Sleeping Beauty, with an allstar assist, is excellent. Jungle Book and Snow White are also full of good songs. The title of “best” is a tossup between Little Mermaid, Beauty and the Beast, and Aladdin.
Mermaid has perfection in the form of “Part of Your World,” two show-stoppers sung by a crab, and the best villain song ever, “Poor Unfortunate Souls.”
Beauty and the Beast is a masterpiece, filled with things like “Belle,” a showcase of masterful exposition, and “Something There” also highlighting how one uses songs to move the plot. Add in a couple other Oscar nominated songs and “Gaston,” and you’ve got a hit.
Aladdin, with “One Jump Ahead,” and Genie’s two numbers, and a great duet ballad, hits all the right notes. The score is great, too.
For me Hunchback was a mediocre film but I always thought the soundtrack was one of the strongest Disney ones. The Bells of Notre Dame and Heavens Light/Hellfire are both stunning in my opinion.
I’ll always have a soft spot for Beauty and the Beast too. Possibly my favourite Disney film.
I still have The Lion King CD out in my car, and I still listen to it once in a while. I love that movie and even went to see it in the IMAX theater. I wish I had Aladdin but I lost it and can’t seem to remember to buy another one at the used records and CDs store.
pretty much word for word my feeling on the hunchback soundtrack. it’s too bad hunchback was such a misfire. it does some things very well(the hellfire sequence, the climactic “sanctuary!” scene), but it wasn’t consistent.
i would have to call beauty and the beast, the little mermaid, and aladdin a 3 way tie as well. beauty and the beast is not only my favorite disney film but one of my favorite films ever, but the other two are just as strong. i just sat here and tried to think of a song from any of those three that i don’t know backwards and forwards (“friend like me?” yep, know it “kiss the girl?” yep, know it “gaston?” yep, know it etc) and it can’t be done.
i don’t include the lion king in this because i actually think the soundtrack is a little bit overrated. be prepared and circle of life are great, but it has probably the most obnoxious “i want” song of all of them (“i just can’t wait to be king”), and the rest? “can you feel the love tonight?” eh. “hakuna matata?” catchy, but eh. i actually enjoy the soundtrack to the lion king on broadway a lot more because they added some really good songs. ('he lives in you" “shadowlands” and “endless night”)
i’m going to give an honorable mention to pocahontas because i really like “colors of the wind” even though it’s preachy.
robin hood has what, like 3 songs? they’re not bad, though. the love song is kind of eh, but “not in nottingham” is really good. depressing as hell, but good.
i’ve always liked the bare necessities, too. very catchy.
Lady and the Tramp, if only for its Peggy Lee cred.
If you’re looking for a compilation disc, check out **Stay Awake **, a late 80s Hal Willner project pairing classic Disney tunes with the edgiest performers of the era. Sort of like Simply Mad About the Mouse, but with hipper artists.
I think Tarzan would only have an argument in that the soundtrack is more standalone than the other soundtracks. “Strangers Like Me” and “Trashing the Camp” are more universal than say, “Friend Like Me”, “Under the Sea”, or “Gaston” even though I think those 3 are the better songs.
I too want to give Hercules a tip of the hat. Fun songs.
Personally my favorite Disney song is Oliver & Co.'s “Why Should I Worry” and the best soundtrack is “Mulan” but I could definitely see the case for many others.
The lack of love for Jungle Book here is very disheartening. “I Wanna Be Like You” should be a winner all on its own but “Bare Necessities” and “Trust in Me” are both high quality songs. The elephants’ marching song and the girl’s song at the end are less interesting but not bad by any means.
It’s not the best in any way, but there are some really good songs in Song of the South, not only Zip-A-Dee-Doo-Dah, but “Laughing Place”, “Dat’s What Uncle Remus Says” and one or two others (plus a crappy-ass, painfully dull ballad). It’s not top 10, but it’s surprisingly good.
Aw, I LOVE the elephants marching song! When we used to go on a hike as a family we’d sing it, walking along - at least starting out.
I saw on youtube a male stripper from the 80’s named Joe Sex, singing Bare Necessities while dressed in a loincloth (he’s dead now, but was as cute as a button in the video). Tha’s what I’m picturing now when I hear B.N.
Beauty and the Beast, no question about it. A lovely piece of work from start to finish. Even the “non song” portions wonderfully complement the movie and what’s going on the screen.
And I don’t get the EJ comment - it only makes sense in a context where The Lion King is the first-ever Disney animated movie.
But Perfect Isn’t Easy is great, too. Come on, you’ve got the birds singing and assisting Georgette the show poodle in her toilette. I’ll grant you, there’s no puffball kitty in PIE, and I can’t resist puffball kittens.
- at least starting out.