Golly what a day! The Disney Music Emporium just posted on Facebook yesterday that The Legacy Collection from Walt Disney Records is adding another release to the plate, and it is none other than Disney’s Robin Hood (1973)! Veteran Disney composer George Bruns wrote the score, and Roger Miller, Floyd Huddleston, and Johnny Mercer wrote the lyrics. An official date to see this new album on the shelves has not been announced yet, only that it will be sometime in July.
This is a HUGE deal, because it is the first time ever that an official soundtrack to the film will be released. While there was a cassette tape and LP Vinyl of “Story & Songs” from Robin Hood released, it was never released on CD, nor obviously digitally, with the complete score and songs from the original animated film. There have only been inclusions of a song here or there on a Disney Greatest Hits album or two. No details have been given regarding this album yet (i.e. what the songs are, how many songs, how many discs, etc.), but it might not be long before we hear more.
The Legacy Collection was a series of twelve classic Disney soundtracks, but has fully expanded to contain all of their music from the films (with the exception of the Disneyland theme park), including all vocal tracks, complete score, and unused or deleted songs from the archives, demos, and new re-recordings of some of the unused songs. Most albums contained two discs, although occasionally the expansive score of Fantasia (1940) or the behemoth of unused material/interviews in Mary Poppins (1964) required a three or four disc inclusion. Most likely Robin Hood will follow suit and at least contain two discs. The collection began in June 2014 with The Lion King (1994) and supposedly ended in August 2015 with The Aristocats (1970). I say ended because since then, there has not been another release, until now. To emphasize this, there was even a complete collection case that contained all twelve albums. Aside from maybe The Aristocats, the soundtracks released were those that most everyone, even the non-Disney fantatic has heard of, whether they be more from the modern era or from the films that Walt personally oversaw. This lends itself even more to the surprise of Robin Hood, but personally I can’t wait. The original Legacy Collection included as follows:
The Lion King, Mary Poppins, Sleeping Beauty (1959), The Little Mermaid (1989), Fantasia (1940), Pinocchio (1940), Lady and the Tramp (1955), Disneyland: 60th Anniversary, Cinderella (1950), Toy Story (1995), Pocahontas (1995), The Aristocats
It is uncertain whether this will be the beginning of new and more Legacy Collection releases, or if Robin Hood is just one of those that has always been planned and now its finally getting its random release. Although personally, I opt for and believe it is the former, and can’t wait to see what comes next. People don’t realize sometimes how long it can take to bring one of these albums to life. While some music, especially in more recent years, is easy to acquire and compile, many of the vintage Disney films (like Robin Hood) can take years to find, research, and assemble all of the musical score. The Walt Disney Records Staff and Disney Music Group recording artists and engineers, composers, sound gurus, and new performers work around the clock to not only give us a complete score, but a pristine and restored, as best as it can possibly sound album for us to enjoy.
While many Disney fans and Walt Disney Records followers hope for future releases like Aladdin (1992), Beauty and the Beast (1991), and The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1996) to get their expanded score due, I am more hopeful for the past films myself. While I would love to see all of those, and who am I kidding I would still buy them, I am really more eager and hopeful for some of the classic films that never got an official soundtrack release like Robin Hood, such as The Sword in the Stone (1963), The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad (1949), and The Fox and the Hound (1981). We’ll see what happens though; I’ll take what I can get!
Are you excited for the first official release of the Robin Hood soundtrack? Here’s a few of the songs from the Disney film to jog your memory.
“Oo-de-Lally”
“Not in Nottingham”
“Love”
“The Phony King of England”
