(Freed had been deceased for fourteen years at the time of the release of "Cleveland Rocks".) Freed's show on WJW launched several rock and roll acts in the early days of the genre, and would form part of the basis of opening the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland sixteen years later. Hunter performed "Cleveland Rocks" in the pregame ceremonies of Game 3 of the 2007 NBA Finals at Quicken Loans Arena—the first NBA Finals game played in the state of Ohio. Reception Smash Hits said, "The man who launched a thousand poseurs (along with Bowie about the most influential figure of the mid-seventies) returns with a furious, huge production of a number which isn't a million miles away from his "All the Way from Memphis" classic." Cover versions The song was covered in 1997 by The Presidents of the United States of America as the opening theme of the television program The Drew Carey Show, a situation comedy set in Cleveland. It accompanied a lavish opening sequence in which the cast lip-synced the song while performing elaborate choreography. The band covered the entire song with the exception of the portion that said "find a place, grab a space, and yell and scream for more.” Only part of the covered portion was used for the Drew Carey theme. At the beginning of the recording, Drew Carey (a native of Cleveland) can be heard saying "Hey!" and then laughing, and at the end shouting "Ohio!" to an echoing effect. The latter soundbite appears in both the theme song and the full-length version of the song, and is a direct remake of the original, which has a similar "Ohio!" soundbyte at the end. The song is a track on the album Cleveland Rocks! Music from The Drew Carey Show as well as on the band's compilation Pure Frosting. This version is traditionally played after a home win for either the Cleveland Guardians or Cleveland Cavaliers. Although it was never played for the Cleveland Browns, Carey had the Browns fans chant "Cleveland Rocks!" when the team returned to playing in the city in 1999. Hunter's original version would later open a Drew Carey "mistakes" episode. For the final season of Drew Carey, the theme song was performed in a different musical style for each episode (as were the previous two themes, "Moon Over Parma" from the first season and "Five O'Clock