Zip-a-Dee-Doo-Dah

Last updated
"Zip-a-Dee-Doo-Dah"
Song by James Baskett
Recorded1946
Genre
Length2:19
Composer Allie Wrubel
Lyricist Ray Gilbert

"Zip-a-Dee-Doo-Dah" is a song composed by Allie Wrubel with lyrics by Ray Gilbert for Disney's 1946 live action and animated movie Song of the South , sung by James Baskett. [1] For "Zip-a-Dee-Doo-Dah", the film won the Academy Award for Best Original Song [1] and was the second Disney song to win this award, after "When You Wish upon a Star" from Pinocchio (1940). [1] In 2004, it finished at number 47 in AFI's 100 Years...100 Songs , a survey of top tunes in American cinema.

Contents

According to Disney historian Jim Korkis, the word "Zip-a-Dee-Doo-Dah" was reportedly invented by Walt Disney, who was fond of nonsense words used in songs such as "Bibbidi-Bobbidi-Boo" from Cinderella (1950) and "Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious" from Mary Poppins (1964). [2] Ken Emerson, author of the 1997 book Doo-dah!: Stephen Foster And The Rise Of American Popular Culture, believes that the song is influenced by the chorus of the pre-Civil War folk song "Zip Coon", a "Turkey in the Straw" variation: "O Zip a duden duden duden zip a duden day". [3]

Since 2020, Disney has disassociated itself from the song due to the longstanding controversy over racial connotations associated with Song of the South, with the song being removed from soundtracks in the company's theme parks and associated resorts in the United States. [4]

Notable versions

The Walt Disney Company never released a single from the soundtrack.

Bob B. Soxx & the Blue Jeans version

"Zip-a-Dee Doo-Dah"
Zip-a-Dee-Doo-Dah Bob B. Soxx.jpg
Single by Bob B. Soxx and the Blue Jeans
from the album Zip-a-Dee-Doo-Dah
B-side "Flip and Nitty"
Released1962
Studio Gold Star, Los Angeles
Genre Pop
Length2:40
Label Philles
Songwriters Allie Wrubel, Ray Gilbert
Producer Phil Spector
Bob B. Soxx and the Blue Jeans singles chronology
"Zip-a-Dee Doo-Dah"
(1962)		"Why Do Lovers Break Each Other's Heart"
(1962)

Bypassing his usual publishing sources, [9] producer [[Phil Spector[[ reconfigured "Zip-A-Dee-Doo-Dah" in a style akin to Bo Diddley. [9] According to former girlfriend Annette Merar, the song had come to Spector spontaneously while he was playing guitar; he immediately resolved to record it. [9] He produced the recording for Bob B. Soxx & the Blue Jeans with the Wrecking Crew in late 1962. [10] Yielding puzzled reactions from those present at the session, [11] saxophonist Steve Douglas later recalled that Spector's request for two bass players had been "ridiculous", [9] while engineer Larry Levine, accustomed to conventionally smaller rock set-ups, was similarly perplexed by the number of musicians gathered. [12] [10]

To obtain the guitar tone heard on the recording, Billy Strange suggested removing one of the power tubes from his Fender Twin Reverb amplifier, an effect Spector approved. [10] The resulting distortion produced a "fuzzy" coloration of his guitar tone, [9] later identified by Howard as "arguably, rock's first intentionally fuzz-toned guitar solo." [11]

Strange's guitar solo, performed during the bridge, [12] [9] was captured through bleed from his amplifier into the room microphones rather than a direct microphone. [13] As the session progressed, Spector had repeatedly instructed Levine to increase the recording levels, resulting in the audio meters remaining in the red zone. This prompted Levine, concerned about the distortion risk, to turn off all the microphones to reset the levels. [12] [9] [11] Levine then rebuilt the mix, but before activating Strange's microphone, Spector halted the process, declaring that the sound was acceptable and directed Levine to record as-is. [12] [9]

Levine later considered the recording the first true example of Spector's Wall of Sound production style. [14] According to the Beatles' George Harrison: "Some years later everyone started to try to copy that sound and so they invented the fuzz box." [15]

In 1963, Bob B. Soxx & the Blue Jeans took their version of the song to number 8 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and number 7 on the Hot R&B Singles chart. [16] Their song also peaked at number 45 in the UK Singles Chart the same year. [1] The song was included on the only album the group ever recorded, Zip-a-Dee-Doo-Dah, issued on the Philles Records label.

Personnel

This version was sung by the following people: [17] [18]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Brown, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. p. 134. ISBN   1-904994-10-5.
  2. ↑ "The Song of the South Frequently Asked Questions". www.mouseplanet.com. 5 December 2012.
  3. ↑ Emerson, Ken (1997). Doo-dah!: Stephen Foster And The Rise Of American Popular Culture. New York: Simon & Schuster. p.  60. ISBN   978-0684810102.
  4. ↑ "Disneyland removes controversial 'zip-a-dee-doo-dah' lyric from its parade," CBS News, Mar 4, 2023.
  5. ↑ "Song artist 450 – Johnny Mercer". tsort.info.
  6. ↑ Gilliland, John (1994). Pop Chronicles the 40s: The Lively Story of Pop Music in the 40s (audiobook). ISBN   978-1-55935-147-8. OCLC   31611854. Tape 3, side A.
  7. ↑ Whitburn, Joel (1986). Joel Whitburn's Pop Memories 1890–1954. Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin: Record Research Inc. p.  318. ISBN   0-89820-083-0.
  8. ↑ Whitburn, Joel (1986). Joel Whitburn's Pop Memories 1890–1954. Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin: Record Research Inc. p.  250. ISBN   0-89820-083-0.
  9. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Ribowsky, Mark (2006) [1989]. He's a Rebel: Phil Spector – Rock and Roll's Legendary Producer . Cambridge, MA: Da Capo Press. pp. 121, 125–127. ISBN   978-0-306-81471-6.
  10. 1 2 3 Hartman, Kent (2012). The Wrecking Crew: The Inside Story of Rock and Roll's Best-Kept Secret (1st ed.). Thomas Dunne Books. pp. 50, 53. ISBN   978-0312619749.
  11. 1 2 3 Howard, David N. (2004). Sonic Alchemy: Visionary Music Producers and Their Maverick Recordings. Hal Leonard Corporation. p. 13. ISBN   978-0-634-05560-7.
  12. 1 2 3 4 Brown, Mick (2007) [2006]. Tearing Down the Wall of Sound: The Rise and Fall of Phil Spector . London: Bloomsbury. pp. 105–106. ISBN   978-1-4000-4219-7.
  13. ↑ Zak, Albin J. (2001). The Poetics of Rock: Cutting Tracks, Making Records . Berkeley: University of California Press. pp. 82–83. ISBN   9780520232242.
  14. ↑ Buskin, Richard (April 2007). "CLASSIC TRACKS: The Ronettes 'Be My Baby'". Sound on Sound. Retrieved August 19, 2014.
  15. ↑ Runtagh, Jordan (April 13, 2015). "9 Beatles Songs That Clearly Influenced Heavy Metal". VH1 . Archived from the original on May 25, 2022.
  16. ↑ Whitburn, Joel (2004). Top R&B/Hip-Hop Singles: 1942–2004. Record Research. p. 68.
  17. ↑ Clemente, John (2000). Girl Groups—Fabulous Females That Rocked The World. Iola, Wisc. Krause Publications. p. 27. ISBN   0-87341-816-6.
  18. ↑ Betrock, Alan (1982). Girl Groups The Story of a Sound (1st ed.). New York: Delilah Books. pgs. 120–122. ISBN   0-933328-25-7
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