Review: Hanna-Barbera, The Recorded History

 In the world of literature, this year has been pretty solid for fans of Hanna-Barbera. May saw the release of Hanna and Barbera: Conversations (check out my review of that book here), and this month, Hanna-Barbera, the Recorded History: From Modern Stone Age to Meddling Kids is unleashed by Greg Ehrbar. Ehrbar was nice enough to send me an early copy, and I was ecstatic to dig into this one. Many of you are likely familiar with Ehrbar's work on Cartoon research, but he's primarily known for his work with Disney. From writing comics to historical books, Ehrbar knows Disney quite well. He's also a big Hanna-Barbera history buff, and this book is proof of that.

So, what exactly is Hanna-Barbera, The Recorded History? Some might simply assume it's a retrospective on the company's short-lived record label of the 1960s, but it's much more than that. Ehrbar chronicles Hanna-Barbera's entire recorded history. From Colpix to Peter Pan Records, from The Flintstones to Banana Splits, and from the early days of Bill and Joe's partnership to today, no stone is left unturned. Voice actors, composers, lyricists, and singers are all covered, and then some. Even a few unreleased records are discussed in the book. He doesn't merely name off a bunch of records or shows and discuss the music, either. He weaves it through the history of the studio, and does a great job of showing why this is all worth remembering so many years after the fact. He shows how exactly their recorded history has evolved, from the early days of records featuring recast characters to today, where the cues of entire classic series have been released. 

While a lot of attention is (deservedly) put on people like Hoyt Curtin and the voice actors who built Hanna-Barbera's cartoon empire, Ehrbar also shines a spotlight on those involved in these records who are often forgotten. He looks at everyone from the writers of the records to the actors who voiced the characters when their primary actors were unavailable. It was fascinating to learn more about these individuals and learn why the voices on many records didn't match the voices on TV. Ehrbar also answers some big questions fans may have in this book. One of my favorite sections was focused on how the iconic sound effects of The Jetsons came into being. I also loved learning about the musicians featured on Hanna-Barbera records. Many forget, but HBR did a lot more than Flintstones and Yogi Bear albums!

If the book itself wasn't enough, Ehrbar was also nice enough to throw in a very helpful notes section and even better, an entire discography for the works of Hanna-Barbera. All in all, the book simply oozes a love for the music, sound, and voices of Hanna-Barbera. It's Ehrbar's dedication that really makes this book. But the biggest compliment that I can give this book is that it makes the reader want to learn even more about the subject. This is something I feel any good biographical book does, and ever since I read this title, I've started to listen to more and more of the Hanna-Barbera records. With just this book, I went from being simply aware of them to listening to as many as I could, and I can't give this book enough praise for doing that.

In short, Hanna-Barbera, The Recorded History is an amazing deep-dive into the auditory world of Hanna-Barbera. Whether you're interested in their records, the voice actors, or the musical cues featured in the shows, you'll leave this book a happy camper.