cover = Theme from Mission Impossible.jpg

| alt =

| type = single

| artist = Adam Clayton and Larry Mullen Jr.

| album = Mission: Impossible: Music from and Inspired by the Motion Picture

| released = {{start date|1996|6|3}}{{cite magazine|url=https://worldradiohistory.com/UK/Music-Week/1996/Music-Week-1996-06-01.pdf|title=New Releases: Singles|magazine=Music Week|page=27|date=June 1, 1996|access-date=June 8, 2021}}

| recorded =

| studio =

| venue =

| genre =

• Theme music
• dance-pop{{Cite podcast|url=https://slate.com/podcasts/hit-parade/2023/09/how-instrumentals-become-infectious-hits|title= Insert Lyrics Here Edition|website=Hit Parade {{!}} Music History and Music Trivia|publisher=Slate|last=Molanphy|first=Chris|date=September 15, 2023|access-date=October 5, 2023}}
• electropop

| length = 3:27

| label = Mother

| writer = Lalo Schifrin

| producer =

• David Beal
• Larry Mullen

| prev_title =

| prev_year =

| next_title =

| next_year =

| misc =

}}

In 1996, the theme was remade by U2 members Adam Clayton and Larry Mullen Jr. for the soundtrack to the film. The duo recorded two versions of the song, the main theme and another subtitled "Mission Accomplished". The main theme was used during the end credits. Unlike the original, the majority of this version is in common time, with the exception of the intro. The single was released on 3 June 1996 by Mother Records. The accompanying music video was directed by English singer, songwriter, musician and music video director Kevin Godley.{{cite web|first=|last=|url=https://u2tour.de/discographie/videos/Mission_Impossible_Adam_Clayton__Larry_Mullen.html|title=Video: Mission: Impossible (Adam Clayton & Larry Mullen)|publisher=U2tour.de|date=|accessdate=June 15, 2022}}

Larry Flick from Billboard wrote that Clayton and Mullen "cover the film's instantly recognizable theme, effectively funking it up for the '90s with a shuffling jeep beat". He complimented Lalo Schifrin's melody as "suspenseful and compelling as ever" and added, "It'll give fans of the TV show a fun jolt while entertaining a whole new generation."{{cite magazine|first=Larry|last=Flick|url=https://worldradiohistory.com/Archive-All-Music/Billboard/90s/1996/BB-1996-04-27.pdf|title=Single Reviews|magazine=Billboard|date=April 27, 1996|access-date=February 5, 2020|page=80|author-link=Larry Flick}} Dave Sholin from the Gavin Report commented, "Those not familiar with this piece of music A) are under five years of age, B) have been living with Theodore Kaczynski for the past 25 years, or C) are not aware of television. This interpretation by half of U2 will be heard by millions of moviegoers expected to see what's been anticipated as the film of the summer. Try cranking this up and driving around the hills of San Francisco! Very cool."{{cite magazine|first= Dave |last= Sholin |title= Gavin Picks > Singles |magazine= Gavin Report |issue= 2101 |date= April 19, 1996 |page= 78 |access-date= April 16, 2018 |url= https://worldradiohistory.com/Archive-All-Music/Gavin-Report/90/96/Gavin-1996-04-19.pdf}}

Richard Smith from Melody Maker noted that the Mission Impossible theme "has been weirded and danced up with lots of (not desperately imaginative) This tape will self destruct-type samples laid over the top."{{cite magazine|first=Richard|last=Smith|url=https://www.flickr.com/photos/nothingelseon/53672286154/|title=Singles|magazine=Melody Maker|date=May 18, 1996|page=47|access-date=May 14, 2024}} A reviewer from Music Week gave it four out of five, adding that the song "should be massive".{{cite magazine|url=https://worldradiohistory.com/UK/Music-Week/1996/Music-Week-1996-05-25.pdf|first=|last=|title=Reviews|magazine=Music Week|date=May 25, 1996|page=12|accessdate=August 18, 2021}} Music Week editor Alan Jones stated, "They have successfully updated it while retaining its more memorable motifs and drafted in mixers including Junior Vasquez, Guru and Goldie to give it a variety of dancefloor flavourings."{{cite magazine|url=https://worldradiohistory.com/UK/Music-Week/1996/Music-Week-1996-05-04.pdf|first=Alan|last=Jones|title=Talking Music|magazine=Music Week|date=May 4, 1996|page=31|accessdate=August 16, 2021}} Jordan Paramor from Smash Hits gave the single three out of five.{{cite magazine|first=Jordan|last=Paramor|url=https://www.flickr.com/photos/smashhits90s/34889065065/in/album-72157681158950604/|title=Singles|magazine=Smash Hits|date=June 4, 1996|page=60|access-date=December 1, 2024}}

The instrumental became a worldwide hit. In the United States, it peaked at number seven on the Billboard Hot 100 and received a gold certification, selling 500,000 copies there.{{cite certification|region=United States|artist=Clayton, Adam & Larry Mullen|title=Theme from Mission: Impossible}}{{cite magazine |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=IA8EAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA61 |title=Best-Selling Records of 1996 |magazine=Billboard|publisher=BPI Communications Inc.|date=January 18, 1997 |access-date=May 8, 2015 |page=61 |issn=0006-2510|volume=109|number=3}} It additionally peaked at number one in Finland, Hungary and Iceland, number two in Australia and Ireland, and number seven in the United Kingdom.

CD single

{{Track listing

| headline = MUMTT75 / 576470-2

| total_length = 6:32

| title1 = Theme from Mission: Impossible

| length1 = 3:27

| title2 = Mission: Impossible Theme (Mission Accomplished)

| length2 = 3:05

}}

12-inch single

{{Track listing

| headline = 12MUM75 / 576471-1

| total_length = 32:11

| title1 = Theme from Mission: Impossible

| length1 = 3:27

| title2 = Theme from Mission: Impossible

| note2 = Junior's Hard Mix

| length2 = 8:50

| title3 = Mission: Impossible Theme (Mission Accomplished)

| note3 = Dave Clarke Remix

| length3 = 4:30

| title4 = Mission: Impossible Theme (Mission Accomplished)

| length4 = 3:05

| title5 = Mission: Impossible Theme (Mission Accomplished)

| note5 = Cut The Red Not The Blue

| length5 = 4:35

| title6 = Theme From Mission: Impossible

| note6 = Junior's Hard Dub 1

| length6 = 7:44

}}

{{Track listing

| headline = MUMCD75 / 576471-2

| total_length = 19:47

| title1 = Theme from Mission: Impossible

| length1 = 3:27

| title2 = Theme from Mission: Impossible

| note2 = Junior's Hard Mix-Edit

| length2 = 4:10

| title3 = Mission: Impossible Theme (Mission Accomplished)

| length3 = 3:05

| title4 = Mission: Impossible Theme (Mission Accomplished)

| note4 = Cut the Red Not the Blue

| length4 = 4:35

| title5 = Mission: Impossible Theme (Mission Accomplished)

| note5 = Dave Clarke Remix

| length5 = 4:30

}}

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{{Certification Table Top}}

{{Certification Table Entry|region=Australia|type=single|award=Gold|relyear=1996|certyear=1996|certref=|access-date=October 28, 2018}}

{{Certification Table Entry|region=New Zealand|type=single|artist=Larry Mullens & Adam Clayton|title=Mission Impossible Theme|award=Gold|relyear=1996|id=1996-07-19|source=newchart|access-date=2024-11-20|certyear=1996}}

{{Certification Table Entry|region=United States|type=single|artist=Adam Clayton & Larry Mullen|title=Theme from Mission: Impossible|award=Gold|relyear=1996|certyear=1996|access-date=November 12, 2018}}

{{Certification Table Bottom}}

Jazz organist Jimmy Smith recorded a cover version for his 1968 album Livin' It Up.

One cover version was recorded by French No Wave artist Lizzy Mercier Descloux on her 1979 album, Press Color.

A version of the theme was used during the panty raid sequence of the 1984 movie Revenge of the Nerds.

An arrangement of the theme was composed by Bruce Broughton for the pound escape sequence in 1993’s Homeward Bound: The Incredible Journey. The song transitions from the theme to original music and was included in the expanded Intrada Records soundtrack release, the track simply being titled “Mission: Impossible”.

Rhythm section and production duo Sly and Robbie recorded a cover version for their 1997 album Mambo Taxi, a reggae and dub reworking of classic film themes.

The theme's melodies form the basis of Limp Bizkit's 2000 single "Take a Look Around", which was recorded for the soundtrack of the second film.

Russian ethnic band Bugotak recorded a Russian-language rap song with ethnic Siberian instruments based on "Take a Look Around", the theme and "Empty Spaces" by Pink Floyd, entitled "Missiya Maadai-kara nevypolnima".

American rapper Kanye West and producer Jon Brion created a remix version at the end credits of the third film.

Brave Combo covered the theme as a "deep groove cumbia" on their 2008 album, The Exotic Rocking Life.

Houston rapper Chamillionaire, remixed the theme song for his cancelled third album Venom in 2010.{{Cite web|url=https://www.datpiff.com/Chamillionaire-Venom-2008-2011-mixtape.190622.html|title=Venom 2008–2011 Mixtape by Chamillionaire|website=www.datpiff.com}}Archived at [https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211205/ob_3t0JmWfI Ghostarchive]{{cbignore}} and the [https://web.archive.org/web/20200513032052/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ob_3t0JmWfI&gl=US&hl=en Wayback Machine]{{cbignore}}: {{cite web| url = https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ob_3t0JmWfI| title = Chamillionaire – Mission Impossible (steven rowin beat) | website=YouTube| date = 22 November 2010 }}{{cbignore}}

In 2010, a fictionalized account of Lalo Schifrin's creation of the Mission: Impossible tune was featured in a Lipton TV commercial aired in a number of countries around the world.{{cite web|url=http://theinspirationroom.com/daily/2010/lipton-lalo-mission-impossible/ |title=Lipton Lalo Mission Impossible | date=May 1, 2010 | website=inspiration room | url-status=live | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100503052908/http://theinspirationroom.com/daily/2010/lipton-lalo-mission-impossible/ | archive-date=May 3, 2010 |access-date=July 16, 2017}}

Tiësto created a dance remix version of the theme to promote the fourth film in the series Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol (2011).{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gtVf3okdNXI|title=Mission: Impossible – Theme (Tiësto Remix)|date=14 December 2011 |publisher=YouTube|access-date=July 24, 2018}}

In January 2013, violinist and dancer Lindsey Stirling and The Piano Guys, Steven Sharp Nelson (cello) and Jon Schmidt (piano), released their interpretation of the "Theme from Mission: Impossible". The arrangement is true to the Schifrin original, but also employs a passage with a liberal use of the Piano Sonata in C by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart K. 545 first movement and a self-composed passage to end the piece. The arrangement was introduced with a music video having a comedic cloak and dagger theme. Two official copies of the video have garnered nearly 10.7 million views (as of April 2021) on Lindsey Stirling's YouTube channel and over 20 million views on The Piano Guys YouTube channel (as of April 2021).

For the promotion of the fifth film Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation (2015), Japanese guitarist Miyavi covered the theme.{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-ZROSHP5qbc|title=『ミッション：インポッシブル／ローグ・ネイション』×MIYAVI「Mission: Impossible Theme」(Official Music Video)|publisher=YouTube|access-date=July 31, 2018}}

The theme was used in a series of commercials for Etsy during the 2023 Christmas season.{{Cite web |date=2023-10-31 |title=Etsy Tackles Your 'Impossible' Holiday Missions |url=https://musebyclios.com/advertising/etsy-tackles-your-impossible-holiday-missions/ |access-date=2025-03-13 |website=Muse by Clios |language=en-US}}

An arrangement was played during the closing ceremony of the 2024 Summer Olympics during the segment where Tom Cruise retrieves the Olympic Flag from Paris en route to Los Angeles.

The 2024 Indian Tamil film The Greatest of All Time by filmmaker Venkat Prabhu had an Indianized cover version of the theme created by music composer Yuvan Shankar Raja when the main character jumps off a skyscraper in Bangkok after accomplishing a crucial mission. Earlier, a short clip from the same scene was played in the Telugu and Hindi versions of the film's trailer.{{Cite AV media |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ITQMsaLtG1U&ab_channel=T-Series |title=The GOAT (Official Trailer) Telugu: Thalapathy Vijay {{!}} Venkat Prabhu {{!}} Yuvan Shankar Raja {{!}} T-Series |date=2024-08-17 |last=T-Series |access-date=2024-09-14 |via=YouTube}}{{Cite AV media |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uf8rt635LLo&ab_channel=T-Series |title=Thalapathy is the GOAT (Official Trailer) Hindi: Thalapathy Vijay {{!}} Venkat Prabhu, Yuvan S {{!}}T-Series |date=2024-08-17 |last=T-Series |access-date=2024-09-14 |via=YouTube}}

{{Reflist |refs =

{{cite web |last=Sanders Petersen |first=Sarah |title=The Piano Guys, Lindsey Stirling combine for 'Mission Impossible' video |url=http://www.deseretnews.com/article/865570193/The-Piano-Guys-Lindsey-Stirling-combine-for-Mission-Impossible-video.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130508214654/http://www.deseretnews.com/article/865570193/The-Piano-Guys-Lindsey-Stirling-combine-for-Mission-Impossible-video.html |archive-date=8 May 2013 |newspaper=Deseret News |access-date=23 July 2013 |date=8 January 2013}}

{{cite web |title=Mission Impossible (Piano/Cello/Violin) ft. Lindsey Stirling – ThePiano|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9p0BqUcQ7i0 |publisher=ThePianoGuys |access-date=23 July 2013 |date=7 January 2013 |quote=See "About" section for details}}

{{cite web |title=Mission Impossible – Lindsey Stirling and the Piano Guys |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qDsfou6UfjU |publisher=LindseyStomp |access-date=23 July 2013 |date=22 January 2013}}

{{cite web |last=Updegraff |first=Jake |title=Piano Guys and Lindsey Stirling Take On 'Mission Impossible' |url=http://ryanseacrest.com/2013/01/09/thepianoguys-and-lindsey-stirling-take-on-mission-impossible/ |publisher=RyanSeacrest.com |access-date=23 July 2013 |date=9 January 2013}}

{{cite web |title=Lizzy Mercier Descloux – Press Color |url=http://www.discogs.com/Lizzy-Mercier-Descloux-Press-Color/release/63313 |publisher=ZE Records – ZEA 33-004 |date=1979}}

}}

• {{YouTube|vccYZjRvJ0M|"Mission Impossible (Main Theme)"}}, performed by Lalo Schifrin, James Morrison and the Czech National Symphony Orchestra
• {{YouTube|cT84EATD7DQ|"Mission Impossible, Original Theme"}}, performed by Schifrin feat. Morrison at the Munich Philharmonic Hall in 1994

{{Mission Impossible}}

{{Authority control}}

Category:Compositions by Lalo Schifrin

Category:1966 songs

Category:1967 singles

Category:1996 singles

Category:Dot Records singles

Category:Mission: Impossible music

Category:Music videos directed by Kevin Godley

Category:Television drama theme songs

Category:1960s instrumentals

Category:Number-one singles in Finland

Category:Number-one singles in Hungary

Category:Number-one singles in Iceland