"The Wizard Of Oz" Soundtrack Lyrics

“The Wizard of Oz: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack — The Deluxe Edition (1995)” – Album Guide to Tracks and Key Scenes

Review

How do you make a 1939 classic feel new in 1995 without rewriting history? Rhino/Turner’s Deluxe Edition does it by treating the soundtrack like archaeology — lifting songs and Herbert Stothart’s score from the vaults, polishing, and then letting them breathe.

The result is a front-row listen to Oz’s musical grammar: Harold Arlen & E.Y. Harburg’s tunes (“Over the Rainbow,” “If I Only Had a Brain/Heart/Nerve,” “Merry Old Land of Oz”) interlock with Stothart’s symphonic underscore — cyclone swirls, haunted-forest chills, Emerald City pomp — so cleanly that the story plays in your head without pictures. This isn’t a slim “highlights” disc; it’s a narrative reconstruction with alternates and outtakes (“The Jitterbug,” “Over the Rainbow (Reprise)”), turning a beloved film into a study in how movie musicals were built.

Genres & themes, in phases: Tin Pan Alley craft — character and wit; symphonic melodrama — fear, wonder, peril; vaudeville patter — humor as oxygen; hymn-like balladry — yearning and home. The thesis holds: Oz works because melody and motif make one road.

How It Was Made

The 2-CD Deluxe Edition (Rhino Movie Music/Turner Classic Movies Music) assembles the film’s complete surviving pre-recordings: songs, underscore, alternates, and outtakes. Compared to earlier “dialog & songs” LPs, this set privileges the music itself — newly mixed from archival elements, sequenced to track the film’s chronology, and annotated with session data. It’s the first widely available package to put Stothart’s Oscar-winning score on equal footing with the hits, while preserving curios like “The Jitterbug,” excised from the final cut but fully recorded.

Packaging notes (booklet, longbox in early pressings) contextualize each cue, and retailer listings pin the street date to mid–1995; later digital storefronts carry the same program under studio catalog banners.

Tracks & Scenes

Below: cornerstone numbers and cues (album titles vary slightly by edition). Descriptions follow film order.

“Over the Rainbow” (Judy Garland)

Where it plays:

Farmyard dusk in Kansas. Dorothy dreams past the fence line; a simple octave leap cracks open the sky. Non-diegetic performance staged diegetically on the farm.

Why it matters:

The film’s soul — yearning given perfect melody. The 1995 master gives the vocal a startling intimacy.

“Cyclone” (Score suite)

Where it plays:

Wind rises; house lifts; sepia breaks. Orchestral whirlwind riffs on “Somewhere Over the Rainbow,” then pivots into storm brass and percussion.

Why it matters:

Stothart’s set-piece: the grammar of fear and wonder that makes Oz’s color hit like a drum.

“Munchkinland Musical Sequence” (Company)

Where it plays:

Glinda arrives; the town wakes. “Come Out, Come Out…,” proclamations by Mayor and Coroner, Lullaby League, Lollipop Guild — a miniature operetta of civic order and celebration.

Why it matters:

Tin Pan Alley dramaturgy at its tightest — character, law, and joy in under seven minutes.

“Follow the Yellow Brick Road / You’re Off to See the Wizard” (Company)

Where it plays:

Transition motif for the road; reprises stitch scenes into a single journey.

Why it matters:

The film’s connective tissue — a traveling refrain that always sounds like forward motion.

“If I Only Had a Brain / Heart / The Nerve” (Ray Bolger; Jack Haley; Bert Lahr)

Where it plays:

Recruiting the companions: cornfield pratfalls, tinman awakening, lion’s bluff — three vaudeville character studies that lock into the march.

Why it matters:

Each verse maps need to personality; the album restores extended takes and connective underscoring.

“Poppies” → “Optimistic Voices (You’re Out of the Woods)”

Where it plays:

Witch’s trap lulls the travelers; Glinda’s snow breaks the spell; a women’s chorus floats them to safety toward Emerald City.

Why it matters:

Dark magic into radiant release — a textbook tone pivot captured cleanly on the 1995 master.

“The Merry Old Land of Oz” (Company)

Where it plays:

Emerald City makeover montage, barbers and buffing brushes in perfect time.

Why it matters:

Comedy engine and world-building all at once — the city sings like a machine.

“If I Were King of the Forest” (Bert Lahr)

Where it plays:

Before meeting the Wizard, the Lion imagines his reign — a hammy aria that crests with mock-operatic flourish.

Why it matters:

Character truth by way of parody; the restoration keeps the orchestral wink intact.

“March of the Winkies / Witch’s Castle / Rescue” (Score)

Where it plays:

Castle siege. Drums and menacing chorus (“O-Eee-Oh”) grind under action cues as the broom quest hits its peak.

Why it matters:

Proof that Oz thrills because the score has teeth when it must.

“Ding-Dong! The Witch Is Dead (Reprise)” → “End Title”

Where it plays:

Winkies cheer; Emerald City honors the heroes; goodbye & balloon; ruby-slipper wish; Kansas returns; curtain.

Why it matters:

Motivic victory lap — themes knit together as the album closes the loop.

Bonus & outtake highlights (on the 1995 deluxe)

• “The Jitterbug” — a cut dance sequence (fully recorded) that once sat before the Winged Monkey capture; restored here as audio.
• “Over the Rainbow (Reprise)” — Dorothy’s castle reprise (outtake), a fragile echo of the main theme.
• Alternates & demos — extended/alternate Munchkinland proclamations, rehearsal material, and underscoring expansions.

Notes & Trivia

• The 1995 Deluxe Edition is a 2-CD program (Rhino/TCM) with catalog numbers in the R2-71964/71999 range across pressings; barcode variants exist.
• Digital storefronts often list the set under studio catalog banners with ℗ lines showing 1995 compilation ownership.
• “The Jitterbug” was filmed, then cut to avoid dating the movie to a then-current dance craze; the audio survives here.
• Many cues appear in extended form — not just the famous songs but march, action, and transition music.
• Later companion releases reissued “dialog & songs” presentations; this set prioritizes pure music.

Reception & Quotes

Catalog reviewers welcomed the completeness and historical framing — not just a souvenir, but a document.

“Contains the film’s entire soundtrack… from Stothart’s score to the unforgettable Arlen/Harburg songs.” Label notes

“Extended versions of key songs… a memorable way to celebrate and share a significant piece of film and music history.” AllMusic summary

Availability: 2-CD (1995) in longbox and jewel packaging; later digital issues mirror the program; streaming editions may appear under studio catalog imprints.

Interesting Facts

• Not just songs: The set rescues Stothart’s symphonic architecture — half the story’s emotion lives between the lyrics.
• Session DNA: Booklet notes map takes, dates, and edits — a window into MGM’s music department at full tilt.
• Kansas to Oz in stereo: Archival elements allow a clarity and dynamic range unavailable to earlier LP issues.
• Cut, but canon: “The Jitterbug” survives in audio here and in concert adaptations — a ghost scene you can finally hear.
• Evergreen catalog: The same 1995 program underpins many later digital listings credited to studio imprints.

Technical Info

• Title: The Wizard of Oz — Original Motion Picture Soundtrack: The Deluxe Edition
• Year: 1995 (film: 1939)
• Type: Film soundtrack (2-CD archival reissue — complete songs & score)
• Music & lyrics: Harold Arlen & E.Y. “Yip” Harburg
• Score: Herbert Stothart (Academy Award–winning)
• Label: Rhino Movie Music / Turner Classic Movies Music
• Program highlights: “Over the Rainbow,” “Munchkinland Sequence,” “If I Only Had a Brain/Heart/Nerve,” “The Merry Old Land of Oz,” “If I Were King of the Forest,” “The Jitterbug” (outtake), full action/transition score suites
• Notes: Includes alternates, outtakes, demos; extensive booklet; later digital releases mirror contents with 1995 ℗ lines

Questions & Answers

Is this a new recording?

No. It restores the film’s original pre-recorded songs and score, newly mixed and expanded for a 1995 archival release.

What’s different from earlier “highlights” albums?

Completeness and clarity: full underscore cues, alternates, and the famous cut song “The Jitterbug,” plus extended versions of familiar numbers.

Why is 1995 attached to a 1939 movie?

It’s the year Rhino/TCM issued this definitive 2-CD edition; many modern digital listings still trace to that master.

Does the album include dialogue?

This edition focuses on music. Separate “dialog & songs” programs exist, but the Deluxe prioritizes score and songs without scene lines.

Where can I hear it today?

CD reissues circulate on the secondary market; the same program appears on major digital/streaming platforms under studio catalog labels.

Key Contributors

Sources: Rhino/TCM release listings & press notes; Discogs and MusicBrainz entries (catalog & barcode); Wikipedia (soundtrack & “musical selections” pages); Apple Music store listing (℗ 1995 compilation); articles on “The Jitterbug” cut; Warner/YouTube trailers.

November, 29th 2025