Although the Country Bear Jamboree holds the distinction of being the first attraction that debuted first at Disney World and was later added to Disneyland, Florida was not the initial planned site for this Marc Davis created show.  The Country Bears were initially developed for the Mineral King ski resort that Walt Disney was going to build in California.

When plans for the ski resort fell through worked continued on the show with focus shifted to the upcoming Disney World site.  Many of the now well known Disney Imagineers contributed to this show with the driving force being Marc Davis.  X Atencio and George Bruns created the songs for the attraction.

The audio-animatronics for the show presented a special challenge since unlike the Pirates of the Caribbean where you quickly ride past the figures in a dimly lit attraction, the Country Bears are on a bright stage performing extended songs.  This meant that the bears needed to move relatively fluidly in order to be believable and not distract from the show.

The show is hosted by Henry and is joined by Gomer playing the piano (picture above this one) in a song to start off the show called "Pianjo," where Henry plays the banjo as well as sings.

The "Bear Band Serenade" features the talented musical group called The Five Bear Rugs along with Gomer and Henry.

Wendell is the next Bear that you will meet and he sings some of the funniest songs in the show.  The picture above was while he was singing  "Fractured Folk Song" with Henry.

Liver Lips McGrowl is a favorite of many with his country hit "My Woman Ain't Pretty (But She Don't Swear None.)"

Trixie entertains the crowd with her rendition of "Tears Will Be The Chaser For Your Wine."

The Five Bear Rugs is made up of Zeke playing banjo, Zeb playing fiddle, Ted blowing on the cornjug and playing washboard, Fred playing mouthharp, and Tennessee playing the one stringed thang.  Little Baby Oscar always steals the show by looking cute and squeezing his teddy bear.

Terrence performs "How Long Will My Baby Be Gone."

The Sun Bonnet Trio lament about their man troubles with the song "All The Guys That Turn Me On Turn Me Down."

Ernest appears to sing "If Ya Can't Bite, Don't Growl."

Teddi Barra is lowered from the rafters to make her grand entrance.  She then sings "Heart, We Did All We Could."

Big Al is a favorite of many Country Bear Jamboree fans and was developed to look like Disney Imagineer Al Bertino.  He is voiced by legendary singer Tex Ritter and sings the now classic "Blood On The Saddle."

Sammy The Raccoon joins Henry for a performance of "The Ballad Of Davy Crockett."

The grand finale brings almost all of the bears back to the stage to perform again.

The other characters that you do not want to overlook are Max, Buff, and Melvin hanging on the wall.  The start the show off and talk again at the end providing even more comedy to this lively 16 minute show.

The Country Bear Jamboree is truly a Disney World Classic.  This attraction was also added to Disneyland in  1972, but was discontinued there in 2001 as they made room for The Many Adventures Of Winnie The Pooh.

Disney World Park guests continue to enjoy this show and typically come out of Grizzly Hall humming a tune and recalling there favorite lyrics from the show.  It is a great show for all ages and should be a part of every visit to the Magic Kingdom.  Lines are always reasonable so there is never a really long wait.  This makes a great break on a hot day in the Florida sun.