Splash Mountain

Splash Mountain as it appeared at Disneyland

Passengers rode aboard six-to-seven-seater logs with six single-file seats. The log departed the loading area and ascended two conveyor-type lifts before floating gently through scenery designed to evoke the feeling of a river. The homes of the three main characters were incorporated into the landscape, along with an instrumental version of "How Do You Do?" emanating from hidden speakers.

Before the logs entered the indoor portion, snoring was heard emanating from Br'er Bear's cave. The snoring was a tribute to the original entrance to Bear Country (the former name of Critter Country) where a bear named Rufus was heard snoring from a cave.

After a short drop, guests entered the indoor portion of the attraction, where various Audio-Animatronic animals, such as geese and frogs sang the attraction's first musical number, "How Do You Do?". After rounding a corner, riders saw Br'er Bear caught in a trap while Br'er Fox berated him and told him "We gotta catch that Br'er Rabbit!". Br'er Rabbit, seen outside his Briar Patch, told Br'er Turtle that he is leaving home in search of adventure, and is heading for his Laughin' Place. Br'er Bear followed him only for the "Laughin' Place" to actually be a trick, and Br'er Bear winded up being attacked by bees as Br'er Rabbit laughed at the sight. Riders progressed through caverns, where animals such as chickens, storks, a goose and a turkey sang "Everybody's Got a Laughin' Place".

Br'er Fox then managed to trap Br'er Rabbit in a beehive. The mood turned ominous as two mother characters (an opossum and rabbit) sang "Burrow's Lament." At the base of the final lift hill, two vultures would give warnings for the riders. The logs began the final ascent and shortly before the attraction's climactic drop, Br'er Rabbit was seen alongside the hill, about to be eaten by Br'er Fox, but Br'er Rabbit outsmarted Br'er Fox and Br'er Bear by tricking them into throwing him into the briar patch (where he was born and raised). Riders were sent down the final drop into the briar patch, mimicking his fall. An on-ride photo was taken as the log began to fall.

The log then 'dove' under the water into an underground runout. An indoor segment followed the drop, after which the logs entered into a final section which featured a paddle wheel steamboat where a cast of Audio-Animatronic animals sang "Zip-a-Dee-Doo-Dah" and the respective fates of Br'er Rabbit (reclined happily at home) and the antagonists (fending off a hungry Br'er Gator) were seen. As the log passed through this section, a series of glass windows could be seen near the ceiling, behind which was a tunnel used by the Disneyland Railroad track.

Before the return to the loading area, for many years riders were given a preview of their picture that was taken on the final drop via an overhead screen. Professor Barnaby Owl, an overhead Audio-Animatronic, would call the riders' attention to the screen as he remarked on their expressions. Although in recent years, the screen had been removed.

Splash Mountain at Tokyo Disneyland is very similar to how the Magic Kingdom version of the ride was, with a few exceptions. The ride's layout is a mirror image of Magic Kingdom's owing to the attraction's location on the opposite side of the river. The secondary characters are altogether different and the show scenes are in different orders. The Tokyo version also lacks a mill or barn-like structure on the second lift (although it is used as the main entrance to the ride queue). Instead, the logs venture into a cave-like opening to begin the second ascent. Another difference from the Magic Kingdom version is that the first drop takes place in a dark cave, making the final drop the only outdoor one. The Tokyo version does not have an extra drop after the biggest drop while the Magic Kingdom version did.

Splash Mountain as it appeared at the Magic Kingdom

Riders boarded eight-passenger logs, seated two by two, unlike Disneyland where they seated one by one. The log departed the loading area, where Br'er Frog provided introductory narration. The log ascended a dual-chain lift that deposited riders in a small pond at the bottom of the big drop. After a right turn, logs entered the barn and climbed another lift to the space behind the visible mountain, before floating gently through scenery designed to evoke the feeling of a river. The homes of the three main characters were incorporated into the landscape, along with a country instrumental version of "How Do You Do?" that emanated from hidden speakers. After passing Br'er Bear's cave, the logs descended down a drop and crossed back under the flume. The logs then entered the show building containing the indoor portion of the attraction, where various Audio-Animatronic animals including geese and frogs sang the attraction's first musical number, "How Do You Do?". Several vignettes established the story of a restless Br'er Rabbit leaving home and being pursued by Br'er Fox and Br'er Bear.

Br'er Fox and Br'er Bear saw Br'er Rabbit telling Mr. Bluebird that he was going to his Laughing Place. Br'er Porcupine warned him of the danger ahead, but Br'er Rabbit continued on. "Everybody's Got a Laughing Place" began to play after Br'er Bear sprang Br'er Fox's rabbit trap. The logs continued onward past a roadrunner who asked to be taken along to the Laughin' Place, while opossums sang the song from overhead. The logs reached a dark tunnel followed by a drop into the Laughin' Place. Bees attacked Br'er Bear while Br'er Rabbit laughed with joy, unaware that Br'er Fox was behind him, preparing to drop a beehive on top of him. The logs then went over another short drop, and headed further into the cavern scenes. There, geyser-riding turtles and laughing, singing bullfrogs, and dancing water fountains guided the log to a dark area in which Br'er Rabbit was caught by Br'er Fox in a cave of stalactites and stalagmites. Two vultures taunted riders as they began their ascent up the final lift. A scene to the left side of the flume showed Br'er Fox menacing Br'er Rabbit, with Bre'r Rabbit pleading not to be thrown into the briar patch.

At the top of this third lift hill, the log descended the 50-foot (15 m) drop at a 45-degree angle, reached a maximum speed of 40 mph,[26] into a tunnel underneath the Frontierland walkway. After another outdoor flume segment, the log coasted back into the mountain, where critters were singing "Zip-a-Dee-Doo-Dah" in celebration of Br'er Rabbit's return, while Br'er Fox and Br'er Bear attempted to fend off Br'er Gator. At the end, Br'er Rabbit sang with Mr. Bluebird, telling him that he learned his lesson.

Splash Mountain at Disneyland featured music in a jazzy "big band" meets orchestral style, fitting the attraction's proximity to New Orleans Square.

• "How Do You Do?" - Recorded specially for the ride in 1988 by The Floozies, a 29-piece band from Oregon. The backing track of 'Bom, bom, bom, bom...' that could be heard coming from the bullfrogs in accompaniment to the lyrics sung by the Geese was sung by 13 of the 29 members. Walter Steven "Sim" Hurgle (b. 1963) is the band's lead vocalist, and his voice could be heard singing most of the words, while his fellow band members provided harmony and backing vocals. One of the bullfrogs was voiced by veteran voice actor Thurl Ravenscroft.
• "Ev'rybody Has a Laughing Place" and "Burrow's Lament" - These songs were sung by Elisa, Georgia and Castell Newton, three sisters from California who worked for The Walt Disney Company at the time of the ride's construction. Castell and Elisa sang the words, while Georgia was responsible for the high-pitched, operatic 'ahh's' in the background, which were removed upon the song changing from "Sooner or Later" to "Burrow's Lament". Burrow's Lament was mainly sung by BJ Ward. The vultures above the final lift hill were voiced by Jess Harnell.
• "Zip-a-Dee-Doo-Dah" - A choir consisting of over 75 cast members was used to record this last score, recorded in the company's Burbank studios in 1987. Harnell sang a solo as Br'er Rabbit as the logs took their final turn back into the station.

In addition, several other songs from Song of the South were heard as instrumental tracks, playing on a loop near the attraction and in the queuing area. These included "That's What Uncle Remus Said", "Sooner or Later", "All I Want", "Who Wants to Live Like That", and "Let the Rain Pour Down." The loop featured songs from the film and lasted about 25 minutes.[27]

Animators took over 80 hours to synchronize each figure. To re-wire and test each figure took an additional three months before the attraction could open, as programmers were tasked with reprogramming the figures from their previous America Sings performances in accordance with the new settings. Each character figure could carry out 45 seconds of movement and dialogue before a loop function restarted the sequence from the beginning.

Like in Florida, the main melodies consist of banjos, fiddles and harmonicas. The vocals, however, are completely different from the Magic Kingdom attraction, with the specific verses sung within the show scenes arranged in different orders and the choruses and back-up vocals arranged with different harmonies. Additionally, dialogue and lyrics in Tokyo are Japanese for "How Do You Do?" and "Zip-a-Dee-Doo-Dah", but English for "Ev'rybody's Got a Laughin' Place". In both instances, "Burrow's Lament" is heard as an instrumental track with timpani drums (a take that was originally recorded for Disneyland, but never used), with dramatic orchestra and choir.

The ride featured the same songs heard at the Disneyland attraction, which are variations of the three songs found in the animated segments from Song of the South, though the attraction did not present these songs in the same order as the film. Because of the ride's location in Frontierland, the soundtrack featured a country feel, with banjos and harmonicas as the primary instruments, and also because of Florida's proximity to Georgia, where Song of the South is set. "Burrow's Lament" was the only exception, using an orchestral track with timpani drums originally recorded for the Disneyland version.

In the order heard in the attraction's ride-through segments:

• "How Do You Do?"
• "Ev'rybody's Got a Laughin' Place"
• "Zip-a-Dee-Doo-Dah"

Songs from the film heard as instrumental tracks in the queuing area included "That's What Uncle Remus Said", "Let the Rain Pour Down", "Sooner or Later", and the opening theme from the film. Traditional songs like "Old MacDonald Had a Farm" and "Goober Peas" were also played in a bluegrass style. The loop lasted about an hour, and included different orchestrations of the three main songs heard in the ride as well.[27]

Despite being released on CDs attributed to the Magic Kingdom or Walt Disney World in general, as well as often bearing specific track attribution (such as "from Walt Disney World's Splash Mountain"), the country-western style soundtrack actually found at the Florida and Tokyo parks had at least managed to surface on the 2003 Walt Disney World CD entitled "The Official Album/Where Magic Lives". Banjos are heard for over halfway through the 7:57 length, as well as at the end. It is a very different musical arrangement when compared to many other "Walt Disney World", "Disneyland", or combination "Walt Disney World/Disneyland" CDs labeled as "The Official Album". The Disneyland ride did not incorporate this particular country-western-themed soundtrack. Fan-credited versions of the country-western version from the Magic Kingdom have also surfaced as MP3 downloads online. Tokyo Disneyland versions have surfaced also, but have been harder to locate.