HBO’s ‘The Shuffle’ is a fun look back at the 1985 Chicago Bears’ iconic song

Some 1980s artifacts, like the Rubik’s Cube, big hair, and breakdancing, have aged better than others. However, among the things that came out of that time, nothing captures that decade quite like The Super Bowl Shuffle.

Try explaining what a pop-culture phenomenon it became to someone born in the 2000s, and you’d probably get a lot of blank looks. The good news is that the HBO Original documentary short The Shuffle offers a fun look back at the 1985 Chicago Bears’ iconic rap music video. Directed by Jeff Cameron, The Shuffle isn’t just about Gen X nostalgia. There are details in the 40-minute feature that you might not know. It debuts Nov. 25 at 9 p.m. ET/PT.

The legend of the ’85 Bears is unmatched. It’s arguably the greatest team of the Super Bowl era, led by a feared defense, a star running back, a maverick quarterback, and a player nicknamed after a kitchen appliance. Today, Chicagoans remember them fondly as superheroes straight from a comic book. As memorable as the 6-time champion Michael Jordan-led Chicago Bulls of the 1990s, and the 2016 Chicago Cubs were, nothing was quite like the euphoria surrounding those Bears.

A significant reason why the ’85 Bears hold a special place in America’s heart is The Super Bowl Shuffle. There had never been anything like it. The song was created at a time when there were three major television networks, MTV was on the rise, and the crossover of sports and music wasn’t common. When it did happen, often it was not taken seriously. And absolutely no team would dream of putting out a braggadocious record about winning the Super Bowl before the regular season was over.

The Shuffle takes viewers inside what started as the brainchild of Chicago-based record label executive Dick Meyer. This wasn’t something that the Bears came up with. In fact, it took a lot to convince numerous players to sing and participate in the video. The hook was that the proceeds for the single would be donated to charity. The documentary short features interviews with players like Mike Singletary, Jim McMahon, Willie Gault, and Gary Fencik, all of them explaining the difficulties of trying to get this done.

The best part of The Shuffle is the details behind filming the video, which came right after the Bears’ only loss—a 38-24 road defeat to the Miami Dolphins before a record-setting national audience. It remains the highest-rated game in Monday Night Football history.

You might think that getting together football players for the video shoot would be relatively easy. It was anything but. Cameron gets wonderful insights from people like recording engineer Fred Breitberg and Mike Fayette, which helps bring the story to life.

The Super Bowl Shuffle became an instant sensation, becoming the theme song for an overwhelming run to a championship. Also, it was nominated for a Grammy, became the second-best-selling music video of all time, and raised more than $300,000 for The Chicago Community Trust.

Since then, other sports teams have tried to replicate the Bears’ moxie with their own song. They have failed. Does anyone remember ‘Uh Oh, The Jaguars Super Bowl Song’? Of course, not. The 1999 Jacksonville Jaguars were upset at home by the Tennessee Titans in the AFC Championship.

The magic of The Super Bowl Shuffle can never be duplicated.

The Shuffle debuts Nov. 25 at 9 p.m. ET/PT on HBO and will be available to stream on HBO Max.