Hanna-Barbera, the Recorded History
From Modern Stone Age to Meddling Kids
A comprehensive look at one of the world’s most influential entertainment companies in celebration of its artistry in sound, music, and character voices
Description
2025 Winner of Best History in the category of Best Historical Research in Record Labels or General Recording Topics from the Association for Recorded Sound Collections
Featuring the first extensive Hanna-Barbera discography ever published and over 140 photos and illustrations!
Whether it’s Tom and Jerry, Scooby-Doo, the Jetsons, Yogi Bear, Top Cat, Huckleberry Hound, or hundreds of others, the creations of the Hanna-Barbera studio continue to delight generations worldwide. The groundbreaking company employed thousands in the art and business of animation. Some of them were vintage-era veterans, others were up-and-coming talents, some of whom found blockbuster success at other studios. The power of the sounds that Hanna-Barbera crafted to accompany the compelling visuals was a key factor in its spectacular success. Legendary vocal performances and signature sound effects evoke countless visual images. Catchy music cues and theme songs are recalled instantly.
Hanna-Barbera, the Recorded History: From Modern Stone Age to Meddling Kids chronicles, for the first time, the story of this entertainment phenomenon from one century to the next and reveals unexplored aspects of its artistry. Hanna-Barbera’s impact on the music industry is chief among these aspects. Author Greg Ehrbar chronicles the partnership between Bill Hanna, Joe Barbera, and their talented associates—and, at the same time, parallels the impact of their artistry on the recording industry. Page after page abounds with exclusive interviews, surprising facts, and previously unpublished anecdotes. Also featuring the first extensive H-B discography ever published, Hanna-Barbera, the Recorded History earns its place on the go-to shelf of every animation, music, television, and film enthusiast.
Reviews
"Drawing on an impressive array of popular and obscure cartoons, this account benefits from Ehrbar’s meticulous research and passion for the subject."
- Publishers Weekly
"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."
- The Exposure Sheet
"An often overlooked aspect of the studio is its connection the the music industry. Author Greg Ehrbar highlights the collaboration between Bill Hanna, Joe Barbera, and their talented colleagues while also sharing their impact on the recording industry as a whole. Throughout each page, readers will discover exclusive interviews, astonishing facts, and unknown anecdotes that were never published. Also, the book features the first expansive H-B discography ever, Ehrbar’s Hanna-Barbera, The Recorded History, easily secures a place in every animation, music, television and film buff’s collection."
- Laura Ashton, Animation Scoop
"Sound and music in animation is one of the most interesting but perhaps undertold stories in show business. In this remarkable book, Greg Ehrbar has gone both deep and wide, and brings the sound out from behind the scenes to stand proudly alongside the visuals. He celebrates not just the great achievements and iconic characters of Hanna-Barbera, but the voices, composers, musicians, and audio technicians who played such a huge part in their success."
- Loren Bouchard, creator of Bob’s Burgers
"I’m so glad that Greg Ehrbar has done this deep dive into H-B audio history to set the often-forgotten record straight (pun intended). No one is more qualified to tell the story."
- From the preface by Leonard Maltin, film critic and author of the Leonard Maltin's Movie Guide series
"Hanna-Barbera made records? Who knew? The answer: Greg Ehrbar, Hanna-Barbera historian extraordinaire who follows these lost tracks and uncovers a whole missing chapter in animation history. It’s a deep cut into the story of one of the world’s most successful animation studios. The TV soundtracks and theme songs, the spoken-word audio plays, and the rock ‘n’ roll—it’s all covered with expertise by Ehrbar. An overlooked piece of music and cartoon history—with smarter-than-the-average research and writing. Bravo!"
- Jerry Beck, author of The Hanna-Barbera Treasury
"What a nostalgia fest! Even cartoon fanatics will find plenty to discover within these pages—how our favorite Hanna-Barbera characters became recording stars, from the Flintstones to the Banana Splits to Josie & the Pussycats. It's all here in this thoroughly researched, fascinating history."
- Jon Burlingame, author of Music for Prime Time: A History of American Television Themes and Scoring
"For years I've had a zillion and five questions about Hanna-Barbera records and now along comes Greg Ehrbar to answer all of ’em in one fell swoop and one swell book. Nobody knows more about this kind of thing than Greg, but if you read and study this must-have volume you might be tied with me for second place."
- Mark Evanier, historian and comic book and television writer
"Hanna-Barbera, the Recorded History is an entertaining study of one of the world’s most influential and prolific creators of character-based storytelling. Scholars and fans of Hanna-Barbera and television animation will undoubtedly find this book to be an invaluable addition to their collections."
- James Bohn, author of Music in Disney’s Animated Features: “Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs” to “The Jungle Book”
"As the coauthor of Mouse Tracks, the exhaustive saga of Walt Disney Records, Greg Ehrbar brings his knowledge and enthusiasm to charting this animation studio’s history, with an emphasis on music and recordings inspired by its many TV series. This will serve as an invaluable reference guide and a happy reminder of albums and singles spring-boarded by Bill Hanna and Joe Barbera."
- Leonard Maltin, www.LeonardMaltin.com
"Hanna-Barbera, The Recorded History is a wonderful read, charting far more than just the Hanna-Barbera Records label, and not just H-B Records in general. Ehrbar tells the whole history of Bill Hanna and Joe Barbera and their partnership, tracing their younger days, meeting up at MGM, creating Tom and Jerry, and then—with the closure of the MGM cartoon unit—almost out of desperation founding what would become the largest animation company in the world. That animation studio and its characters, by the way, are very near and dear to me; and Ehrbar covers their entire history."
- Randall Cyrenne, Animated Views