A short while back, I wrote here about the show, Snoopy!!!, which was the follow-up to the big hit, You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown -- though it was written by different songwriters. (The original show had a score by Clark Gesner. The sequel was by Hal Hackady and Larry Grossman.)
As I mentioned at the time, the challenge for Snoopy!!! was to come up with a song to end the show as strong as "Happiness" was for You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown -- and they accomplish that task with "Just One Person" (which many people now associate with the Muppets).
But Hackady and Grossman actually had an equally impressive accomplishment, writing a score that's every bit as charming and tuneful and fun as the original, even if it's far less known. But when it got done as a trimmed-down animated Peanuts TV special, it at least was brought to a huge audience.
As wonderful as "Just One Person" is, there are a lot of other songs in the show that I love. And this here is perhaps top of the list. In fact, it might be my favorite in the show -- "Everything You Can Be." Rather than play it from the original cast, here's the animated version with the Peanuts gang. It's a real tongue-twister of a song, and the adults voices on the cast album might handle it slightly better, but the visual images of the animation help keep track of what's being sung, as well.
As I mentioned at the time, the challenge for Snoopy!!! was to come up with a song to end the show as strong as "Happiness" was for You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown -- and they accomplish that task with "Just One Person" (which many people now associate with the Muppets).
But Hackady and Grossman actually had an equally impressive accomplishment, writing a score that's every bit as charming and tuneful and fun as the original, even if it's far less known. But when it got done as a trimmed-down animated Peanuts TV special, it at least was brought to a huge audience.
As wonderful as "Just One Person" is, there are a lot of other songs in the show that I love. And this here is perhaps top of the list. In fact, it might be my favorite in the show -- "Everything You Can Be." Rather than play it from the original cast, here's the animated version with the Peanuts gang. It's a real tongue-twister of a song, and the adults voices on the cast album might handle it slightly better, but the visual images of the animation help keep track of what's being sung, as well.
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