# Song from 'Nightmare Before Christmas' Where've I heard it before? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [February 28, 2005, 12:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/song-from-nightmare-before-christmas-whereve-i-heard-it-before/292205 "2005-02-28T00:14:32Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Lobsang](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lobsang/32/4067_2.png) [@Lobsang](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lobsang)\ **Post date:** [February 28, 2005, 12:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/song-from-nightmare-before-christmas-whereve-i-heard-it-before/292205/1 "2005-02-28T00:14:32Z")
I heard it on a TV show tonight (100 best cartoons, Channel 4, UK) and I instantly recognised it. I’m pretty sure I’ve heard the same basic tune in 'live action (meaning not cartoon) kids film from about the 1980s. The tune is eerily familiar, but I just can’t place it. I tried Amazon to get a sample of all the tunes on the soundtrack but they use RealMedia, and I’m not going to fanny about with 14 day trials and 8$ subscriptions to things just to find out what one song is. Anyone? If only I had a piano I could replicate it and upload. ---
**Author:** ![Revtim](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/revtim/32/1042_2.png) [@Revtim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Revtim)\ **Post date:** [February 28, 2005, 12:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/song-from-nightmare-before-christmas-whereve-i-heard-it-before/292205/2 "2005-02-28T00:22:03Z")
Record yourself whistling or humming the tune and upload it. If you want it to be a really small file to save bandwidth, compress it into a mono, not stereo, mp3 of 56kbps. You might even get away with a lower bitrate, experiment. ---
**Author:** ![Lobsang](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lobsang/32/4067_2.png) [@Lobsang](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lobsang)\ **Post date:** [February 28, 2005, 12:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/song-from-nightmare-before-christmas-whereve-i-heard-it-before/292205/3 "2005-02-28T00:35:36Z")
I have a strong aversion to recording my own voice. And an even stronger one to letting other dopers hear it. It would be like showing my… Anyway, If it helps I can try to graphically describe how it begins. **|** |\_\_\_ _ **|** |_\_ _ **|\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_|** **|**** |**\_\_\_ \_\_|||\_\_\_\_\_|_|_|_\_\_\_\_\_ _|_|_|\_\_\_\_\_|_|_|_\_\_\_\_\_\_ * * * Try to imagine that as part of the sheet music. It’s quite a catchy tune. ---
**Author:** ![Fern\_Forest](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/71c47a/32.png) [@Fern\_Forest](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fern_Forest)\ **Post date:** [February 28, 2005, 12:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/song-from-nightmare-before-christmas-whereve-i-heard-it-before/292205/4 "2005-02-28T00:35:59Z")
If I’m guessing correctly at the song you’re referring to (This is Halloween) perhaps you’re confusing it with the Oompa Loompa song from the Willie Wonka Movie. I know I have a hard time humming it without morphing into the Oompa Loompa song. ---
**Author:** ![Lobsang](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lobsang/32/4067_2.png) [@Lobsang](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lobsang)\ **Post date:** [February 28, 2005, 12:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/song-from-nightmare-before-christmas-whereve-i-heard-it-before/292205/5 "2005-02-28T00:41:12Z")
I Have some hunches… Tales from the Crypt. Amazing Stories. I’m pretty sure it’s a Danny Elfman creation. But that narrows it down… well not much at all. ---
**Author:** ![Lobsang](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lobsang/32/4067_2.png) [@Lobsang](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lobsang)\ **Post date:** [February 28, 2005, 12:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/song-from-nightmare-before-christmas-whereve-i-heard-it-before/292205/6 "2005-02-28T00:42:24Z")
> [@Fern Forest](#): > > If I’m guessing correctly at the song you’re referring to (This is Halloween) perhaps you’re confusing it with the Oompa Loompa song from the Willie Wonka Movie. I know I have a hard time humming it without morphing into the Oompa Loompa song. Sorry, but it could. not. be. any _less_ like the Oompa Loompa song. ---
**Author:** ![Lobsang](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lobsang/32/4067_2.png) [@Lobsang](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lobsang)\ **Post date:** [February 28, 2005, 12:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/song-from-nightmare-before-christmas-whereve-i-heard-it-before/292205/7 "2005-02-28T00:51:56Z")
> [@Lobsang](#): > > Tales from the Crypt. Amazing Stories. Just found midis of both (gotta love those old midi files 😃 ) online and neither are the tune i’m thinking of. ---
**Author:** ![Fern\_Forest](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/71c47a/32.png) [@Fern\_Forest](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fern_Forest)\ **Post date:** [February 28, 2005, 12:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/song-from-nightmare-before-christmas-whereve-i-heard-it-before/292205/8 "2005-02-28T00:52:19Z")
Go to [Amazon.com](http://Amazon.com) and listen to the samples from the soundtrack. I don’t know the lyrics since I’ve heard it mostly from the Kingdom Hearts level set in Halloween Town. All I know are doots and doos. Making it easier to mistake for other songs. ---
**Author:** ![Lobsang](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lobsang/32/4067_2.png) [@Lobsang](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lobsang)\ **Post date:** [February 28, 2005, 12:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/song-from-nightmare-before-christmas-whereve-i-heard-it-before/292205/9 "2005-02-28T00:58:31Z")
> [@Fern Forest](#): > > Go to [Amazon.com](http://Amazon.com) and listen to the samples from the soundtrack. I don’t want to do the amazon thing (see OP) but I found the tune in question [http://www.coolmidi.250x.com/midi/movie\_themes/nightmare\_before\_christmas.mid](http://www.coolmidi.250x.com/midi/movie_themes/nightmare_before_christmas.mid) Now all I need is to know where else it was used than ‘nightmare before christmas’ ---
**Author:** ![Lobsang](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lobsang/32/4067_2.png) [@Lobsang](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lobsang)\ **Post date:** [February 28, 2005, 1:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/song-from-nightmare-before-christmas-whereve-i-heard-it-before/292205/10 "2005-02-28T01:04:41Z")
Whoops. If that link doesn’t work, go to [http://www.coolmidi.250x.com/free\_midi\_movie\_themes.htm](http://www.coolmidi.250x.com/free_midi_movie_themes.htm) and click on ‘Nightmare Before Christmas’ in the list. There is a possibility that my mind is playing tricks on my and I downloaded this tune (in midi format) many many years ago because it sounded cool, and the tune has stuck in my head ever since, tricking me into thinking I’d heard it in a film (Because I have never seen ‘Nightmare Before Christmas’. I just never got around to it) ---
**Author:** ![Fern\_Forest](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/71c47a/32.png) [@Fern\_Forest](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fern_Forest)\ **Post date:** [February 28, 2005, 1:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/song-from-nightmare-before-christmas-whereve-i-heard-it-before/292205/11 "2005-02-28T01:17:14Z")
> [@Lobsang](#): > > I don’t want to do the amazon thing (see OP) I don’t need to read no stinkin’ OP! :smack: Although they do offer them in Windows Media player too. Oh well. Anyway it sounds like “What’s This?” The part where Jack is discovering everything about Christmas. It sounds very much like a song from one of the Disney Musicals like “Beauty & the Beast” or “The Little Mermaid” but other then that I can’t place it. ---
**Author:** ![Brainiac4](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/brainiac4/32/3534_2.png) [@Brainiac4](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Brainiac4)\ **Post date:** [February 28, 2005, 1:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/song-from-nightmare-before-christmas-whereve-i-heard-it-before/292205/12 "2005-02-28T01:24:04Z")
**Lobsang** , use [www.amazon.com](http://www.amazon.com) instead of [www.amazon.co.uk](http://www.amazon.co.uk) – the US version has Windows Media versions of song clips in addition to RealMedia. [www.bestbuy.com](http://www.bestbuy.com) also uses Windows Media instead of evil RealPlayer. I think **Fern Forest** is correct, and the track is “What’s This” but you’ll have to verify. I’m not familiar with any use of that arrangement before, but Danny Elfman’s stuff does have a distinctive sound that’s pretty consistent. ---
**Author:** ![KJ](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/b2d939/32.png) [@KJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KJ)\ **Post date:** [February 28, 2005, 1:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/song-from-nightmare-before-christmas-whereve-i-heard-it-before/292205/13 "2005-02-28T01:34:34Z")
I watched that movie recently. The MIDI you linked to is definitely “[What’s This?](http://www.lyricsbox.com/nightmare-before-christmas-lyrics-what-s-this-7p5mjz2.html)” As far as I know, it was written specifically for The Nightmare Before Christmas. ---
**Author:** ![Princess\_Clara](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ebca7d/32.png) [@Princess\_Clara](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Princess_Clara)\ **Post date:** [February 28, 2005, 3:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/song-from-nightmare-before-christmas-whereve-i-heard-it-before/292205/14 "2005-02-28T03:05:12Z")
They use the “What’s This?” melody as background music in a lot of previews for other movies (like fantasy) so maybe you’ve heard it there. ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [February 28, 2005, 4:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/song-from-nightmare-before-christmas-whereve-i-heard-it-before/292205/15 "2005-02-28T04:33:26Z")
> [@Princess Clara](#): > > They use the “What’s This?” melody as background music in a lot of previews for other movies (like fantasy) so maybe you’ve heard it there. Yup, it gets used all the time for any trailer that has a sense of awe and wonderment. Once you know it you’ll hear it all the time. ---
**Author:** ![GuanoLad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guanolad/32/42_2.png) [@GuanoLad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuanoLad)\ **Post date:** [February 28, 2005, 5:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/song-from-nightmare-before-christmas-whereve-i-heard-it-before/292205/16 "2005-02-28T05:06:20Z")
[The Nightmare Before Christmas](http://www.soundtrack.net/trailers/composer-trailer.html?id=58) (1993) was used in: Casper (1995) - Theatrical Trailer Jack the Bear (1993) - Theatrical Trailer James and the Giant Peach (1996) - Theatrical Trailer Matilda (1996) - Theatrical Trailer The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993) - Theatrical Trailer ---
**Author:** ![Yllaria](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yllaria/32/3452_2.png) [@Yllaria](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yllaria)\ **Post date:** [February 28, 2005, 7:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/song-from-nightmare-before-christmas-whereve-i-heard-it-before/292205/17 "2005-02-28T07:08:30Z")
The very beginning reminds me of the goodnight song from The Sound of Music. “So long, farewell, . . .”. But that’s probably just me. ---
**Author:** ![Zabali\_Clawbane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/ecd19e/32.png) [@Zabali\_Clawbane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zabali_Clawbane)\ **Post date:** [February 28, 2005, 7:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/song-from-nightmare-before-christmas-whereve-i-heard-it-before/292205/18 "2005-02-28T07:51:41Z")
Check [here](http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/B000001M1W/qid=1109577982/sr=8-1/ref=sr_8_xs_ap_i1_xgl15/103-8955180-3090232?v=glance&s=music&n=507846) Lobsang, this Amazon site offers WMA options too. (The UK one doesn’t I don’t think.) Which song was it? ---
**Author:** ![deanod88](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/bbe5ce/32.png) [@deanod88](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/deanod88)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2025, 12:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/song-from-nightmare-before-christmas-whereve-i-heard-it-before/292205/19 "2025-02-19T12:39:06Z")
The tune from the song “What’s This?” On Night are Before Christmas always reminds me of the theme tune from the children’s programme Rupert Bear. It’s almost identical. ---
**Author:** ![Darren\_Garrison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darren_garrison/32/92_2.png) [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2025, 2:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/song-from-nightmare-before-christmas-whereve-i-heard-it-before/292205/20 "2025-02-19T14:41:30Z")
I can’t hear the resemblance. [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/o36k8upu3Ks/maxresdefault.jpg "Danny Elfman - What's This? (From "The Nightmare Before Christmas")") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o36k8upu3Ks) [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/FNBcDGLUu0E/hqdefault.jpg "The Adventures of Rupert Bear Puppet ep 1") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FNBcDGLUu0E) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/song-from-nightmare-before-christmas-whereve-i-heard-it-before/292205.md?page=2)