Arabian Nights

## Video

"**Arabian Nights**" is the opening song from *Aladdin*, with music by Alan Menken and lyrics by Howard Ashman which was performed by the Peddler (singing voice by the late Bruce Adler). Howard Ashman and Alan Menken had written several reprises, but they were ultimately cut from the final film.

An alternate version of the song utilizing lyrics from the original demo was later featured in *The Return of Jafar*, performed by Brian Hannan. This version was also used as the main titles theme for the *Aladdin* television series.

*Aladdin and the King of Thieves* features a reprise performed by Bruce Adler as the Peddler, which was originally recorded for the first film.

## Lyrics

* 1992 version
* TV series
* King of Thieves
* Broadway
* 2019 version

Oh, I come from a land, from a faraway place

Where the caravan camels roam

Where it's flat and immense

and the heat is intense

It's barbaric, but hey, it's home

When the wind's from the east

And the sun's from the west

And the sand in the glass is right

Come on down, stop on by

Hop a carpet and fly

to another Arabian night

Arabian nights like Arabian days

More often than not

are hotter than hot

in a lot of good ways

Arabian nights 'neath Arabian moons

A fool off his guard

could fall and fall hard

out there on the dunes

Follow me to a place

where incredible feats

are routine every hour or so

Where enchantment runs rampant

Yes, wild in the streets

Open Sesame, here we go!

Arabian nights like Arabian days

They tease and excite

Take off and take flight

They shock and amaze

Arabian nights like Arabian days

More often than not

are hotter than hot

in a lot of good ways

Pack your shield, pack your sword

You won't ever get bored

Though get beaten or gored, you might

Come on down, stop on by

Hop a carpet and fly

to another Arabian night

So it goes, short and sweet

They were wed down the street

May their marriage be truly blessed

Happy end to the tale

And tomorrow's a sale

So I'd better go home and rest

Here's a kiss and a hug

Sure you don't need a rug?

I assure the price is right

Well, salaam, worthy friend

Come back soon, that's the end

Till another Arabian night

<poem>
**Genie:** *(spoken)* Salaam and good evening to you all dear friends
Welcome to the fabled city of Agrabah
City of flying carpets, soaring heroes, famous love ballads, and more glitz and glamour than any other fictional city in the world!

*(sung)* Oh, I come from a land, from a faraway place
Where the caravan camels roam
Where it's flat and immense
and the heat is intense
It's barbaric, but hey, it's home

When the wind's from the east
and the sun's from the west
and the sand in the glass is right
Come on down, stop on by
Hop a carpet and fly
to another Arabian night

*(spoken)* And of course you know what Agrabah is famous for
This magical lamp
Don't be fooled by its commonplace appearance
Like so many things it is not what on the outside, but what's on the inside that counts,
This lamp put Agrabah on the map
You've never been?
We can fix that!

*(sung)* Follow me to a place
where incredible feats
are routine every hour or so
Where enchantment runs rampant
Runs wild in the streets
Open Sesame, here we go!

See the dervishes dance
in ridiculous pants
And romance to your hearts delight

**Genie and Company:**
Come on down (Come on in)
Let the magic begin
It's another Arabian nights

Arabian nights, like Arabian days
More often than not
are hotter than hot
in a lot of good ways

Arabian nights, 'neath Arabian moons
a fool off his guard
could fall and fall hard
out there on the dunes

**Soloist:**
In that magical land
that mystical place
there's a genie inside of every door

**Men:**
He'll do all of your bidding
Your wishes command

**Genie:**
It's demeaning, but hey, there you are!

**Ladies:**
Unbelievable, yes
And an ethical mess

**Ensemble:**
None the less
No ones very contrite

You come here and you come to a land where any mountain can move
A land of high intrigue
with tricky logistics
by prophets and mystics

**Genie:**
And I've got statistics that prove

**All:**
Arabian nights
Arabian nights

*(dance break)*

**Genie:**
(spoken) Agrabah, Come for the hummus, stay for the floor show
Even the poor people look fabulous
And everyone here has a minor in dance

And now for the softer side of Agrabah!

*(harem dance)*

**All:**
Arabian nights
Arabian nights

**Genie:**
And of course you must watch your step here in Agrabah
For danger lurks around every corner
And ugly bad guys, too.

**All:**
Arabian nights
**Genie:**
It's a city where a penniless nobody
Can turn out to be a noble somebody

**All:**
Arabian nights
**Genie:**
It's a place where a princess would give up her crown for true love
But her father, the Sultan is a stickler for the ancient ways
And our heroes pals are as thick as thieves
Adorable... but thieves

And oh, did I mention,
Everybody sings!

**Full Company:**
Arabian nights like Arabian days
More often than not
are hotter than hot
in a lot of good ways

Arabian nights 'neath Arabian moons
A fool off his guard
Could fall and fall hard
Out there on the dunes

Arabian nights
Arabian nights
Arabian nights

Arabian nights!

**Genie (Mariner):**

Oh, imagine a land, it's a faraway place

Where the caravan camels roam

Where you wander among

Every culture and tongue

It's chaotic, but hey, it's home

When the wind's from the east

And the sun's from the west

And the sand in the glass is right

Come on down, stop on by

Hop a carpet and fly

To another Arabian night

As you wind through the streets at the fabled bazaars

With the cardamom-cluttered stalls

You can smell every spice

While you haggle the price

Of the silks and the satin shawls

Oh, the music that plays

As you move through a maze

In the haze of your pure delight

You are caught in a dance

You are lost in the trance

Of another Arabian night

Arabian nights

Like Arabian days

More often than not

Are hotter than hot

In a lot of good ways

Arabian nights

Like Arabian dreams

This mystical land

Of magic and sand

Is more than it seems

There's a road that may lead you

To good or to greed through

The power your wishing commands

Let the darkness unfold

Or find fortunes untold

Well, your destiny lies in your hands

**Cave of Wonders:** *(spoken)* Only one may enter here.

One whose worth lies far within.

A diamond in the rough.

**Genie (Mariner):**

Arabian nights

Like Arabian days

They seem to excite

Take off and take flight

To shock and amaze

*Continued in the film version:*

**Cave of Wonders:** *(spoken)* Seek thee out the diamond in the rough.

**Genie (Mariner):**

Arabian nights

'Neath Arabian moons

A fool off his guard

Could fall and fall hard

Out there on the dunes

### Deleted Reprises

Howard Ashman and Alan Menken's 1990 score treatment incorporated several reprises sung by The Genie of the Ring, who served as the story's narrator in the original treatment (although under the guise of the Peddler). The first reprise introduces The Wicked Wazir (later to be named Jafar) as the story's main antagonist. The second is sung as Wazir takes Aladdin to The Cave of Wonders posing as his uncle. The third plays as someone – presumably Aladdin – is locked in the dungeon, awaiting death. For the fourth and final reprise, The Genie of the Ring bids the audience farewell; this reprise was sung by The Peddler at the end of King of Thieves.

* Reprise One
* Reprise Two
* Reprise Three
* Reprise Four

In the palace, right here

Lived a wicked vizier

The adviser to Sultan Hamed

And this part-time magician

This amateur seer

Wished his boss, the good sultan, dead

He was charming and slick

But unspeakably sick

This despicable parasite

What a villain, boo hiss

Further proof, dears, that this

Is another Arabian night

A contemptible skunk

Was this counterfeit "Unc"

But Aladdin he led, alas

On a journey insane

Through forbidden terrain

To a desolate mountain pass

And the trip that they had

Was so bad for our lad

That he gradually got uptight

And suspected, guess what

This was possibly not

Just another Arabian night

What a room, what a stink

This is doom, don't you think?

As the hours of the night crawl past

You've got rats in your cell

But you'll live with the smell

Till the dawn, when you'll breathe your last

Every tick of the clock

Says get set for the block

And the shock of your awful plight

You should sleep, but you don't

'cause you know that you won't

See another Arabian night

<poem>
So it goes, short and sweet
Now they live down the street
Doing just what they all do best
Happy end to the tale
And tomorrow's a sale
So I'd better go home and rest

Here's a kiss and a hug
Sure you don't need a rug?
I assure you the price is right
Well, salaam, worthy friend
Come back soon, that's the end

Till another Arabian night
## Videos

The Return of Jafar - Arabian Nights (English)Aladdin & The King of Thieves - Arabian Nights Ending (1080p)Will Smith - Arabian Nights (2019) (From "Aladdin" Audio Only)
## Trivia

* When the film was first released to cinemas, the line, "Where it's flat and immense and the heat is intense" was originally "Where they cut off your ear if they don't like your face". Due to the line being offensive, it was changed shortly after being released. It is unknown whether Menken or lyricist Tim Rice wrote that extra lyric, seeing how it was never heard in the original demo. The original lyric is only heard on the first soundtrack, while the Special Edition soundtrack retains the intended lyric. In the live-action version, the line is now "Where you wander among every culture and tongue."
* In the Broadway musical and the 2019 live-action remake, the song is sung by Genie instead of the Peddler (even though it is hinted that they are both the same character).
* A parody of the song is seen on the playlist of Judy Hopps' music player under the name "Ara-bunny Nights" in *Zootopia*.
* The melody for the song can be heard in the teaser for the live-action remake. In the final film, the original lyrics were changed in order to tone down some references to violence. Two lyrics for that version were even sourced from *The Return of Jafar* version.
* The *King of Thieves* version is a slightly different re-working of the deleted fourth reprise; the lyrics were altered to reflect changes made to the stories (mostly Aladdin living in the palace after his wedding, contrary to an early version where Jasmine would give up her status as a princess and come live with Aladdin in the end, reflected by the original lyric "Now they live down the street").