Classic Disney films, although renowned for their innovative storytelling and animation techniques, are also known for their music. Think of your favorite Disney movie that you grew up watching as a kid…you can probably recite every word to every song! Music was a huge part of Walt Disney’s vision as a filmmaker, and there are two people in particular who helped bring that vision to life: Robert and Richard Sherman, known to millions as simply, The Sherman Brothers.
Successful Beginnings
Robert and Richard’s father, Al Sherman, was also a songwriter, and dared his sons to start writing songs of their own to see if they had inherited his chops. They absolutely did! In their first decade of working together, they founded their own publishing company, called Music World Corporation. They wrote hit songs for Doris Day, Johnny Burnette, and most importantly, for Wonderland Music Company, the music recording arm of Walt Disney Studios.
Walt Disney, who always had his eye on up-and-coming talent, began taking note of Robert and Richard’s exceptional gifts as songwriters. He decided to sign them as Disney staff songwriters in the early 60s.
The rest, as they say, is history.
Disney’s Dynamic Duo
No songwriters ever wrote more film scores than the Sherman Brothers. From Mary Poppins, to The Jungle Book, to The Sword in the Stone, to Charlotte’s Web, to The Aristocats, to all of the Winnie the Pooh films, their influence can be felt throughout every layer of Walt Disney Studios’ IP. The duo won two Academy Awards and three Grammy Awards for their work, cementing their status as two of the best to ever write and compose music.
You’ve also likely appreciated their work during any trip to Disneyland and/or Disney World. Who among us can say they haven’t hummed “There’s a Great Big Beautiful Tomorrow” or “It’s a Small World (After All)” as we walk through the park? We have the Sherman Brothers to thank for those two masterpieces. Time Magazine even said “It’s a Small World (After All)” is the most played song in history!
Oswald & Sons sought to honor the Sherman Brothers with the latest addition to our line of vintage, park-inspired apparel: the Sherman Brothers concert-style tee! With a classic script hand lettering on the front and a list of some of their most notable songs on the back, you can now venerate Robert and Richard Sherman’s timeless contributions to Walt Disney Studios.
