Crowe Boys Give Classic Toy Story Tune a Folksy Makeover

Randy Newman's hit song "You've Got a Friend in Me" is flawless, but this folk rendition might be the best cover of the cult classic yet.

The Toy Story movies were a huge part of my early childhood. Growing up in the early 2000s, I vividly remember my parents renting VHS copies of Toy Story (1995) and Toy Story 2 (1999) at the local video store. I believe I even had a copy of Classic Disney, Vol. 3: 60 Years of Musical Magic (1996) on CD, which featured the song "You've Got a Friend in Me" from the films. The song has always been one of my favorites, and it's even been covered by several big-name artists over the years.

The History of "You've Got a Friend in Me"

According to Song Facts, Randy Newman wrote and recorded "You've Got a Friend in Me" for Pixar's first installment of Toy Story in 1995. The song was later nominated for an Academy Award for Best Original Song but lost to "Colors Of The Wind" from Pocahontas (1995), which, to be fair, is another great classic. In 2013, Michael Bublé covered Newman's hit, which peaked at #10 on the Adult Contemporary chart. The song has also been covered by George Jones with Kathy Mattea, Kenny Loggins, Brian Wilson, and Steve Tyrell with Dr. John.

Getty Images for Disney

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"You've Got a Friend in Me" Goes Folk with the Crowe Boys

The Crowe Boys are an alternate/folk group made up of three brothers: Ocie, Jacob, and Wes Crowe. About a year ago, I discovered them on TikTok, and since then I've come to really enjoy their music. While scrolling on my "For You" page (FYP) recently, I ran across yet another video posted by the band that I couldn't ignore. It was a folksy cover of "You've Got a Friend in Me," which I really enjoyed. You can listen below.

@croweboys Just wanted to let you know that you’re amazing and you’ve got this! #toystory #youvegotafriendinme #croweboys #fyp #foryou #foryoupage ♬ original sound - Crowe Boys

This is the cover I didn't know I needed. Having been raised in a family who loved and played a lot of bluegrass music, this was certainly something that took me right back to my childhood. I also like that it's not just a cut and copy of the original with the vocals swapped out. It definitely stands out on its own, and I hope you enjoyed it as much as I did.