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Hulk Hogan 'Real American' & The Wrestling Album Musician Rick Derringer Dead At 77

Rick Derringer worked on a number of WWE theme songs, including Real American.
Rick Ucchino|
Rick Derringer has died at the age of 77
Rick Derringer has died at the age of 77 | IMAGO / POP-EYE

Musician, producer and songwriter Rick Derringer has died at the age of 77. Rick's wife Jenda Derringer told TMZ that her husband passed away "peacefully" Monday night after a medical episode.

Derringer rose to fame with his band The McCoys during in the 1960's, with their debut single "Hang on Sloopy" topping the charts at number-one. He might be best known for "Rock and Roll, Hoochie Koo", which was his only Top 40 hit as a solo artist.

Professional wrestling fans have Derringer to thank for one of the most iconic wrestling theme songs of all-time. His friendship with Cyndi Lauper led to a collaboration with record producer Jim Steinman and executive producer David Wolff on 1985's "The Wrestling Album."

The soundtrack album was released by, then, World Wrestling Federation and featured themes for Rowdy Roddy Piper, the Junkyard Dog and Hulk Hogan. Although, the song that became synonymous with his career, was not originally for him.

"Real American" was first used as the entrance music for The U.S. Express, Mike Rotundo and Barry Windham. It wasn't until they left the company, and Hogan began to feud with fellow WWE Hall of Famer The Iron Sheik, that Hulkamania began to run wild with "Real American." The song was also featured on the short-lived "Hulk Hogan's Rock 'n' Wrestling" cartoon.

Rick Derringer contributed to a number of songs on the 1987 follow-up, "The Wrestling Album II", and also worked with Steely Dan, Ringo Starr and "Weird Al" Yankovic throughout his career.

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Rick Ucchino
RICK UCCHINO

Rick Ucchino is the Assistant Editor & Content Coordinator for The Takedown on SI. He also works full-time for 700WLW Radio in Cincinnati, Ohio as a local news and sports anchor, in addition to his time covering the Cincinnati Bengals for Sirius XM. Rick has been on the professional wrestling beat since 2019, having provided coverage for a number of outlets, including Fightful, SB Nation’s Cageside Seats and the Bleav Podcast Network. With an educational background in theater, creative writing and journalism, Rick focuses primarily on the storytelling aspect of pro wrestling, but he’s no stranger to the squared circle himself. He had the privilege of training with former WWE & WCW cruiserweight Jimmy Wang Yang for nearly two years and retired early due to back issues with a perfect 1-0 record in singles competition. Rick is a married father of two incredibly adorable children, who are budding pro wrestling fans themselves. Much to the chagrin of their mother. You can reach Rick at rwucchino@gmail.com

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