Toon Talk Special: The 101 Greatest Disney Songs - Part 1 of 2 - Aug 17, 2001

Toon Talk Special: The 101 Greatest Disney Songs - Part 1 of 2
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#21 - "Once Upon A Dream"
Sleeping Beauty - 1959
Music and Lyrics by Sammy Fain and Jack Lawrence, Based on the Theme by Tchaikovsky

"But if I know you
I'll know what you'll do
You'll love me at once
The way you did once upon a dream"

Lead Vocals: Mary Costa as Briar Rose and Bill Shirley as Prince Phillip
Source Album: Sleeping Beauty Original Soundtrack

Behind the Music:

  • The Tchaikovsky influenced score by George Bruns was Oscar nominated for Scoring of a Musical Picture.
  • Sleeping Beauty was the first Disney film to use a true stereo soundtrack.

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(c) BMG

#22 - "Cruella de Vil"
101 Dalmatians - 1961
Music and Lyrics by Mel Levin

"Cruella de Vil, Cruella de Vil
If she doesn't scare you
No evil thing will"

Vocals: The Replacements
Source Album: Stay Awake
Track Note: This rockin' cover blows away the disjointed original track.

Original Vocals/Source Album: Bill Lee as Roger Radcliff, 101 Dalmatians Original Soundtrack

Behind the Music:

  • Levin wrote three version of this song:"The Creation of Cruella de Vil", "Cruella de Vil (You Wicked Ole Thing)" and the bluesy version heard in the final film, which took him 45 minutes to write.
  • Jazzman Dr. John's hip take on the song was heard in the live action 101Dalmatians remake.

#23 - "The Parent Trap"
The Parent Trap - 1961
Music and Lyrics by Richard M. Sherman and Robert B. Sherman

"When your folks are square,
Then you must prepare
Whatta you gotta prepare?
The parent trap"

Vocals: Annette Funicello and Tommy Sands
Source Album: The Music of Disney: A Legacy of Song

Behind the Music:

  • This was the first Disney film that Richard and Robert Sherman worked on.
  • With each successive title change (For Now, For Always; Petticoats & Blue Jeans; We Belong Together) that this film went through, the Sherman brothers wrote a different theme song.The Parent Trap was finally decided upon as the film's title, and this fun bobby-soxer number is the end result.

#24 - "On The Front Porch"
Summer Magic - 1963
Music and Lyrics by Richard M. Sherman and Robert B. Sherman

"Oh, how I love to linger here like this
Hold your hand and steal a kiss, or two
On the front porch with you"

Lead Vocals: Burl Ives as Osh Popham
Source Album: Classic Disney, Volume II

Behind the Music:

  • Summer Magic was the first non-fantasy, live action Disney musical.
  • Robert Sherman's personal favorite song.

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It's a Small World

#25 - "It's A Small World (After All)"
New York World's Fair - 1964
Music and Lyrics by Richard M. Sherman and Robert B. Sherman

"There's so much that we share
That it's time we're aware
It's a small world after all"

Vocals: The Disneyland Chorus
Source Album: Classic Disney, Volume II
Track Note: There are several "official" tracks of this song on various albums.The track chosen here is the adult choral version heard on earlier theme park albums.

Behind the Music:

  • Walt Disney's original concept for this world's fair (and later theme park) attraction was to have "all the children of the world" singing their respective national anthems.The result was an aural mess.Walt called in the Shermans to pen a musical "roundelay", one that could be easily translated into the five languages (English, Spanish, Italian, Japanese and Swedish) that were to be used. The result became one of the most loved (or reviled, depending on your point of view) songs in Disney history.