It’s a Small World ride adding lyrics

‘Last Verse’ was written by longtime Disney composer Richard Sherman

Disneyland plans to add a verse to the music for It’s a Small World starting July 17, though past attempts to tinker with the beloved ride have brought outcry from fans. Jeff Gritchen — Staff Photographer

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By Brady MacDonald

bmacdonald@scng.com

Disneyland will pay homage to the Sherman brothers by adding new lyrics to “It’s a Small World” that incorporate a “Last Verse” written for the catchy and infectious song that plays on a continuous loop in the beloved attraction.

The new lyrics will be added to the Disneyland ride July 17 as part of the Anaheim theme park’s 70th anniversary celebration.

Disney shared the new lyrics, penned by songwriter Richard Sherman, during the “Untold Story of Mary Poppins” episode of ABC’s “20 / 20” news magazine, which aired in late November.

The 3 1/2-minute video revealed the new lyrics penned by Sherman shortly before his death in May: “Mother Earth unites us in heart and mind / and the love we give makes us humankind / Through our vast wondrous land / When we stand hand in hand / It’s a small world after all.”

The “Last Verse” video that aired on “20 / 20” will also play in the Main Street Cinema on Main Street, U.S.A. at Disneyland starting July 17.

Sherman shared the new verse with Disney CEO Bob Iger in 2023 as his final gift to the company’s film studio.

“Hearing Richard Sherman recite the final verse to ‘It’s a Small World’ before he died will be a moment I will carry with me forever,” Iger said in a statement released by Disney.

Disney still hasn’t announced if the new lyrics will be introduced at the Small World attractions at Florida’s Magic Kingdom, Tokyo Disneyland, Disneyland Paris and Hong Kong Disneyland.

Past changes to It’s a Small World have triggered uproar in the passionate Disney fan community.

Walt Disney Imagineering added 29 Disney characters to the Disneyland attraction in 2008 that launched a “Small World war” of protests. Anxious Disneylanders are watching for the Groot overlay coming to Tokyo Disneyland in January.

The 1964 single “It’s a Small World,” created by Richard and Robert Sherman and recorded by the Disneyland Boys Choir, was first heard inside the attraction at the 1964-65 New York World’s Fair. After the fair, the Small World ride was moved to Disneyland and eventually replicated at other Disney theme parks around the world.

The catchy song’s verse and chorus work in counterpoint to each other, according to Robert Sherman Jr., the son of the songwriter. “This means that you can play the same chords over and over again, but with different melodies,” Sherman told SongFacts. “The repetitive yet varied pattern tricks your mind into absorbing the work without it becoming tiresome to your ear. There are many who would disagree with this, however.”

The infectious tune has been played more than 50 million times, making it the most-played song in music history, according to Time magazine. The song has also been deemed culturally and historically significant by the United States Library of Congress, which placed it in the nation’s official music registry in 2022.