Song 162 - Mary Poppins by Irwin Kostal, Richard Sherman and Robert Sherman

Some of you probably thought the music had died as for the last month  the Jukebox has been on paused because of other things, but it's time to fully charge this jukebox and get it back on track. So my first Friday album after nearly a month break is Mary Poppins the soundtrack to the 1964 Walt Disney film of the same title. I love Mary Poppins and this month I saw the musical as it has been playing at Edinburgh's Festival Theatre.

Although the musical is slightly different from the film; there is an enduring message of friendship and family throughout both as Mary Poppins teaches not only the children, but also the adults to look beyond the rules and responsibilities that society puts on them and actually appreciate the people around them. Although, I never fully read the books of P.L. Travers, there is something in her penmanship that you can relate to about the family unit. Over the last month when I haven't been writing the blog, the importance of family and friends have been highlighted to me in so many different way as 2016 seems to be a year where the winds of change are proving to be very strong minded and brutal in the way they want to shape this year. Whether we want it or not, change is also going to be present in our lives and it how we adapt what is thrown at us that often ultimately determines how we move forward.

Going back to Mary Poppins, after the film was release in 1964, Walt Disney received 13 Oscar nominations and won 5 of them including best original score and best original song for Chim Chim Cher-ee. I would say that each of the songs on the soundtrack is a classic, but it is interesting to know that there was a total of 30 tracks that weren't included in the original score!

Although Mary Poppins is one of the greatest loved film made by Disney, Travers wasn't overally impressed with the whole approach so when Cameron Macintosh approached her for the rights for the musical, she gave explicit instructions that the no one from the original film was allowed to be involved with the musical, which meant the Sherman brothers could not contribute anything additional music to the score. Macintosh was able to included some of the original music in the score of the music but there is very obvious difference, although the souls of the characters are the same and it is a magical production.

To hear the music from the film and here's hoping you have a magical weekend

Mary Poppins' soundtrack

Song 128 - A spoonful of sugar from Mary Poppins by Richard and Robert Sherman

So I am on the treadmill with the faithful iPod and I found myself smiling to myself as A spoonful of sugar came to my ears. What a brilliant song from a brilliant music sung by a brilliant lady. When I was young Mary Poppins was the ultimate musical for me and I must have watched it a millions times. Ask my sister about it, as she eventually taped over my recording of the film.

Mary Poppins is a character that first came to life in P.L. Travis's book, but the film produced by Walt Disney in 1964, would ensure the character would be immortalised for ever and children everywhere would have this romantic notion about nanny. Nagged by his daughters, Walt Disney spent nearly 20 years trying to convince P.L. Travis to give him the rights to make the film.  The story of the production of the film has been made into a film itself, Saving Mr. Banks. I think one of the reservations P.L. Travis had about Disney making the film was that he would take the edge of the character, thank goodness she eventually relented and let Disney and the Sherman brothers create the film and music that we all have grown to  love.

A spoonful of sugar appears quite early on in the film after Mary Poppins is appointed nanny to Michael and Jane, and they are asked to tidy the nursery up. Asking as the messy kid inside of me; who haven't wished that they could just snap their fingers to tidy up their rooms? There are lovely moments of the toy soldiers climbing up the steps into the drawers or the bird singing in the trees. I think hearing this song today just hit a chord about putting in the effort to get the reward out. Like anything in life, you get out what you put in.

Originally A spoonful of sugar was meant to be called The Eyes of Love but Walt Disney wanted something more catchy.  The inspiration came to Robert Sherman after arriving home one evening to find that his children had had their polio vaccine. In response to their father's enquiry to whether it had hurt, one of his children had said that they had received it in a sugar lump!

For Julie Andrews, receiving the role of Mary Poppins came after the disappointment of losing to Audrey Hepburn for the role of Eliza Doolittle for the film version of My Fair Lady. This was her debut in the movie; and what a movie to start with. The film went on to receive 13 Oscars nominations including best actress, which she won.  Her performance in the film led to her securing her next film role, Maria in Sound of Music, even before Mary Poppins was on general release.

To add some sugar to your Tuesday's night; here's Julie Andrews to tidy your room:
A spoonful of sugar by Julie Andrews

Written by Robert and Richard Sherman
Sung by Julie Andrews
Film: Mary Poppins
Release: 1964

Song 87 - The Sound of Music by Rodgers and Hammerstein

Well, if you really can choose a singular song from the Sound of Music you are doing better than me - this is me introducing a new feature for the Jukebox in 2016, where each Friday, I will be putting one whole album into the Jukebox as the songs on the album are all awesome. The idea came to me on New Year Day when I thought about putting a track from the Sound of Music in as it is a film that is shown at New Year and realised by trying to decide on one track was too difficult a task for me. Even trying to narrow it down to a top five was proving difficult so I decided that, unlike chocolate, there can never be too much music added into the Jukebox at one time.

Rodgers and Hammerstein wrote the music for the 1959 Broadway musical The Sound of Music, which was based on the memoir The story of the Trapp Family Singers by Maria Von Trapp. The film would follow in 1965 with Julie Andrew and Christopher Plummer. Surprising enough the release of the film was to a limited number of cinemas but within four weeks, it was number one and by 1966, it has become the highest grossing film overtaking Gone of the Wind and remained at number one for five years.   The music unsurprisingly won numerous awards including an Academy Award.

Julie Andrews, who has to be a national treasure, was cast when Robert Wise (Director of Sound of Music) was shown the footage of the then unreleased Mary Poppins and realised that if he didn't sign Andrews right away, she would be someone else's with her talent. It is hard to believe now that anyone else could have been considered for the role. More alarmingly in the late 1950s they had considered producing a non-musical film of The Sound of Music and casting Audrey Hepburn as Maria. But lucky, this never happen and 20th Century Fox bought the rights for the film in 1960.

To the music, what can I say, it is almost too well known to start putting my own memories on to it as there are fans of The Sound of Music everywhere and each of you will have your own memories without me. I think I will share only two; one is for the song I am sixteen going on Seventeen as I wrote my own version of the song for a millennium pantomime that I co-wrote, where the old fairy godmother sang my version to the young fairies who weren't very respectful. Second memory is a disappointment that I missed my niece playing Gretl and whenever I hear So long, farewell I now imagine my niece playing the role. We were in America at the time. 

One last thought and I leave you to the music; for me The Sound of Music  has everything in it as the story is about love, family and strength against impossible odds - this is why the music has lasted and why in 100 years, I hope people are still going to sing-a-long a sound music and enjoying the film.

Here is a selection box of the Sound of Music for you to enjoy:

The hills are alive...

My Favourite Things

Do Re Mi

So Long Farewell

Sixteen Going On Seventeen

Lonely Goatherd

Edelwiss

Written by: Roger Rodgers and Hammerstein

Album: The Sound of Music, Original Score, 1965

Staring: Julie Andrews