Published on May 1, 1999
If you’re reading this review on the date it actually ran, you
might hear the sounds of a birthday party going on in the
background. My daughter turned three years old yesterday, and we’re
holding her party the day after so all the relatives could come and
celebrate with our little princess. (It also gives Daddy – who is
seriously out of shape – time to recover from our trip to Discovery
Zone on Friday. I swear, they design those things so the parents
get more of a workout than the kids.)
What better time, then, to head to the “in” basket of the Pierce
Memorial Archives and fish out
Disney’s Princess Collection, Vol. 2? Basically a
compilation of love songs and tracks centered around some of the
female lead characters in numerous Disney movies, this collection
tries to fill in gaps left by the collection’s previous volume
while working in some of the newer songs from their ever-growing
library.
Some of the selections are wise choices, such as the inclusion
of “Reflection” from
Mulan (I still have a hard time believing this track is less
than two minutes long), “I Won’t Say (I’m In Love)” from
Hercules and “Kiss The Girl” from
The Little Mermaid (another song that surprised me at its
brevity).
Others I found a little more questionable. When I think of
timeless Disney songs, the name of Gilbert Gottfried doesn’t
exactly come to mind. Yet here he is, as the voice of Iago, on the
song “Forget About Love” (from
The Return Of Jafar). While it makes some sense once Liz
Callaway (the singing voice of Jasmine) comes into the picture,
it’s still not a track I would have immediately thought of for this
collection.
Likewise, the version of “Can You Feel The Love Tonight” from
The Lion King is… well, I would have much preferred to
have heard Elton John’s version, but I admit to having some bias in
this case. Finally, including one song not featured in a movie or
Broadway play – “There’s Only One Ariel” from
Songs From The Sea) – seems a tad suspect to me. The track
itself isn’t anything to write home about.
I guess what surprised me about
Disney’s Princess Collection Vol. 2 was what they
didn’t include. “Baby Mine” from
Dumbo would have been a nice track (though at its stage in
the movie, it hardly qualifies as “music of hopes, dreams and happy
endings” as the cover art defines these songs). Possibly including
“My Own Home” (from
The Jungle Book) or “Bella Notte” (from
Lady And The Tramp) could have been nice touches. (I’ll let
you fill in your own wish list.)
Disney’s Princess Collection Vol. 2 is still an album that
your own little princesses will undoubtedly enjoy, especially if
they’re familiar with the movies that most of these songs come
from. But I still can’t help but wonder what this album could have
been with the addition of just a few more songs.