Most recognisable song from a musical, worldwide ???- Page 2

[YessicaB]

Posted: 8/28/05 at 12:07pm

Close.....lol. I'm from Germany. When I first heard about it I tried to find the movie and I guess it either flopped or never came out. But my friend is from Sweden and has never heard of it either.
So I guess I'll correct myself: I assume it's not very known in Europe.

[Greekmusicalfan]

Posted: 8/28/05 at 12:17pm

Many interesting choices, but I think some are not in the spirit of the thread ! You have to think a bit globally and not U.S or Theater Lover oriented
My motivation for the thread started out of my own experience ! I live in Greece, a country that although invented theater, has no musical theater education. So, I thought, which musical songs do my straight friends know ? Or my mother and her friends LOL ? Even some of my gay friends are not musical lovers
Trust me. Mame ??? On the street where you live ? Even Send in the Clowns is rarely known !
But tell them Phantom, Argentina, Memory and Big Spender, they all know it !
And a lot has to do with age as well. My mom loves Sound of Music and Over the Rainbow. My young friends couldn't care less

[Thenardier]

Posted: 8/28/05 at 12:18pm

"Anything You Can Do I Can Do Better"

[MyDreamsRecurring]

Posted: 8/28/05 at 12:29pm

the sun'll come out tommorow?

[jrb_actor]

Posted: 8/28/05 at 12:33pm

Yeah--I would also include "Tomorrow".

[JoMarch]

Posted: 8/28/05 at 12:34pm

What about Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas from Meet Me in St. Louis? I bet people all over the world know that song.
Updated On: 8/28/05 at 12:34 PM

[Greekmusicalfan]

Posted: 8/28/05 at 12:42pm

Even I didn't know that LOL ! But it is not eligible, because, as you said, it is not a "recognisable song from a musical", though it definetely is a Christmas classic !

[Thenardier]

Posted: 8/28/05 at 12:45pm

::a la Little Sally::

I di'n't either!

Heh.

::pistol whips self::

Oh, yeah - "Tomorrow."

[Dirty Rotten Scoundrel]

Posted: 8/28/05 at 12:46pm

I'd have to say Phantom of the Opera. Anybody knows that organ intro.

[best12bars]

Posted: 8/28/05 at 12:55pm

I'd have to go with the most widely seen movie in the world, then: "The Wizard of Oz." I would say "Over the Rainbow" wins the prize for most recognizable song worldwide.

Contrary to popular belief (particularly on this web site), most people in the world today have not seen a Broadway musical.

But if we're talking about the most recognizable BROADWAY song out there, I'd probably say "Do Re Mi" from the Sound of Music, or maybe the title song from the same film. Don't forget, the MOVIE version of that show was and is a global phenomenon, moreso than any other musical you can name. ("Global" stage shows pale in comparison to how wide an audience a mega-hit film can reach.)

[Jazzysuite82]

Posted: 8/28/05 at 12:59pm

I can't believe no one has mentioned Somewhere from West Side. Most people don't know Something's Coming but I've heard so many versions of the song. So easily recognizable.

[jrb_actor]

Posted: 8/28/05 at 12:59pm

GREASE is the biggest movie musical of all time followed by CHICAGO. I will give you that if they air WIZARD OF OZ on TV in other countries the way they do here, it may well be more famous.

[best12bars]

Posted: 8/28/05 at 1:11pm

Grease is NOT the biggest movie musical of all time. Check your facts. It made more DOLLARS, yes, because tickets cost more in 1978. It had barely 1/2 of the worldwide viewing audience (aka people actually seeing it in the theatre) compared to Sound of Music. Surprised? Let's not just count money, the way the studios do. That means nothing, except in a wallet.

And Wizard of Oz has been seen by more people in the world by far, due to repeated airing on TV, and that includes the Sound of Music.

[jrb_actor]

Posted: 8/28/05 at 1:15pm

I get that inflation affects things--but show me a worldwide box office amount for The Sound of Music. I can't find one as I don't think that information was recorded.

Secondly, the question would be assumed to be about TODAY. More people today know Grease than TSOM. No matter what you might think of that, that's the way it goes.

[best12bars]

Posted: 8/28/05 at 1:22pm

Wrong again. Only if you're polling people in the USA under 40 years old could that remotely happen. Think of the broader picture.

Updated On: 8/28/05 at 01:22 PM

[jrb_actor]

Posted: 8/28/05 at 1:25pm

You should set that age at 50 as I doubt infants recall having seen TSOM. And, then ask what the world population of 50 and under is and what the world population of 50 and up is.

Then, get back to me. But, when you do get back to me, maybe you can choose a more pleasant tone.

[Sumofallthings]

Posted: 8/28/05 at 1:27pm

Greekmusicalfan, I have to ask you did "Zorba" ever arrive in Greece?

Updated On: 8/28/05 at 01:27 PM

[JulianHookbucks]

Posted: 8/28/05 at 1:36pm

Give My Regards To Broadway..??

*shudders*

[Jon]

Posted: 8/28/05 at 1:38pm

I would wager that "Do Re Mi" from S.O.M. is the most well-known show tune... in the English language. Must American kids learn it in school - in kindergarten or the first grade.

The problem is, it doesn't translate. After all, in France, "Doe" is not a deer, "Ray" is not a drop of golden sun, etc.

[suchclumsytime]

Posted: 8/28/05 at 1:43pm

Perhaps not in the spirit of the question, but what about "My Funny Valentine" or "The Lady is a Tramp"? Pop stars have made them famous, even if not everyone knows that they're from a musical.

[best12bars]

Posted: 8/28/05 at 1:51pm

I'll bet you kids worldwide could sing this song to you in English. I visited Paris just last year, and found a cafe in the Saint-Honore area called Do Re Mi. There was also a boulengerie just down the street from it called Mi Do Re. Not kidding.

That movie was huge in France. Besides, many young children in America learn Frere Jacques without translating it.

And on a third interesting tidbit... the words Do Re Mi, etc. were invented as an international way of teaching music by Hungarian composer Zoltan Kodaly. It's called the Kodaly Method and is still used universally throughout the world.

For those of you interested in more, the Kodaly Method was used in "Close Encounters of the Third Kind" as a "universal" way of communicating to the visiting aliens and comes complete with hand gesture symbols (not to be confused at all with "Grease's" hand jive).

Updated On: 8/28/05 at 01:51 PM

[jrb_actor]

Posted: 8/28/05 at 2:07pm

And your point is, you snide cow?

[COOOOLkid]

Posted: 8/28/05 at 2:25pm

The Circle of Life, and Beauty of Beast. Even though it's not original, still.

[Marquise]

Posted: 8/28/05 at 2:28pm

oh brother, is that another theatre queen defending the sound of MUCUS?

[theatrebabe]

Posted: 8/28/05 at 2:30pm

What about The Sun Will Come Out Tomarrow? The kids at my school don't know anything about musicals and I would say they all know Tomarrow.