[.ca] Hercules

The Gospel Truth!:
A mixed bag of a soundtrack to be sure, from an enjoyable movie that never fully realizes its golden potential. Both soundtrack and movie make exciting stylistic departures from the usual Disney fare, only to stop short at pivotal moments. Lots of buildup without full payoff. "Go The Distance" lacks the emotional oomph required of a signature tune. "I Won't Say" is a bland and unsatisfying showcase for the spicy Megara (particularly when considering Susan Egan's wonderful charm and talent). And "One Last Hope" is given a hopelessly boring treatment by the all-too-identifiable Danny DeVito. YET THE MUSES REDEEM THE WHOLE AFFAIR. Using a "Greek chorus" of five black goddesses to sing the story was a stroke of genius (and a welcome injection of color to the Disney catalog.) Not only are their gospel-inflected songs the wittiest and most dynamic of the whole batch, but their vocal performances simply blow the lid off. Find two Disney songs that are more clever, heartfelt, and rousing than "Zero To Hero" and "A Star Is Born" and I'll eat this review. BRAVO!

Lacks Appeal:
I bought it because I remembered how good the music was in the movie. I guess my memory was that good after all. The highlights of this CD are the songs sung by the Muses (A Great Gospel Shakedown). Everything else about this Soundtrack just didn't hit the mark. Susan Egan sounded awful (and i thought that was hard for her to do). Overall, the score is still not bad, but since most people would buy this CD for the vocals, I must say that it is a disappointment. Buy The Aladdin Soundtrack to remember what good Disney Music and vocals sound like.

Best Menken music ever:
The title says everything. Hercules features the most wonderful music you can imagine. Even The Little Mermaid can't top Hercules!

Another Good Menken Soundtrack for Disney:
It is a shame that this soundtrack kind of went by in silence. Alan Menken did a great job with this score and the songs. What surprised me was Michael Bolton's vocals that I really liked on "Go the Distance." Bolton finally sang a song that actually matched that slightly arrogant style of vocalizing that he is famous for. This movie really benefited from it. Bolton turns that arrogant style around and uses it as a plea from the young Hercules in Disney Productions' interpretation of the character. Perceived as a foul-up in adolescence, Hercules reaching manhood wishes to prove himself the hero he yearns to be. Bolton's rendition is brilliant and Hercules really does Go the Distance. Go for this soundtrack.

A Star Is Born:
There is only one thing you need to know about this soundtrack and that's - gospel. It's what makes this a soundtrack you have to own. Without the gospel influenced songs this would've been just a mediocore effort, but with the high flying tunes this soundtrack soars to greatness! The Gospel Truth parts 1-3 start things off slowly, explaining the back story and just hinting at the fun to follow. Soon though, you'll be bouncing off the walls, dancing around the room and singing at the top of your lungs to "Zero to Hero", "A Star Is Born", and "I Won't Say (I'm In Love)". These have got to be the most energetic songs in a Disney film ever! You simply CAN'T sit still when listening to them. And what's even better is that they're each teaching a small (but important)life lesson, yet never feel preachy. What keeps me from giving 5 stars are the ho-hum "One Last Hope" and the painful "Go The Distance". I just find them to be cliched, been-there-done-that kind of songs. There just wasn't any sparkle, but I actually thought the music for "Go The Distance" was done very well, it's just the lyrics that killed it for me. Let's not even mention the Michael Bolton version of "Go The Distance" ok. As for the score it's pretty good, but doesn't pack the emotional wallop that say Lion King, Pocahontas or Hunchback of Notre Dame had. The action packed cues are the most fun and are non stop bombast. The cues that go for more emotion just fall flat. So if you love to have a great time, and gospel gets you going you can't go wrong with this soundtrack. The gospel songs more than make up for any low points elsewhere. "Who put the GLAD in gladiator? Hercules!"

• Long Ago...
• The Gospel Truth I/Main Titles
• The Gospel Truth ll
• The Gospel Truth lll
• Go The Distance
• Oh Mighty Zeus
• Go The Distance (Reprise)
• One Last Hope
• Zero To Hero
• I Won't Say (I'm In Love)
• A Star Is Born
• Go The Distance (Single) - Michael Bolton
• The Big Olive
• The Prophecy
• Destruction Of The Agora
• Phil's Island
• Rodeo
• Speak Of The Devil
• The Hydra Battle
• Meg's Garden