The Muppets' Wizard of Oz

The Muppets' Wizard of Oz

01 - Kansas (2:15)

       - Ashanti

02 - When I'm With You (2:43)

       - Ashanti & Kermit, Gonzo, Fozzie, Pepe

03 - The Witch Is in the House (2:59)

       - Miss Piggy & Dr. Teeth and the

         Electric Mayhem Band

04 - Calling All Munchkins (0:17)

        - The Munchkin

05 - Good Life (2:29)

        - Ashanti

06 - Nap Time (1:29)

        - Dr. Teeth and the Electric Mayhem Band

Best of the Muppets

07  - The Muppet Show Theme (1:16)

        - Featuring the Muppets

08 - Mahna Mahna (2:05)

        - Mahna Mahna & the Two Snowths

09 - (It's Not Easy) Bein' Green (2:19)

        - Kermit

10 - Rainbow Connection (3:16)

        - Kermit

11 - Lady of Spain (1:01)

       - Marvin Suggs and his Muppaphone

12 - Halfway Down the Stairs (2:26)

       - Kermit and Robin

13 - What Now My Love? (1:45)

       - Miss Piggy

14 - Tenderly (2:00)

       - Dr. Teeth and the Electric Mayhem Band

15 - Happy Feet (1:32)

       - Kermit and the Frog Chorus

Total Running Time: 29:59

     Who ever would have thought that a group of advanced puppetry techniques (which coined a new word: muppet) would become such a worldwide sensation?  Yet Jim Henson, along with an incredibly talented group of puppeteer performers, turned a side-show attraction in a media empire. For those who weren’t of age yet in the 80s, I wonder if it’s fully recognizable how much of an impact Henson and Co.’s work really had. In 2005, the Muppets are pretty much an oddity at this point, at least in regards with their new material. While Henson’s Muppets definitely appealed to children, it was the intelligence in the writing and the recognition of their unique contribution to the world of comedy that allowed these cloth and felt creatures to become so appealing. While the human actors had to remain constrained to the general principals of real life, the Muppets could approach levels of cartoonery in their TV shows and films. This mixture led to many enjoyable properties, from The Muppet Show and Sesame Street, to three feature films.

      “But wait!” you may be thinking. “Why do you say only three films?” After Henson’s unfortunate passing in the early nineties, the genius behind the Muppets seems to have been lost with him. Now admittedly, even early Muppets offerings had their fair share of corny moments, but almost without fail attempts to resurrect the franchise without Henson has been, at best, lackluster. I feel that the only good attempt so far has been A Muppet Christmas Carol. Everything else has been manufactured with no wit or sense of fun, from the following films to an embarrassing attempt to recapture the magic of The Muppet Show with The Muppets Tonight. With each new film, I always have a hope in the back of my head that this Muppet movie will actually be good for a change. Unfortunately, without even seeing the first frame of footage, I feel I can confidently predict that The Muppets Wizard of Oz will fall along into the same rut as the others.

     The album is the medium through which I predict this failure. Only six tracks are devoted to the film itself. The other eight are from classic Muppet works. Even then this album is just under thirty minutes. Now I realize that a Muppet soundtrack album is not going to be a platinum best-seller by any means (especially here in 2005), but this seems to be a completely lackluster attempt to provide something resembling a respectable soundtrack album. And really, the classic Muppet material (and there are some really good selections here) is the only reason to buy this in the first place.

     For reasons I cannot fully explain, it seems that the Muppet franchise rests solely on the musical arena of hip-hop and R&B. This can be the only explanation for singer Ashanti’s appearance on this, as her music retains its style, only to clash with those that primarily feature the muppets. Her voice is fine on these selections when tackling something more classical in nature, but when it’s just her, the music is annoyingly stylized and different.

     Ashanti’s connection here just screams “marketing ploy!” as there seems to be no real reason to do this save for pulling Ashanti fans into the theaters to see her act on screen alongside the Muppets. If this is how the powers that be think that it’s possible to pull in younger audiences then they need to get their head examined. The music for The Muppets Wizard of Oz is so lackluster that it gets completely overshadowed by the classic selections on the latter two-thirds of the disc, and I feel slightly insulted to have beloved childhood icons resorting to appearing in what will probably be an extended Ashanti music video. Not that I have anything against Ashanti, per se, it’s just that I wish those who are pulling the strings (and controlling the money) regarding this beloved cast of characters would realize that her type of music is not the de facto musical standard.

     A major disappointment, this album is nevertheless recommended on its selection of classic material from the Jim Henson-era Muppets. If you’ve failed to get any of their previous albums, you might check into this, though of course pertaining one of the originals would be better as it wouldn’t be lining the pockets of those who have been exploiting this talent for so long.