Ol' Brown Ears Is Back

Ol' Brown Ears Is Back
Ol' Brown Ears Is Back
Studio album by Rowlf the Dog
Released	April 6, 1993
Recorded	January 1984
Genre	Pop; comedy;
Length	27:37
Label	Jim Henson Records; BMG Kidz;
Producer	Jim Henson; Robert Kraft;
The Muppets chronology

Ol' Brown Ears Is Back is an album released by The Jim Henson Company through BMG Kidz in 1993. The album consists of 14 songs recorded by American puppeteer Jim Henson as the Muppet character Rowlf the Dog.^[1]^[2]^[3] Although released three years after Henson's death, the tracks were recorded in 1984. It was released in CD and cassette form, with the latter including a poster.

The album's title is a reference to Frank Sinatra's 1973 album Ol' Blue Eyes Is Back.

Songs

Ol' Brown Ears Is Back features Jim Henson performing songs as Muppet Rowlf the Dog. The tracks include "Lydia the Tattooed Lady", a song composed by Harold Arlen and Yip Harburg that first appeared in the 1939 film At the Circus, in which it was performed by Groucho Marx;^[4]^{[better source needed]} "Eight Little Notes", a song that includes a rendition of "Für Elise" by Ludwig van Beethoven;^[1] "Halfway Down the Stairs" and "Cottleston Pie" by author A. A. Milne, the latter originally appearing as a poem in Milne's Winnie-the-Pooh stories;^[5]^{[better source needed]} "Bein' Green", originally performed by Henson as Kermit the Frog on The Muppet Show;^[1] and "New York State of Mind" by Billy Joel.^[1]

Reception

Lynne Heffley of the Los Angeles Times reviewed the album positively, calling it "a treasure for Henson fans and a family listening treat."^[1]

Track listing

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
1.	"Lydia, the Tattooed Lady"	Harold Arlen, Yip Harburg	2:08
2.	"Eight Little Notes"	Larry Grossman, Hal Hackady, Ludwig van Beethoven	2:25
3.	"I Never Harmed an Onion"	Alan L. Grey, Ginger Joan Grey, Moe Jaffe	1:26
4.	"Halfway Down the Stairs"	A. A. Milne, Harold Fraser-Simson	2:53
5.	"Memory Lane"	Abe Burrows	1:32
6.	"Cottleston Pie"	A. A. Milne	1:38
7.	"Bein' Green"	Joe Raposo	2:27
8.	"Carbon Paper"	Abe Burrows	1:40
9.	"Garden Song"	David Mallett	2:47
10.	"New York State of Mind"	Billy Joel	2:41
11.	"When"	Abe Burrows	1:22
12.	"You and I and George"	Red Kelly	1:36
13.	"Wishing Song"	Paul Tracey	2:02
14.	"Old Dog Trey"	Walt Kelly	2:27

Personnel

Rowlf the Dog – primary artist
- Jim Henson – piano, producer, vocals
Derek Scott – piano
Chris Boardman – arranger, associate producer, conductor
Robert Kraft – producer
Sandy De Crescent – orchestra contractor
Nancy Fogarty – editing, music editor
Larry Grossman – creative consultant
Dave Collins – mastering

Dave Hunt – engineer
Dennis Sands – engineer, mixing
Tom Hardisty – assistant engineer
Brandon Harris – assistant engineer
Charles Paakkari – assistant engineer
Jonathan Rutley – assistant engineer
Theo Panagopoulos – art direction
Corey Edmonds Millen – design
John Barrett – photography

References

^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e Heffley, Lynne (May 29, 1993). "Rowlf the Dog's Solo Album Pleases". Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles, California. p. F12. Retrieved February 20, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
^ Childs, Mike T. (2004). The Rocklopedia Fakebandica. St. Martin's Griffin. p. 185. ISBN 978-0312329440.
^ Williams, Daniel (September 23, 2012). "The Secret Genius Of Rowlf The Dog". WhatCulture. Archived from the original on November 10, 2012. Retrieved April 28, 2015.
^ Yahn, Michael A. (2007). The Music of the Marx Brothers: A Bio-Discography of the Works of Groucho, Harpo, Chico, Gummo, and Zeppo Marx. PublishAmerica. p. 240. ISBN 978-1424169719. Performed by Rowlf the Dog. Includes rendition of "Lydia the Tattooed Lady" from the movie At the Circus.
^ "5 things we learned about The Muppets' Christmas Radio 2 show". BBC. Retrieved February 21, 2023.