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The Jungle Book Colonel Hathi's March (The Elephant Song)

music and lyrics by Richard and Robert Sherman, performed by J. Pat O'Malley (Colonel Hathi), Verna Felton (Winifred), Clint Howard (Junior) and the Disney Studio Chorus (the elephants), clip from The Jungle Book (1967) movie.

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Song lyrics



Hup, two, three, four.
Keep it up.
Two, three, four.
Hup, two, three, four.
Keep it up, two, three, four.
Hup, two, three, four.

MOWGLI [speaking]: A parade!
BAGHEERA [speaking]: Oh, no! The Dawn Patrol again.
COLONEL HATHI [yelling]: Company... sound off!

Oh, the aim of our patrol
[WINIFRED] Is a question rather droll
For to march and drill
Over field and hill.
[COLONEL HATHI] Is a military goal.
[CHORUS] Is a military goal.

Hup, two, three, four.
Dress it up, two, three, four.

By the ranks or single file
Over every jungle mile.
Oh, we stamp and crush
Through the underbrush
[JUNIOR] In the military style.
[CHORUS] Is a military goal.

Oh, we march from here to there
And it doesn't matter where.
You can hear us push
through the deepest bush.
Hup, two, three, four
With a military air.

We're a crackerjack brigade
On a pachyderm parade.
But we'd rather stroll
To a water hole.
[JUNIOR] Hup, two, three, four.
[CHORUS] For a furlough in the shade.

Snapshot pictures

Notes

The song is included in The Jungle Book Movie Songs.

As the elephants were "big clunky animals, crushing everything as they march through", the Shermans thought the best song for them would be a "heavy and ponderous" military march, with feeble lyrics only describing how the platoon tramples what is in its path.

It is written in the spirit of a light commentary on the pointlessness of constant military drilling. (wikipedia)


Watch songs from movie original soundtrack