Over the Rainbow was named Best Song in the Academy Awards of 1939 and was also chosen Number One Song of the Century by the Recording Industry Association of America and the National Endowment for the Arts. Over the Rainbow and other songs from The Wizard of Oz were composed by Harold Arlen who also wrote I’ve Got the World on a String, Come Rain or Come Shine and Stormy Weather, which is number 30 in the AFI list.
With 100 Years…100 Songs: America’s Greatest Music in the Movies, the AFI counted down the best 100 out of a list of 400 songs chosen by experts in the movie industry. The public was asked to pick out the most unforgettable 100 early this year. This was a continuation of the annual event that commemorates the past 100 years of the motion pictures. Previous polls chose the top 100 films, 100 actors, 100 heroes, 100 villains and others.
The criteria required that the songs must have been used in a feature film, helped set the tone or mood, defined character, advanced plot and expressed the theme in a way that elevates the moving image art form. It must have captured the nation’s heart, echoed beyond the theater and now stands in the collective memory of the film itself. Last but most important, the songs serve to enrich America’s film heritage and continue to captivate artists and audiences today.
Poll results were revealed last Tuesday, June 22 in a three-hour show hosted by John Travolta who had two contributions, Stayin’ Alive from Saturday Night Fever and Summer Lovin’ from Grease. The oldest song in the list was On the Good Ship Lollipop at number 69. This was performed by Shirley Temple in Bright Eyes in 1934. The newest is Lose Yourself from 2002 by Eminem from the movie 8 Mile which is number 93.
The top 30 songs in the list are As Time Goes By from Casablanca; Singin’ in the Rain from Singin’ in the Rain; Moon River from Breakfast at Tiffany’s; White Christmas from Holiday Inn; Mrs. Robinson from The Graduate; When You Wish Upon a Star from Pinocchio; The Way We Were from The Way We Were; Stayin’ Alive from Saturday Night Fever; The Sound of Music from The Sound of Music.
The Man That Got Away, from A Star is Born; Diamonds are a Girl’s Best Friend from Gentlemen Prefer Blondes; People from Funny Girl; My Heart Will Go On from Titanic; Cheek to Cheek from Top Hat; Evergreen from A Star is Born; I Could Have Danced All Night from My Fair Lady; Cabaret from Cabaret; Someday My Prince Will Come from Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs; Somewhere from West Side Story.
Jailhouse Rock from Jailhouse Rock; Everybody’s Talkin’ from Midnight Cowboy; Raindrops Keep Falling on My Head from Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid; Ol’ Man River from Showboat; High Noon from High Noon; The Trolley Song from Meet Me in St. Louis; Unchained Melody from Ghost; Some Enchanted Evening from South Pacific; Born to be Wild from Easy Rider and Stormy Weather from Stormy Weather.
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