Theme Songs & Notable Songs from Musicals

The Wizard of Oz – Somewhere Over the Rainbow 

This is one of the best movies of all time and probably the best musical ever. This movie was made before the era of digital effects, but they made the most of the technology available at the time. In an amazing innovation, filming started out in black & white, but changed to color when Dorothy arrived in Oz. In this movie, Judy Garland sings the world's greatest theme song, Somewhere Over the Rainbow. An unforgettable classic!

Coco - Remember Me

A 2017 Pixar/Disney movie with a Mexican theme. "Remember Me" won the Academy Award for Best Original Song.

Hairspray - Good Morning Baltimore 

A funny movie about prejudice with great music and dancing. John Travolta plays a woman in this movie. The actress at left, Nikki Blonsky, plays an overweight high school girl who has a great attitude, a lot of confidence, and a dream to be a dancer.


Singin’ in the Rain – Singin’ in the Rain

This 1952 musical is considered one of the best. It features the excellent dancing of Gene Kelly (who also co-directed the movie), and it is memorable for the classic scene of Gene Kelly dancing and singing in the rain.

An interesting bit of trivia is that the rain contains milk to make it more visible on film. This theme song was later used in another famous movie, "A Clockwork Orange," by Stanley Kubrick.



Annie – Tomorrow

This scene is from the 1982 version of "Annie." "Annie" was a Broadway musical based on the comic strip "Little Orphan Annie."

The young actress Aileen Quinn sang this song with its positive message for those whose "today" is not so great.

Idina Menzel ("Frozen") does a cover version of this song.

In 2014, a new version of "Annie" came out.starring Quvenzhané Wallis, Jamie Foxx and Cameron Diaz. Here's Tomorrow from that film. 

The Lion King – Can You Feel the Love Tonight (featuring Elton John). The great rock/pop singer, piano player and composer, Elton John, wrote and sang this song as a hit single, but in the movie, the song is sung by the lion characters. I posted the Elton John version here because it's awesome.

My Fair Lady – The Rain in Spain (featuring Audrey Hepburn; dubbed vocals by Marni Nixon). Audrey Hepburn is a beloved actress in Japan, but she wasn't a strong vocalist. Her vocals were dubbed in this movie. The song is supposed to show that the character in the film has mastered the correct pronunciation of polite British society.

The Sound of Music – Do Re Mi (featuring Julie Andews). Julie Andrews, an English actress, was in several hit musicals back in the 60s. Her voice was amazing, but unfortunately, her throat was damaged during surgery in 1997, and her voice hasn't been the same.

Mary Poppins - Supercalifragi-listicexpialidocious This movie from 1964 was the first big hit for Julie Andrews followed by The Sound of Music above. This movie was notable for combining live action with animated characters, a big innovation at the time.

Beauty & the Beast – Tale as Old as Time (from 1:00)

New Version (audio only) from 2017 live action film; sung by Emma Thompson as Mrs Potts.

Les Miserables – I Dreamed a Dream (Korean subtitles; this clip has the best audio)
The Little Mermaid – Under the Sea
Frozen – Let It Go (performed by Idina Menzel)
Dreamgirls – We’re Your Dreamgirls (featuring Beyoncé)
La La Land - Another Day of Sun - Someone in the Crowd - City of Stars -
This musical was popular recently in the U.S., and last year in Japan. It stars Emma Stone and Ryan Gosling.

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