When You Wish Upon a Star - The Swingfield Big Band

This month's cover of When You Wish Upon a Star is from a disc called BIG BAND LOVE SONGS. The CD features big band versions of love songs mostly from the movie world.

BIG BAND LOVE SONGS is one of those cheap CDs you find at Wal-Mart in a rack that lets you sample the tunes and THE SWINGFIELD BIG BAND is a group that has recorded dozens of albums for the label that produces these value discs. They are very much a studio band.

However, don't let that jade your thinking. This version of When You Wish Upon a Star has a great arrangement and is performed better than a lot of other jazz versions of this song. Listen for yourself and you will probably find that you want to hear more. The same album also contains a version of Some Day My Prince Will Come.

When You Wish Upon a Star The Swingfield Big Band 2005

When You Wish Upon a Star - Chet Atkins

For this month's installment of When You Wish Upon a Star Week, I've posted a cover of the classic Pinocchio tune by a classic guitarist.

CHET ATKINS, also known as Mr. Guitar, began his career as a musician of the string variety by playing ukulele, fiddle and then guitar, all before he was ten years old.

He grew up playing the guitar through the 30s and 40s and started performing in 1946 as part of Red Foley's country dance band. His guitar playing soon became very popular and he signed a deal with Steve Sholes of RCA Records to start recording records.

In 1957, Steve Sholes got a bit too busy producing and promoting an artist called Elvis Presley. Sholes couldn't keep up with the other branches of the label so Sholes put Atkins in charge of his Nashville branch. This was the beginning of Atkins' long career as a record producer. Waylon Jennings, Willie Nelson, and Dolly Parton are just a few of the names Atkins brought to the label.

It was around that time that Atkins started designing his own line of electric guitars with Gretsch. Atkins' guitars were the number one reason Gretsch could compete with the big names like Fender and Gibson. The Chet Atkins Country Gentleman was used by many musicians including Elvis Presley.

Atkins retired in the 70s after becoming dissatisfied with the way new executives ran RCA and the new ways his guitars were being made. He signed with Columbia and started making guitars with Gibson.

This beautiful cover of When You Wish Upon a Star is from PICKIN' MY WAY, an LP released by RCA in 1970. It is the perfect example of the awesome abilities Atkins possessed.

When You Wish Upon a Star Chet Atkins 1970

When You Wish Upon a Star - Louis Armstrong

I know I just posted a remix of When You Wish Upon a Star last week and it is my practice to post only one cover of a song per month, but this is an exception. Today is When You Wish Upon a Star Friday so I have to post this cover, but it is quite different than last week's.

This cover is off LOUIS ARMSTRONG'S 1968 tribute album DISNEY SONGS THE SATCHMO WAY.

In 2000, The Manhattan Transfer released their own cover of this song on a Louis Armstong tribute album called THE SPIRIT OF ST. LOUIS. In an interview Manhattan Transfer member Janis Siegel seemed to think that When You Wish Upon a Star is one of Louis' greatest hits.

The first task was digging into Armstrong's extensive catalog as a spotlight artist, spanning from his mid-1920's recordings with the small Hot Fives and Hot Sevens ensembles, up to his death in 1971. "We wanted to include a couple songs that are really associated with Armstrong," says Siegel, "ones someone on the street would name if you went up to them and said, 'Name two Louie Armstrong tunes!'" From that column, the quartet chose A Kiss To Build A Dream On and When You Wish Upon A Star.

While I think Louis' version is a great one, I don't think it would be the first one that most people would say if asked to name two Satchmo songs.

Anyway, I hope you enjoy it. Have a great weekend.

When You Wish Upon a Star Louis Armstrong 1968

Pinocchio (Classic and Vintage) - Tsutchie

I know that this isn't When You Wish Upon a Star Friday but actually Request Friday but Nuno Alexandre Vieira wanted to hear something old and I needed something that fit Remix Week so I found this remix on the BREAKS & BEATS DISNEY album from Japan.

Over the last decade, Shinji Tsuchida aka TSUTCHIE has been honing his remixing skills for various soundtracks, albums and projects and released two of his own records in 2002 and 2003. I'm not too into this music so I don't know how to classify his sound, but I think it's called house (please correct me if I'm wrong). Whatever it's called, I call it really good.

Tsutchie's big ticket came when he was asked to provide music for the popular anime Samurai Champloo. Anime soundtracks are super popular so if Tsutchie wasn't known before the show came out in 2004 he sure is now. You can hear the tracks You and seventythree(i ask), two of the songs from the show, on his myspace.

I am very impressed with his contribution to BREAKS & BEATS. He has taken When You Wish Upon a Star and totally played with the tempo, creating the need to edit every line of music so that it would fit with the beat. The result is fun and creative.

Pinocchio (Classic and Vintage) Tsutchie 2005

When You Wish Upon a Star - Yasuharu Konishi & Pizzicato Five

Now we come to the end of the week and since it is Wish Upon a Star Friday and since we have been listening to READYMADE DIGS DISNEY all week I will be posting the PIZZICATO FIVE cover of When You Wish Upon a Star.

A lot of the time I find that mainstream Japanese artists are way more open to experimenting with their music than mainstream artists in North America. This is the case with Pizzicato Five. About half way through this cute little song, we get two instruments playing the same melody but a semitone apart making it sound very dissonant. But for some reason, I don't hate it. It just follows through with the rest of the album.

Thanks for being part of this week and I'm sorry if you don't like this album. I'll be back on Monday with something other than Pizzicato Five.

When You Wish Upon a Star Yasuharu Konishi & Pizzicato Five 2003

When You Wish Upon a Star - The Manhattan Transfer

THE MANHATTAN TRANSFER has been one of the more influential groups in modern jazz. Their vocal arrangements are world renowned and highly regarded. Since forming in 1969, the group has gone through many transformations, both in roster and in style but always delivered highly innovative jazz records.

In 2000, when the group was planning to record their final album on the Atlanic record label, they decided to record a tribute album to Louis Armstrong. They carefully selected ten songs from Armstrong's incredibly huge catalog and for some reason they selected When You Wish Upon a Star as the closing number for the disc. THE SPIRIT OF ST. LOUIS was released and fans either hailed it as a genius reinvigoration of jazz or a sloppy, under-produced piece of garbage.

While Louis did record the song for DISNEY SONG THE SATCHMO WAY in 1968, I don't think I'd think of When You Wish Upon a Star as one Armstrong's greatest hits as MT member Janis Siegel seems to think in this article taken from The Manhattan Transfer Fan Club Webpage:

The first task was digging into Armstrong's extensive catalog as a spotlight artist, spanning from his mid-1920's recordings with the small Hot Fives and Hot Sevens ensembles, up to his death in 1971. "We wanted to include a couple songs that are really associated with Armstrong," says Siegel, "ones someone on the street would name if you went up to them and said, 'Name two Louie Armstrong tunes!'" From that column, the quartet chose "A Kiss To Build A Dream On" and "When You Wish Upon A Star."

But finding new ways to approach those best-loved selections wasn't simple. "It's almost easier doing songs that are more obscure," admits Paul. "Steering away from the saccharine side of songs like 'When You Wish Upon A Star,' which is so well know, was really challenging. Because the tendency is to go melodically and arrangement-wise, where you think it should go, where people are used to hearing the song go. And we didn't want to do that."

"Steering away" is right! This version of the Pinocchio classic is quite different than what you normally hear when this song is covered. The sparse use of instrumentation mixed with odd harmonies and departure from the timing of the melody makes this arrangement quite unique. Is it good? Is it bad? You decide.

When You Wish Upon a Star The Manhattan Transfer 2000

When You Wish Upon a Star/Hi-Diddle-Dee-Dee - Mormon Tabernacle Choir

As with every third Friday of the month, today is When You Wish Upon a Star Friday and this time I'm featuring a version of the song sung by one of the most famous choirs in the world.

THE MORMON TABERNACLE CHOIR formed in 1847 almost immediately after the Mormons settled in the Salt Lake Valley. Over the years they have toured the world, recorded many albums (its first was recorded in 1910), won many awards, performed for many presidents, and have hosted their own radio program(Music and Spoken Word, the longest running program in history) and television programs. The choir is made up of 360 men and women.

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.

When You Wish Upon a Star/Hi-Diddle-Dee-Dee is the lead track on the album and a great blend of the two classic Pinocchio tunes.

When You Wish Upon a Star The Mormon Tabernacle Choir 1990

When You Wish Upon a Star - Emile Pandolfi

EMILE PANDOLFI is one of my favourite pop performers but he is virually unknown! Pandolfi grew up in South Carolina and studied to be a piano performer and set out to be a concert pianist. But he soon found that his strength was arranging beautiful versions of pop songs and showtunes. He has over two dozen albums that feature Pandolfi playing classical music, showtunes, pop songs and Christmas music.

In 1993 he released ONCE UPON A ROMANCE... which features songs from Disney movies. I have only heard some snippets of this album online but I will be picking it up soon because it sounds wonderful! Just listen to this verison of When You Wish Upon a Star and you will see for yourself.

When You Wish Upon a Star Emile Pandolfi 1993

When You Wish Upon a Star - American Hi-Fi

For When You Wish Upon a Star Week I've chosen another track from the popular Japanese release MOSH PIT ON DISNEY. This time it's by American rock band AMERICAN HI-FI.

You probably know American Hi-Fi from their hit single Flavor of the Week, the first single off their self-titled debut album from 2001. They have released six or seven more singles but none of them have done nearly as well as that first one. The group formed in 1998 under the name BMX Girls. They soon realized that BMX Girls sucked as a band name and started looking for a new one. Here's the cool part: They just happened to meet Keith Richards in a bar and during the conversation mentioned that they were looking for a new name, to which he replied, "How about American Hi-Fi?" How cool is that?

American Hi-Fi has recorded a few covers over the years including Surrender (Cheap Trick), Message in a Bottle (Police), the Transformers theme song, and When You Wish Upon a Star. Their power-pop style and great harmonies make this Pinocchio cover a good one. If you are at work, you may want to turn your volume down because it is a bit loud.

When You Wish Upon a Star American Hi-Fi 2004

When You Wish Upon a Star - All-4-One

Finishing up Christmas Week today falls perfectly with When You Wish Upon a Star Friday! No, this is not another "Christmas Remix" like I posted yesterday.

It seems that When You Wish Upon a Star has gone on to be a holiday favourite in Sweden, Norway and Denmark! The song, in a Christmas context, makes reference to the Star of Bethlehem that the Wise Men follow to find Jesus.

R&B group ALL-4-ONE recorded a Christmas album in 1995 and included this song. Does this validate When You Wish Upon a Star's Christmas status?

I'll be taking a trip to visit some family and you won't see any posts on Monday to Wednesday. But I'll have a guest post on Thursday and an obscure Disney song on Friday! See you then!

Merry Christmas!

When You Wish Upon a Star All-4-One 1995

When You Wish Upon a Star - Gene Simmons

It's time for another installment of When You Wish Upon a Star Week and Miko Mars has requested to hear the Gene Simmons version so here it is, just for you!

One of the most successful rock acts of the 70s has got to be KISS. If you're not familiar with their songs (I Wanna Rock and Roll All Night) then you must be familiar with their outlandish costumes that include white and black face paint and elongated tounges. GENE SIMMONS was the KISS bassist and vocalist as is probably the most successful of all the members due to his reputation with women and various tv programs.

In 1978, all four members of KISS released self-titled solo albums. The final track on Gene's is a very passionate version of When You Wish Upon a Star. It is said that this song is very special from his childhood (Gene and his mother fled to America after being the only surviving members of their family from the Holocaust) and you can tell that he puts full emotion into singing it. The arrangement stays quite faithful to the original while updating the sound to fit Gene's style.

When You Wish Upon a Star Gene Simmons 1978

When You Wish Upon A Star - Joe Henry

Heigh Ho, this is Boyhowdy from Cover Lay Down, the folk-themed cover song blog. Kurtis invited me over (thanks, Kurtis!) to bring y'all a folk cover of a Disney song, if I could find one; I found plenty, but our prolific and well-informed host had heard most of 'em. By process of elimination, then, the gift I bring today is JOE HENRY'S simple, elegant version of When You Wish Upon a Star.

Henry is one of those alt-americana artists; over a twenty year career, he's moved from the country camp through Jazz, and more recently into collaborations with Louden Wainwright III and production gigs for folk and blues artists from Bettye LaVette to Teddy Thompson. He has been compared to Tom Waits, though his voice is much clearer; both have found a cohesive sonic space with its own rules, and both tend to wrap lyrics around tempo to create a lush environment for even the simplest songs.

This version of When You Wish Upon A Star is a little ditty that clocks in at just over two minute long. But though it uses the same sweeping strings and bells we remember from the original, Henry's interpretation swings the vocals a little more, and this -- plus his great slightly raspy voice -- bring a subtlety and wistfulness to the song that really makes it shine.

I found today's cut -- plus Bonnie Raitt's wonderful version of Baby Mine -- on the kids album MARY HAD A LITTLE AMP. It's worth getting, especially if you're as sick of the Wiggles as I am.

(If you like Joe Henry, by the way, keep your eyes on Cover Lay Down for a great cover of Pale Blue Eyes I'm saving for a Lou Reed/Velvet Underground post in the next few months. Now how's THAT for a shameless plug, folks?)

When You Wish Upon A Star Joe Henry 2004

When You Wish Upon a Star - Ringo Starr with Herb Alpert

Here is the closing track to the 1988 compilation album STAY AWAKE, featuring vocals by the legendary Beatles drummer, RINGO STARR, and featuring a wonderful trumpet solo from the legendary HERB ALPERT.

This arrangement of When You Wish Upon a Star is really nice but I can't help but chuckle a bit when I hear Ringo singing. He has really made a good career for himself despite the fact that he was never the strongest drummer, songwriter or vocalist. But over the years, like all musicians, his time in the spotlight is coming to an end. He has a new album coming out in early 2008 but will anyone really notice? Probably only die hard fans and musicologists.

And Herb Alpert isn't nearly as popular as he was with the Tijuana Brass in the sixties and solo throughout the seventies. Now it seems all he is known for Little Spanish Flea. Sad really, because he is a great trumpet player.

But all in all, this pair of fading music stars made a good recording of When You Wish Upon a Star, a song which takes them back to the beginning of their careers when they were unknown and only starting to reach for the stars.

When You Wish Upon a Star Ringo Starr, featuring Herb Alpert 1988

When You Wish Upon a Star - Dion and the Belmonts

DION AND THE BELMONTS didn't have a long career. Dion DiMucci, a singer since childhood who toured with many big names, joined the Belmonts in 1957 and left the group in 1960 to persue a solo career. They had a few hits together but the Belmonts were not as popular after Dion left.

An interesting fact: Dion and the Belmonts were part of the Winter Dance Party in 1959. They couldn't afford the $36 that it would cost to fly to the next gig so they stayed behind. The plane, which was carrying Buddy Holly, Ritchie Vallens and the Big Bopper, crashed. There were no survivors. This day is called "the day the music died."

Dion and the Belmonts released two albums. The second, released in 1960, is called WISH UPON A STAR WITH DION AND THE BELMONTS and contains a nice cover of When You Wish Upon a Star. I absolutely love the 50s do-op style that they give this song! It is totally authentic and a great representation of the musical styles of the day.

When You Wish Upon a Star Dion and the Belmonts 1960