Animated Comedy Song
Located in 2 routes
The overtly funny number in an animated film, built for laughs through witty wordplay, rapid patter, comic characterisation and musical parody. These songs move fast — vaudeville patter, swing, list songs and genre send-ups — with brassy, elastic arrangements that follow the gags. Vocals prize timing, mimicry and manic energy, often improvisational in feel. Lyrics are clever, absurd and self-aware, packed with rhymes and pop-culture riffs. The mood is playful and irreverent, providing a film's biggest comic set-pieces.
History
Comic songwriting has been a Disney and animated-musical staple since the swinging characters of The Jungle Book (1967), but the modern comedy number exploded with Robin Williams's rapid-fire Genie in Aladdin (1992), a benchmark of pop-culture-stuffed patter. The tradition runs through the boastful comedy of 'Gaston' (1991) and 'Shiny' (2016) to Maui's 'You're Welcome,' with Lin-Manuel Miranda and earlier writers mining humour from character and rhyme. Delivered by comic performers from Louis Prima to Jemaine Clement and Dwayne Johnson, the animated comedy song lets films showcase virtuosic voice work and remains among their most quotable material.
Defining artists
Essential listening
- Friend Like Me(1992) — Robin WilliamsSpotifyYouTube
- You're Welcome(2016) — Dwayne JohnsonSpotifyYouTube
- Shiny(2016) — Jemaine ClementSpotifyYouTube
- Everybody Wants to Be a Cat(1970) — Scatman CrothersSpotifyYouTube
- Gaston(1991) — Richard WhiteSpotifyYouTube
- I Wan'na Be Like You(1967) — Louis PrimaSpotifyYouTube
Sources
- Thomas S. Hischak and Mark A. Robinson, The Disney Song Encyclopedia (2009)
- Thomas S. Hischak, The Oxford Companion to the American Musical (2008)
- Mervyn Cooke, A History of Film Music (2008)