Who's Afraid of the Big Bad Wolf?
"Who's Afraid of the Big Bad Wolf?" is a popular song written by Frank Churchill with additional lyrics by Ann Ronell,[1] which originally featured in the 1933 Disney cartoon Three Little Pigs, where it was sung by Fiddler Pig and Fifer Pig (voiced by Mary Moder and Dorothy Compton, respectively)[2] as they arrogantly believe the Big Bad Wolf (voiced by Billy Bletcher) is not a serious threat.[2] The song created a market for future Disney tunes and led to a contract with Irving Berlin Publishing Co. that same year, securing the sheet music rights over Mickey Mouse and the Silly Symphonies.[3] The song's theme made it a huge hit during the second half of 1933.[3] As Neal Gabler wrote in his 2007 biography of Walt Disney, the song "indisputably became the nation's new anthem, its cheerful whoop hurled in the face of hard times."[4] It remains one of the most well-known Disney songs, being covered by numerous artists and musical groups.
Re-use by Disney
[edit]The song was reused in the sequels to Three Little Pigs, and its writing was re-enacted in the "Cavalcade of Songs" episode on the Disneyland television series in 1955.[5] It featured in the Sing Along Songs video I Love to Laugh and has been included in numerous Disney recordings.
Disneyland Records produced a re-recording of the song in 1958, released concurrently as a single in Disney's "Wonderful Records" series of 45s and on the Mickey Mouse Club LP "Four Disney Stories", conducted by Tutti Camarata. It was a re-enactment of the original cartoon in audio, with noticeable differences being all three pigs voiced by Gloria Wood (unlike the originals, where Practical Pig was voiced by Pinto Colvig), the Big Bad Wolf having a more menacing voice (this time by Jimmy MacDonald), and a few additional verses and dialogue that was not present in the original cartoon. This version was also released on an album in the early 1960s entitled "The Story and Songs of Walt Disney's Three Little Pigs" and a few other compilation albums, and also included on Disney's read-along book-and-audio adaptations of the cartoon.
Contextual similarities
[edit]Significant similarities can be found in the British early 20th century chasing game Who's Afraid of Black Peter?[6] which is based on the ancient children's game of Black Man (Who Is Afraid of the Black Man?) that had been described in 1796 by German educator Johann Christoph Friedrich GutsMuths.[7] In the game the catcher asks the runners "Who's Afraid of Black Peter?", whereupon the runners answer "Not I!"[6] After the dialogue Black Man or Black Peter seek to catch their victims.[6]
German historian and non-fiction author Susanna Partsch confirms a possible connection between the game of Black Man and Ronell's and Churchill's lyrical concept[8] while Isabel Vollmuth, Portuguese-German professor at the Faculty of Interdisciplinary Studies (University of Applied Sciences in Landshut), describes Who's Afraid of the Big Bad Wolf? as an offshoot of the game-based children's rhyme.[9] Additionally, the song was the inspiration for the title of Edward Albee's 1962 stage play Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?[8]
Cover versions
[edit]LL Cool J version
[edit]| "Who's Afraid of the Big Bad Wolf?" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Single by LL Cool J | ||||
| from the album Simply Mad About the Mouse | ||||
| B-side |
| |||
| Released | July 7, 1991 | |||
| Recorded | 1991 | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 3:50 | |||
| Label | Columbia | |||
| Songwriter(s) | ||||
| Producer(s) | ||||
| LL Cool J singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
"Who's Afraid of the Big Bad Wolf?" was covered by American rapper LL Cool J on the Disney album Simply Mad About the Mouse: A Musical Celebration of Imagination. It was released as a single in 1991 for Columbia Records and was produced by DJ Eddie F and LL Cool J. It sampled Michael Jackson's "Billie Jean".[10] LL Cool J's version did not make it to the Billboard charts.
Charlie and his Orchestra recorded a German version in English during World War II with propaganda lyrics.
Track listing
[edit]A-side
- "Who's Afraid of the Big Bad Wolf?" – 3:50
B-side
- "I Need A Beat" – 4:31
- "I Can't Live Without My Radio" – 5:27
Charts
[edit]| Chart (1992) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Australia (ARIA)[11] | 100 |
Other cover versions
[edit]The song has been covered by many artists, including:[1]
- In 1933 by Harry Reser and his Eskimos with vocal by Loretta Clemens.
- In 1933 by American jazz violinist Ben Bernie.
- In 1933 by American bandleader Don Bestor.
- In 1933 by American composer Victor Young.
- In 1934, it was sung by Warren William and Ginger Rogers in the Warner Brothers film Upperworld.
- In 1934 by French singer Jean Sablon entitled "Prenez Garde Au Méchant Loup!".
- In 1934 by Three X Sisters vocals on film soundtrack "Six of a Kind" w/ W.C. Fields.
- Duke Ellington, an American pianist and composer.
- Rita Pavone, an Italian rock/ballad singer.
- In 1936 by Fredo Gardoni, Manuel Puig and their orchestra as a foxtrot.[12]
- In 1955 by Jack Pleis (and His Orchestra) on his album Music from Disneyland.
- In 1961 by Pinky and Perky, an animated children's TV series on the 7-inch record Children's Favourites.[13]
- In 1963 by American singer Barbra Streisand on her album The Barbra Streisand Album.
- In 1985 as a musical sample refrain throughout Schoolly D's rap song Do It Do It.[14]
- Chucho Avellanet, a Puerto Rican singer and comedian.
- In 2006 by American R&B boy band B5 on the album DisneyMania 4.
- In 2007 by German musician Max Raabe and his Palast Orchester on the album "Heute Nacht oder nie", and as a regular song on their setlist.
References
[edit]- ^ a b "WHO S AFRAID OF THE BIG BAD WOLF". ACE Title Search. American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers. Retrieved February 5, 2020.
- ^ a b "Three Little Pigs (1933)". The Internet Movie Database. Retrieved October 16, 2008.
- ^ a b TIME magazine: Piglets' Tune, September 25, 1933.
- ^ Gabler, Neal (2007). Walt Disney: The Triumph of the American Imagination. Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group. p. 186. ISBN 9780679757474.
- ^ "Three Little Pigs". Disney Archives. The Walt Disney Company. Retrieved October 16, 2008.
- ^ a b c Iona Archibald Opie, Peter Opie: Black Peter. In: Children's Games in Street and Playground. At the Clarendon Press, Oxford 1969, pp. 130–131.
- ^ Johann Christoph Friedrich GutsMuths: Der schwarze Mann. In: Spiele zur Uebung und Erholung des Körpers und Geistes, für die Jugend, ihre Erzieher und alle Freunde unschuldiger Jugendfreuden. Im Verlage der Buchhandlung der Erziehungsanstalt zu Schnepfenthal, Schnepfenthal 1796, pp. 259–261.
- ^ a b Susanna Partsch: Wer hat Angst vor Rot, Gelb, Blau? In: Die 101 wichtigsten Fragen. Moderne Kunst. Verlag C.H. Beck, München 2006, ISBN 3-406-51128-7, p. 60.
- ^ Isabel Vollmuth: Englisch an der Grundschule. Eine didaktisch-methodische Analyse. Universitätsverlag Winter GmbH Heidelberg 2004, ISBN 978-3-8253-1560-3, p. 133.
- ^ "LL Cool J's Who's Afraid of the Big Bad Wolf sample of Michael Jackson's Billie Jean". WhoSampled. Retrieved March 15, 2012.
- ^ Ryan, Gavin (2011). Australia's Music Charts 1988–2010 (PDF ed.). Mt Martha, Victoria, Australia: Moonlight Publishing. p. 169.
- ^ "Who's Afraid of the Big Bad Wolf?, foxtrot (Cartoon "Three Little Pigs")".
- ^ Dave Bullock. "PiNkY & PeRkY; Rare Records for Sale". Pinky & Perky's website. Retrieved November 9, 2008.
- ^ Coleman, Brian (2009). Check the Technique: Liner Notes for Hip-Hop Junkies. Random House Publishing Group. ISBN 978-0-307-49442-9. Retrieved October 17, 2014.
- 1933 songs
- 1991 singles
- LL Cool J songs
- Disney songs
- Barbra Streisand songs
- Songs written by Ann Ronell
- Songs with music by Frank Churchill
- Music published by Bourne Co. Music Publishers
- Songs about wolves
- Songs based on fairy tales
- Works based on The Three Little Pigs
- New jack swing songs
- Columbia Records singles
- Quotations from film
- Quotations from music
- Quotations from animation
- Walt Disney Records singles
- 1933 quotations