As Verve Music Group Chairman/producer David Foster puts it, the music from Walt Disney’s films is timeless. With that in mind, Foster spearheaded the all-star compilation album, We Love Disney, by attempting to “make it sound as if it was recorded 30 years ago or 30 years from now.”
Archive for Disney Music
Walt Disney Records Announce The Final Four Releases In The Walt Disney Records The Legacy Collection Series: “Lady And The Tramp”, “Pocahontas”, “The Aristocats”, And “Disneyland”
Walt Disney Records releases the final four installments to The Legacy Collection series. Walt Disney Records The Legacy Collection Lady and The Tramp, Pocahontas, The Aristocats, and Disneyland complete the 12-set series that launched with The Lion King in June 2014.
Each CD cover and booklet features newly created artwork from Lorelay Bove, a visual development artist at Walt Disney Animation Studios (“Big Hero 6,” “Wreck-It Ralph,” “Tangled”). Bove was recently named one of ’10 Animators to Watch’ by Variety (March 3, 2015).
The Legacy Collection Lady and The Tramp – Released to theaters on June 22, 1955, “Lady and the Tramp” was the first animated feature to be filmed in Cinemascope and its sequence of Lady and Tramp sharing a plate of spaghetti is considered an iconic scene in American film. Lady and the Tramp was named No. 95 out of the “100 Greatest Love Stories of All Time” by the American Film Institute in their 100 Years…100 Passions special, as one of only two animated films to appear on the list. In June 2011, TIME named the feature one of “The 25 All-TIME Best Animated Films.”
Disc One of The Legacy Collection Lady and the Tramp features the restored original motion picture soundtrack with songs written by Peggy Lee and Sonny Burke. Disc Two features The Lost Chords of Lady and the Tramp – a demo of “I’m Free as a Breeze” and 2 new recordings of “I’m Free as a Breeze” and “I’m Singin’ (‘Cause I Want to Sing), brought to life the way they would have sounded in 1955. Disc Two also includes 6 bonus tracks from the 1962 vinyl release Lady and the Tramp: All the Songs from the Motion Picture (Disneyland Records) featuring studio singers.
The Legacy Collection Pocahontas – The label honors the soundtrack from Disney’s first full-length animated feature film based on historical fact with the 20th anniversary release of Walt Disney Records The Legacy Collection Pocahontas released on August 7, 2015. In 1995 the music won Academy Awards® for Best Song (“Colors of the “Wind”) and Best Score (Alan Menken) in addition to a Grammy® for “Colors of the Wind” (Alan Menken and Stephen Schwartz) for Best Song Written Specifically for a Motion Picture or for Television.
The Pocahontas collection features the songs and score from the film on Disc One. Disc Two includes the end credit tracks “Colors of the Wind” performed by Vanessa Williams and “If I Never Knew You” performed by Jon Secada and Shanice, plus songs and score cut from the film including Mel Gibson and Judy Kuhn’s version of “If I Never Knew You,” plus 3 demos. Also included are liner notes by Dave Bossert (Producer/Creative Director, Walt Disney Animation Studios), plus original concept art and a 20-page collectible booklet.
The Legacy Collection The Aristocats – The last film project approved by Walt Disney before his death in 1966, “The Aristocats” features the voices of Eva Gabor, Hermione Baddeley, Phil Harris, Dean Clark, Sterling Holloway, Scatman Crothers, and Roddy Maude-Roxby. The 20th animated feature was originally released to theaters by Buena Vista Distribution on December 11, 1970.
Disc One features the songs and score from the film including the title song written by Robert and Richard Sherman and performed by Maurice Chevalier, plus score composed by George Bruns. Disc One liner notes were written by two-time GRAMMY® nominee Greg Ehrbar, co-author of Mouse Tracks: The Story of Walt Disney Records with Tim Hollis. Disc Two features The Lost Chords of The Aristocats (4 demos and 4 newly recorded and fully orchestrated versions of those demos), 5 bonus tracks, plus liner notes by author Russell Schroeder and Producer’s Note by Randy Thornton.
The Legacy Collection Disneyland explores the rich past behind songs and attractions past and present. Beginning with the recordings from the opening day of Disneyland in 1955, the collection guides the listener down Main Street U.S.A., through the greatest attractions, shows and lands that exist today and those that are a happy memory.
Discs One and Two cover the lands beginning with Main Street U.S.A., Adventureland, Frontierland, New Orleans Square, Critter Country, Fantasyland, Mickey’s Toontown and Tomorrowland, plus 5 songs from Disney California Adventure Park. Disc Three features an additional 12 songs from Disney California Adventure Park, plus music from “The Main Street Electrical Parade” and “Fantasmic!”
The liner notes provide extensive historical background by writer Stacia Martin, a 37-year veteran of the Walt Disney Company and Disney Historian, who oversees special projects for many divisions of the company including Walt Disney World, Walt Disney Imagineering and Walt Disney Records.
Walt Disney Records The Legacy Collection series is available at Disney Music Emporium: disneymusicemporium.com. For more information on the Disney Music Emporium, please visit DisneyMusicEmporium.com, become a fan at Facebook.com/disneymusicemporium or follow us at Twitter.com/DisneyMusicEmp.
Disney’s Descendants Soundtrack Debuts At No. 1 On The Billboard 200
Walt Disney Records’ soundtrack to Disney Channel’s hit movie “Descendants” debuts at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 chart after scanning 42,000 units (includes TEA and SEA) in its first week of release, according to Nielsen SoundScan. The soundtrack marks the 5th Disney Music Group album in 7 weeks to debut in the Top 10 (Teen Beach 2, Breaking Benjamin, R5 and Bea Miller).
In addition to its chart-topping Billboard debut, the album ranked No. 1 on Billboard’s Soundtrack chart, No. 1 on the Children’s chart and No. 1 on both the Digital Album and Top Albums charts. The album also fast-tracked its way to No. 1 on the iTunes Album Overall and Soundtrack charts. Additionally, combined views for all videos on VEVO exceed 25 million, and the focus track “Rotten to the Core” has over 12.7 million views to date.
Disney Channel’s premiere and encore telecasts of “Descendants” reached 15.5 million Total Viewers, including over 6 million Kids 6-11 and nearly 5 million Tweens 9-14. Friday’s July 31st premiere telecast was TV’s #1 cable movie of 2015 with 6.6 million Total Viewers. Its availability on the WATCH Disney Channel App resulted in 1.4 million record-setting views since Friday, July 24.
Disney’s “Descendants” stars Dove Cameron, Cameron Boyce, Booboo Stewart and Sofia Carson as the teenage sons and daughters of Disney’s most infamous villains. With a knowing wink at traditional fairy tales, the live-action movie fuses castles with classrooms to create a contemporary, music-driven story about the challenges in living up to parental and peer expectations. The notable cast also includes Mitchell Hope, Wendy Raquel Robinson, Maz Jobrani, Kathy Najimy and the Tony Award-winning Kristin Chenoweth. Emmy Award-winning Kenny Ortega (“High School Musical”) directs, choreographs and executive-produces Disney’s “Descendants.”
In addition to songs performed in the film and the end credit song “Believe” by Shawn Mendes, the soundtrack also includes bonus tracks from the recently announced short-form series “Descendants Wicked World.” The four original dance songs include a retro-soul “Rotten to the Core” remix performed by Sofia Carlson; “Night Is Young” performed by China Anne McClain; “Good Is the New Bad” performed by Dove Cameron, Sofia Caron and China Anne McClain; and “I’m Your Girl” performed by Felicia Barton.
Disney’s Descendants soundtrack was released on July 31st and is now available HERE and wherever music is sold. For more information on Walt Disney Records’ releases, become a fan at Facebook.com/disneymusic, follow us at Twitter.com/disneymusic and https://instagram.com/disneymusic/.
Verve Records & Walt Disney Records Team Up To Release Compilation Album We Love Disney, Due October 2015
In a unique collaboration between Verve Records and Walt Disney Records, the two esteemed labels have teamed up to present the compilation album We Love Disney, which will be released in October 2015. The compilation features the hottest artists from across the pop, rock, R&B, and country worlds delivering their own unique interpretations of classic Disney songs. The album was produced by multi-platinum, Grammy® Award-winning producer and Verve Music Group Chairman David Foster.
“When the opportunity arose to partner with Walt Disney Records, I jumped on it,” says Foster. “The Disney franchise is something that brings out the kid in all of us. No matter how old you are, 3 or 103, when you hear the word ‘Disney’ you light up from within. And there isn’t a person on the planet who doesn’t have a favorite Disney song. We tapped into that passion with all of the artists on the album. I tried to make the songs timeless so you couldn’t tell whether they were recorded 30 years ago or 30 years from now. The Disney catalog is so amazing. You have so many songs to pick from, going back almost 80 years now. So it’s an endless treasure and one of the most rewarding projects that I’ve ever done — and I’ve done a lot of stuff.”
The artists and songs that will be featured on We Love Disney will be announced in the coming weeks.
Walt Disney Records’ Teen Beach 2 Soundtrack Debuts In The Top 10 On The Billboard 200
Walt Disney Records’ soundtrack to the hit Disney Channel Original Movie “Teen Beach 2” debuts at No. 10 on the Billboard 200 chart after scanning 24,000 units (includes TEA and SEA) in its first week of release, according to Nielsen SoundScan.
In addition to its Top 10 Billboard debut, the album ranked No. 1 on Billboard’s Soundtrack chart, No. 1 on the Children’s chart and No. 7 on both the Digital Album and Top Albums charts. The album also fast tracked its way to No. 1 on the iTunes Soundtrack chart and was No. 6 on the Album Overall chart.
Disney Channel’s premiere and encore telecasts of “Teen Beach 2” reached 13.3 million Total Viewers, including 4.4 million Kids 6-11 and 4.2 million Tweens 9-14. Friday’s premiere telecast was TV’s #1 movie year to-date with 7.5 million Total Viewers, 3.2 million Kids 6-11 and 2.8 million Tweens 9-14. Its availability on the WATCH Disney Channel App resulted in nearly 1 million views.
A fantastical music- and dance-driven story designed for kids, tweens and families, “Teen Beach 2” picks up at the close of summer. With surf season over and high school back in session, laid-back Brady and studious Mack’s relationship is headed for a wipeout when they receive a surprise real-world visit from their 1960s silver screen friends, Lela and Tanner, who have remarkably departed “Wet Side Story,” quickly followed by their 1960s bikers and surfer friends led by Butchy, Cheechee and Seacat. Knowing first-hand that the “real” world and the movie world don’t mix, Mack, Brady and all of the “Wet Side Story” friends must quickly devise a plan and use the magic of Lela’s necklace to get everyone back to their movie world before it’s too late.
The Teen Beach 2 soundtrack was released on June 23rd and is available at iTunes http://smarturl.it/tb2a1 and wherever music is sold. For more information on Walt Disney Records’ releases, become a fan at Facebook.com/disneymusic or follow us at Twitter.com/disneymusic.
Teen Beach 2 Soundtrack Available On Walt Disney Records June 22
On June 23, Walt Disney Records is set to release the surf-rock/pop soundtrack for “Teen Beach 2,” the highly anticipated surf and song sequel to “Teen Beach Movie,” the Disney Channel Original Movie that ranks as the second highest-rated cable television movie of all time. “Teen Beach 2” premieres Friday, June 26 (8:00 p.m., ET/PT) on Disney Channel U.S. followed by telecasts on Disney Channels around the world.
Currently available for pre-order at iTunes and the newly launched site www.DisneyChannelMusicStore.com, the soundtrack includes a blend of contemporary- and 1960s-inspired songs performed by the cast, an end credit song performed by Hollywood Records’ artist R5, one song performed by Hollywood Records’ artist Sabrina Carpenter, three bonus tracks and a radio version of Ross Lynch’s “On My Own” (written by Grammy Award-winning songwriter Evan Bogart, Riker Lynch, Rocky Lynch, Ross Lynch and Ellington Ratliff).
A fantastical music- and dance-driven story designed for kids, tweens and families, “Teen Beach 2” picks up at the close of summer. With surf season over and high school back in session, laid-back Brady and studious Mack’s relationship is headed for a wipeout when they receive a surprise real-world visit from their 1960s silver screen friends, Lela and Tanner, who have remarkably departed “Wet Side Story,” quickly followed by their 1960s bikers and surfer friends led by Butchy, Cheechee and Seacat. Knowing first-hand that the “real” world and the movie world don’t mix, Mack, Brady and all of the “Wet Side Story” friends must quickly devise a plan and use the magic of Lela’s necklace to get everyone back to their movie world before it’s too late.
Reprising their singing and dancing roles are the multi-talented young cast, including Ross Lynch (“Austin & Ally” and Hollywood Records’ R5) as Brady, Maia Mitchell (“The Fosters”) as McKenzie (“Mack”), Grace Phipps (“Baby Daddy”) as Lela, Garrett Clayton (“The Fosters”) as Tanner, John DeLuca (“Twisted”) as Butchy, Jordan Fisher (Hollywood Records recording artist) as Seacat, Mollee Gray (“So You Think You Can Dance”) as Giggles, Chrissie Fit (“Pitch Perfect 2”) as Cheechee, Jessica Lee Keller (“Dancing with the Stars”) as Struts, William Loftis (“Teen Beach Movie”) as Lugnut, and Kent Boyd (“So You Think You Can Dance”) as Rascal. Joining the cast are Piper Curda (“I Didn’t Do It”) as Alyssa, Raymond Cham, Jr. (“Jessie”) as Devon and Ross Butler (“K.C. Undercover”) as Spencer.
Teen Beach Movie track list follows:
- “Best Summer Ever” Ross Lynch, Maia Mitchell, Garrett Clayton, Grace Phipps, John DeLuca, Jordan Fisher and Chrissie Fit
- “On My Own” Ross Lynch
- “Right Where I Wanna Be” Garrett Clayton and Grace Phipps
- “Falling for Ya” Jordan Fisher and Chrissie Fit
- “Wanna Be With You” Jordan Fisher
- “Twist Your Frown Upside Down” Ross Lynch, Maia Mitchell, Garrett Clayton and Grace Phipps
- “Silver Screen” Ross Lynch and Maia Mitchell
- “Rescue Me” Sabrina Carpenter
- “Gotta Be Me” Ross Lynch, Maia Mitchell, Garrett Clayton, Grace Phipps, John DeLuca and Jordan Fisher
- “Meant to Be (Reprise 3)” Ross Lynch, Maia Mitchell, Garrett Clayton and Grace Phipps
- “That’s How We Do” Ross Lynch, Maia Mitchell, Garrett Clayton, Grace Phipps, John DeLuca and Jordan Fisher
- “Starting Over” R5
Bonus Tracks:
- “On My Own” (Radio Version) Ross Lynch
- “Best Summer Ever” (Instrumental Only)
- “Gotta Be Me” (Instrumental Only)
Additional bonus content includes 3 instructional Dance-Along videos with the “Teen Beach 2” choreographer available exclusively on the physical CD (internet connection required).
The Teen Beach Movie soundtrack will be available wherever music is sold on June 22nd. For more information on Walt Disney Records’ releases become a fan at Facebook.com/disneymusic or follow us at Twitter.com/disneymusic.
Disney’s “Descendants” Soundtrack Available On Walt Disney Records July 31
Walt Disney Records will release the soundtrack for Disney’s “Descendants” on Friday, July 31, the day the eagerly-anticipated movie premieres on Disney Channel (8:00 p.m. ET/PT). The soundtrack pre-order is available now HERE. It features the single “Believe,” performed and written by 16 year-old recording artist Shawn Mendes (Island Records) and original songs performed by the “Descendants” cast, plus bonus tracks and a score suite.
On Tuesday, June 16, Shawn Mendes’ “Believe” single will be available as a song purchase or free with the purchase of the “Descendants” soundtrack at select digital retailers. The song will premiere in the U.S. and Canada, Monday, June 15 (4:00 p.m., PT) on Radio Disney.
Disney’s “Descendants” stars Dove Cameron, Cameron Boyce, Booboo Stewart and Sofia Carson as the teenage sons and daughters of Disney’s most infamous villains. With a knowing wink at traditional fairy tales, the live-action movie fuses castles with classrooms to create a contemporary, music-driven story about the challenges in living up to parental and peer expectations. The notable cast also includes Mitchell Hope, Wendy Raquel Robinson, Maz Jobrani, Kathy Najimy and the Tony Award-winning Kristin Chenoweth. Emmy Award-winning Kenny Ortega (“High School Musical”) directs, choreographs and executive-produces Disney’s “Descendants.”
The movie’s soundtrack showcases a broad range of music — from the opening number, a pulsating electronic dance song “Rotten to the Core,” and the percussion dance number “Did I Mention?” written by Grammy® and Emmy® Award winner Adam Schlesinger, to the stirring ballad “If Only” written by Adam Anders (“Glee”) and performed by Dove Cameron, and the finale anthem “Set It Off.” It also features a hip-hop a capella take on “Be Our Guest” (from Disney’s “Beauty & the Beast”) and the showstopper, a comedic Broadway-esque tune “Evil Like Me” written by Tony® Award nominee Andrew Lippa (Broadway’s “The Addams Family,” “The Wild Party”) and performed by “Descendants” stars Kristin Chenoweth and Dove Cameron. A bonus track reprises “Rotten to the Core” performed by the movie’s Sofia Carson.
Disney’s “Descendants” marks another connection between Disney and Shawn Mendes who last year was named Radio Disney’s “Next Big Thing” and thrilled audiences with his performances at the 2015 Radio Disney Music Awards and the Radio Disney Family VIP Birthday on Disney Channel. His debut album, Handwritten (April 2015) entered the Billboard 200 chart at No.1. This summer, he will perform on select dates of Taylor Swift’s North American stadium concert, The 1989 World Tour.
Disney’s “Descendants” track list:
1. Rotten to the Core Performed by Dove Cameron, Sofia Carson, Cameron Boyce and Booboo Stewart
2. Evil Like Me Performed by Kristin Chenoweth and Dove Cameron
3. Did I Mention Performed by Jeff Lewis, Mitchell Hope
4. If Only Performed by Dove Cameron
5. Be Our Guest Performed by Mitchell Hope,Spencer Lee, Kala Balch, Marco Marinangeli
6. If Only (Reprise) Performed by Dove Cameron
7. Set It Off Performed by Dove Cameron, Sofia Carson, Cameron Boyce, Booboo Stewart, Mitchell Hope, Sarah Jeffrey and Jeff Lewis
8. Believe Performed by Shawn Mendes
Bonus Tracks
9. Rotten to the Core Performed by Sofia Carson
10. Night Is Young Performed by China Anne McClain
11. Good Is the New Bad Performed by Dove Cameron, Sofia Carson and China Anne McClain
12. I’m Your Girl Performed by Felicia Barton
13. Descendants Score Suite Performed by David Lawrence
The Descendants soundtrack will be available wherever music is sold on July 31, 2015.
For more information on Walt Disney Records’ releases, become a fan at Facebook.com/disneymusic or follow us at Twitter.com/disneymusic.
Video – Evolution of Disney by Todrick Hall
Check out this video featuring the Evolution of Disney through songs performed by Todrick Hall.
20 Disney villain songs ranked
Sunday’s two-hour Once Upon a Time finale is all about villains trying to finally achieve their happy endings. Specifically, we’re talking Disney villains, a gang of throne-usurpers and puppy-murderers who are generally a lot more sympathetic on Once than they were in their original incarnations.
