''Oklahoma!'' is the original

soundtrack album A soundtrack album is any album that incorporates music directly recorded from the soundtrack of a particular feature film or television show. The first such album to be commercially released was Walt Disney's ''Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs ( ...

of the 1955 film ''

Oklahoma! ''Oklahoma!'' is the first musical theater, musical written by the duo of Rodgers and Hammerstein. The musical is based on Lynn Riggs's 1931 play, ''Green Grow the Lilacs (play), Green Grow the Lilacs''. Set in farm country outside the town of ...

'', an adaptation of the musical Broadway play of the same name. The soundtrack charted No. 1 on the ''Billboard'' Pop Album Chart in 1956 and has been in continual print. On July 8, 1958, it became the first album to be

certified Certification is part of testing, inspection and certification and the provision by an independent body of written assurance (a certificate) that the product, service or system in question meets specific requirements. It is the formal attestatio ...

"gold" by the

RIAA The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is a trade organization that represents the music recording industry in the United States. Its members consist of record labels and distributors that the RIAA says "create, manufacture, and/o ...

, and was later certified "2x multi-platinum" on April 1, 1992. It was originally released as a 42-minute album on the

Capitol Records Capitol Records, LLC (known legally as Capitol Records, Inc. until 2007), and simply known as Capitol, is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group through its Capitol Music Group imprint. It was founded as the first West Coast-base ...

label, but only in mono at first. However, as with the 1956 film soundtracks of ''

Carousel A carousel or carrousel (mainly North American English), merry-go-round (International English), or galloper (British English) is a type of amusement ride consisting of a rotating circular platform with seats for riders. The seats are tradit ...

'' and ''

The King and I ''The King and I'' is the fifth musical by the team of Rodgers and Hammerstein. It is based on Margaret Landon's novel '' Anna and the King of Siam'' (1944), which is in turn derived from the memoirs of Anna Leonowens, governess to the childr ...

'' (also issued by Capitol on LP), because the film's soundtrack had been recorded in then

state-of-the-art The state of the art (SOTA or SotA, sometimes cutting edge, leading edge, or bleeding edge) refers to the highest level of general development, as of a device, technique, or scientific field achieved at a particular time. However, in some contex ...

stereo, it was possible for Capitol to issue a stereo version of the album in 1958. And again as with ''Carousel'' because of a difference between mono and stereo grooves, it was necessary to cut a very brief section of the music on the stereo release. The album is ranked number 985 in '' All-Time Top 1000 Albums'' (3rd. edition, 2000). In 1956, less than a year after the first mono Capitol soundtrack LP was released,

Goddard Lieberson Goddard Lieberson (April 5, 1911 – May 29, 1977) was the president of Columbia Records from 1956 to 1971, and again from 1973 to 1975. He became president of the Recording Industry Association of America in 1964. He was also a composer, and stu ...

of rival

Columbia Records Columbia Records is an American reco ...

produced a studio cast LP of ''Oklahoma!'' featuring

Nelson Eddy Nelson Ackerman Eddy (June 29, 1901 – March 6, 1967) was an American actor and baritone singer who appeared in 19 musical films during the 1930s and 1940s, as well as in opera and on the concert stage, radio, television, and in nightclubs ...

and a supporting cast, with the chorus and orchestra directed by

Lehman Engel A. Lehman Engel (September 14, 1910, Jackson, Mississippi – August 29, 1982, New York City) was an American composer for television, film, and operas and a conductor of Broadway musicals and operas. Work in theatre, television and films Enge ...

, and using the original orchestrations. The Columbia LP ''Nelson Eddy in Oklahoma'' (CL 828) was promoted as the "complete score" because it included the song "Lonely Room" and a track, "Entrance of Ensemble", which had not previously been released from the score.

Todd-AO vs. Cinemascope

A notable difference between the mono and stereo versions of the Capitol album is that the Cinemascope version of the film was used in the making of the mono version, while the Todd-AO version was used for the stereophonic release. Although the singing is the same in both, different inflections are noticeable in the brief spoken dialogue retained on the album, for instance, in the spoken portion of the song "Pore Jud Is Daid".

Named performers

By order of appearance on soundtrack. *

Gordon MacRae Albert Gordon MacRae (March 12, 1921 – January 24, 1986) was an American actor, singer, and television and radio host. He appeared in the film versions of two Rodgers and Hammerstein musicals, ''Oklahoma!'' (1955) and ''Carousel'' (1956), and ...

– Curly McLain *

Shirley Jones Shirley Mae Jones (born March 31, 1934) is an American actress and singer. In her six decades in show business, she has starred as wholesome characters in a number of musical films, such as ''Oklahoma! (film), Oklahoma!'' (1955), ''Carousel (fi ...

– Laurey Williams *

Charlotte Greenwood Frances Charlotte Greenwood (June 25, 1890 – December 28, 1977) was an American actress, comedian and dancer. Born in Philadelphia, Greenwood started in vaudeville, and starred on Broadway, movies and radio. Standing almost six feet tall ...

– Aunt Eller Murphy *

Gene Nelson Gene Nelson (born Leander Eugene Berg; March 24, 1920 – September 16, 1996) was an American actor, dancer, screenwriter, and director. Biography Nelson was born Eugene Leander Berg in Seattle, Washington. By 1924, he and his parents mov ...

– Will Parker *

Gloria Grahame Gloria Grahame (born Gloria Penelope Hallward; November 28, 1923 – October 5, 1981) was an American actress. She began her acting career in theater, and in 1944 made her first film for MGM. Many biographies indicate she was born Gloria Graham ...

– Ado Annie Carnes *

Rod Steiger Rodney Stephen Steiger ( ; April 14, 1925 – July 9, 2002) was an American actor, noted for his portrayal of offbeat, often volatile and crazed characters. Ranked as "one of Hollywood's most charismatic and dynamic stars", he is closely associ ...

– Jud Fry *

Jay C. Flippen John Constantine Flippen Jr. (J.C. or Jay C.) (March 6, 1899 – February 3, 1971) was an American character actor who often played crusty sergeants, police officers or weary criminals in many 1940s and 1950s pictures, particularly in film noir ...

– Ike Skidmore *

James Whitmore James Allen Whitmore Jr. (October 1, 1921 – February 6, 2009) was an American actor. He received numerous accolades, including a Golden Globe Award, a Grammy Award, a Primetime Emmy Award, a Theatre World Award, and a Tony Award, plus two Ac ...

– Andrew Carnes

Track listing for the LP version

All songs composed by

Oscar Hammerstein II Oscar Greeley Clendenning Hammerstein II (; July 12, 1895 – August 23, 1960) was an American lyricist, librettist, theatrical producer, and director in musical theater for nearly 40 years. He won eight Tony Awards and two Academy Award ...

and

Richard Rodgers Richard Charles Rodgers (June 28, 1902 – December 30, 1979) was an American Musical composition, composer who worked primarily in musical theater. With 43 Broadway theatre, Broadway musicals and over 900 songs to his credit, Rodgers wa ...

. # "Overture" (Instrumental) – 4:52 # "

Oh, What a Beautiful Mornin' "Oh, What a Beautiful Mornin'" is the opening song from the musical ''Oklahoma!'', which premiered on Broadway in 1943. It was written by composer Richard Rodgers and lyricist/librettist Oscar Hammerstein II. The leading male character in ''Oklah ...

one verse 'all the cattle are standing like statues' etc. is heard on the soundtrack album but is cut in the final print of the film. (performed by

) – 2:36 # " The Surrey with the Fringe on Top" (performed by MacRae,

) – 4:53 # "Kansas City" (performed by

, Greenwood, The Men's Chorus) – 2:36 # "

I Cain't Say No "I Cain't Say No" is a song from the 1943 musical play ''Oklahoma!'' written by composer Richard Rodgers and lyricist/librettist Oscar Hammerstein II, initially performed by Celeste Holm. In the song Ado Annie Carnes describes her sexual awakenin ...

" (performed by

) – 3:10 # "

Many a New Day "Many a New Day" is a song from the 1943 musical ''Oklahoma!'', written by Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II. It was introduced by Joan Roberts in the original Broadway production. In the 1955 film, the song is performed by Shirley Jones a ...

" (performed by Jones and Girls' Chorus) – 3:09 # "

People Will Say We're in Love "People Will Say We're In Love" is a show tune from the Rodgers and Hammerstein musical, ''Oklahoma!'' (1943). In the original Broadway production, the song was introduced by Alfred Drake and Joan Roberts. Plot context The other characters thin ...

" (performed by MacRae and Jones) – 4:21 # "Pore Jud is Daid" (performed by MacRae and

) – 4:16 # "Out of My Dreams" (performed by Jones) – 2:25 # " The Farmer and the Cowman" (performed by MacRae, Greenwood, Nelson,

, Grahame, Mixed Chorus) – 2:58 # "All Er Nuthin (Grahame, Nelson) – 2:59 # "

Oklahoma Oklahoma ( ; Choctaw language, Choctaw: , ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Texas to the south and west, Kansas to the north, Missouri to the northea ...

" (MacRae, Greenwood, Whitmore, Jones, Flippen, Mixed Chorus) – 3:18

CD Reissue

The film soundtrack album of ''Oklahoma!'' was later issued on CD, again by Capitol in a version identical to the stereo LP, then on Broadway Angel on CD in the ''Broadway Classics'' series, and finally on Angel in a much expanded CD edition containing virtually all the music. It is the best-known recording of ''Oklahoma!'' ever made, even eclipsing the fame of the pioneering 1943 original Broadway cast album of the show. The latest CD expanded edition contained more than twice the amount of music listed here, and runs nearly 80 minutes, with only a very brief reprise of "I Cain't Say No" and the numbers actually left out of the film omitted. Even the ballet music was included.Fick, Davi
"OKLAHOMA! Cast Recording Reviews"
Musical Cyberspace, March 31, 2003 One notable difference between the original version of the film soundtrack album and the expanded edition is that the original album contains a new overture specifically created for the recording, and not the overture and

opening credits In a motion picture, television program or video game, the opening credits or opening titles are shown at the very beginning and list the most important members of the production. They are now usually shown as text superimposed on a blank scree ...

music as heard in the actual film. The expanded edition of the soundtrack, issued in 2001, contains both the overture that was heard before the opening credits in the original

roadshow theatrical release A roadshow theatrical release or reserved-seat engagement is the practice of opening a film in a limited number of theaters in major cities for a specific period of time before the wide release of the film. Roadshows would generally mimic a live ...

of the film, plus the opening credits music exactly as heard in the Todd-AO release of the film.

Chart positions

Certifications

References

{{Authority control Musical film soundtracks Oklahoma! 1955 soundtrack albums Cast recordings Angel Records soundtracks