I was very saddened a few weeks ago to hear that Robert Sherman, one half of one of the greatest movie music-writing teams, was gone. The Sherman Brothers are responsible for giving the world the music of Chitty Chitty Bang Bang (1968), The Aristocats (1970), Charlotte’s Web (1973), The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh (1977), and probably their most famous work, Mary Poppins (1964), which earned them Oscars for Best Song and Best Score. The folks over at Mental Floss put together a great list of the most beloved Sherman Brothers songs but I have a few I’d like to add to the mix:
“Sister Suffragette” from Mary Poppins – Anytime that the women’s rights movement, especially suffrage, comes up, this song always comes to mind for me. And since March is Women’s History Month, I thought this video was double appropriate.
“Let’s Go Fly a Kite” from Mary Poppins – When those first warming, windy days of spring come, I find myself humming this wonderful song and wishing I could out and enjoy the fantastic weather while it lasts.
“Pink of Perfection” from Summer Magic (1963) – Summer Magic is not as well-known among the Disney live-action films of the 50s and 60s, but it does feature a great cast including Hayley Mills and Burl Ives. I don’t really have a reason why I love this song but I do along with “Femininity,” “The Ugly Bug Ball,” and “Flitterin’.”
“The Gnome-Mobile” from The Gnome-Mobile (1967) – This one is for my stepdad who, while not much of a Disney film watcher, loves this film and its star, Walter Brennan. The video is the reprise at the end of the film.
“Little Black Rain Cloud” from Winnie the Pooh and the Honey Tree (1966) – Winnie the Pooh is just awesome and this song leads into one of my favorite quotes to use in conversation: “Tut-tut. It looks like rain.”
I’m not sure what else to say here except for the word to use when you don’t know anything else to say: Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious.
True Classics 
As a huge Disney fan I was saddened to hear of this. If you’re a fan of the Sherman Brothers music I recommend the documentary The Boys that tells of the Sherman brothers, their life with Disney, and their sad falling out. It gives a lot of insight into the men who made such amazing music for families.