Regular readers of this blog know that I’m a big fan of the classics.

By that, I mean any Disney park attraction that has withstood the test of time and is still going strong decades after it was first introduced.

In Disneyland, those classic attractions are known as park originals, which means they were up and running on opening day, July 17, 1955.

Those attractions include the Jungle Cruise, Peter Pan’s Flight, Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride, the Storybook Land Canal Boats, Autopia, the Mark Twain Riverboat, King Arthur Carrousel, Mad Tea Party and the Disneyland Railroad … all approaching 70 years old!

At Walt Disney World, the list of attractions that were open when the park debuted on Oct. 1, 1971, is dwindling. E-Ticket attractions Jungle Cruise, Hall of Presidents. Haunted Mansion, “it’s a small world” are still enjoyable experiences … even if they no longer fit into the E-Ticket thrill-ride category 53 years later.

And then there’s one of my favorite all-time attractions, the Country Bear Musical Jamboree.

The Country Bears recently underwent a much-needed refurbishment and my first reaction was: What took so long?

Yes, the gregarious, tuneful bruins are wearing new, more colorful costumes and, yes, the script for the show has been rewritten, but to me, the biggest change is the music.

After all these years, the powers that be at Disney finally decided to use classic Disney movie songs throughout most of the show.

It all adds up to a fresh, totally enjoyable presentation.

After The Five Bear Rugs (ably assisted by Henry, Melvin, Max, and Buff) open the show with the “Country Bear Musical Jamboree” number, there follows one popular Disney hit after another.

There’s “Try Everything” from Zootopia, “Kiss the Girl” from The Little Mermaid, Mary Poppins’  “Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious”, “A Whole New World” from Aladdin, “Fixer Upper” from Frozen, “Remember Me” from Coco, “The Bare Necessities” from The Jungle Book, a brief reprise of “Remember Me” before the rousing “Come Again” finale.

Highlights during the show include Ernest’s rousing rendition of “Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious,” where he plays his fiddle so vigorously that it begins to emit smoke … and Big Al’s latest tug on our heartstrings during his version of “Remember Me.”

Over the years, I’ve seen several versions of the Country Bear Jamboree, including the holiday and vacation hoedowns.

But in my opinion, the new Country Bear Musical Jamboree is the best version yet. Because most of the songs are readily recognizable, the latest Country Bear incarnation has become a knee-slapping, toe-tapping sing-along as well.

The Country Bear Jamboree has an interesting history. Although the attraction debuted in Walt Disney World with the rest of the Magic Kingdom in 1971, the Country Bear show was in the planning stages years before that.

In fact, an Audio-Animatronics show featuring a cast of singing bears was going to be featured in a presentation at the planned Mineral King Ski Resort in the California mountains, which Walt Disney was in the process of trying to build in the mid-1960s.

Imagineers Marc Davis and Al Bertino were assigned to develop a bear band show for an on-property restaurant. But after Walt’s death in 1966, plans for Disney’s acquisition of Mineral King fell through.

The concept for the country bear show, however, was too good to dismiss. So, plans were put in place to give the Country Bears their own showplace in the Frontierland section of Walt Disney World.

During the planning phase, Imagineer X. Atencio and Disney musical director George Bruns created new country-twanged songs for the attraction.

The Country Bears proved to be so popular in WDW that when a version was opened in Disneyland in 1972, two identical theaters were built to house the expected rush of guests into the new Bear Country land.

Chuck Schmidt is an award-winning journalist and retired Disney cast member who has covered all things Disney since 1984 in both print and on-line. He has authored or co-authored seven books on Disney, including his On the Disney Beat and Disney’s Dream Weavers for Theme Park Press. He has written a regular blog for AllEars.Net, called Still Goofy About Disney, since 2015.

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