More Disney Park Music on iTunes, Along With Remastered McDuck

Two recent digital releases on iTunes and Amazon MP3 give Disney music collectors a reason to rejoice--even if the timing on our first recommendation seems a bit...out of season.

It's A Small World Holiday

The bright, jingly soundtrack to Disneyland's popular It's a Small World Christmas overlay is available for the first time since its original appearance on the now out-of-print A Musical History of Disneyland. Including the Clock Parade intro, it runs about fifteen minutes, thus giving you a nice virtual ride-through and leaving the Small World/Jingle Bells medley forever stuck in your mind. Bwa-ha-ha! Reasonably Priced at $3.99

 

Ducktales Remastered - Official Game Soundtrack

First, a word about the game: If you're a fan of Scrooge McDuck, great games or both, Ducktales Remastered (available for download on just about every recent game console) is a wonderful, beautifully crafted adventure you shouldn't miss. Based on the popular 1989 Nintendo game (in turn based on the TV series), it's been reborn with stunning animation, the show's original voice cast and a fantastic reworking of its legendary score.

Now, on to the album: From the high-energy rendition of the opening theme to the haunting piano rendition of the game's Moon track, this album is a fantastic audio ride, and it includes the original 8-bit renditions of the score to boot! Forty-seven tracks for $9.99 -- Highly recommended.

Celebrate Christmas in May...in Duckberg! Happy listening!

At Long Last, The Muppet Movie Soundtrack Hits iTunes

It's been a long, long wait for Muppet fans, but the wonderful, original 1979 soundtrack album that introduced "The Rainbow Connection" to the world has finally been released on iTunes and Amazon MP3.

Listening to this little masterpiece is like welcoming an old friend back home. The sound quality is terrific, the performances are incredible, and the Paul Williams tunes have gotten even better with time.

Of course, this album's been released to coincide with the film's debut on Blu-ray, Be sure to read Estelle's review of the movie at This Happy Place Blog and Melissa Sue's spotlight on the disc's bonus features at Mouse on the Mind.

The Muppet Movie is a charmer, and the music has always been one of its greatest strengths. The album stands on its own as a smoothly-flowing musical romp through Jim Henson's timeless world of optimism and wonder. If you've never heard this album, don't miss it--if for no other reason than to hear Miss Piggy try for that high note and fail so spectacularly--so jaw dropping-ly, mind-blowing-ly, glass-shattering-ly spectacularly. "Never Before" has a soundtrack been so funny and so touching at the same time.

Rolly Crump Returns, Making iPod Playlists a Lot Cuter

Odds are good that some of your favorite Disneyland or Walt Disney World details--whether in the form of a talking tiki, the Tomorrowland bandstand rising from the ground, the little animated figures in the popcorn carts or the Haunted Mansion's wallpaper--were designed by Rolly Crump. His autobiographical It's Kind of a Cute Story, published last year, quickly became a must-read for Imagineering fans.

Fortunately for all, Mr. Crump has many more backstage secrets to reveal, and the just-released More Cute Stories serves as a colorful, wonderfully entertaining audio sequel to his book. Whether or not you've read It's Kind of a Cute Story (and you really shouldn't miss it--It's on Kindle), More Cute Stories is a blast; It's like having Rolly Crump sitting across the table from you at the world's most awesome dinner party as he genially recalls forty-five minutes worth of fun and eye-opening Disneyland moments the company never talks about, all in good humor with a great sense of perspective.

Park Soundtracks in the Digital Age

As many of you already know, Disney recently announced an August 20th release date for new park soundtrack CDs. Disneyland and Walt Disney World will each have their own updated 2-disc collection, with several new tracks. Of course, this is terrific news, but--for me--the best thing about this announcement is....wait...okay, before we continue...

Let's pause here a second to look at the covers. Raise your hand if you think the cost-cutting "One Disney" merchandising concept needs to stop.

Okay, moving forward to the best part of this news: These titles will be available on iTunes, Amazon MP3, and Disney's own online digital music shop!

Two Park Classics Parade Onto iTunes

In another big marching step for fans seeking digital park music, Disney's Electrical Parade and SpectroMagic have become available for purchase on iTunes and Amazon MP3.

The price points are reasonable, considering the track lengths ($2.99 for the 9:57 Electrical Parade and $3.99 for the 14:16 SpectroMagic). The sound quality is excellent on both releases.

SpectroMagic's release is a bit bittersweet, considering this week's news about the uncheerful fate of the retired parade floats, but the high quality of this recording should rekindle happy memories in fans and introduce newcomers to the timeless fun of this Walt Disney World exclusive.

The Electrical Parade's release might strike a pang of nostalgia in many Disneyland regulars who are coming to grips with the increasingly unlikely prospect of ever getting that show back to California (Elliott, we miss you!). This is the terrific Randy Thornton mix created for The Musical History of Disneyland (complete with Alice and Pete dialogue with the crowd) but with the DCA-era alternate opening and closing announcements hailing it awkwardly as "Disney's Electrical Parade." It just sounds odd not hearing "Main Street" in that fanfare.

Still, any Electrical Parade on iTunes is better than none!

I encourage all Disney park fans to purchase both of these releases: If we want more park music released digitally, we need to vote with our wallets!

As always, I'm hoping there's more to come!

For a complete list of currently available digital Disney park music, please click here.

Golden Horseshoe Lives On Through iTunes

The recent "Limited-Time Magic" Tribute to the Golden Horseshoe Revue stage show is heading into its final days at Disneyland. While it's a shame the tribute isn't a permanent fixture at the park, the magic of the original long-running Disneyland classic can still be enjoyed, for Slue-Foot Sue's Golden Horseshoe Review is on iTunes (and Amazon MP3)!

Recorded Live at Disneyland in 1957, the album (misspelled title and all) captures the light-hearted joy and energy of the original show. The original amazing cast is in great form and this special presentation includes a guest appearance by the Disney's favorite barbershop quartet, the Mellomen.

Another classic park album joins our growing list of iTunes Disney Park albums. The digital scene keeps getting better and better!

A List of iTunes Disney Park Albums

 

Main Street's 20th Century Music Company is one of my top-priority shop visits on every trip to Disneyland. No visit's complete without a look at its selection of Park CDs.

The recent release of several Disney Park albums onto iTunes and Amazon MP3 brings a little bit of that shop's magic to the online music market. Unlike Main Street's music store, however, iTunes doesn't make it particularly easy to find all their park-related selections.

To help Disney music fans zero in on the digital albums, I've put together a page dedicated to keeping track of what's available. I certainly look forward to adding more titles as they're released!

Happy listening!

Photo by Lana Whitham