SEPTEMBER 2009 - THE SHERMAN BROTHERS SONGBOOK

The Sherman Brothers set is a two CD set called The Sherman Brothers Songbook, and the intent was to give sort of like a highlight view of Bob & Dick's Disney career from (the Annette Funicello song) "Tall Paul" all the way up to The Tigger Movie.

It was something that I wanted to do a couple years ago and I had already done some research for it, but projects come and projects go. But I already had this kind of plotted out in my head of what I'd like to do. I gave Richard copies of some of the mockups that I had done, and we had talked about it. With The Boys (movie about the brothers) screening at D23 and the release of The Boys in general, I figured it was a perfect time to get this out.

So I started working on it, putting the playlist together, sending that over to Richard and having him take a look at it and making sure that the versions of the songs we used were the ones that he wanted to use. In all honesty, I did this for Bob & Dick. To have something that just is a highlight of their career here and making sure that songs they wanted to have on there, and the versions of the songs they wanted on there. Just a really nice showcase of their stuff.

I also wanted to tell a little of the behind-the-scenes stories of how the Shermans came to the studio and how Annette was the spark of that and how that led to meeting with Walt, and next thing you know they're writing Mary Poppins and then they're hired as Walt's first and only staff songwriters. Then their getting involved in the films and the theme parks stuff, and just how it all really snowballed into everything, becoming his fix-it songwriter guys. Not biography kind of stuff, there's a little bit of their history in there and some of the stories they've shared and some of the research that I found from other folks and stuff.

There's just maybe a paragraph or two for each collection of songs, each project actually. I didn't want to do a track by track description because there's 59 tracks on this thing. It's the most comprehensive collection of the Sherman Brothers that we put together so far. So I wrote the liner notes and grouped them by project so like there's three or four songs from The Parent Trap, so we talk about The Parent Trap in general and maybe a funny story of how a song came to be and the name changing for Parent Trap that went on, it was Petticoats and Blue Jeans and all kinds of stuff before it finally became The Parent Trap.

So I grouped them together by project and I wanted to illustrate the notes with pictures of the Shermans at work. I didn't want the typical publicity shots or just scenes from the movie. We've done that before. I wanted to see the Sherman Brothers working and so a lot of it's behind the scenes stuff. As a matter of fact, there's only one picture in there that doesn't have the Shermans in it and that was Annette recording for her first album because that was the spark that led to everything. But there's pictures of the Shermans with Annette and Maurice Chevalier and Hayley Mills and Louis Prima, but the famous shot of Julie Andrews, Dick van Dyke and Bob and Dick sitting on the curb from Mary Poppins. Even a picture of Bob and Dick in the studio with Tutti Camarata and Annette and the Beach Boys during the Monkey's Uncle recording session. So it's that kind of stuff, behind-the scenes.

They've often said the two most influential people in their lives were their father Al Sherman and Walt Disney. We have a great shot of them with Walt at the very end from the General Electric Progressland promotional film that they had done where they play and sing "There's a Great Big Beautiful Tomorrow." That is what ends the album, so it's that big picture of Walt standing beside the Shermans. On the back, inside, underneath the last disc is a picture of young Bob and Dick at the piano with their dad.

So as I said, this album is for them and I wanted them to have something that would be an instant catalog of the highlights of their career. I would have loved to have put every single song the Sherman Brothers did but that would be the biggest box set that we've ever done. They've written so many songs. When I did the Sherman Brothers album back in 1992, I'd been very familiar with their music all my life but it wasn't until I started doing research for that that I realized how many songs they had written for the company. Just for fun I had Mickey, Minnie, Goofy and Donald read the list of all their song titles.They're just going one, two, three, four, title after title after title and it takes seven minutes to listen to it. There weren't long pauses or buildups or anything, it was just one list one song right after another.

Also, the fact that they can compose in so many different styles from rock 'n' roll to English music, ballads, everything, and some of their more experimental songs like "Magic Journeys," which is all on here. Even "Meet the World" from Tokyo Disneyland.

Scott Wolf: That's the first time this will ever be released on CD in America then?

RT: Yes, it is. There's quite a few that are going to be first time releases. Some of the songs from The One and Only Genuine Family Band are on there, too.

SW: What are your favorite Sherman songs?

RT: It's hard to say because I do love them all. That's not just hyperbole, I mean it. But I have a fondness for "Pineapple Princess" and "Let's Get Together" and those things and of course the Ludwig von Drake songs. Anything from him.

It's really hard to pick a favorite Sherman song.

SW: There's so many different genres, too. Movies, records, theme parks, TV. Do you have anything from TV on there, like the Wonderful World of Color?

RT: Yeah, that's on there. The Shermans threw ideas back and forth and something sparked and they start going with it. They said "carousel of color" and they started going with that and it turns out Kodak, who was sponsoring the show at the time, loved that idea, too, and they were just coming out with their circular slide projector trays and Richard says that Kodak named the carousels after this song.

That kind of stuff is talked about in the liner notes as well. There's 32 pages I believe. It's just quick facts and fun little stories and things that I've heard.

I recounted the time that you and Bob and I were at the Garden Terrace at the lot back in '91 when I was working on the first Sherman album and how he told us "Walt used to sit over there," and told us some stories about Paul Frees and that. As we were going over the playlist I mentioned how much I loved "On the Front Porch." Then Bob goes, "Oh, that's my favorite song!" And if you remember, he started singing and we're all singing "On the Front Porch" at the Garden Terrace at the studio lot. That's something I'll remember forever.

SW: Me, too! I'm so fortunate to have had such memorable times working at Disney. I always say that for me the best part of working for Disney was getting to meet such amazing people, and I'm so glad I was a part of that special moment with you.

RT: These people had such an impact! Not just Bob and Dick but all the animators and storymen and Imagineers... they all had such an impact on my growing up. That to be able to be here, it's not like I'm able to be here and touch history, but I've found myself in a position to preserve and restore these works that had such an impact on me.

It's not like the stuff is rotting away somewhere but just getting it out there and making it available for people again. It's an honor, but it's a duty and I take it really seriously! This stuff has shaped who I am and what I do.