Score by Alan Menken
Lyrics by Howard Ashman
New Lyrics by Lin-Manuel Miranda
Additional Music by Julian Kershaw, Michael Higham, Jeff Morrow, Aaron Kenny
Vocal Arrangements and Additional Song Arrangements by Michael Kosarin
Total album running time: Regular 40 minutes, Deluxe 78 minutesAvailable on Walt Disney Records
Of course we all know the Disney renaissance masterpieces by Menken and Ashman: The Little Mermaid (1989), Beauty and the Beast (1991) and Aladdin (1992). We've now seen all of them get the live-action remake treatment in 2023, 2017 and 2019, respectively.
Like before, Alan Menken returns with an updated score, with new arrangements and new renditions of familiar songs. Skipping past anything from the Broadway adaptation, we get 3 new songs by Menken and Lin-Manuel Miranda. From the original film, they've sadly cut Daughters of Triton and Les Poissons. A new song for Triton, Impossible Child, was also cut.
With the deluxe version, it's just the soundtrack and then 22 score tracks - I've decided to go in album order rather than the corrected film order.
Triton's Kingdom has rippling string patterns accompanying parts of Part of Your World and Ariel's siren. We hear string runs and some great female vocals as we journey through the underwater environment. Halle Bailey provides a thrilling new rendition of Part of Your World, showing off her vocal range with added flair among a lush new orchestral arrangement. Fathoms Below begins with an original score callback to "Fireworks", as we meet Prince Eric's ship and crew partying. The shortened song is given a sea chanty arrangement. Bailey gives a lovely rendition of Part of Your World (Reprise), and in the interlude we get a few statements of the melody from Wild Uncharted Waters.
Under the Sea expands the calypso vibe with Daveed Diggs' charming vocal. The orchestral arrangement seems simplified and never reaches the full "hot crustacean band" he promises. The Ariel harmonies are sweet but seem out of character, and the film version has a lively underwater dance break that didn't make the soundtrack. Wild Uncharted Waters is the new standout ballad for Prince Eric, incorporating Ariel's siren. Melissa McCarthy provides a delightfully campy version of Poor Unfortunate Souls, even if the middle section has been cut. New song For the First Time gives us Ariel's inner thoughts in her human world montage - creatively using a original film motif also used in Broadway's "Beyond My Wildest Dreams". Kiss the Girl uses a simplified calypso arrangement with only the supporting characters adding harmony. The Scuttlebutt has been getting the attention of the internet as the "worst Disney song" using Miranda's need to add some fast lyrics cramming some exposition for Scuttle and Sebastian.
Eric's Decision opens with parts of Wild Uncharted Waters and builds with the siren call. Vanessa's Trick continues the siren call before it turns into the Poor Unfortunate Souls reprise as we reveal Vanessa's true identity. The new section, Part of Your World (Reprise II) adds more pathos to Ariel's choices with some subtle cello and violin solos. Kiss the Girl (Island Band Reprise) is a charming calypso source cue. Finale is primarily the Part of Your World melody building to a choral climax with Wild Uncharted Waters mixed in.
Opening Title has the rippling water motif with Ariel's siren. Eric's Ship features churning strings with rising brass chords. Shipwreck Graveyard has some mysterious underscoring with some lighthearted rippling motif for woodwinds. Shark Attack lets the orchestra rip with banging percussion, brass clusters and wild strings before settling down with the siren motif. Dinglehopper brings some excitement with Scuttle and later a sprightly version of the siren.
In Ursula's Reveal we hear some fun rubbed percussion and creepy string effects - much more sinister than before. Ariel's Grotto has some nice string and choral moments with the siren. Shipwreck again lets the orchestra shine with bits of the original's Storm reused. The calm returns in The Rescue, using part of Eric's Uncharted Waters theme. Triton's Fury builds on the ripple motif as Triton destroys her human artifacts. Journey to Ursula continues a variation of Ariel's siren in tremolo strings and hints of Poor Unfortunate Souls. The eerie Ursula sounds continue with later string attacks and brass jabs. Ursula's Lair uses an woodwind ostinato through the track with string harmonics.
Eric's Library is a lovely track for strings and harp using fragments of Wild Uncharted Waters but never sounds far from Part of Your World. Carriage Ride brings an exciting take of statements of Wild Uncharted Waters and For the First Time. Marketplace is calypso steel drums with trumpet solo and later with the melody of Kiss the Girl. Ursula's Potion uses some creepy low strings/woodwinds and choir. Ariel Regains Her Voice charges ahead as they battle Vanessa's shell away as her siren call making a full appearance returning to Ariel. The Sun Sets rises up to some stings and dramatic moments.
Ursula Battle continues the dissonance but picks up the orchestral action with swirling strings and large brass presence and we do get bits of Poor Unfortunate Souls and Wild Uncharted Waters among the commotion. Metamorphosis uses a string figure and builds with brass and choir. The Kiss is a lovely reprise of Wild Uncharted Waters before a phrase of Part of Your World. The same themes are intertwined in the sentimental Ariel's Goodbye.
I'm glad they released the deluxe edition with score, but you really do need to put it in film order for it to make sense. Disney does love to frontload the soundtracks with the songs so you don't have to find them. Menken's original melodies are still the Disney gold standard and his team of co-composers work them into the underscore, but not as much as Menken used to. The song arrangements fit this version, although I was often wishing for a bit more. The underscore is still prominent, bigger and dramatic, but still gives time to reflective instrumental solos, and calypso source music. Put the album in order and get transported under the sea for some of Menken's best melodies.
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