Which Disney Rides Have the Best Music?
Close your eyes and think about your favorite Disney rides.
Many of them, even the closed ones, feature some unforgettable musical accompaniment, don’t they?
For example, let’s used a defunct ride to make the point. You knew Splash Mountain was over when you heard the happy song.
The melodious Zip-a-Dee-Doo-Dah meant that you were dripping wet and watching adorable critters dance and play on a boat.
That’s how well Disney has integrated its attractions and soundtracks.
But which Disney ride has the best music? Here are my sure-to-be not-at-all controversial choices.
11) Na’Vi River Journey
![Na'vi River](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/Navi-River-AK.jpg)
![Na'vi River](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/Navi-River-AK.jpg)
Photo: TouringPlans.com
When Disney builds attractions, immersion matters almost as much as storytelling.
In the case of Na’Vi River Journey, park officials have created an atmospheric ride experience that recreates the uncivilized jungles of Pandora.
![Audio-Animatronic](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/Navi-River.jpg)
![Audio-Animatronic](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/Navi-River.jpg)
(Kent Phillips, photographer)
Since the Na’Vi people are at one with their land, the Disney ride includes a soundtrack that doubles as a hymn.
You may feel a spiritual reawakening as you ride down the river and listen to the soothing sounds of the Shaman of Song.
10) Alien Swirling Saucers
![Pixar](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/Alien-Swirling-Saucers-Hollywood-Studios.jpg)
![Pixar](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/Alien-Swirling-Saucers-Hollywood-Studios.jpg)
Photo: Disney
Quick, name the songs you associate most closely with the Toy Story soundtrack.
Yup, those are the ones you’ll hear while getting slung around on Alien Swirling Saucers, a more violent (and less spinny) iteration of Mad Tea Party.
![Toy Story Land](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/09/Alien-Swirling-Saucers.jpg)
![Toy Story Land](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/09/Alien-Swirling-Saucers.jpg)
Photo: Disney
Also, while this only comes up a few weeks each year, Disney switches up the soundtrack to add in some familiar Christmas melodies during its holiday overlay.
Alien Swirling Saucers is supposed to be good, silly fun, and the music reinforces that fact.
![Pixar Attractions](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/5-1.jpg)
![Pixar Attractions](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/5-1.jpg)
Photo: Disney
Remember, everyone. You’ve always got a friend in me.
9) Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster Starring Aerosmith
![Rock 'n' Roller Coaster](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/Rock-n-Roller-Coaster-Soft-Opening-24-scaled.jpg)
![Rock 'n' Roller Coaster](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/Rock-n-Roller-Coaster-Soft-Opening-24-scaled.jpg)
Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster
One of my favorite memories at Disney was riding Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster in front of a woman who started singing Love in an Elevator when she boarded the ride and never stopped singing it even though it wasn’t the song Disney played DURING that ride.
Nothing screams Disney about the band Aerosmith, and you should never Google what F.I.N.E. stands for, but rock music really adds something to roller coasters.
8) The Seas with Nemo and Friends
Legendary composer Thomas Newman created the Finding Nemo soundtrack and then reworked some of his best bits for this attraction.
The result is a soothing journey under the sea.
Folks, there’s a reason people listen to sea sounds to relax at bedtime.
This attraction provides several minutes of that sensation before wrapping up with the unforgettable song, “Big Blue World.”
7) Walt Disney’s Carousel of Progress
The Sherman Brothers are inexorably linked with Disney theme park attractions, which is exactly how Walt Disney wanted it.
The famed musicians created some of Disney’s most iconic music, including the hardest cut on this list, “One Little Spark.”
At the risk of offending die-hard EPCOT films, I just don’t think it has the same significance as the two other Sherman Brothers songs we list here.
“There’s a Great Big Beautiful Tomorrow” embodies the optimism and sense of hope pervasive at Disney theme parks.
![Carousel of Progress](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/carouselofprogress.jpg)
![Carousel of Progress](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/carouselofprogress.jpg)
Image: Disney
The attraction reveals the gradual generational improvements in American society, while the music provides an upbeat vibe that connects each scene.
6) “it’s a small world”
However, I think everyone would agree, love it or hate it, that “It’s a Small World” is the song that defines music at Disney theme parks.
Originally, Walt Disney wanted to play every nation’s anthem as guests rode their boats through the water, but this idea proved to be a nightmare of dissonance.
So, the Sherman Brothers threw Uncle Walt a lifeline by creating this song at his request.
While originally unplanned, “It’s a Small World” became the most played song of all time by some metrics.
Honestly, most people would rank it higher, possibly even number one. However, I’m solidly in the “aggressive earworm” camp.
5) Soarin’
If you shut your eyes and imagine staring at the giant projection screen, the soundtrack for Soarin’ will pop into your head almost unbidden.
The visuals and the music are so interconnected that dissociating the two is virtually impossible.
![Soarin' Over California](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/2023-wdw-epcot-disney100-celebration-soarin-over-california-2-4-2.jpg)
![Soarin' Over California](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/2023-wdw-epcot-disney100-celebration-soarin-over-california-2-4-2.jpg)
Soarin’ Over California
Even The Simpsons has parodied Soarin’s soundtrack in an unforgettable clip.
4) Frozen Ever After
![World of Frozen](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/2023-hong-kong-disneyland-world-of-frozen-frozen-ever-after2.png)
![World of Frozen](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/2023-hong-kong-disneyland-world-of-frozen-frozen-ever-after2.png)
Photo: Disney
Over the past 15 years, three Disney movies have become synonymous with their soundtracks.
One is Moana, another is Encanto, and the most famous example is Frozen.
![Frozen Ever After World of Frozen Hong Kong Disneyland](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Frozen-Ever-After-World-of-Frozen-Hong-Kong-Disneyland-2.png)
![Frozen Ever After World of Frozen Hong Kong Disneyland](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Frozen-Ever-After-World-of-Frozen-Hong-Kong-Disneyland-2.png)
Photo: Disney
To an extent, Frozen is the film that reminded audiences how much we love Disney music.
When Disney re-themed Maelstrom as Frozen Ever After, Imagineers did something brilliant.
![Frozen Ever After](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/frozen-ever-after-olaf-anna-elsa-16x9-1.webp)
![Frozen Ever After](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/frozen-ever-after-olaf-anna-elsa-16x9-1.webp)
Photo: Disney
They built the first half of the attraction as a lead-up to Frozen’s most iconic song, “Let It Go.”
So, your boat ride builds to a crescendo before Elsa delivers the goods.
![Frozen](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/frozen-ever-after-norway-epcot-walt-disney-world-005.jpg)
![Frozen](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/frozen-ever-after-norway-epcot-walt-disney-world-005.jpg)
Photo: Disney
Other popular Frozen songs also play a factor, which makes the experience that much better.
3) Tiana’s Bayou Adventure
![Tiana's Bayou Adventure](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/Screenshot-2024-05-12-at-20-47-21-Tianas-Bayou-Adventure-Opens-June-28-at-Walt-Disney-World.png)
![Tiana's Bayou Adventure](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/Screenshot-2024-05-12-at-20-47-21-Tianas-Bayou-Adventure-Opens-June-28-at-Walt-Disney-World.png)
Photo: Disney
I may be hot-shotting this one a bit, but I don’t care.
I was a believer in the Splash Mountain soundtrack, and I’m an ardent supporter of The Princess and the Frog soundtrack as well.
![Tiana's Bayou Adventure](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/Screenshot-2024-05-12-at-20-47-13-Tianas-Bayou-Adventure-Opens-June-28-at-Walt-Disney-World.png)
![Tiana's Bayou Adventure](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/Screenshot-2024-05-12-at-20-47-13-Tianas-Bayou-Adventure-Opens-June-28-at-Walt-Disney-World.png)
Photo: Disney Parks Blog
Classics like “Almost There,” “Dig a Little Deeper,” and “Down in New Orleans” invite a level of comfort, while the new song, created exclusively for the ride, “Special Spice,” is a masterpiece.
2) Pirates of the Caribbean
![Pirates of the Caribbean](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/HYFLLEIJZZE3RPW4F7NJH7SVIM.jpg)
![Pirates of the Caribbean](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/HYFLLEIJZZE3RPW4F7NJH7SVIM.jpg)
Photo: click Orlando
I mean, come on.
One of my favorite Walt Disney stories involves the soundtrack for this ride.
![](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/75.webp)
![](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/75.webp)
(Renie Bardeau / Associated Press)
Walt Disney singlehandedly picked X Atencio to work on the song lyrics for this attraction.
That was something of a shock for the Imagineer, who had never written music before in his life.
I guess Disney thought he had a pirate vibe or a pirate soul.
As usual, Walt Disney was right, as Atencio created one of the most unforgettable songs ever, “Yo Ho (A Pirate’s Life for Me).”
![pirates of the caribbean](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/piratesbrideauction2018.jpg.webp)
![pirates of the caribbean](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/piratesbrideauction2018.jpg.webp)
Photos: OC Register
Simply hearing this song might make you want to grab a bottle of rum and maybe go off in search of buried treasure.
1) Haunted Mansion
![haunted mansion](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/haunted-mansion-00.jpg.avif)
![haunted mansion](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/haunted-mansion-00.jpg.avif)
Disney
Speaking of Mr. Atencio, you can argue that “Yo Ho (A Pirate’s Life for Me)” wasn’t his masterpiece.
That’s because he wrote a song a couple of years later that’s arguably more recognizable, at least to Disney fans.
![](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/Missing-Candlabra-Haunted-MansionMG_5229.jpg)
![](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/Missing-Candlabra-Haunted-MansionMG_5229.jpg)
Disney
Yes, the man with no experience as a lyricist also created “Grim Grinning Ghosts (The Screaming Song).”
Believe it or not, the title of this song is based on a William Shakespeare poem, which is the kind of Disney trivia that your friends will never believe.
More importantly, it’s a banger, as the kids of today say.
Whenever you hear it, you’ll instantly be transported to the Haunted Mansion graveyard, where countless Happy Haunts sing away their problems.
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