"A Spoonful of Sugar" is a song from

Walt Disney Walter Elias Disney (; December 5, 1901December 15, 1966) was an American animator, film producer and entrepreneur. A pioneer of the American animation industry, he introduced several developments in the production of cartoons. As a film p ...

's 1964 film and 2004 musical version of ''Mary Poppins'', composed by

Robert B. Sherman Robert Bernard Sherman (December 19, 1925 – March 6, 2012) was an American songwriter, best known for his work in musical films with his brother, Richard M. Sherman. The Sherman brothers produced more motion picture song scores than any ...

and

Richard M. Sherman Richard Morton Sherman (born June 12, 1928) is an American songwriter who specialized in musical films with his brother Robert B. Sherman. According to the official Walt Disney Company website and independent fact checkers, "the Sherman Brot ...

. It is an uptempo song sung by

Mary Poppins It may refer to: * ''Mary Poppins'' (book series), the original 1934–1988 children's fantasy novels that introduced the character. * Mary Poppins (character), the nanny with magical powers. * ''Mary Poppins'' (film), a 1964 Disney film sta ...

, instructing the two children, Jane (

Karen Dotrice Karen Dotrice ( ; born 9 November 1955) is a British actress. She is known primarily for her role as Jane Banks in Walt Disney's ''Mary Poppins'', the feature film adaptation of the ''Mary Poppins'' book series. Dotrice was born in Guernsey in t ...

) and Michael (

Matthew Garber Matthew Adam Garber (25 March 1956 – 13 June 1977) was a British child actor who most notably played Mary Poppins (book series)#Banks children, Michael Banks in the 1964 film ''Mary Poppins (film), Mary Poppins''. He appeared in only two other ...

) to clean their room. Although the task is daunting, she tells them, with a good attitude, it can be fun. The melody is heard throughout the film as Mary's

leitmotif A leitmotif or leitmotiv () is a "short, recurring musical phrase" associated with a particular person, place, or idea. It is closely related to the musical concepts of ''idée fixe'' or ''motto-theme''. The spelling ''leitmotif'' is an anglici ...

. As part of the interlude, she sees that Michael couldn't get out of the closet doors that open and close rapidly. In the musical, Robertson Ay and Mrs. Brill are helping Mrs. Banks for a tea party she's planning. Mrs. Brill tells Robertson Ay to make the frosting, which the kids try to do instead, despite Robertson Ay giving them warnings. After Jane sends him to get hot water, it comes out with the force of a cannon and causes Robertson Ay to run into the furniture, destroying the kitchen in the process. Mrs. Banks is shocked to see the kitchen in this shape, when she came down with Mary Poppins. Mary sends her upstairs to get dressed, while she gives Jane and Michael some medicine, which comes out in different colors and flavors, much like in the film. Cleaning the kitchen up is similar to cleaning up the nursery in the film with Mary magically putting it back together. The song is mixed with

It's A Small World "It's a Small World" is a water-based boat ride located in the Fantasyland area at various Disney theme parks worldwide, including Disneyland Park in Anaheim, California; Magic Kingdom at Walt Disney World Resort in Bay Lake, Florida; Tokyo Di ...

, also a Sherman song in the final number of On the Record, a short lived revue of Disney songs. The song has characteristics of the fast-paced one-step, a popular dance in the 1910s. This musical number also appears in the '' Sing Along Songs'' series of Disney videos.

History

Julie Andrews was not yet committed for the part of Mary Poppins. She did not like the song that was written for her, believing it did not have enough snap to it. The original song was called ''"The Eyes of Love"''.

instructed the

Sherman Brothers The Sherman Brothers were an American songwriting duo that specialized in musical films, made up of Robert B. Sherman (December 19, 1925 – March 6, 2012) and Richard M. Sherman (born June 12, 1928). Together they received various accolades in ...

to come up with something more catchy. Robert Sherman, the primary

lyricist A lyricist is a songwriter who writes lyrics (the spoken words), as opposed to a composer, who writes the song's music which may include but not limited to the melody, harmony, arrangement and accompaniment. Royalties A lyricist's income ...

of the duo, arrived home from work one evening, having worked all day trying to come up with a song idea. As he walked in the door, his wife, Joyce, informed him that the children had gotten their

polio vaccine Polio vaccines are vaccines used to prevent poliomyelitis (polio). Two types are used: an inactivated poliovirus given by injection (IPV) and a weakened poliovirus given by mouth (OPV). The World Health Organization (WHO) recommends all chil ...

that day. Thinking that the child had received a

shot Shot may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * ''Shot'' (album), by The Jesus Lizard *''Shot, Illusion, New God'', an EP by Gruntruck *''Shot Rev 2.0'', a video album by The Sisters of Mercy * "Shot" (song), by The Rasmus * ''Shot'' (2017 fi ...

, Robert asked his son, Jeffrey, if it hurt. The child responded that the medicine was put on a cube of sugar and that he swallowed it. Realizing what he had, Robert Sherman arrived at work early the next morning with the title of the song ''"A Spoonful of Sugar Helps the Medicine Go Down"''. Sherman suggested the lyric to his brother,

Richard Richard is a male given name. It originates, via Old French, from Frankish language, Old Frankish and is a Compound (linguistics), compound of the words descending from Proto-Germanic language, Proto-Germanic ''*rīk-'' 'ruler, leader, king' an ...

, who was at first dismissive but slowly came around. At his brother's behest, Richard put melody to the lyric, and with that, the song was born.

Covers

Harry Connick, Jr. Joseph Harry Fowler Connick Jr. (born September 11, 1967) is an American singer, pianist, composer, actor, and television host. He has sold over 28million albums worldwide. Connick is ranked among the top60 best-selling male artists in the Uni ...

released a

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a major ...

cover on ''

Songs I Heard ''Songs I Heard'' (2001) is an album by Harry Connick Jr. covering songs from movies he watched as a child. The album features songs from '' Annie'', ''The Sound of Music'', ''Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory'', ''Mary Poppins'', and '' The W ...

'' in 2001. *

Kacey Musgraves Kacey Lee Musgraves (born August 21, 1988) is an American country singer. She has won six Grammy Awards, seven Country Music Association Awards, and three Academy of Country Music Awards. Musgraves self-released three solo albums and one as Texa ...

recorded a

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rendition on ''

We Love Disney ''We Love Disney'' is a compilation series that features cover versions of Disney songs by contemporary artists. It is the successor to the '' Disneymania'' series of albums that were released from 2002 to 2010. The first album of the series was ...

'' in 2015.

In popular culture

On the television show ''

How I Met Your Mother ''How I Met Your Mother'' (often abbreviated as ''HIMYM'') is an American sitcom, created by Craig Thomas and Carter Bays for CBS. The series, which aired from September 19, 2005 to March 31, 2014, follows the main character, Ted Mosby, and his ...

'', in the episode "

Last Words Last words are the final utterances before death. The meaning is sometimes expanded to somewhat earlier utterances. Last words of famous or infamous people are sometimes recorded (although not always accurately) which became a historical and liter ...

", the character

Robin Scherbatsky Robin Charles Scherbatsky Jr. is a fictional character created by Carter Bays and Craig Thomas for the CBS television series ''How I Met Your Mother'', portrayed by Cobie Smulders. Robin is the on and off love interest of Barney Stinson (Neil ...

(portrayed by

Cobie Smulders Jacoba Francisca Maria "Cobie" Smulders (born April 3, 1982) is a Canadian actress. She is known for her starring role as Robin Scherbatsky in the CBS sitcom ''How I Met Your Mother'' (2005–2014) and as S.H.I.E.L.D. agent Maria Hill in the Ma ...

) implies to her friend, Ted Mosby (portrayed by

Josh Radnor Joshua Thomas Radnor (born July 29, 1974) is an American actor, filmmaker, author, and musician. He is best known for portraying Ted Mosby on the popular and Emmy Award–winning CBS sitcom ''How I Met Your Mother''. He made his writing and dir ...

), that it is naive and childish of him to believe that what the kids were given with their medicine truly was sugar, rather implying that what the children were actually given with their medicine was ( crack)

cocaine Cocaine (from , from , ultimately from Quechuan languages, Quechua: ''kúka'') is a central nervous system (CNS) stimulant mainly recreational drug use, used recreationally for its euphoria, euphoric effects. It is primarily obtained from t ...

, referencing the fact that the kids, at one point in the movie, attempted to jump into paintings with Poppins. In

Shrek The Third ''Shrek the Third'' (also known as ''Shrek 3'') is a 2007 American computer-animated comedy film loosely based on the 1990 picture book '' Shrek!'' by William Steig, produced by DreamWorks Animation and distributed by Paramount Pictures. The se ...

after Queen Lillian (played by Andrews) breaks down the prison walls, she starts humming part of the melody to the song. After Poppins is melted by

the Wicked Witch of the West The Wicked Witch of the West is a fictional character who appears in the classic children's novel ''The Wonderful Wizard of Oz'' (1900), created by American author L. Frank Baum. In Baum's subsequent ''Oz'' novels, it is the Nome King who is th ...

in ''

Cheshire Crossing ''Cheshire Crossing'' is a fantasy webcomic written and originally illustrated by Andy Weir from 2006 to 2008, and later illustrated by Sarah Andersen for Tapas (syndicate), Tapas from 2017 to 2019. The latter version was published as a graphic ...

'', her reconstitution is accelerated after her remains are placed in bathwater and she is provided a

teaspoon A teaspoon (tsp.) is an item of cutlery. It is a small spoon that can be used to stir a cup of tea or coffee, or as a tool for Cooking measures, measuring volume. The size of teaspoons ranges from about . For cooking purposes and dosing of med ...

table sugar White sugar, also called table sugar, granulated sugar, or regular sugar, is a commonly used type of sugar, made either of beet sugar or cane sugar, which has undergone a refining process. Description The refining process completely removes ...

Certifications

References

Sherman, Robert B. Robert Bernard Sherman (December 19, 1925 – March 6, 2012) was an American songwriter, best known for his work in musical films with his brother, Richard M. Sherman. The Sherman brothers produced more motion picture song scores than any ...

'' Walt's Time: from before to beyond'', Santa Clarita: Camphor Tree Publishers, 1998.

External links

* (official upload by DisneyMusicVEVO) {{DEFAULTSORT:Spoonful of Sugar 1964 songs 1964 singles 1960s jazz standards Julie Andrews songs Kacey Musgraves songs Songs from Mary Poppins Songs written by the Sherman Brothers Walt Disney Records singles