The Work Song - Take 6




I was going to post this track on Friday, but never got a chance to, so here it is today!

This version of The Work Song from Cinderella is one of the two covers I have of this song. It can be found on THE MUSIC OF DISNEY'S CINDERELLA which was released back in 1995.

The song features a pretty impressive a cappella arrangement by TAKE 6, a gospel sextet from Alabama that was popular, especially in the religious market, in the 80s and 90s. The group has won numerous awards, including 10 Grammys, and are still active to this day!

Another Disney connection: Founding member Claude McKnight is the older brother of R&B musician Brian McKnight who recorded the song Remember the Magic for Walt Disney World's 25th Anniversary.

Labels: a capella, cinderella, music of cinderella, take 6, work song

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  A Dream is a Wish - Michelle Shocked



All this week (except Wednesday) we have been celebrating the 60th anniversary of Cinderella. I have chosen to post a cover of a different song from Cinderella each day. Today I am posting the most famous of all the songs from the film, A Dream is a Wish Your Heart Makes.

A Dream is a Wish Your Heart Makes has become one of Disney's most well known songs, possibly second to When You Wish Upon a Star. Lyrically, these two songs are very similar, both reflecting the philosophy that Walt Disney injected in everything he did.

The song has been covered in a variety of different styles, like pop, big band, mo-town, jazz, and also folk, as you can hear in today's cover by MICHELLE SHOCKED

You can find this song on her 2005 Disney tribute album, GOT NO STRINGS.

Labels: a dream is a wish your heart makes, cinderella, folk, got no strings, michelle shocked

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  So This is Love - Sara Gazarek



Since this week is the 60th anniversary of Cinderella, I thought I would continue the celebration with more songs from the classic film. This beautiful jazz version of So This is Love is by SARA GAZAREK.

Gazarek is a jazz vocalist from Seattle and, boy, does she have an amazing voice. Her voice has brought her numerous awards and accolades over the past decade and she if she keeps this up, she will become a modern jazz great. Her first album, YOURS, was released in 2005 and topped the Billboard and iTunes Jazz Charts!

So This is Love can be found on her second release, LIVE AT THE JAZZ BAKERY, from 2006. It blows my mind to hear her scatting along with pianist Josh Nelson during the solo. To have that much vocal control is amazing. I love it.

I think the thing that appeals to me the most about Sara and her band, is that they really stress learning about jazz at a young age. As they tour across the country, the set up free clinics at local high schools and colleges to teach young people about everything from jazz basics to the music business. It is great to see them take such an interest in what they do! See if they are playing and teaching in a town near you by going to their website.

Labels: cinderella, jazz, live at the jazz bakery, sara gazarek, so this is love

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  Bibbidi-Bobbidi-Boo - Bing Crosby



Today marks the 60th anniversary of Disney's Cinderella, the first fully-length feature since Bambi in 1942. All throughout WWII, Walt released a series of compilation films (Melody Time, Saludos Amigos, etc.) that were made on a much cheaper budget. Cinderella saw the return of the magical fairy tale storytelling that Disney had established for himself in the early 40s.

Rather than having in-house songwriters for this film, Walt turned to Tin Pan Alley to write some songs for him. Bibbidi-Bobbidi-Boo came out of Tin Pan Alley and went on to be a big hit.

Around the time of Cinderella's release, many people recorded their own versions of this song, including BING CROSBY, who had previously worked for Disney as the narrator of the Legend of Sleepy Hollow segment of The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad.

Bing Crosby recorded the song with the Vic Schoen Orchestra and Jud Conlon's Rhythmaires on January 3, 1950, a over month before the release of the film. The B-side of this record was Chattanoogie Shoe Shine Boy.

There are lots of Disney connections here! The Jud Conlon Chorus sang the opening number for Cinderella as well as other Disney classics through the 50s, like Second Star to the Right and Alice in Wonderland. And Jud Conlon's Rhythmaires sang many songs for Disney, including the Donald Duck theme song! The fact that they were backing Bing makes me think that Disney had asked Bing to record this song as a tie-in for the movie. After all, there weren't many people more well known than Bing Crosby at that time.

This song can be found on the album GOOD & RARE which came out a few years ago.

Labels: bibbidi bobbidi boo, bing crosby, cinderella, good and rare, oldies

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  A Dream is a Wish Your Heart Makes - Kimberly Locke



KIMBERLY LOCKE was part of American Idol season two. You remember, the one with Clay Aiken and Ruben Studdard? Kimberly Locke came in third place. But under the tutelage of Randy Jackson, Locke has had a pretty good career as an R&B singer.

While many of her singles place in the top 10 on the US Adult Contemporary charts, it is her Christmas music that has been her greatest success. Her cover of Up on the Housetop broke records for how fast it moved up the charts in 2005. She did it again in 2006 with her version of Jingle Bells and then a third time in 2007 with Frosty the Snowman! Realizing her knack for Christmas songs, she recorded a full album of Christmas tunes in 2007.

But that's not all she's done. Locke has worked extra hard to make sure her career didn't stop after Americal Idol, and she has done an amazing job. Multiple albums, a modeling career, television appearances and tons of charity work! In 2005, she recorded A Dream is a Wish Your Heart Makes for DISNEYMANIA 3. The cover is nothing really special, but it does show off her voice, which is what got her to where she is in the first place.

Labels: a dream is a wish your heart makes, cinderella, disneymania 3, kimberly locke, pop

  ¶ 8:28 AM 3 Comments Links to this post

  So This is Love - Heather Marie Marsden



SO THIS IS LOVE is the name of the love ballad in Cinderella, but it is also a three song EP by HEATHER MARIE MARSDEN that features contemporary jazz versions of three popular Disney songs.

Marsden has been in the acting business for the past fifteen years, having appeared in such television show as Charmed, Diagnosis Murder, Drake & Josh, and Boy Meets World. More recently, she has been branching out into the world of music. Her song, Into Your Heart was featured in an episode of Melrose Place last September, with this EP debuting just before that. Here is what Heather had to say about this new EP:

I am thrilled to announce that my first jazz project, So This is Love, has just been released. It's my re-imagining of some classic Disney songs as late night, adult fare. I co-produced the project with Chris Rhyne, (Santana, Ponty) who is a wonderful jazz pianist, and my partner-in-crime in the studio. I hope you enjoy as much as we did creating!

I know I enjoyed it, and I hope to see a full length album of Disney tunes sometime soon!

Labels: cinderella, heather marie marsden, jazz, so this is love, so this is love ep

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  Bibbidi-Bobbidi-Boo - Mormon Tabernacle Choir
Here is another fun selection by THE MORMON TABERNACLE CHOIR.

In 1990, under the direction of JEROLD OTTLEY, the Mormon Tabernacle Choir recorded a Walt Disney tribute album called WHEN YOU WISH UPON A STAR. The choir is backed by Columbia Records very own Columbia Symphony Orchestra and together they create a beautiful journey through the history of Disney music classics.

Bibbidi-Bobbidi-Boo Mormon Tabernacle Choir 1990

Labels: bibbidi bobbidi boo, cinderella, classical, columbia symphony orchestra, jerold ottley, mormon tabernacle choir, when you wish upon a star album

  ¶ 9:32 AM 3 Comments Links to this post

  A Dream is a Wish Your Heart Makes - Linda Ronstadt
Starting out her career in the 60s as the lead singer for the folk rock band The Stone Poneys, LINDA RONSTADT made a solid career for herself in the 70s, topping the charts and becoming known as the Queen of Rock.

As the 80s hit, Ronstadt branched out from the world of rock 'n' roll to Broadway where she won a Tony award for her role in Pirates of Penzance. She continued to record hit records through the 80s, and when the 90s rolled around she was recording albums in many different styles, including pop, rock, latin, jazz, country and adult contemporary.

In 1995, Linda Ronstadt recorded A Dream is a Wish Your Heart Makes in both English and Spanish for THE MUSIC OF CINDERELLA. The album features the classic songs from the film reworked by the days top pop stars and has a newly recorded score. Ronstadt's version of the song has become one of the well-known and best-loved covers of this song.

A Dream is a Wish Your Heart Makes Linda Ronstadt 1995

Labels: a dream is a wish your heart makes, adult contemporary, cinderella, linda ronstadt, music from the park, music of cinderella

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  So This is Love - Club 33
Today's cover is a track from the selection of music heard in Club 33, the exclusive, thousands of dollars membership, 14 year waiting list, club and restaurant hidden inside the Disneyland park.

Since us regular joes probably won't have the privilege of being members of Club 33, the only chance you will get to hear this music is this site!

Does anyone have any information on these tracks? Such as the musicians and recording dates?

So This is Love Club 33 ???

Labels: cinderella, classical, club 33, so this is love

  ¶ 8:04 AM 3 Comments Links to this post

  A Dream is a Wish Your Heart Makes - Kei Kobayashi
KEI KOBAYASHI has been surrounded by jazz his whole life. His dad, a jazz pianist, and his mom, a jazz vocalist, kept him constantly surrounded by the music they loved.

When he was sixteen he performed with Herbie Hancock in a benefit performance for victims of the Kobe earthquake. This was his big break. Soon after he released his indie album PS I Love You which sent Kobayashi into a bidding war between major labels!

He has now signed with Toshiba EMI and has released a few albums including JUST YOU in 2000 which includes a nice jazz cover of A Dream is a Wish Your Heart Makes.

A Dream is a Wish Your Heart Makes Kei Kobayashi 2000

Labels: a dream is a wish your heart makes, cinderella, jazz, just you, kei kobayashi

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  The Magic Song (Bibbidi-Bobbidi-Boo) - Mary Martin
MARY MARTIN is an artist who has recorded many Disney songs and this is the first one to grace the pages of Covering the Mouse.

A star of Broadway, Mary Martin is most well known for her roles as Nellie Forbush in South Pacific and Maria in The Sound of Music, two characters that she had the pleasure of portraying for the first time for the original Broadway performances. She is also quite well known for her portrayal of Peter Pan for the Broadway show as well as her famous Peter Pan television special. Martin won a Tony Award for all three roles.

In 1958, Martin recorded HI HO! MARY SINGS AND SWINGS WALT DISNEY FAVORITES for Disneyland Records. The wonderful arrangements are by Tutti Camarata who produced hundreds of records for Disneyland records over his 19 year association with them. I love his arrangements and this album is full of his great work.

Included on the album is this cover of Bibbidi-Bobbidi-Boo which is a noteworthy cover because it is the first time the song is called The Magic Song. Here is an excerpt from the liner notes:

Bibbidi-Bobbidi-Boo from Walt Disney's Cinderella got a new title for this album - The Magic Song and Tutti Camarata's arrangement, like many in this album, is full of surprises from the low-down New Orleans-style verse in the beginning to the gentle slip into samba half way through to the Bibbidi-Bop-iddi burst of brass at the end.

The Magic Song (Bibbidi-Bobbidi-Boo) Mary Martin 1958

Labels: bibbidi bobbidi boo, cinderella, hi ho mary sings and swings, jazz, mary martin, tutti camarata

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  So This is Love - Tonya Kelly
It's day three of Remix Week and I'm sharing with you another side of remixes, the dance remix. I am not usually a fan of dance remixes usually because they are unoriginal and boring. That goes for most of MOUSE HOUSE: DISNEY'S DANCE MIXES. The whole album is full of boring, unoriginal dance versions of their songs.

However, this one track by TONYA KELLY is probably the best on the album. It's still cheesy but at least it sounds good. Tonya Kelly, formerly of the 90s R&B group Jade, adds a nice vocal track that really saves the song, in my opinion.

Jade was one of those bands that found fame in the early 90s. Groups like TLC and En Vogue were all the rage and Jade was right there beside them with their tight braids and smooth voices. Although they never reached the same superstar status that the other groups did they still found some fame, enough for them to call it quits in 1994 because they felt it was too much work for not enough money. And too many weirdo fans.

So This is Love Tonya Kelly 1996

Labels: cinderella, mouse house, so this is love, techno, tonya kelly

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  Bibbidi-Bobbidi-Boo - Louis Armstrong
Here is another track from the LOUIS ARMSTRONG Disney album from 1968. In this track, Bibbidi-Bobbidi-Boo from Cinderella, Louis takes this bouncy, happy tune and gives it a laid back jazz swing.

I'm a few days behind on this blog so I'm just giving you something quick to catch you up! If you want more info on this album, click here

Bibbidi-Bobbidi-Boo Louis Armstrong 1968

Labels: bibbidi bobbidi boo, cinderella, disney songs the satchmo way, jazz, louis armstrong

  ¶ 10:01 AM 1 Comments Links to this post

  A Dream is a Wish Your Heart Makes - Michael Bolton
It's the second Friday of the month and you know what that means! Terrible Track Friday! I've got one today that will make your ears cringe.

If you're a Disney fan then you know that MICHAEL BOLTON provided the music for Hercules in 1997. However, did you know that he recorded a version of A Dream is a Wish Your Heart Makes in 1991 for SIMPLY MAD ABOUT THE MOUSE?

I can't say that I am much of a fan of Michael Bolton. I like his song writing but his voice leaves something to be desired. My least favourite part of the Hercules soundtrack is the pop version of Go the Distance. I chose this track today because he goes the distance with his normally strained voice and ends up sounding like he's clenched his butt cheeks together so hard he could turn a lump of coal into a diamond in there! The result is a nails-on-a-chalkboard like sound that is his voice.

Don't want to listen to the whole thing? Then at least skip to 2:30 to hear what I'm talking about.

A Dream is a Wish Your Heart Makes Michael Bolton 1991

Labels: a dream is a wish your heart makes, adult contemporary, cinderella, michael bolton, pop, simply mad about the mouse, terrible

  ¶ 6:40 AM 2 Comments Links to this post

  A Dream is a Wish Your Heart Makes - Daniel Bedingfield
Out of all the genres of music to cover Disney songs, my favourite has to be the Big Band style. This probably stems from playing baritone sax in the jazz band at high school. This style, which was popularized in the 20s, is different than small jazz combos like the Dave Brubeck Quartet whose songs are made up of improvised solos. Big bands are made up of one or two dozen musicians that have arrangements of the music. The focus is not on the improvised solos but rather the arrangement that people could dance to.

This week at Covering the Mouse I will be posting a big band cover of several different Disney songs. Today's big band cover is by UK pop star DANIEL BEDINGFIELD.

Bedingfield has been on the scene since 2001 but has already scored four #1 singles and three other Top 10 singles in the UK! Not bad for a guy that only had two albums out! He and his sister, Natasha, hold the Guinness World Record for being the only siblings to have had solo number-ones in UK chart history.

His last album was released in 2004 but he has three more albums newly recorded that he is now waiting to be released. When this happens I'm sure we will hear more number ones!

In 2004, Daniel recorded A Dream is a Wish Your Heart Makes for DISNEYMANIA 2. It is by far the best track on the album and the best version of this song that I have heard. The big band arrangement is fun to listen to and the weird time change at the end of the chorus always throws me but makes the song interesting and unique.

A Dream is a Wish Your Heart Makes Daniel Bedingfield 2004

Labels: a dream is a wish your heart makes, big band, cinderella, daniel bedingfield, disneymania 2, jazz

  ¶ 7:32 AM 5 Comments Links to this post

  Bibbidi-Bobbidi-Boo - Joyce

Happy Wednesday, folks! It's guestposter Boyhowdy once again, taking a few moments away from my usual folkgenre coverblog Cover Lay Down to bring you a surprisingly sweet version of Bibbidi-Bobbidi-Boo, my favorite lighthearted song from Walt Disney's Cinderella.

Single-named Brazilian artist JOYCE is a long-time mistress of bossa nova lite known for her scatjazz approach to interpretations of originals and songs from her Portuguese-speaking compatriots. Though at her worst her songs can seem a bit sappy, at her best, she comes across as a Portuguese-speaking Ella Fitzgerald, precise and playful, with a clarity of voice that can't be beat.

Happily, her version of this classic Cinderella song falls into the latter camp. After almost 40 years as a recording artist, Joyce has a confidence that only lends credence to this crisp, almost scat-song cover. The typical rhythmic style and light acoustic guitarstrum of the Bossa are a perfect compliment to this song.

Bossa nova isn't that popular outside the latin world, but those unfamiliar with the genre will find Joyce's Bibbidi-Bobbidi-Boo a fairly solid introduction to the jazzier end of the genre, and a strong Disney cover to boot: it's all jazzed up, it's in Portuguese, and it's as magical as the original. This shining star is available on DISNEY BOSSA NOVA, yet another in the huge series of single-genre compilations released over the last decade.

Thanks, as always, to Kurtis for having me over to guest-post! And if you're into that sort of thing, don't forget to stop by Cover Lay Down for more acoustic coversongs.

Bibbidi-Bobbidi-Boo Joyce 2001

Labels: bibbidi bobbidi boo, bossa nova, cinderella, disney bossa nova, Joyce

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