Disney Rocks! 25 ways that Walt Disney rocks…..or at least has ties to music we like (or hate)

It’s summertime and everyone is on vacation if they have the means to do it. (I don’t) One of the greatest places to go vacation, no matter who you are, is Disney World. Also it seems like every summer Walt Disney Pictures (or Pixar) releases another amazing movie whether it be this years Cars 2, or the blockbuster movies they’ve released over the past couple of summers: Tarzan (1999), Mulan (1998), The Lion King (1994), Pocahontas (1995), Cars (2006), Toy Story 3 (2010) and my favorite – Finding Nemo (2003).

Also, the Wild Heart herself, a.k.a Christina, is a huge fan of all things related to Disney. So here it is people: the 100 ways that Disney Rocks!

1. Disney made a really cool (yet scary) roller coaster called Rockin Roller Coaster starring Aerosmith. According to the Unofficial Guide to Walt Disney World 2007, the original artist the Imagineers had in mind was none other than the Rolling Stones. Another band that was considered was U2. However both were considered too pricy. Therefore Aerosmith offered a more reasonable price. There was also a rumored to be a Rockin’ Roller Coaster starring none other than No Doubt. However, it was never made.
2. Early trailers for Finding Nemo used Down Under by Men at Work, though the song itself never appears in the film.
3. The stage at what is now currently called the Fantasyland Theater at Disneyland in California was the original Us Festival stage. The Us Festival was a massively large festival held in Southern California that featured such acts as the Divinyls, Stray Cats, Ramones, Stevie Nicks, Fleetwood Mac, Pat Benatar, and Van Halen. It was originally the Videopolis Stage shortly after its usage at the Us Festival. The Videopolis stage itself was host to 80’s teen idol royalty including Debbie Gibson, The New Kids on the Block, Tiffany, Pebbles, Janet Jackson, and the Jets. It was also the place where they filmed an American Bandstand-style show for the Disney Channel during the 80’s.
4. In 1990, the Disney Channel released an original movie called Mother Goose Rock ‘n’ Rhyme. The film featured a “who’s who” of 80’s rock, pop, & R&B stars as well as rock legends in roles as characters from Mother Goose nursery rhymes. Some of these popstars included Cyndi Lauper, Bobby Brown, ZZ Top, Deborah Harry (of Blondie), Little Richard, Brian Setzer (of the Stray Cats and Brian Setzer Orchestra), Warren DeMartini (a.k.a “Torch” from the hair metal band RATT), and Dweezil Zappa. The film also starred native Houstonian Shelley Duvall.
5. On September 11, 1986, Disney opened a new ride at Epcot Center that starred the King of Pop, Michael Jackson. It was called Captain EO. It closed in the mid-to-late’90s but has since regained popularity after the death of Michael Jackson. It has even reopened at all of the parks except for Disney Shanghai.
6. The pop singer Powerline from A Goofy Movie, was based off the King of Pop himself: Michael Jackson. However, Powerline’s vocals were provided by Tevin Campbell, who had a few R&B hits in the early-mid 1990’s.
7. The soundtrack to An Extremely Goofy Movie features covers of Nowhere to Run by John Avila of Oingo Boingo and Future’s So Bright I Gotta Wear Shades by Pat Benatar and Neil Giraldo.
8. Walt Disney Pictures attempted to do a remake of the Beatles animated film Yellow Submarine starring Cary Elwes as Paul McCartney and featuring California-based Beatles tribute band the Fab Four. It was to be directed by Robert Zemeckis (Back to the Future, Who Framed Roger Rabbit) It was to be a 3D computer-animated film. However, in 2011, Disney backed out of the film due to the fact that motion-capture performance was becoming a much-criticized factor and another film that used that technology, A Christmas Carol, underperformed but was still successful at the box office. 
   

   Yellow Submarine was set for a 2012 release

9. The friendly vultures in The Jungle Book (1967) were meant to closely resemble the Beatles. Their song That’s What Friends Are For, were actually meant to be voiced by the Fab 5, but due to scheduling issues with the band, the song was changed to a barbershop quartet number.
10. During the 1980’s, Disney studios founded Touchstone Pictures – which is still a Disney subsidary. It has released many movies that have had hit soundtracks including 1987’s Good Morning Vietnam starring Robin Williams, which included the memorably juxtaposed scene of the war in Vietnam with Louis Armstrong’s What A Wonderful World. The soundtrack to the film also included songs by the Beach Boys, James Brown, and Martha and the Vandellas. The soundtrack itself was certified platinum.
11. Disney’s Touchstone Pictures had another hit on their hands in 1990 with Pretty Woman – named after the Roy Orbison song of the same name. The film launched the career of Oscar-winner Julia Roberts and relaunched the career of Richard Gere. The soundtrack, which was released before the film, included the hit #1 single It Must’ve Been Love by Roxette. The soundtrack also included Fame 90 by David Bowie, King of Wishful Thinking by Go West, No Explanation by Peter Cetera (formely of Chicago), Tangled by Jane Weidlin (formely of The Gogo’s), Show Your Soul by the Red Hot Chili Peppers and (Oh) Pretty Woman by Roy Orbison.
12. Journey featured two then-new songs on the original motion picture soundtrack to Tron including 1990’s Theme and Only Solutions. They did this after British rock band Supertramp dropped out of the film. Only Solutions was later included on the Frontiers album.
13. The sequel to Tron, Tron: Legacy prominently featured songs Separate Ways (World’s Apart) by Journey and Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This) by the Eurythmics. The soundtrack itself features Daft Punk – who also make an appearance in the film at the End of Line club. Separate Ways (World’s Apart) is also on Journey’s Frontiers album.
14. The soundtrack to the 1988 Touchstone hit motion picture Three Men and a Baby included Daddy’s Girl by Peter Cetera.
15. The Touchstone release Beaches included the hit song Wind Beneath My Wings by the movie’s star, Bette Midler. It won the 1988 Grammy for Record of the Year.
16. Another Touchstone hit motion picture, Cocktail starring Tom Cruise and Elisabeth Shue, also had a hit soundtrack. The soundtrack included the massively popular Kokomo by the Beach Boys as well as other songs by John Cougar Mellencamp, Starship (formely Jefferson Airplane and Jefferson Starship) and the Bobby McFerrin hit Don’t Worry Be Happy.
17. In 1993, Touchstone released What’s Love Got To Do With It, an biopic about Tina Turner and her relationship with her abusive husband Ike. Ike Turner was played by Laurence Fishburne and Tina by Angela Bassett.
18. Kelly Osbourne, daughter of Ozzy Osbourne and star of the hit reality series The Osbournes was originally offered the role of Anna, the teen who switches bodies with her mother in Disney’s 2003 remake of Freaky Friday. The part was eventually given to Mean Girls actress Lindsey Lohan.
19. For the 2003 remake of Freaky Friday, No Doubt lead singer Gwen Stefani was offered a role as a member of Anna’s band – but she turned it down.
20. The guitar that Jamie Lee Curtis plays offstage in the film Freaky Friday during the show at the House of Blues is an Ernie Ball/MusicMan Steve Lukather (Toto) Signature Model.
21. Lindsay Lohan had to learn to play the guitar for Freaky Friday. She would later go on to record 2 of her own albums including 2004’s Speak.
22. A member of the band Orgy instructed Jamie Lee Curtis on how to play the guitar. In the concert sequence, that is actually Curtis during the solo.
23. Food Rocks was an Epcot attraction that parodied many famous bands including the Beach Boys (“the Peach Boys”), Little Richard, Cher, Peter Gabriel (“Pita Gabriel”), The Police (“the Refrigerator Police”) and Tone Loc. It was closed in 2004 to make way for Soarin’.
24. At Epcot’s World Showcases’ United Kingdom Pavillion, there is a cover band called the English Channel that plays the hits of the British Invasion of the 1960’s and 1970’s.
25. Also at Epcot’s World Showcase Pavillion, the American Gardens Theatre hosts many cover bands of American artists and artists from abroad that are popular in the US such as Bon Jovi, Billy Joel, Journey, Bruce Springsteen, Heart, Janet Jackson, U2, the BeeGees, and the Eagles. It also has hosted other hit acts such as Taylor Dayne, Hanson, .38 Special, and Night Ranger.