“This sounds like a real dad in real life singing to his children. Would’ve been perfect for the movie,” is what a top commenter had to say after hearing The Sound of Music star Christopher Plummer’s lost vocals on “Edelweiss” for the first time. The leading man’s original vocals lay on the cutting room floor for 58 years, before finally being heard by the public thanks to the Deluxe Edition release of the film.
The filmmakers overdubbed Christopher’s vocals with Bill Lee’s vocals for the theatrical film release. Christopher’s lost vocals are so warm and cozy and are just perfect for the sweet scene as he sings for his kids before the fireplace. It’s not a completely flawless vocal performance in a technical sense, but The Music Man has to say, in terms of anything that matters to the heart of a listener, Christopher’s performance is all you could ask for.
The songwriters Rodgers & Hammerstein uploaded Christopher’s lost vocal performance to YouTube, where it hit 4.3 million views. Fans loved to hear the rarity and added comments such as “This sounds less like a musical number and more like a dad singing to his kids on a whim” and “Something about Christopher’s version truly delivers. He plays it as written; a man unsure of himself who hasn’t sung or performed since losing his wife. Christopher’s rendition is superior. A true actor and performer RIP.”
Thanks to YouTube, we can listen to Christopher and the dubbed vocalist Bill Lee’s versions back to back. We really have to give it up for Bill, as he did a great job providing the vocals heard in the theatrical version of the film, creating an iconic scene. Bill, who was a noted American musical star, provided a more nuanced and “professional”-sounding vocal that certainly delivered the goods for the scene.
Songwriting team Rodgers and Hammerstein penned “Edelweiss” for their 1959 musical The Sound of Music. The Music Man readers might be interested to hear that they named the tune after the white flower that is native to the high Alps. The leading man in the film adaptation of The Sound of Music, Christopher Plummer, recorded vocals for the song during the production of the film. However, the filmmakers, for reasons which are very hard to understand, cut his vocals from the film and had Bill Lee overdub them for the theatrical release.