Scheherazade in Film and Song: Arabian Nights - Disney's Strangest Intro Song Aladdin Howard Ashman's Dream Project by Dan

Disney’s Arabian Nights

Having an opening song of a movie proceed to have an impact on the various forms of media surrounding the franchise in Disney, it means that the song left an impression. The Little Mermaid cartoon series used “Under the Sea”, a song about Sebastian. The Timon and Pumbaa series used Hakuna Matata, which is far more appropriate considering the cartoon was about those two.

But one of the more popular animated series, Aladdin, used the opening song of the first movie, “Arabian Nights”. It could have used other catchy songs like “Friend like Me”, or “Prince Ali”, but instead, they chose “Arabian Nights”, and with it used in the final movie, it really ties the series together.

However, the song was hit early on by censorship of a small group that was rather oversensitive over a few lines in the song, because they felt offended by it. Although, after I did a bit of research, I did find the original version of the opening, and that one is going to be the one that I will analyse, because the censored version is jarring overall.

Arabian Nights - Origianl Soundtrack Release - Aladdin

Oh, I come from a land, from a faraway place

Where the caravan camels roam

This is a start similar to Star Wars, “In a Galaxy far, far away…” and it isn’t a bad start. The instrumentals are indeed native to the area of the setting of Agrabah. We see the peddler in the distance travelling.

Where they cut off your ear

If they don't like your face

It's barbaric, but hey, it's home

I looked into a few incidents, and it seems like it isn’t a matter of fiction. Sharia law does push eye-for-an-eye punishment for a crime, and that includes facial mutilations of noses and ears, even in a case back in 2009. By removing this and saying that the heat is barbaric, makes the entire verse confusing and out of place.

And yes, it’s barbaric, and we also see this in the movie when Jasmine goes to steal an apple, and she nearly loses her hand, which really shows that even in the movie, these kinds of punishments are still active in Agrabah.

When the wind's from the east

And the sun's from the west

And the sand in the glass is right

This is a comment on time. The sun rises from the East and sets in the West. The second line indicates that the sun sets, and the first one can also reveal that it’s talking about cool evenings, which isn’t the best way to travel, as it can get insanely cold in the desert nights. But that last line is about hourglasses, so these three lines pretty much say “When the time is right.”

Come on down, stop on by

Hop a carpet and fly

to another Arabian night

And continuing from telling us that the time is perfect at night, it tells us to hop on a carpet and fly to where the narrator is inviting us to listen to him. This can also have a reference to a later version of the song as well.

Arabian nights like Arabian days

More often than not

are hotter than hot

in a lot of good ways

This is when the singing gets intense, and we see not just the Peddler, but also the sight of the Palace, that really marks what makes Agrabah iconic to us. We then go to the lower streets, as we see the people there settling in for the night.

We have a comment that Arabian days are extremely hot, which is true, but the comment on how Arabian nights are hotter than hot, then finishing the line is more akin to appeal to a more modern way of saying that the movie’s going to be cool, but mixing it in with lyrics that really fit the vibe.

Arabian nights 'neath Arabian moons

A fool off his guard

could fall and fall hard

out there on the dunes

Now we see that it’s the Peddler that sings the song, and he becomes the narrator of the movie.

The lyrics themselves say that if one isn’t prepared when he or she goes out to travel, if they are careless then they could die horribly to the elements. The song details how harsh the land of Agrabah is, as the people and elements are harsh.

And after that the Peddler starts the narration of the movie. It is also interesting that the Peddler is voiced by Robin Williams, who also voiced the Genie. Even Ron Clements and John Musker confirmed that the intention was for the Peddler to be the Genie in disguise, back in 2015. Personally, I always thought it was the Genie under disguise, and what seemed to confirm it in my mind was at the end of “King of Thieves”, with the way Aladdin looks at the Peddler in a way that was far more familiar with the Peddler than what it should be.

But that will be it for this part of the song. Perhaps the version that appears for the animated series could be analysed at a later date?

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