I still don’t know why there are so many songs about rainbows, but I can say with full confidence that the opening sequence from The Muppet Movie is still one of the most magical things ever committed to celluloid. Written by Paul Williams and Kenneth Ascher, the song captures a feeling of yearning in a way that few other songs can. (See also “I’m Going to Go Back There Someday,” also from The Muppet Movie. The film took on an added weight following the untimely passing of Jim Henson in 1990, and has been covered by artists including The Dixie Chicks, Sarah McLachlan, and Willie Nelson, whodreamers named one of his album’s after the song in 2001. It was also featured as the emotional centerpiece of the 2011 comeback film The Muppets. It’s true musical brilliance, a sing whose power only continues to grow with time. So to the lovers, the dreamers, and you, I say it’s time to once again listen to “The Rainbow Connection” and marvel at how quickly your blues melt away.
