Unbelievably, it is time once again to announce the 4th Annual Remembering James Horner Blogathon which will be held from June 21-23 2019. I established this blogathon to honor the memory of composer James Horner, who tragically died in a plane crash in 2015. Participation is simple: Choose one of Horner’s film scores and talk about why you like it or what makes it special for you. It doesn’t have to be a detailed analysis (unless you want to go that direction), you don’t even have to talk about the entire score if you don’t want to.
For examples of blogathon entries from years past, I’ve included links to recaps of the past blogathons below.
If you’re not sure which film to choose, here is a link to James Horner’s filmography: James Horner Filmography
You can sign up for the blogathon by filling out the sign up page below. I need the name of your blog, your blog’s URL and the name of the film you’re going to cover. Each film can only be selected twice to avoid too many duplicates. Let me know if you have any questions and I look forward to reading your posts in June!
After Bambi is taken in by his father, the story moves forward presumably to the following spring and there’s a humorous song called “Let’s Sing a Gay Little Spring Song” (featuring extensive use of the word “gay” when it referred to one being “happy”). This song is performed by all the birds of the forest as they flitter about and find mates, to the unending consternation of Friend Owl, who is just trying to get some sleep. This song has one of my favorite funny moments in it. Mid-song, Owl starts hooting to try and get the birds to be quiet. After a giant HOOT-HOOT! all of the birds go silent, momentarily placating Owl into thinking he’s gotten his peace and quiet. Wrong! The song restarts without warning and Owl finally gives up, flying to a distant tree to try and get some sleep.
Let’s sing a gay little spring song This is the season to sing So I’d like to suggest That we all do our best And warble a song about spring Spring, spring, spring Let’s get together and sing
Let’s sing a gay little spring song Just like the bird on the wing Things always seem right When you’re chipper and bright So let’s get together and sing Sing, sing, sing Let’s sing a song about spring
Let’s twitter and tweet Like the birdies in May Get into the mood And be merry today Forget all your troubles and warble away Do, re, mi, fa, so, la, ti, do Oh!
Let’s sing a gay little spring song Music’s a wonderful thing Come on and rejoice At the top of your voice Oh, let’s sing a song about spring Spring, spring, spring Let’s get together and sing
Let’s sing a gay little spring song This is the season to sing
I know some people like to titter about the name of this song, but it really is fun to listen to. If birds could sing with human voices, I’d imagine this is exactly what they’d sound like. Another funny thing is, when I was little, I felt really bad for Friend Owl, but also laughed at him too. Now that I’m getting older, I find myself understanding how the poor bird feels (especially when he launches into his line at the end of the scene: “Same thing every spring….love’s sweet song…humph! Pain in the pinfeathers I call it!”)
After the extremely dark moment where Bambi loses his mother, it made sense to transition to a bright moment full of laughter and bright colors (which is an extreme contrast with the winter scene that preceded this one). As much as I enjoy this scene, there are times where I feel like it’s almost too much, like sometimes I feel like the song is too happy. However, for the most part, I enjoy listening to it.
Let me know what you think of “Let’s Sing a Gay Little Spring Song” in the comments below and have a great day!
Film Music Central 