A Memorable Musical Experience

By: Lynn Barron

One of the many perks you get while working at Disneyland is some of the cast exclusive events. On December 8, 1999, I had the great opportunity to attend an event that was announced in the Disneyland Line, the exclusive cast member weekly publication. This event was an afternoon with The Sherman Brothers. The Sherman Brothers as you may know are a musical team that was hired by Walt Disney. They have written song for many films and attractions that are well known and considered classics today. Some of their most popular songs are from films such as Mary Poppins, The Jungle Book, Sword In The Stone, Winnie The Pooh, The Parent Trap, and many more. Their most popular song is probably "Its a Small World". 

This event was free, and took place at the Team Disney Anaheim Auditorium. My guess there was maybe only about 100 people in attendance. The event was hosted by the late David Mumford who passed away in 2003, He was an Imagineer, author, and Disney historian. Along with him was Jeff Kurtti who has written many books; Disney and non Disney. The event was informal and a very casual intimate setting. On the stage sat Richard Sherman at a keyboard, his bother Robert sitting on a chair beside the two hosts. The hosts would ask the questions, and the brothers would take it from there; telling stories about Walt Disney and the songs they had written. Between questions they would play and sing some of their most popular songs, along with some that never made it into movies or attractions. One of the most special moments came when Richard told the story how Walt would ask them to come into his office on at the end of a work week and Walt would just say "Play It," and they knew what that meant, it meant they were to play the song "Feed The Birds". They then played the song, which was a very moving moment for many of us there that day. They then played the song "Its A Small World" and every one sang and clapped along.

After the event there was a book signing for the book Walt's Time. I of course bought this book and had them sign it. The book is a wonderfully designed book with many photos as well as great information. I highly recommend this book to any fan of The Sherman Brothers.

The event was something I will never forget. I learned a lot about this song writing team, and appreciated their music even more after attending. I truly appreciated how they were willing to do such an intimate presentation for cast members. I hope Disney still does similar presentations for the cast members because it truly was a special day.

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