Pop Century Bus Loop: A First Stab


Wow--I never realized how many "Go! Go!' theme songs there are :) Hmmm..still not marching band-y enough. I remember being vaguely reminded of the NFL theme or something. But of course since I couldn't hear it that well and it was over a year ago, I may not trust my memory too much! Seriously, there are people at Disney who know EVERYTHING. Or can get their hands on anything. I was looking all over for the hieroglyphs that are displayed in the papyrus scene of Spaceship Earth. I asked at Magic Kingdom's guest relations and someone was able to call this guy they knew (probably sitting in a secret location within Expedition Everest, all NORAD-style) and they were able to get me a copy of the hieroglyphs WITH TRANSLATION. I thought it would be fun to translate them (don't ask) and now I can even check my answers. So if they can do that, there has to be a "right" person to contact who knows something about these loops. Has anyone tried? Disney used to have a library/research service where you could call in with a trivia question and someone would find it for you. I think they discontinued it, but surely some of those folks are still employed by Disney...
 
I decided to take a stab at it and sent a short message to WDW through the "contact us" form on their website. We'll see where it goes... Not that I want to spoil the fun of all you guys with the recording equipment and the iPhone apps :)
 

eyore

DLRP explorer
Playlist Author
I decided to take a stab at it and sent a short message to WDW through the "contact us" form on their website. We'll see where it goes... Not that I want to spoil the fun of all you guys with the recording equipment and the iPhone apps :)

Believe me, we do contact Disney to see if they have listings.
DLRP are usually reasonably forthcoming with something but it's often just a list of titles without sources but occasionally they do give fuller details. For them it's the customer relations section.
I believe, at one time, they could hand a printed list to you (there's a thread here about that somewhere).
It should be remarked that the listings can actually be wrong in many ways. That may be just an incorrect title, a missing track (or an extra one not listed) to the famous "medley" titles and on at least one occasion we got an out of date listing which had been changed some time before! Even armed with an "official" listing, research is still needed to confirm it's right and that sources are correct.
I sometimes suspect they use certain sites that have the playlists and just copy them :lol:
I have heard of occasions when guests were directed to Disneymusicloops for the information :rolleyes:
Sometimes one gets tempted to add an extra track to a listing and see if it turns up on the "official" lists - don't worry, I really wouldn't do that but it's a temptation none the less.
A live recording is, at least, beyond doubt the correct stuff.
 
oh, i know--i've seen the LMNOP lists and i'm not talking about that. i mean, someone at Dis has the job of making these loops, right?? so presumably SOMEone knows what's actually on 'em... i wish i had a ref recording for this loop, but alas.
 

Magic Music

Administrator
Playlist Author
oh, i know--i've seen the LMNOP lists and i'm not talking about that.

You lost me. What are LMNOP lists?

i mean, someone at Dis has the job of making these loops, right??

Yeah, someone who doesn't do a lot of research on his/her subject matter, who likes to put tracks in alphabetical order instead of mixing style and tempo, who leaves varying amounts of dead space between tracks instead of setting cue points and crossfades, and who hasn't heard of compressors/limiters so the volume levels are all over the place, but somehow managed to get the job anyway. :rolleyes:

i wish i had a ref recording for this loop, but alas.

Is this even a "loop" (with the same songs always in the same order)? Don't the buses play different songs depending on destination? So wouldn't there actually be multiple mini loops? Which loop(s) are you interested in?
 
LMNOP was just a snide reference to the alphabetical track listings.  

Jay, I'm amazed that there may be something about Disney music loops that you don't know! ;-) Yes, the bus loops appear to be songs played in a certain order on the way to a particular destination.  I am specifically referring to the songs played on the buses heading for Pop Century.  This is trickier to listen to because they are only played one-way, i.e., in the direction of Pop Century. Of course, if a bus is going from Pop to Epcot, it plays Epcot music. I have found the DTD or MK to Pop Century trips to be the best chances to listen.  I have made multiple partial lists and have compared them across individual trips and the songs appear to be in the same order. I've been slowly piecing together the bits of this loop across my last couple of trips.  

You pick up the loop in different spots, I think.  So when you board the bus, you're not sure what part of the loop you're going to be in.  I also think this is one of those GPS-driven systems since when you reach your destination, the music changes to wherever the bus is going to go next.  

I have offered a track listing, in order, earlier in this thread.  It has several holes in it and I'm not sure if some of the songs are played multiple times within the loop.  I'm specifically interested in the Pop loop.  I suspect it's only a couple of hours long, unlike the Pop Century Classic Hall loop that you so heroically compiled, and I find it much more entertaining due to the fast-moving mix of old commercials, TV themes, and pop music.  

Have you guys ever thought about applying to be sound engineers at Disney?  I should think they'd be glad to have you even if you are overqualified by their standards ;-)
 

Magic Music

Administrator
Playlist Author
Jay, I'm amazed that there may be something about Disney music loops that you don't know! ;-)

Hey, I live 10 minutes away, and I am allergic to screaming children, so I have no need or desire to ride Disney's buses. :p

I'm specifically interested in the Pop loop.

I find it much more entertaining [than Classic Hall] due to the fast-moving mix of old commercials, TV themes, and pop music.

Most likely done by someone else then. :p

Okay, if I accept this challenge, who is going to buy me a beer when I'm done? :unsure:
 
Allergic to screaming children?  The best time for them is at park closing, when the mommies and daddies made them stay up late because DAMMIT THEY PAID FOR THIS VACATION AND THEY ARE GOING TO SQUEEZE EVERY LAST OUNCE OF FUN OUT OF THIS TRIP EVEN IF IT KILLS THEM ALL.  Haha.  I recommend early in the day...this definitely is a tricky challenge because of course a Pop bus may get rerouted when it reaches its destination, which will force you to stand in line again for another Pop bus.  BUT....the buses do have speakers...just sayin'....  I guess I would be the buyer of beer since I'm the one requesting the loop.  Or in lieu of beer a donation to the site equivalent to the cost of a beer (since you will probably need at least a beer to get through this task...)   :)
 

Magic Music

Administrator
Playlist Author
The wheels on the bus go round and round
Round and round, round and round
The wheels on the bus go round and round,
All the way to Pop Century!

The babies on the bus go wah, wah, wah
Wah, wah, wah, wah, wah, wah
The babies on the bus go wah, wah, wah
All the way to Pop Century!


The game is on! :p
 

Magic Music

Administrator
Playlist Author
Oh My Gosh, Stop This Bus And Let Me Off, I Want To Die?

This. Except...

Oh My Goodness, Stupid, Terrible, Barely Audible, Lousy Music...Ominous! I Wish To Disembark?
Over Mickey's Grave, SILENCE, Tyke! Behave! And Let's Manage Overt Induction While Traveling Disney!?

...these are also acceptable! :)

What a nightmare I went through today! Screaming, crying, fighting, farting, and after four DTD to Pop trips, all I ever managed to hear was an extremely faint Flintstones Theme. Yabba dabba whoopidy doo!
 
Jay said:
What a nightmare I went through today! Screaming, crying, fighting, farting,

--and that was just you--

and after four DTD to Pop trips, all I ever managed to hear was an extremely faint Flintstones Theme.

In all seriousness...REALLY? you're kidding me. no way. nuh-uh. (Insert various other expressions of disbelief as you see fit.) Did you get a recording of anything off the speaker? Pop Century may just be destined to be your nemesis. But you conquered the Classic Hall loop. I have faith.
 

Magic Music

Administrator
Playlist Author
--and that was just you--

Now it's gonna cost you two beers! :p

In all seriousness...REALLY?

Yup. Really. :(

I can see that this will require using induction and I don't know whether I want to have the driver and everyone else on the bus looking at the wire hanging down from the ceiling and wondering whether Sandra Bulluck and Keenu Reeves are going to come to their rescue in time. :eek:

gallery_321_1_27595.jpg
 
Now it's gonna cost you two beers! :p

C'mon, you really set yourself up for that one. Couldn't help it.

I can see that this will require using induction and I don't know whether I want to have the driver and everyone else on the bus looking at the wire hanging down from the ceiling and wondering whether Sandra Bulluck and Keenu Reeves are going to come to their rescue in time. :eek:

What if you go while it's SRO on the bus so you can stand right next to your wire? or make it look like it's attached to your phone headset? I dunno. Some of the speakers in the back are pretty unobtrusive. You could always tell the driver that you like the music but you are having trouble hearing it so you are amplifying it :) If I could afford another trip in the next 2 years, I would devote a day to riding buses with you and obscuring wires because this loop is pretty freakin' awesome to a pop junkie (i said POP, P-O-P).
 

Top