“Ghostbusters” was written, performed and produced by Ray Parker Jr. specifically for the 1984 film Ghostbusters. He had only a few days to create the song after being asked to provide a theme for the movie, and the famous hook came together after he was encouraged to make the title feel like a catchy advertising slogan. The result became one of the most recognisable movie themes of the 1980s.
Released in June 1984, “Ghostbusters” became Parker's biggest hit, spending three weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 and reaching No. 2 on the UK Singles Chart, where it spent three weeks at that position. The song also won Parker a Grammy Award for Best Pop Instrumental Performance in 1985. Its success was followed by a copyright dispute with Huey Lewis, who claimed that the song's musical ideas were too similar to “I Want a New Drug”, the case was eventually settled out of court.