News Country Bear Jamboree is getting new songs and acts

[ElijahDAdams]

I do wish the finale had more of a Christmas Special style ending, where each character got a solo line. Really made it feel like the whole gang was there when you single them out.

Also, kinda related, how fast do the turntables behind the curtains move? I wonder if it would've been possible to have Ernest be a part of the CBMJ finale, closing the curtains on him a little earlier to allow for the switch to Al. Ernest has got to have the unluckiest spot out of all the Country Bears, because sharing a stage with Big Al means you're pretty much always guaranteed to miss out on Full Company songs. At least Trixie could realistically be in a finale, with Henry taking Shaker's spot, but you can't not have Big Al in a finale sadly.

I completely agree. The finale feels a bit rushed and each bear's dialogue is indistinguishable from one another, except Henry and Sammy.

It's funny you bring up the turntable Ernest/Trixie situation. I've wondered about this for a while and originally thought they might finally integrate Trixie into the new finale, moving Henry and Sammy to Shaker's spot, based on the concept art we got plus how heavily they've promoted the involvement of Emily Ann Roberts. I think it's a huge missed opportunity not showcasing either of them considering Al's absence for "Bare Necessities" and there's already such a lack of female characters in the show (especially since the Sun Bonnets are now just backup singers).

 

[Haymarket2008]

As expected, any change creates strong emotional reactions.

My 2 cents - this type of change is exactly what every attraction should go through the scrutinty of. I love the original Country Bears Jamboree; but, I'm not going to sit and pretend that it was pulling it's weight in a park that still is in dire need of capacity.

Of course, I could insert the ad naseum Walt axiom about the parks not being a museum; but, in this case - there was a piece of prime real estate in the park that could either undergo a wholesale makeover into something completely different or even worse - get shuttered like so many other things around the resort when they can't pull their own.

What I immediately picked up on with this makeover versus other attempts on different attractions is that the tone and framework of all the show beats that worked in the classic version are still present even if what was being sung or said has changed. It still 100% feels like the Country Bears. It's just they are now singing a different tune. In this case, change is good.

In the long run, this is exactly what should happen with every under performing attraction as history has already shown us that true addition to the parks (by actually adding new things without taking away) is very, very infrequent. Simply, TDO is adverse to spending more on labor and maintenance and would rather steer crowds around the parks to what is already present (with the exception of what lies beyond Big Thunder and in Adventureland as they've finally given up on trying to keep people out of MK and instead just want to cram more in).

Thinking this makeover through and applying the lessons learned here to other updates think of the Imagination attempts. They have failed because they were changes for the sake of changes. The quality and tone couldn't match or exceed what was there before even when they attempted to make the second attempt closer with the addition of Figment - the tone of the attraction and character were still different.

Hopefully, this version of Bears will be a success and steer some crowds its direction and when it stops doing that - simply revisit it again. The Bears weren't broken... they just needed a new coat of fur and tunes to bring people back.

In short... don't throw the Bear out with the bathwater. Simply lather, rinse, and repeat.

Absolutely brilliant analysis. Well done.

 

[J.E.Smith]

Noticed in a video of a different showing that the amount of fog was toned down during Wendell and Teddi's number. Wonder if they readjusted it because it obscured Wendell too much and lingered around too long into the start of Shaker's number. (I was going to say "the fog's broken already!" but that's too quick to assume. This isn't Tiana after all lol)

 

[MoonRakerSCM]

Trash.

 

[SuddenStorm]

I guess this is great for six year olds... but part of the charm of the Country Bears was the music and humor that could be appreciated by all ages.

I mean this 50 second clip is better than the entirety of the new show.

 

[FettFan]

The obsession with Iger is crazy. He doesn't even know about half the stuff you attribute to him.

That would be true…if I attribute him to running a successful company.

 

[Casper Gutman]

A lot of people saying this is better then they expected... what did they expect? The Bears appear, sing achingly familiar Disney songs that don't fit this context and lack any humor, mouth a few lines meant to remind guests of jokes from the original show, and the show ends. It's EXACTLY what folks should expect from the modern Disney parks - cloying, unimaginative, offensively safe, and designed to appeal to nostalgia by evoking the FORM but not the SUBSTANCE of classic Disney.

 

[SuddenStorm]

and designed to appeal to nostalgia by evoking the FORM but not the SUBSTANCE of classic Disney.

The last decade of Disney parks summed up in one sentence.

 

[LittleBuford]

A lot of people saying this is better then they expected... what did they expect? The Bears appear, sing achingly familiar Disney songs that don't fit this context and lack any humor, mouth a few lines meant to remind guests of jokes from the original show, and the show ends. It's EXACTLY what folks should expect from the modern Disney parks - cloying, unimaginative, offensively safe, and designed to appeal to nostalgia by evoking the FORM but not the SUBSTANCE of classic Disney.

I’m avoiding videos of the new show, as I have a trip planned and want to experience it in person first, but I think what people (myself included) feared was that the bears would lose their personalities. That doesn’t seem to have happened, based on what posters here are saying.

 

[bwr827]

I mean this 50 second clip is better than the entirety of the new show.

Couldn’t disagree more. It’s not even a funny song, at least not the way those bears sing it.

 

[Casper Gutman]

I’m avoiding videos of the new show, as I have a trip planned and want to experience it in person first, but I think what people (myself included) feared was that the bears would lose their personalities. That doesn’t seem to have happened, based on what posters here are saying.

Sadly, I feel it absolutely has. Teddi, Trixie, Wendell, the Bonnetts, and the Bear Band have no personalities at all. Big Al’s entire bit doesn’t work anymore - it’s been mangled and the character rendered incoherent. Henry and Romeo are really the only characters with any personality at all in this version of the show. People are projecting their memories of the distinct personalities from the old version onto the empty vessels in the current show.

 

[WDWFREAK53]

I finally watched the video and while I know it's a video and I'm not "in the moment," I feel that I get enough of the show to be able to form an opinion on it.
For me, it just doesn't work. It's awesome to see some new life and love put into the attraction (the smoking fiddle is a great touch!), but the show itself just isn't good.

The songs don't hit. Kiss the Girl is ok but even that isn't better than anything from the previous incarnation. Big Al singing Remember Me (in a VERY short scene) is a huge swing and a miss.

Even at the end of it's life the finale had people stomping feet and clapping...the videos I've watched just have people singing along to Bare Necessities... while they are singing...they're not "feeling it."

I keep seeing the Under New Management being brought up in comparison and how it's "better than that." Personally, I don't know if it really is. Compared to the Tiki Birds, Iago and Zazu were really good new animatronics. The show itself was annoying but isn't that in line with the characters? To me, this new CBJ show just falls flat and really has nothing to do with the Bears.

Why not license some songs to refresh it?
Big Al singing "Friends in Low Places"
Trixie singing "Tears on my Guitar"
The Bear Rugs could get the crowd stomping their feet with an original
Bonnets could sing a Dixie Chicks song.

I'm saddened by it because I had such high hopes with the Bare Necessities video they first posted. Loved the original show and now it's just another Disney singalong that has no connection to the theme.

 

[lazyboy97o]

Another perspective is that it is better that Figment still exists as a character in the park because he's both a worthwhile character to keep alive and it also keeps alive the possibility they can do something better with him.

They could but they have not. If anything, the ride now being good enough is exactly why it has now outlived the far better original. There’s no incentive to do anything better. The ride is utilized and, most importantly, the merchandise is selling.

 

[EagleScout610]

Trixie singing "Tears on my Guitar"

If you're thinking of the Swift song, there's rumors they wanted her to be in the show. I don't know how far it got but thank heavens she wasn't.

 

[WDWFREAK53]

If you're thinking of the Swift song, there's rumors they wanted her to be in the show. I don't know how far it got but thank heavens she wasn't.

At least she was still "country" back when that song came out. Can't say it wouldn't be a popular add.
Certainly would hit better than Try Anything. Is a Shakira song better?

 

[J.E.Smith]

I wonder if my proposed joke from earlier in the thread about Big Al badly singing Let It Go, but it's about his wife running of with his dog and truck would have fit more than the short Remember Me bit we actually got.

("My wife ran off with my hound dawwwwwwg
And muh pick-up truuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuck" as Al's head comedically shakes as he draws out that note)

At least that would have made Al more in line with the songs he did in the Christmas and Vacation shows.

 

[Casper Gutman]

I wonder if my proposed joke from earlier in the thread about Big Al badly singing Let It Go, but it's about his wife running of with his dog and truck would have fit more than the short Remember Me bit we actually got.

("My wife ran off with my hound dawwwwwwg
And muh pick-up truuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuck" as Al's head comedically shakes as he draws out that note)

At least that would have made Al more in line with the songs he did in the Christmas and Vacation shows.

Having Al sing a genuinely moving, mournful song like Remember Me misses the point of both the song and the character.

 

[danlb_2000]

I watched a couple videos on this and I like it. Country Bears was a one and done show for me, the music just didn't appeal to me. I think this keeps the spirit of the original attraction, but it adds music that more people will identify with so should attract more guests which is a win for the park.

 

[Disgruntled Walt]

I really don't think this moves the needle on how many guests are watching long-term. Like I said earlier, there will be a temporary boost. But it will return to its previous level of attendance.

 

[Epcot81Fan]

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I really don't think this moves the needle on how many guests are watching long-term. Like I said earlier, there will be a temporary boost. But it will return to its previous level of attendance.

Agree, frankly a minor bump long-term if any vs if they would just have regularly rotated the significantly better original, Vacation, and Christmas versions.