The Bare Necessities - Bowling for Soup

Although BOWLING FOR SOUP formed in 1994 in Wichita City, Texas, it wasn't until 1998 when the band sold 10,000 copies of their indie release TELL ME WHEN TO WOAH!!! that the major labels sat up and listened to the punk rockers.

Bowling for Soup has gone on to release many great albums, including a couple of cover albums. In 2004, the band released A HANGOVER YOU DON'T DESERVE which made it to the top 40 largely due to the hit single 1985. When Disney was looking for artists to be on DISNEYMANIA 3, Bowling for Soup would have been an obvious choice.

This cover of Bare Necessities isn't Bowling for Soup's only connection to Disney. They also wrote and performed the theme song to Phineas and Ferb.

Today is TERRY GILKYSON'S birthday and, if he were still alive, he would be 92. Terry, a guitarist for the bands X and Austin, is most known for being the composer of The Bare Necessities.

The Bare Necessities Bowling for Soup 2005

Yo Ho (A Pirate's Life For Me) - Snuff

I have a special treat for everyone this week! I have decided to commemorate the anniversary of the Pirates of the Caribbean ride at Disneyland with a special week of Pirate tunes! I know I haven't posted any versions of Yo Ho (A Pirate's Life For Me) yet so this week I'm catching up by posting three versions from Monday to Wednesday with a special treat on Thursday.

Yo Ho was written in 1967 by George Bruns and Xavier Atencio. Bruns wrote many songs and scores for Disney during the 50s and 60s, including The Ballad of Davy Crockett, A Cowboy Needs a Horse, Jack and Old Mac, 101 Dalmatians, Robin Hood and Jungle Book. Xavier 'X' Atencio was a Disney artist turned Imagineer and co-wrote much of the music you hear during the original Disneyland rides, like Haunted Mansion and Adventure Thru Inner Space.

The song, which is actually 16 minutes long if you sit through the ride, has been covered numerous times, including this version by 80s British punk band SNUFF. It is a great energetic tune and has been covered in many different styles. It translates really well to punk rock as you can hear with this version.

Yo Ho (A Pirate's Life For Me) Snuff 2002

I Wanna Be Like You - Voodoo Glow Skulls

If you are a regular reader of this blog, you're probably asking why I am posting another Jungle Book cover so soon after Jungle Book week. Right? Well, there are two reasons why I am posting this song.

1) Even though we celebrated the 50th anniversary and the DVD release two weeks ago, today is the actual 50th anniversary of the Jungle Book. So I want to celebrate with a song.

2) According to my web stats, someone (or someones) is desperately trying to find a punk version of I Wan'na Be Like You. They have tried multiple different keyword searches on Google and keep coming back to this site. Whoever you are, this song if for you!

It's the punkiest version of I Wan'na Be Like You that I have by a group called VOODOO GLOW SKULLS. This track can be found on the Japanese exclusive album DIVE INTO DISNEY. The Voodoo Glow Skulls' style isn't actually punk. It's called third-wave ska which uses traditional ska and combines it with punk and metal to give the sound a more upbeat, frantic feel.

Thanks for putting up with another Jungle Book cover. I promise I'll give them a break until November, at least.

I Wanna Be Like You Voodoo Glow Skulls 2002

Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious - The Vandals

Punk music started as an underground music scene and to this day punk rules the indie market and bar scene. There are more punk bands in North America that any other style of music. The VANDALS started their career the same way in 1980. They played countless bars and clubs but stood out from the rest because they chose to sing about more humorous topics rather than being political like all the rest.

They jumped around to a few different labels and in 1995 ended up on Nitro Records, a record label owned by the Offspring's Dexter Holland. It was here that they reached the mainstream market with their album LIVE FAST, DIARRHEA which includes the Mary Poppins cover of Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious.

This is not your standard punk cover. The Vandals don't just speed up the song and put it to a punk beat (which is what I find happens with most punk covers). They actually put some thought into crafting a good cover. They also take elements from two Bad Religion songs, We're Only Gonna Die and Fuck Armageddon... This Is Hell, and mash them up with this song.

This isn't the only Disney cover that the Vandals do. There is also a version of Heigh-Ho by them, but that will be for another day.

Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious The Vandals 1995