Monty Python Songs - Sketches, Skits and Other Musical Nonsense

MPHG features great original music including their bombastic traveling music, cheerfully round Intermission and overlay for God, and songs to accentuate key scenes including:

Camelot - to introduce the rather chaotic home of King Arthur ("It's only a model").

Three parts of Brave Sir Robin - which bookends the meeting with the three-headed knight and makes us thankful for the animated departure of Sir Robin's minstrels.

Several aborted attempts by Terry Jones to sing a love song which is constantly interrupted by Michael Palin, but the lead up music is very nice, and you get a hint of a production number after John Cleese has slaughtered the entire wedding party.

Note: External music also played a part in making MPHG - Bands Led Zeppelin, Pink Floyd and Jethro Tull all contributed funds to get the film made.

MPLoB - is bookended by two of their best songs ever:

Brian's Song - Sung by Sonia Jones, setting up the Life of Brian with the most outgoing voice and yet drab description of a person that could be just about anyone (as Brian pretty much was).

Always Look on the Bright Side of Life - Cheerily sung by Eric Idle as Brian and the other unfortunates await their death by crucifixion.

Note: The British recently named ALOTBSOL their most popular "alternative" song to have played at funerals, beating out We Gotta Get Outta This Place and Going Underground. When Graham Chapman died, the remaining Pythons gathered to do just that.

Further Notes: In the tradition of musicians rallying to support Monty Python movies financially, George Harrison stepped up to support Life of Brian. He was rewarded by getting to play the Owner of the Mount in the scene where the real Messiah is providing his sermon.

The darkest of the MP features, it is no less funny or absurd than the others, but returns to their sketch style of hit and run comedy and ramps up the amount of music in a MP feature:

The Meaning of Life - Written by Eric Idle and sung by Michael Palin, backed by the MP crew, the song begs the question, then offers the movie as the answer (disturbing truth that it is).

Every Sperm is Sacred - featuring a seeming cast of thousands as Michael Palin and Terry Jones lament their 63 kids, while standing fast to their Catholic beliefs.

Oh Lord, Please Don't Burn Us - A hymn during the Growth and Learning phase that makes God sound like a mean kid with a magnifying glass on a sunny day watching over Creation (written by Chapman and Cleese).

Galaxy Song - Eric Idle emerges from a fridge to sing a song about insignificance in order to convince a woman to donate her liver while she's still alive...makes sense to me.

Isn't It Awfully Nice to Have a Penis? - Eric Idle returns to tickle the ivories and briefly elaborate on the title's question. His advice at the end of the song is sound.

Christmas in Heaven - In a cheesy approximation of Las Vegas glitz, Graham Chapman belts out the particulars of the Final Reward.

The movie finishes with a portion of the Monty Python's Flying Circus theme followed by an instrumental of the Galaxy Song.

Note:During filming of this movie, the MP crew took a break from filming to perform at the Hollywood Bowl. These performances became Monty Python Live at the Hollywood Bowl, featuring many sketches from MPFC and several of their songs, including the coveted Philosophers' Song.

What is the name of the Theme to Monty Python's Flying Circus?

'The Liberty Bell' by American composer John Philip Sousa. The military flare of the piece compliments the fact that the "Monty" of Monty Python refers to British General Lord Montgomery...

...Terry Gilliam claims that the music has no association with the show other than that it was direct and gets "straight down to business." More pragmatically, the piece was in the public domain so it cost the cash strapped Pythons nothing.

On another note, the Pythons seem capable of making the Royal Family change their ways. The Buckingham Palace Royal Guard used to use 'The Liberty Bell' as a march...until Monty Python swiped it for Flying Circus, at which time the Guard chose something else to presumably provide as much distance from those nuts as a sealocked island would allow.

Monty Python had an affinity for creating their own music, lampooning music, and making fun of and having fun with musical personalities and themes.

Not every episode is included here, only those that have a sketch with some musical quality (whether it's any good or not).

Numeration is by Series and Episode (Series/Episode)

1.1 - It's Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

1.2 - Musical Mice - featuring Terry Jones' humming and playing the dubious and frightful mouse organ

1.4 - "Jerusalem (And did those feet)" - Eric Idle tries to get off a rendition with guitar accompaniment, but never does get around to it.

1.8 - Hells Grannies - Recycles the theme song from Thunderball

1.9 - A Man with a Tape Recorder Up His Nose - Michael Palin and Graham Chapman display an interesting oddity - in Stereo!

1.9 - The Lumberjack Song - Michael Palin serenades Connie Booth with Mountie accompaniment and then everything falls off the tracks.

Note: I love Connie Booth's look of growing concern and disappointment as the song progresses.

This official MP Artist Direct page features a nice biography, and all of their albums for sale, complete with track information and some history.

Monty Python on Artist Direct