An Ode to Robert Sherman

We lost a titan of music and Disney history yesterday. Robert Sherman has died. Robert along with his brother Richard penned many of the greatest Disney songs ever. Walt Disney called them "The boys". Among their accomplishments were writing songs like "It's a Small World", all of the songs from Mary Poppins (my favorite), "The Tiki, Tiki, Tiki Room", "Winnie the Pooh", "I wanna be like you" and "Trust in Me" (from Jungle Book), and many, many others. If it's a Disney song and it sticks in your memory forever....chances are the Sherman brothers wrote it. Robert was the wordsmith in the pair, while Richard penned the music. The brothers' awards include 23 gold and platinum albums and a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. They were inducted into the Songwriters' Hall of Fame in 2005. They wrote over 150 songs at Disney, including the soundtracks for such films as "The Sword and the Stone," "The Parent Trap," "Bedknobs and Broomsticks," "The Jungle Book," "Mary Poppins", "The Aristocrats" and "The Tigger Movie." They came from a song writing family. Their father, Al Sherman, was a popular Tin-Pan-Alley song writer who wrote hits for Tommy Dorsey, Billie Holiday and Louis Armstrong. Their Grandfather was a court composer for Emperor Franz Joseph.

I actually had the great pleasure of meeting Robert and Richard Sherman while they were autographing copies of their book "Walt's Time: From Before to Beyond". I got to shake their hands as they signed two copies of the book for me and told them how much I enjoyed their music. They were very nice. Richard did most of the talking. Robert was fairly shy and quiet and had a gruff, aged voice. I'm thankful for the opportunity to meet them. "Feed the Birds" is probably my favorite Disney song ever. In fact, it was Walt's favorite, too. When he was having a hard day, he'd call for the brothers to come up to his office and he'd say "Play it!" They knew what that meant. They'd start playing "Feed the Birds" from Mary Poppins and Walt would stare wistfully out of his office window until the last note was played. The Sherman brothers music is ingrained into my memory and is an integral part of my childhood. I am forever grateful for their contribution to music. Robert will be greatly missed.