Posted by Paul Cantin on June 5, 2011 at 1:28pm
Sad to hear of the passing of Andrew Gold -- consummate sideman and singer-songwriter in his own right, perhaps unfortunately best known for the co-opting of his early hit "Thank You For Being A Friend" as the theme song (in a cover version) for the sitcom Golden Girls. His song "Final Frontier" was similarly used for the sitcom Mad About You. "Final Frontier" was also used as the wake-up call song for the Mars Pathfinder.
Gold died June 3 of an apparent heart attack at 59. He was the son of a mother who voiced movie musical numbers for better known actresses (Marni Nixon, who reportedly dubbed songs for Natalie Wood in West Side Story) and a father (Ernest Gold) who wrote the score for Exodus.
http://www.nodepression.com/profiles/blogs/rip-andrew-gold