"Feed the Birds" is a song written by the Sherman Brothers and featured in the 1964 motion picture Mary Poppins. The song speaks of an old beggar woman who sits on the steps of St Paul's Cathedral, selling bags of breadcrumbs to passers-by for twopence a bag so that they can feed the many pigeons which surround the old woman. The scene is reminiscent of the real-life seed vendors of Trafalgar Square, who began selling birdseed to passers-by shortly after its public opening in 1844. In the book, Mary Poppins accompanies the children, on the way to tea with their father, to give money to the bird woman to feed the birds. In the movie, on the way to the bank, their father discourages the children from feeding the birds, while Mary Poppins, who had sung the song to the children the previous night, was on her day off. Academy Award winner Jane Darwell played the Bird Woman, her last screen appearance.
Use and placement
In contrast to the energetic nature of most of the film's songs, "Feed the Birds" is played in a reverent tempo. This most serious of songs is used to frame the truly important moments in a film that is mostly humorous and lighthearted. It is used in four places:
The first appearance is in the orchestral segment at the beginning of the film's overture medley, this starting the overture slowly. The overture then segues into some of the faster pieces in the film's score.
The second appearance comes when Mary Poppins sings the song to the children as a sweet lullabyon the night before their trip to the bank. It begins with Mary showing them a water-filled globe of St. Paul's, whose "snowflakes" are in the shape of the many birds flying around the cathedral. While the children sit and listen with rapt attention, scenes cut away to dreamlike imagery of the cathedral and of the bird woman, with parts of the song accompanied by an off-screen choir and orchestra.
The third appearance is the evening of the trip to the bank, a very short segment about half a minute before the other sweeps appear in the chimney sweep sequence.
The fourth appearance is also during the same evening, a dramatic orchestral and choral rendition, as a sombre and thoughtful Mr. Banks walks to his place of employment, literally and figuratively alone in the streets of London, stopping by the place where the bird woman was earlier that day, only to find it vacant before continuing on to the bank to face its board of directors to be fired. The scene is deliberately designed to suggest the bird woman may have died, and is one of the most dramatic scenes in the film. It segues into a short dirge-like segment as Mr. Banks reaches the door.
The song is also alluded to in the Disney film Enchanted, a tribute to and parody of Disney films, in the form of an old woman named Clara who sells bird feed for "two dollars a bag", and in Chris Columbus's 1992 movie by the character known as the Pigeon Lady and John Williams's soundtrack theme.
Initial reactions
As the Sherman Brothers recall, when Richard Sherman first played and sang "Feed the Birds" to Pamela Travers, she thought it was "nice" but inappropriate for a male voice. Robert Sherman then called in a Disney staff secretary to demonstrate the song again. Upon hearing a woman sing the song, Ms. Travers' response was that she thought "Greensleeves" was the only truly appropriate song for the soundtrack, as it was "quintessentially English". Eventually and reluctantly, Travers acquiesced to the American songwriters' supplying the film's soundtrack. Robert Sherman recalled: The song was regarded as one of Walt Disney's favorite songs. Sherman also comments: Tony Brown related additional Sherman comments about the song and its role in Mary Poppins: Walt Disney World and Richard Sherman's son Gregg concurred with Brown's account. However, "The Bird Woman" was chapter 7 in the first book, Mary Poppins, not in the second book, Mary Poppins Comes Back. The song was sung by the movie's star Julie Andrews to visuals of the elderly bird woman of the song. Walt Disney himself made the unusual request that the bird woman, though a non-speaking part be a cameo by one of his favorite character actresses, Academy Award winner Jane Darwell. In her mid-eighties and semi-retired from acting, Darwell had recently moved into the Motion Picture Country Home because of her advanced age and feebleness. Needing neither the money nor the screen credit, she declined the role. Walt Disney, still insistent, personally drove to the retirement home to plead with her. Charmed and flattered that she was so wanted, she agreed to take the part. Walt later sent a limousine to bring her to the studio. It was her last screen appearance or acting role; her only spoken line had to be re-recorded later by screenwriter/producer Bill Walsh, as her own voice was too weak.
Walt Disney Centennial tale
Richard Sherman was invited to "help dedicate the Walt Disney statue at Disneyland" at Disney's Centennial celebration. Sherman was asked to play some songs, and so he did. Before playing the last song, Sherman said: "Now, I'll play Walt Disney's favorite song... and it's just for him", and he played "Feed The Birds". Sherman was told afterwards that "just towards the end of the song, out of the blue sky one bird flew down where he was playing, and then back into the clouds". Sherman believes that it was Walt Disney and got emotional when remembering the event.
