Zac Brown Band Bring Harmony to ‘The Bare Necessities’ for ‘Mickey’s 90th Spectacular’ [WATCH]
The Zac Brown Band gave the classic Disney song "The Bare Necessities" an easygoing treatment for Mickey's 90th Spectacular, a television special that ran on ABC on Sunday night (Nov. 4). Readers can press play above to watch the crowd-pleasing performance.
"The Bare Necessities" was written by Terry Gilkyson and first appeared in Disney's 1967 animated film The Jungle Book, performed by Phil Harris as Baloo and Bruce Reitherman as Mowgli. The song was also recorded by Louis Armstrong that same year, and was nominated for an Academy Award, for Best Original Song.
The ZBB gave the fan-favorite tune their usual carefree flavor: "Look for the bare necessities / The simple bare necessities / Forget about your worries and your strife," Brown and company sing. "I mean the bare necessities / Old Mother Nature's recipes / That bring the bare necessities of life." They preserved the authentic sound of the original tune, complete with the spoken-word bridge delivered by banjo player John Driskell Hopkins in resounding baritone.
The Mickey's 90th Spectacular TV special was a celebration of Mickey Mouse's 90th birthday and, in addition to the Zac Brown Band, featured performances by Meghan Trainor, Josh Groban and more. The show was filmed in early October.