The Second Star to the Right - James Taylor



It was on this day 57 years ago that Walt Disney's animated classic Peter Pan was introduced to the world. Peter Pan was one of Walt's favourite stories and he tried hard to obtain the legal rights to turn J.M. Barrie's play into an animated film. This was hard to do as Barrie had made the Great Ormond Street Hospital, a children's hospital in London, the sole copyright holder so that they could benefit from any royalties from his play.

Disney was able to make arrangements with the hospital in 1939 to make the film, but the project was put on hold due to World War II.

JAMES TAYLOR brings us a delightful version of The Second Star to the Right which can be found on the Disney tribute album, STAY AWAKE, from 1988.

Labels: adult contemporary, james taylor, peter pan, second star to the right, stay awake album

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  The Second Star to the Right - Jesse McCartney
Today's cover is The Second Star to the Right by Disney star JESSE MCCARTNEY, who started his career in 1999 in the boy band Dreamstreet. He was twelve. He left the group at fifteen to focus on his solo career and now, at 21 years old, he has released three albums and has been a part of many television shows and movies. Jesse recorded this Peter Pan classic for DISNEYMANIA 2 in 2004, right around the time of his first solo release.

And speaking of Peter Pan, I saw a commercial on TV that said the DVD will be pulled from the shelves and locked in the vault soon, so if you haven't picked it up yet you'd better do it soon!

The Second Star to the Right Jesse McCartney 2004

Labels: disneymania 2, jesse mccartney, peter pan, pop, second star to the right

  ¶ 7:00 AM 1 Comments Links to this post

  Second Star to the Right - Voices of Ascension
On the first Friday of every month I post a requested cover. Isreal wants to hear more from HEIGH-HO MOZART and to tie into our week-long Disney Orphans theme I am posting Second Star to the Right by the VOICES OF ASCENSION, one of the world's best professional choral ensembles.

Peter Pan's life has been full of excitement and adventures. Unfortunately, without the guidance of a parent or other good role model Peter has become a underdeveloped preteen. He's probably about 12 or 13 in the film but acts as if he were seven years old. He is a bratty orphan who exists in his own world and lives to please only himself. Not the stuff of a protagonist, but he does end up learning something at the end.

Of all the orphans in all the Disney films, Peter Pan is the most annoying and the most in desperate need of parental support. If only Wendy had stayed in Neverland...or would she regress to Peter Pan's level?

As with all the songs on HEIGH-HO MOZART, this song is modeled after a famous classical composer, in this case THOMAS TALLIS.

Tallis lived in the 16th century and specialized in writing music for the church. He wrote choral anthems that were sung in English rather than Latin which ended up being quite controversial.

The Second Star to the Right Voices of Ascension 1995

Labels: classical, heigh-ho mozart, peter pan, second star to the right, voices of ascension

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  The Second Star to the Right - Jonantha Brooke
The Disney sequel that I will talk about today is another that I would put in the 'sequels I like' catagory. The story of Return to Neverland is one of those lame 'offspring does opposite of what the main character did in the original' plots. Usually I don't like those at all but for some reason this movie really hooked me (Captain Hook! Get it?!).

The story follows Jane, the daughter of Wendy, who, because she has grown up during war times, is very jaded and cynical. She doesn't believe in Neverland or Peter Pan and refuses to stay a child. I really liked Jane's character and the way she deals with both kid and adult situations. The animation is very good for a sequel and the music is really great too.

I had never heard of JONATHA BROOKE before I saw this film. She is a folk singer who has been releasing albums on her own record label since the early 90s. She was asked to provide some music for this Peter Pan sequel and she recorded I'll Try, one of my favourite modern Disney songs, as well as a cover of the Second Star to the Right. The song sets the mood for the film by creating a melon collie version that foreshadows the dramatic situations that are about to happen.

Only a snippet can be heard in the film so please listen to the whole thing here or buy the soundtrack.

The Second Star to the Right Jonatha Brooke 2002

Labels: jonatha brooke, peter pan, pop, return to neverland, second star to the right

  ¶ 6:41 AM 5 Comments Links to this post

  Second Star to the Right - Sun Ra and his Intergalaxtic Arkestra
SUN RA is of the Angel Race from Saturn who came to Earth to teach earthlings through his music. Sounds like an interesting guy, doesn't he? Even more interesting is his music. Sun Ra has been an influential musician since the 40s, developing his skills in free jazz and improvisation. He formed his group, which he calls his Intergalaxtic Arkestra, and they recorded many albums and played many gigs up until Sun Ra's death in the early 90s. The Arkestra continues today.

In 1988, Sun Ra was part of the Disney tribute album STAY AWAKE, contributing his version of Pink Elephants On Parade. Sun Ra liked the project so much it inspired him to incorporate other Disney songs into his roster. A year later he recorded a live performance of Disney covers in Austria and packaged it under the name SECOND STAR TO THE RIGHT (SALUTE TO WALT DISNEY). This version of Second Star to the Right is from that album.

Second Star to the Right Sun Ra and his Intergalaxtic Arkestra 1989

Labels: jazz, peter pan, second star to the right, second star to the right (salute to walt disney), sun ra

  ¶ 8:57 AM 1 Comments Links to this post