The Sherman Brothers wrote more motion-picture musical song scores than any other songwriting team in film history, working for Walt Disney during the last six years of his life. Film scores of the Sherman Brothers include Mary Poppins, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, The Jungle Book and The Aristocats.
Life and work
Robert and Richard Sherman began writing songs together in 1951 on a challenge from their father, Tin Pan Alley songwriter Al Sherman. The brothers wrote together and with different songwriting partners throughout the rest of the decade.
In 1958, Robert founded the music publishing company Music World Corporation, which later enjoyed a landmark relationship with Disney's BMI-affiliated publishing arm, Wonderland Music Company. That same year, the Sherman Brothers had their first top-ten hit with "Tall Paul," sung by Mouseketeer Judy Harriet on the Surf Records label and then covered by Mouseketeer Annette Funicello. The success of this song yielded the attention of Walt Disney, who eventually hired the Sherman Brothers as Staff Songwriters for Walt Disney Studios. The first song they wrote on personal assignment by Walt Disney was "Strummin' Song" in 1961. It was used in the Annette Funicello made-for-television movie called The Horsemasters.
While at Disney, the Sherman Brothers wrote more motion-picture musical scores than any other songwriters in the history of film. They also wrote what is perhaps their best-known song, "It's a Small World (after all)" for the 1964 New York World's Fair. Since then, some have claimed that this has become the most translated and performed song on Earth, although this is largely justified by the fact that it is played continuously at Disney's leisure park rides of the same name.
In 1965, the Sherman Brothers won two Academy Awards for Mary Poppins, which includes the songs "Feed The Birds," "Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious," and the Oscar-winning "Chim Chim Cher-ee." Since Mary Poppins' premiere, the Shermans have subsequently earned nine Academy Award nominations, two Grammy Awards, four Grammy Award nominations, and an incredible 23 gold- and platinum-certified albums.
Robert and Richard Sherman worked directly for Walt Disney, completing the scores for the live-action musical films The Happiest Millionaire and The One and Only, Genuine, Original Family Band until Disney's death in 1966. Since leaving the company, the brothers have worked freelance as songwriters on scores of motion pictures, television shows, theme-park exhibits, and stage musicals.
Their first non-Disney assignment came with Albert R. Broccoli's motion picture production Chitty Chitty Bang Bang in 1968, which garnered the brothers their third Academy Award Nomination.
In 1970, the Shermans returned to Disney for a brief stint where they completed work on The Aristocats and Bedknobs & Broomsticks. The latter film garnered the brothers their fourth and fifth Oscar Nominations, respectively. 1972 saw the release of Snoopy Come Home, for which the brothers received a Grammy nomination.
In 1973, the Sherman Brothers also made history by becoming the only Americans ever to win First Prize at the Moscow Film Festival for Tom Sawyer, for which they also authored the screenplay.
In 1976, “The Slipper and the Rose” was picked to be the Royal Command Performance of the year. The performance was attended by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother. A modern musical adaptation of the classic Cinderella story, "Slipper", also featured songs, score, and screenplay by the Sherman Brothers. Two further Academy Award nominations were garnered by the brothers for the film. That same year the Sherman Brothers received their star on the Hollywood "Walk of Fame" directly across from Grauman's Chinese Theater.
The Sherman Brothers' numerous other Disney and non-Disney top box office film credits include The Jungle Book (1967), The Aristocats (1970), The Parent Trap (1961), The Parent Trap (1998), Charlotte's Web (1973) , The Many Adventures of Winnie The Pooh (1977), Snoopy, Come Home (1972), Bedknobs & Broomsticks (1971), and Little Nemo: Adventures in Slumberland (1992).
Outside the motion-picture realm, their Tony Award-nominated smash hit Over Here! (1974) was the biggest-grossing original Broadway musical of that year. The Sherman Brothers have also written numerous top selling songs including "You're Sixteen," which holds the distinction of reaching Billboard's #1 spot twice: first with Johnny Burnette in 1960 and then with Ringo Starr fourteen years later. Other top-ten hits include "Pineapple Princess," "Let's Get Together," and more.
In 2000, the Sherman Brothers wrote the song score for the Disney film The Tigger Movie. This film marked the brothers' first major motion picture for the Disney company in over 28t years.
In 2002, Chitty hit the London stage, receiving rave revues. Chitty Chitty Bang Bang is currently the most successful stage show ever produced at the London Palladium, boasting the longest run in that century-old theater's history. On April 28, 2005, a second Chitty company premiered on Broadway (New York City) at the Hilton Theatre. The Sherman Brothers wrote an additional six songs specifically for the new stage productions. A successful third company of Chitty is currently touring throughout the United Kingdom.
In 2003, four Sherman Brothers' musicals ranked in the Top 10 Favorite Children's Films of All Time in a British nationwide poll reported by the BBC. The Jungle Book (1967) ranked at #7, Mary Poppins (1964) ranked at #8, The Aristocats (1970) ranked at #9, and Chitty Chitty Bang Bang (1968) topped the list at #1.
In recent years, with Robert's move to London, England, United Kingdom, the brothers have written many new songs for the stage musical presentations of Chitty Chitty Bang Bang and Mary Poppins, produced collaboratively by Disney and Cameron Mackintosh.
For their contributions to the motion picture industry, the Sherman brothers have a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6918 Hollywood Blvd. and were inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame on June 9, 2005. On November 16, 2006, Mary Poppins premiered at the New Amsterdam Theatre on Broadway.
On November 17, 2008 the Sherman Brothers received the National Medal of Arts which is the highest honor conferred upon artists or patrons of the arts by the United States Government. The award was presented by United States President, George W. Bush in an East Room ceremony at The White House.
Makin
Richard M. Sherman & Robert B. Sherman Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Has time to burn.
We all take lessons,
We try to learn.
The latest new thing's
We never do things,
We just take lessons.
She takes ballet.
Her first recital
Was yesterday.
She dropped her tutu
And her left shoe too.
She needs more lessons.
Then there's my daughter Dottie,
She takes guitar, that's true.
Junior, he takes karate.
Smashed her guitar in two.
For all these lessons,
I have to pay.
I must raise money.
I found a way.
Read my brochure folks,
Learn how to be poor folks.
I'm giving lessons.
Our brand new puppy,
His name is spot,
He's being house-trained,
Our rug is shot.
Our very best room
Became his restroom.
What good are lessons?
Tom studies driving,
He took a ride.
He saw two buses
Side by side.
He must have seen them,
He drove between them.
Does anybody wanna buy a long thin Mustang?
My wife takes cooking lessons.
So help me, she flunked poached egg.
I took one skiing lesson.
You're wrong folks I broke my arm.
I called the doctor
In great despair.
But it was Wednesday,
He's never there.
He's on the links, folks.
His putting stinks, folks.
He's taking lessons.
The song "Making It" by Richard M. Sherman and Robert B. Sherman satirizes the obsession with self-improvement and the pursuit of new hobbies and skills that characterized American culture in the 1960s. The singer describes his family's myriad interests and activities, from ballet to karate to cooking lessons, but implies that their eagerness to learn new things is motivated less by a genuine passion for these pursuits than by a desire to keep up with the latest trends and fads. The repeated refrain "We just take lessons" suggests that these activities have become an end unto themselves, with little regard for mastery or enjoyment.
The song's humorous tone is underscored by the various mishaps and misadventures that befall the singer's family members. Linda drops her tutu and her shoe during her ballet recital, Dottie smashes her guitar in two, and the family's puppy leaves a mess on their rug. The adults do not fare much better, with the singer breaking his arm during a skiing lesson and his wife flunking at poaching eggs. Even the family doctor is not immune to the trend, as he is depicted as an inept golfer who spends more time on the links than at his practice.
Despite its lighthearted tone, "Making It" offers a sharp critique of the consumerist and materialistic values that were coming to dominate American society in the 1960s. The repeated emphasis on "lessons" suggests a preoccupation with self-improvement and personal growth that is motivated more by social pressure than by genuine desire. The song also highlights the absurdity of this pursuit, as the family members' mistakes and failures suggest that their efforts at self-improvement may be ultimately futile.
Line by Line Meaning
The modern family
The current generation's households
Has time to burn.
Has plenty of free time
We all take lessons,
We all attend classes/courses
We try to learn.
We attempt to acquire new skills/knowledge
The latest new thing's
The latest trend is
We never do things,
We never actually do things we learn about
We just take lessons.
We only attend lessons and don't practice what we learn
My daughter Linda,
One of my daughters, Linda,
She takes ballet.
Attends ballet classes
Her first recital
Her first public ballet performance
Was yesterday.
Happened recently
She dropped her tutu
Her tutu fell off
And her left shoe too.
Her shoe also came off
She needs more lessons.
She requires further training in ballet
Then there's my daughter Dottie,
Another of my daughters, Dottie,
She takes guitar, that's true.
She plays the guitar
Junior, he takes karate.
My son, Junior, attends karate classes
Smashed her guitar in two.
Broke her guitar into pieces
For all these lessons,
To pay for all these classes,
I have to pay.
I must spend money
I must raise money.
I need to find a way to earn more money
Read my brochure folks,
Take a look at my pamphlet, everyone
Learn how to be poor folks.
Discover ways to live on a tight budget
I'm giving lessons.
I'm offering classes/workshops
Our brand new puppy,
Our new pet dog,
His name is spot,
We named him Spot,
He's being house-trained,
We're teaching him to behave inside the house
Our rug is shot.
He peed on the rug
Our very best room
Our most elegant/best room
Became his restroom.
He started using it as a bathroom
What good are lessons?
What's the point of attending classes when our puppy is destroying everything?
Tom studies driving,
My friend Tom is taking driving lessons,
He took a ride.
He went for a drive
He saw two buses
He spotted two buses
Side by side.
Parallel to each other
He must have seen them,
He definitely noticed the two buses
He drove between them.
He drove his car in the narrow space between the two buses
Does anybody wanna buy a long-thin mustang?
I'm trying to sell my long and narrow mustang car
My wife takes cooking lessons.
My wife attends cooking classes
So help me, she flunked poached egg.
She failed to cook a poached egg correctly, and I can't believe it
I took one skiing lesson.
I attended one skiing class
You're wrong folks I broke my arm.
Contrary to what you might assume, I broke my arm instead of learning how to ski
I called the doctor
I contacted the physician
In great despair.
Feeling hopeless or sad
But it was Wednesday,
Unfortunately, it was a Wednesday,
He's never there.
He's always absent on Wednesdays
He's on the links, folks.
He's currently at the golf course,
His putting stinks, folks.
He's not playing golf well at the moment,
He's taking lessons.
He too attends lessons to improve his golf skills
Lyrics © TUNECORE INC
Written by: ALLAN SHERMAN
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@minespatch
Their songs make my eyes water with nostalgia. I could hardly see the screen when their songs showed up in Saving Mr. Banks.
@scratchersandslots2094
omg, that movie kills me. just watched a different video where the sherman brothers talked about “tuppence”….😭😭😭
@nittany272
And he’s still with us at 92 ❤️ what a wonderful man.
@bobbillings
And he's still with us at 95 now in 2024
@andrewreacts1026
Thank you Richard and Robert Sherman for writing such beautiful and memorable songs for Disney, also thank you for making my childhood awesome with all those songs. R.I.P. Robert Sherman
@robthesamplist
what truly talented men.
@disneyslittleeinsteinsfan8602
I really want to meet Richard Sherman someday.
@ourlittlecakery9177
Amen
@POPE_FRANC1S
@Disney's Little Einsteins Fan have you yet?
@DamiensTrainsandTravels
Legends RIP Robert