#DisneySongsRanked 14-10: Top tier

14. We Don't Talk About Bruno (Encanto)
Score: 484/500

Note: You can get a sense of how tight the point spread is going to be going into the top 10: this song is only 16 points away from a perfect score, and there are 14 songs left!

Weirdly, I was one of the folks that wasn't on the "We Don't Talk About Bruno" train at first--I thought the showstopping hit from Encanto was going to be "Surface Pressure." Now, the more I listen to it, the more I do think that the seemingly general consensus that it's the best song in Encanto is merited.

Writing a musical number that either advances the plot or explains crucial character information is difficult. I can only imagine the challenge of tackling a song that does those things, but also incorporates a whole gaggle of characters, each with their own idiosyncratic super powers. But that's exactly what Miranda gives us, and the number is a massively successful plot moment that not only crystalizes the family's opinion of Bruno, but gives us more information about the personalities of each featured soloist.

Lyrically, this number is really nothing short of brilliant. From the opening banter between the married couple Pepa and Félix, to the contributions from the cousins/siblings, to the townsfolk getting in on the fun, every line is expertly crafted. I could spend all day going over Miranda's prowess with rhyme, but you know his rep at this point--he's got it. What I really like about this number, lyrically, are the moments where people complain about Bruno's prophecies as if they're malicious, but when you actually listen to what he predicted, it's all super benign: goldfish are known to die, people get fat, folks go bald, and your sister whose mood effects the weather is liable to cause some rain during her stressful wedding day.

Vocally, every featured singer shines, and I wish they could all have their own solo songs. A real highlight for me is when Dolores, the cousin with supernaturally acute hearing, delivers her verse in a whispered rap: It's such a novel effect, close-mic'd so it sounds like she's whispering in our ears, and perfectly on brand for a character that doesn't need to strain to hear anything.

There are only a few things that don't work for me in this one: The ending, where everybody is singing their verses together, is really ambitious, but I've **personally** never been a big fan of those moments in musical theater where 3+ performers sing something different and overlapping. Just not my thing.

There's also a brief moment in Isabela's (the perfect, flower-growing sister) solo that threw me off: A weird pause, after she says "Hey sis." It has always sounded strange and inorganic to me, and I wonder if I'm missing something, if people like that moment, or if maybe it's a result of something being changed later in the process. If anybody has insight, let me know. #DisneySongsRanked
13. Part of Your World (The Little Mermaid)
Score: 485/500

Ashman and Menken at their apex: An astonishing, empowering, goosebump-inducing moment as Ariel yearns for something more from life. Arguably the greatest "I Want" song in the animated musical canon, and certainly one that launched a new era.

It's wild to think that originally, Ariel's "I Want" song was going to be focused on Prince Eric. It's so, so much better as a song about her fascination with the human world: The number becomes a vehicle for all kinds of charming idiosyncrasies of her (mis)understanding of humans, and endears her powerfully to the audience as a risk-taking dreamer who can't be held back by her overprotective father. That, not her affection for Eric, is the essence of Ariel as a character.

Jodi Benson as Ariel is astonishing. She performs the number with such grace and charm, delivering the song as if she's a soloist in front of a live audience, feeding off the energy of the crowd. Her phrasing, vibrato, pitch, and tiny artistic choices regarding speech/song balance are all totally perfect for the role. I know that Benson was coached to sing in a "younger" tone of voice to sound more adolescent, and to my ear there's something just the tiniest bit off about that: I would like to have heard this number sung using her completely authentic voice, rather than having potential hinderances from that characterization.

Musically, "Part of Your World" is unimpeachable. The gorgeous use of countermelodies, and the very touching reprise sung to an unconscious Eric are all to die for. We even have a really nice, thoughtful application of reverb on the vocals that is not just obligatory, but well-suited for the larger, underground cavern she's seen to be singing in.

Lyrically, I think this one is just about as good as Ashman's ever done, so basically perfect. I love the use of interior rhymes in the bridge:

"What would I give
if I could live
out of these waters?
What would I pay
to spend a day
warm on the sand?

Betcha on land
they understand
Bet they don't reprimand their daughters
Bright young women,
sick of swimmin',
ready to stand"

My only other (tiny) complaint about this one is that the orchestration feels a little thin: There's a lot of reliance on middle voices being supplied chords voiced by the arpeggiated keyboard/synth thing, and I would've liked to have heard that divvied up among other instruments in a slightly larger ensemble. We get exactly this during the reprise--that role is filled by harp and arpeggiated, bowed strings, and it's fantastic.

#DisneySongsRanked 19-15: Top tier

19. You're Welcome (Moana)
Score: 479/500

Maui lists his heroic deeds and flexes his heroic pecs in a bid to distract Moana long enough to steal her boat.

There's so much to love here. We'll start with lyrics: Lin-Manuel Miranda is relatively restrained here compared to some of his other stuff on this list, but his scansion and rhymes are very good--plenty of cute, endearing moments, and even a few chuckles ("I'm just an ordinary demi-guy" or "Maui can do anything but float"). There's one, tiny moment that makes me scratch my head:

"Oh! .... also I lassoed the sun"

I think it might actually be the delivery that's a little off here, because if The Rock had played that more like he was remembering this deed as an afterthought, it would've landed better.

I'm a big fan of the ambitious triplet rap section. I didn't realize it at the time, but this is basically analogous to the really early Disney movies interpolating big band and jazz idioms. Rap is the most popular music today, makes sense to include some of it in a contemporary musical. Plenty of cool rhymes, of course, but I'm a big fan of:

"The tapestry here on my skin
Is a map of the vict'ries I win"

I am *not* a big fan of The Rock as an actor in most of the things he's done, so I was flabbergasted by his performance in Moana, which hit all the right notes for a character who's a brash, bragging rascal with a heart of gold. His vocals are crisp, clear, enthusiastic, and incredibly charming. You can tell that Lin-Manuel Miranda wrote this song specifically to accommodate The Rock's vocal range. Musically, the song is a lot of fun, though I could've used a bit more fleshed out harmonies in the introductory section.

Listen, word on the street is that this song has Melodyne (a pitch correction software) all over it, but to my ear, The Rock's vocals sound really, really good. I made my assessment based on the singing I hear in the finished product, not the singing I think somebody may or may not be capable of live. With any modern movie musical, you should be assuming that the vocals you're hearing have been doctored in some way, it's just a matter of to what degree. If it sounds good to me, I don't spend a lot of time fretting about what's been done to it digitally.

Still, there are moments where there's no hiding The Rock's rough-around-the-edges singing technique: Specifically, when he releases on consonants, he tends to voice them. So, instead of singing "You're welcome!" he lets all of the remaining air in his lungs burst out at the end of the word, and says "You're welcomAH." Just a little thing, and you might like it, but I'm not crazy about it. #DisneySongsRanked
18. For the First Time in Forever (Frozen)
Score: 480/500

A time skip and a huge lift after the tragic end of "Do You Want to Build a Snowman?", this number starts with a brisk double tressillo rhythm as the wide-eyed Anna bursts out of bed, excited that she's finally going to get a chance to socialize, and maybe, if she's lucky, meet a nice guy.

As I've grown to expect when listening to music by the Lopez duo, the rhyming is down pat. A nice, classic AAB,CCB structure here in the first verse:

"The window is open, so's that door
I didn't know they did that anymore
Who knew we owned eight thousand salad plates?

For years I've roamed these empty halls
Why have a ballroom with no balls?
Finally, they're opening up the gates!"

Remarkably, the start of the *second* verse still has end rhymes that rhyme with verse 1. I love it when lyricists manage to do that, it just makes the whole song lock in so well.

Kristen Bell is fantastic--she's a great, captivating singer with the same control and precision that you'd expect from someone on Broadway, but she's also a wonderful actress that's been perfectly cast here, and she disappears into the role of a wide-eyed, clumsy optimist with a whole lot of love to give.

Idina Menzel's Elsa has a brief, worried moment in this number, singing in a different key, before she's musically steamrolled by Anna and relegated to the background. This changes, however, in the song's reprise, which is employed masterfully.

During the reprise, the title "For the First Time in Forever" takes on a new meaning, as Anna urges her older sister to return from her icy castle, and Elsa refuses. It's an intense scene, that ends with Elsa accidentally zapping Anna in the heart with her ice powers, effectively signing her death warrant if she can't experience an act of true love ASAP.

The lyrics are lovingly handled in the reprise as both women sing simultaneously: lyric parallelisms, homonyms, and interlocking vowels.

#DisneySongsRanked 24-20: Fantastic

24. I Wan'na Be Like You (The Jungle Book)
Score: 471/500

A musical number that advances the plot, but with the bones of a jazz standard.

Louis Prima plays King Louie, an ape with aspirations to learn the secret of man's fire. Turns out, his ability to improvise over ii-V-Is is already fire enough, am I right?

From what I understand, the powers that be originally had Louis Armstrong in mind for this role, but changed course when somebody pointed out that having a Black man playing a jazzy orangutan might not go over well. I'm shocked that they showed that sort of restraint--but the undertones of that dynamic are still there in the scene, and if you're somebody who's really tuned into that, I could see how it would tank your enjoyment immensely and sour this song for you.

This number is really a delight--I personally love the shift from C minor in the verses to E flat major in the chorus. There's a great use of applied chords in the chorus as well: E flat major > C major > F major > B flat dominant > E flat again--all chords with plenty of little additions, like ninths, sixths, etc. It's lovely, classic stuff.

Prima's voice is great as well, and the real brilliance in "I Wan'na Be Like You" comes from the usage of scat singing--one of Louie's lackeys attempts a solo, but is far too pedestrian with his choices, so he's dismissed. Louie takes a few solos, before Baloo, unable to resist the groove, enters wearing a monkey costume, and starts trading fours with the King himself. It's a scene that celebrates being a jazzy goofball, while also establishing King Louie as a sort of secondary villain to Shere Khan. #DisneySongsRanked
23. I See the Light (Tangled)
Score: 472/500

This song is completely indebted to "A Whole New World" From Aladdin, and whether you think it's a knockoff or a tribute probably depends on your level of cynicism. A romantic, nighttime duet that modulates up a minor third--hell, there's even the lyric "it's crystal clear." This song wouldn't exist without its predecessor in 1992.

I think a lot of the reasons why I ranked this slightly higher than the very similar "A Whole New World" come down to personal taste. I mentioned previously that I didn't like the extent of piano used in the orchestration for AWNW, and in "I See the Light," there's a lot of acoustic guitar, an instrument I find much more tasteful for the intimate setting. The orchestration in general is much more lush and nuanced to my ear, ebbing and flowing with each phrase.

The lyrics are not as "rhymey" as a lot of my favorites, but they are sincere and artful.

"All those days chasing down a daydream
All those years living in a blur
All that time never truly seeing
Things the way they were

Now she's here shining in the starlight
Now she's here, suddenly I know
If she's here it's crystal clear
I'm where I'm meant to go"

Mandy Moore is a star as Rapunzel, breathless and sweet, brimming with sincerity. Zachary Levi is perfectly fine as Flynn Rider/Eugene--he imbues his previously smarmy voice with a lot of sensitivity as his character shifts his attention from material wealth to the girl right in front of him.

#DisneySongsRanked 29-25: Incredible
29. Surface Pressure (Encanto)
Score: 461/500

I remember putting Encanto on with my wife after it came out on Disney+, and when this song ended, we looked at each other, eyebrows raised. "Are you kidding me?" she said. I ended up rewinding so we could listen to it a second time, because it was so different from what we were expecting. Finally, some husky alto representation!

Jessica Darrow delivers in this vocal performance, balancing power and vulnerability and endearing us to the buffest chick to ever grace the screens of a Disney movie. The recording, to me, sounds like somebody who has been given lots of directing, ample prep time, and plenty of time in the studio to deliver something optimal, resulting in fewer touch-ups needed in post.

I love the idea for the bridge in this song--tough-as-nails Luisa is suddenly transported to a glittery, feminine land of clouds and donkey-unicorns, as her voice shifts into a higher, more delicate register. We learn that there's more to this character than smashing rocks and looking tough--she's worried, overburdened, and needs some tenderness from her family.

Love LMM's lyrics here, but in my humble opinion, they also demonstrate that he sometimes has to learn to walk away from a rhyme. There are times where the rhymes are so, so dense in this song that it distracts from the narrative--instead of learning about Luisa, we're listening to her spit bars. Take this stanza, for example:

"Under the surface, I hide my nerves and it worsens,
I worry something is gonna hurt us
Under the surface, the ship doesn't swerve
as it heard how big the iceberg is
Under the surface, I think about my purpose,
can I somehow preserve this?"

The amount of "errr" in this is a bit overpowering: surface/nervous/swerve/berg/purpose/preserve/hurt yerr yerr yerr we GET IT DUDE you can rhyme. Let the rhymes breathe a bit. #DisneySongsRanked
28. Shiny (Moana)
Score: 463/500

This song is super polarizing! I remember watching the movie and thinking it sucked, then watching it again with the benefit of hindsight and being totally into it. Here's why:

I was expecting a true villain song, and that's not what "Shiny" is, because Tamatoa isn't a true villain. He's just kind of a needy, hoarding schmuck who temporarily beats up on the protagonists, but is left behind narratively after his single scene. You have to see "Shiny" for what it is: A moment of levity that brings the protagonists closer together, while also giving us new information about Maui's backstory and progressing the plot.

Jermaine Clement is a delight. This song was originally written with David Bowie in mind, and it would've been interesting to hear his take on it (you can check out the demo on YouTube), but I think Clement has a great energy and depth to his voice. He plays the heel well--he does have a beautiful voice, but leans more toward its goofy qualities for this character.

This is a super fun song harmonically, in that it starts in a menacing E minor, but toggles abruptly to G major for the chorus, stripping away some of Tamatoa's menace in favor of groove and glam. I've grown to like the two-sided nature of the song, and I think the goofy chorus is appropriate for the sort of mid-tier villain he is.

Plenty of cute lyrics here, including a few laugh-out-loud moments, such as:

"Maui man, you could try, try, try
But you can't expect a demi-god
To beat a decapod (look it up)
You will die, die, die
Now it's time for me to take apart
Your aching heart"

#DisneySongsRanked 34-30: Delightful

34. Family Madrigal (Encanto)
Score: 458/500

The challenge that Lin-Manuel Miranda faced when writing this song cannot be overstated. Think about the song's function: It introduces viewers to the plot, the setting, the language, the family dynamics, and most importantly, to each major member of the cast.

Miranda really does have the the heart of a hip-hop fan, and that is immediately apparent in the lyrics. Mirabel prances around town delivering the lyrics as a solo, and nearly every stanza involves not only a traditional end rhyme, but multiple internal or slant rhymes as well. For example:

"And that's my mom Julieta, here's her deal
The truth is, she can heal you with a meal
Her recipes are remedies for real
If you're impressed, imagine how I feel"

So as you can see, we've got the expected deal/meal/real/feel rhymes, but look at the internal rhymes as well: "heal," recipes/remedies, and "-pressed/rec-/rem-" partial rhymes as well. Like a good rapper, Miranda sets the lyrics in such metrical positions that these little correspondences are brought out. An additional trick Miranda uses is setting rhymed syllables on the same pitch, something that more melodic rappers like Nelly and Bone Thugs have been doing for a long time.

However, there's a real issue of comprehensibility in lyrics that blow by at this pace. With so much crucial plot information, it's easy to miss somebody's name or magical power as Mirabel triplet-raps her recap, leading up to the big reveal that she herself has no powers. Still, the faster it gets, the more fun I had, with some great lyrics like

"My dad, Agustín, well
He's accident-prone, but he means well"

or

"My primo Camilo
Won't stop until he makes
you smile today,
My cousin Dolores
Can hear this whole chorus
a mile away"

It's like if Eminem had the heart of a theater kid. That's Lin-Manuel Miranda. #DisneySongsRanked
33. How Far I'll Go [including reprise] (Moana)
Score: 459/500

Note: I don't think I've mentioned this outright, but for any songs that have reprises, I include those with the main song ranking.

Moana's "I Want" song, performed by Auli'i Cravalho, and very much in the spirit of the earlier Menken "I Want songs" from the animated musicals of the 90s.

There's lot to love here, especially the generous use of modal mixture--we love a good minor iv chord, and they're a big part of the recipe in this tune.

I think the lyrics for this song get a bit of a bad rep, with ignorant people claiming that Miranda is rhyming "island" with "island" in this stanza:

"I know everybody on this island
Seems so happy on this island
Everything is by design
I know everybody on this island
Has a role on this island
So maybe I can roll with mine"

I imagine most people reading this can tell that the structural rhymes here are "-sign/mine," with a cool homonym "roll/role." I imagine she's repeating the word "island" because the character only knows the island, and is obsessed with getting away from it. I hate to break it to you, but guys, you're not better than Lin-Manuel Miranda at writing rhymes.

The real magic in this one comes in during the reprise, with additional music production work by Mark Mancina. If you know the reprise, you'll know why I'm praising the use of the woodwinds here, which are brought in with some gorgeous arpeggios that swell into the exciting moment Moana sets out to sea, while still allowing for the tenderness at her grandmother's transition to the next, ethereal realm.

#DisneySongsRanked 39-35: Extremely Good

39. Friend Like Me (Aladdin)
Score: 455/500

Robin Williams introduces himself as the inimitable Genie after Aladdin happens upon his lamp, in a Cab Calloway-inspired, stomping, romping, big band showstopper.

Robin Williams was a singular talent. People complain about celebrities being cast in voice acting roles, and for good reason--animated movies today are chock-full of top-billed celebs that can get butts in seats, but aren't necessarily a great fit for a character. Williams, though, is an example of when this goes right.

Robin Williams took a pay cut--a MASSIVE pay cut--in order to avoid having his voice be used for merchandising by Disney, but they did it anyway, resulting in a public falling out that lasted for several years. He really is synonymous with the character Genie, whose frequent asides and imitations were folded remarkably into the animation.

"Friend Like Me" is a lyrical powerhouse, though of course without the cultural sensitivities of later Disney:

"So don'tcha sit there slack-jawed, buggy-eyed
I'm here to answer all your midday prayers
You got me bona fide, certified
You got a genie for your charge d'affaires"

I also love the main motif: Sol-me-do! Le-sol..." It's a real earworm, and Menken knows it, drilling it into our heads over the course of the number with a walloping horn section.

It seems almost unfair that Robin Williams could sing, on top of all of his other talents, but sing he does. There are some truly delightful moments, some that are a tiny bit rough around the edges, but everything seems purposeful, confident, and in character. The repeated voice changes are pretty wild--there's one almost every 2 bars--and at times they do obscure the lyrics slightly. #DisneySongsRanked
38. Hakuna Matata (The Lion King)
Score: 455/500

Listen, I'll be honest: I love Nathan Lane. I will watch anything and everything containing even a brief performance by this man. He has this beautifully self-aware sense of humor that still carries a certain gravitas and old-fashioned show business charm, is sharp as a tack, and has incredible range. His magnetic personality shines through even as he voices the meerkat Timon. I had a Nathan Lane t-shirt in high school. No, I did not have a girlfriend.

This song is a lovely little comedic number that serves a dual purpose as a montage to help us transition child Simba to young adulthood. Great vocal performances by all of the featured singers, but also beautiful background work by the studio choir, which is generally outstanding in The Lion King. That orchestral swell as we see Simba grow, and reach his adult self singing "it means no worries" is just great.

My only complaints about this one is that it's lyrically just a bit underdeveloped, and that the second line jazz/NOLA influence seems a bit too derivative of some of the earlier films, especially Jungle Book.

#DisneySongsRanked 44-40: Extremely good

44. The Gospel Truth (Hercules)
Score: 451/500

Ethnomusicologists have long struggled to learn more about the music of ancient Greece. What they do know, however, is that it completely sucked compared to gospel music. Suck on that, Pythagoras.

According to Menken's website, it wasn't even his idea to do gospel for Hercules, but man, what a good idea it was. It works--Black American religious music is fast-paced, passionate, exciting, dramatic--all things you want in a musical. The singers playing The Muses are astonishingly good, each sounding like she was plucked right from the Sunday choir at her church and bringing that same level of passion to the recordings. I know a lot of boys had crushes on Meg as kids, but I wanted to marry Calliope, the lead Muse with the headband.

The gospel music itself (harmonies, instrumentation) in Hercules is very, very good. However, the incredible singing of The Muses still manages to outshine it. This movie simply would not have worked without the talents of Lillias White, Cheryl Freeman, LaChanze, Roz Ryan and Vaneese Thomas.

"Gospel Truth" is a huge heavy lifter in terms of plot development for the movie--massive amounts of exposition, just handed over to the five Muses over the course of a few minutes. It's a song that comes back in and out a couple times as the plot of Hercules is set in motion--baby Herc getting poisoned, becoming mortal, retaining his god-like strength--all punctuated with singing from the Muses. The melancholy, bluesey reprise after Hercules is pulled from Olympus beautifully sets the tone for a kind-hearted protagonist to find his inspiration as he goes the distance to meet the gods.

Also, they rhyme "gospel" with "imposs'ble." I love it, dude. #DisneySongsRanked
43. Friends on the Other Side (The Princess and the Frog)
Score: 452/500

Keith David steps exceptionally well into the villainous Facilier's shoes in The Princess and the Frog. This number is doing a lot of work in terms of moving the plot along, as Facilier hatches his plan that involves multiple types of transformation, entrapment, and a whole lot of indeterminate voodoo magic.

It's clear the writers/producers were going for a showstopping, "Be Prepared" or "Poor Unfortunate Souls" level villain song here, and they just about got it. It's visually spectacular, but musically also quite remarkable as well--I don't think there's another villain song that's so varied in terms of texture/harmonies, due in part to the need for lots of onscreen activity alongside Facilier's tune.

A voodoo villain was a slam-dunk for Disney, and the nice little standout in "Friends on the Other Side" is undoubtedly the lyrics, specifically when Facilier tricks Prince Naveen by tempting him with the freedom to "hop from place to place" and saying that level of freedom takes a whole lot of "green." Naveen, you dumb himbo, he's not talking about money, he's talking about turning you into a frog!

#DisneySongsRanked 50-46: Top 50!

50. Cruella de Vil (101 Dalmatians)
Score: 444/500

This is a short one, but I felt it was too iconic to leave out.

Bill Lee had quite the career with Disney. He was a singer in the Mellomen men's vocal quartet, who we've heard in a few different movies--Alice & Wonderland, Jungle Book, etc. In 101 Dalmatians, he steps into the singing voice of human protagonist Roger, and performs one of the most memorable songs in the Disney canon.

It's not often that a villain song in these movies is sung by somebody other than the villain, but it fits the scene perfectly here as the struggling musician "improvises" the song on the spot. It's a standard AABA form, bluesy jazz number, sung to perfection by Lee with lyrics that are cute, but still leave a bit to be desired. #DisneySongsRanked
49. Waiting on a Miracle (Encanto)
Score: 444/500

Stephanie Beatriz sings the "I Want" song of super-power-less protagonist Mirabel early in the Encanto storyline.

Beatriz has a really, really unique voice. It's swallowed, very nasal, and quite distinct from her speaking voice. To be honest, I like it quite a bit, and find that more and more I'm gravitating towards more unique, individualized vocal timbres in musical theater because of their potential for creating a character, rather than just performing a song well. Some things that would classically be considered "flaws" are embraceable little vocal wrinkles that I think we should treasure.

Lin-Manuel Miranda does such a nice job with these yearning songs--the sentiment and tempo of this one reminds me a bit of "Wait For It" from Hamilton. He really stays out of his way lyrically, with more conventional rhymes that seem written to suit the scene rather than to impress Sondheim's ghost.

I'm not crazy about a fast 6/8 setting for an "I Want" song. Tempo-wise, this felt a bit rushed to me, and I would've liked to hear the song as a more mellow ballad, but this is still a heater.

#DisneySongsRanked 55-51: Very good!

55. What Else Can I Do? (Encanto)
Score: 441/500

An in-your-face, 90s-Colombian-power-ballad-esque banger. Okay, I think that's my hyphen allotment.

Lin-Manuel Miranda stayed busy with the lyrics in this one, filling the song with references to Colombian/South American flora. I think the text to this song is great, but occasionally some words get lost to the listener, due to a combination of speed, Spanglish lyrics, and Diane Guerrero's enunciation.

However--far be it from me to criticize Guerrero's singing, which I love. She has this kind of grungy, Alanis Morrisette thing going on when she chews on some of her vowels (like on the word "do") that I think is really fun and gives the prim and proper character of Isabella a bit of welcome edge.

There's a lovely, lovely moment where Mirabel joins in to sing with Isabella, on the text "you just seem like your life's been a dream [...]" and her melody is the same as an earlier occurrence of Isabella singing in "We Don't Talk About Bruno." What's even crazier is that Mirabel's couplet also RHYMES with Isabella's couplet from like 30 minutes earlier. Unreal.

My only serious complaint about this one is that something else should've been done with the final chorus--new lyrics, something, just less of a copy of the previous chorus--to mirror the development the audience is seeing in plot at this point as the sisters grow closer and reach an understanding. #DisneySongsRanked
54. Phony King of England (Robin Hood)
Score: 442/500

Have you ever heard a country western hoedown just sort of seamlessly transition into a NOLA second line band? Well, take a listen to this number, and you will, around the 1m40s mark. Wild.

Look, folks, this one's a banger. We've got Phil Harris with his unbelievably charming vocals, we've got all sorts of rustic instruments to depict the common folk (fiddle, jaw harp, banjo, etc.)

There's plot progression, the song endears the characters to us, and it's just a great tune. It's kind of hilarious that they went with the most un-English music possible for this number, but it works.

#DisneySongsRanked 60-56

60. That's What Makes the World Go Round (Sword in the Stone)
Score: 435/500

Merlin turns Arthur/Wart into a fish to teach him a lesson about physics and the nature of things.

This is a heartwarming little scene, where the kindly Merlin gives a magical "lecture" to Arthur. I was really pleased by the lyrics, which have held up wonderfully, and are charming, balanced, and tightly rhymed. The music is nothing outstanding, just a bouncy orchestral accompaniment.

Where this one really stands out is the utterly charming vocals delivered by Karl Swenson as Merlin. He has this joyful way of dragging very far behind the downbeat, but never fully getting left behind. Furthermore, I really enjoyed the way that he effortlessly switched back and forth between singing and speaking, so smoothly and conversationally that it's barely noticeable. He's not a showstopping singer, but that was never supposed to be the point of Merlin as a character. #DisneySongsRanked
59. Topsy Turvy (Hunchback of Notre Dame)
Score: 436/500

Clopin, our flamboyant masked narrator, leads this number. It's the Festival of Fools, a day for everybody in Paris to cut loose. "Topsy Turvy" is a wild, uptempo, circus-esque tune that's broken up with a rather uncomfortable dance break from Esmerelda, featuring a gaping Frollo and Quasimodo.

The number goes on for quite a while, starting with Quasimodo panicking among the people and ending with him being crowned King of Fools due to his appearance. The lyrics are from Stephen Schwartz, and are thus predictably quite good--plenty of fun rhymes in here, including Schwartz's signature French/English rhymes.

Musically and thematically, it's a bit one-note for me considering how long it goes on for. Paul Kandel's vocals as Clopin are fine, but after 4-5 minutes of him hamming it up at 100%, you start to miss the more nuanced performance from the film's opening number.

#DisneySongsRanked 65-61: Good!

65. Some Things Never Change (Frozen 2)
Score: 427/500

Like the sequel itself, I'm not sure this song needed to exist, but it's really pleasant.

It's an ensemble piece, with sung verses from all of our main characters, and does a nice job of setting up the "world" of the sequel. The opening chord progression sounds suspiciously similar to "Baba O'Riley/Teenage Wasteland" by The Who, but hey, it's a good song--I'd borrow from it too.

The things that push this song from "okay" to "good" are the vocal performances, which are really carried by Kristen Bell (Anna) and Jonathan Groff (Kristoff). We get plenty of plot motion on the Anna/Kristoff front, a good bit of establishing angst from Idina Menzel's Elsa, and a sweet little moment where Olaf says "you all look a little bit older" and breaks the fourth wall, acknowledging the kids watching at home. Awww, cute!

The lyrics are really tightly written despite the banal subject manner. Also, there's a choir, with a few of the higher-voiced singers absolutely sending it on the lyric "fly." Really impressive work by the Lopez duo to make such a potentially boring and obligatory song into something nice. #DisneySongsRanked
64. Your Mother and Mine (Peter Pan)
Score: 430/500

"Another word for divine, your mother and mine."

A sleepy/hazy lullaby sung by Wendy to the tired boys. The vocal performance is gorgeous, and you can hardly blame the pirates for choking up as they listen in. The accompaniment is very classic Disney sleepytime music, with a sweeping string section punctuated by occasional arpeggiated harp chords.

My only complaint about the writing for this one is that there is a B section that is not fully realized, but rather abandoned after one phrase. It could've been more!

#DisneySongsRanked 70-66: Quite good!

70. One Jump Ahead (Aladdin)
Score: 424/500

All this for one loaf of bread?

"One Jump Ahead" has all the hallmarks of the big hitters of the 90s Disney Renaissance: clever, tightly rhymed lyrics, a rollicking orchestration, and visual gags galore. Unfortunately, the visual gags are sort of just a rolodex of Middle Eastern stereotypes, which tanked my "subjective enjoyment" score a bit. In just 2 minutes, we get sword swallowers, bed of nails, walking on coals, promiscuous harem girls, and at least 4-5 more. Phew.

Still, Brad Kane is delightful as the rascal Aladdin, and his vocals carry a really youthful charm. Harmonically, it's a really nice song, with moves to the relative major during the lighter, sweeter moments, then crashing back into the tonic minor key for the pattering verses.

Lyrically, it seems like Rice's baseline is two syllable rhymes, which is great. However, the line "should've used a nom de plume" always rubbed me the wrong way. I don't know why. I don't have to, it's my list, damn it. #DisneySongsRanked
69. All in the Golden Afternoon (Alice in Wonderland)
Score: 425/500

A real gorgeous vehicle to showcase the Disney Studios Chorus, who really earned their meager paychecks this day. Such a nice choral arrangement, sometimes getting out as far as 6-7 part harmonies, with the focus being on the Sopranos/Altos.

There are wonderful little visual tie-ins with the orchestration, as differently shaped flowers imitate various instruments in the orchestra.

"But Robert," you say, "Alice's singing isn't good in this one. She's flat!"

"You nincompoop, that is by design and is part of the scene, the flowers are supposed to sing beautifully while she struggles, also she was voiced by a literal child and it's adorable," I say in response.

#DisneySongsRanked 75-71: Nice

75. Streets of Gold (Oliver & Company)
Score: 419/500

There's a lot to love about this one. Rita the Saluki, who's speaking voice is the beautiful Sheryl Lee Ralph, has singing vocals voiced by none other than Ruth Pointer of the Pointer sisters. Ruth is still with us today at 78 years young, and I hope she has a great day today.

Like most of the music in O&C, "Streets of Gold" is an aggressively 80s pop rock tune. If you like 80s production, you'll probably like listening to this number with a good pair of headphones--lots of rewarding little moments, like an active bass line, pizzicato synth stabs echoing in the background, and some nicely employed secondary dominants in the harmonic progression. Tasty!

The lyrics are just fine, for me. Nothing special, nothing really even that specific to the film, just more singing about making it on the tough streets of NYC. I also would've loved to hear some more vocal continuity between the spoken and singing actresses, but that's not always possible. #DisneySongsRanked
74. Painting the Roses Red (Alice in Wonderland)
Score: 421/500

This is such a cute one--I'm a sucker for tight harmonies, and this number 'em in spades (see what I did there?)

Okay, I'm probably a huge pain in the ass for this, but it bugged me that the playing cards were singing in 4-part harmony at times, but there are only 3 of them onscreen. I know, I know, I need to get a life. Still, it's a barbershop quartet, there are four suits, get real!

The voices, provided by the Mellomen barbershop quartet, are lovely. Cute lyrics, and a light, bouncy orchestration make this one of the standouts of Alice in Wonderland for me. Plus, the absurd situation and threat of decapitation should the queen find out about the white roses both fit the narrative nicely.

#DisneySongsRanked 80-76: Nice

80. Thomas O'Malley Cat (The Aristocats)
Score: 413/500

Phil Harris (the voice of Baloo from The Jungle Book) has such a delightful voice, full of low resonance and genuine kindness. He's so freaking charming that by the end of this song, when he asks "what might your name be?" I myself blushed, and I'm not even a cute white cat named Duchess.

This one is a sweet little "this is me"-style song where Thomas introduces himself, and we get his characterization as a bit rough around the edges, but nonetheless handsome and considerate. Harris's voice outclasses the lyrics and the soft-shoeing, jazzy big band accompaniment, both of which are not as memorable as one might hope. #DisneySongsRanked
79. Colors of the Wind (Pocahontas)
Score: 413/500

To start, I will not be accepting any slander of Judy Kuhn's beautiful lead vocals in this song--she is a singular talent, and I only wish she had been used on a project that has aged better.

The song is beautiful, but as a listener, it was hard for me to get past some of the clumsier attempts at sounding "Native." For example:

"Have you ever heard the wolf cry
to the blue corn moon?"

Not a thing. "Blue corn moon" is not a thing. Lyricist Stephen Schwartz just made it up cause it sounds neat.

Additionally, the melody (and initially, the harmonies as well) are heavily pentatonic, which makes me wonder: Was it written that way because Western ears associate pentatonic scales with "other" cultures? It's always a tricky thing to try to integrate an existing, distinct culture into the tradition of stage-inspired animated musicals, and I think this one misses the mark.

However, I love the vocals, harmonies, and melody for this piece. There's a great usage of the iii chord as a sort of waypoint between IV and I that gives it a nice, almost sacred sound.

#DisneySongsRanked 85-81: Decent

85. Once Upon a Dream (Sleeping Beauty)
Score: 408/500

A cute scene where Aurora starts by singing to her woodland friends, then is interrupted by Prince Phillip, and the two are ultimately joined by the Disney Studio Chorus, that hallmark sound of the golden era films.

Mary Costa sings Aurora wonderfully--there's audible mirth in her tone as she playfully sings to her owl friend, and it makes the scene feel alive. I'm not crazy about Bill Shirley's singing as Prince Phillip--he sounds about 10 years older than his scene partner, a bit too eager and missing the boyish charm that would balance Costa's performance well.

"Once Upon a Dream" is a waltz (relatively fast 3/4 meter), with the strings swelling nicely to support the soloists. Lyrically, it's a bit unimpressive, and there's a moment where the word "once" appears to be rhymed with "once"--

"But if I know you,
I know what you'll do
You'll love me at once
The way you did once
(upon a dream)"

I'm not crazy about it. I understand that "dream" ties back in with an earlier "seem," but the two usages of "once" in close proximity feels awkward to me. #DisneySongsRanked
84. Heigh Ho (Snow White)
Score: 409/500

The first song I scored for this list! A nice one, that seems to have started the tradition of "work songs" near the beginning of Disney musicals. The 7 dwarves are singing about all of the digging they do--pretty simple stuff.

The thing that really impresses me about "Heigh Ho" is the degree of synchronization between music and onstage action. Dopey sweeps in time with the main rhythmic motif, a deer kicks a wagon to the same rhythm, and even the sound of the gems being struck with a hammer is tuned to be the root of the harmony at that moment--great stuff.

There's some great 3 and 4 part harmonies sung by the male chorus as well, over a jaunty march accompaniment. Really cute number, just too simple to really impact me as a listener like some of the bigger songs coming up.

#DisneySongRankings #90-86: Decent

90. I've Got No Strings (Pinocchio)
Score: 400/500

This song is a nice, silly "globe-trotting" number, where Pinocchio sings the first refrain, then he's joined by other marionettes, first Dutch, then French, then Russian, and the music shifts slightly for each verse. All of the puppets are "flirting" with Pinocchio, and the French puppet has a particularly cute set of lyrics:

"You've got no strings
Comme ci comme ça
Your savoir-faire is ooh la la!
I've got strings
But entre nous
I'd cut my strings for you"

Love it. The music is a bit repetitive, and I wish that the minor-key "B section" that Pinocchio sings factored into the arrangement more, but it's good. The vocals are all fine, nothing extraordinary. My "subjective enjoyment" score was diminished significantly by the presence of Stromboli, the shouting Italian stereotype who is babbling made-up Italian-adjacent gibberish. #DisneySongRankings
89. Why Should I Worry? (Oliver & Company)
Score: 401/500

This song, and the movie in general, is so deliciously 80s. Everything about "Why Should I Worry?" screams 1980s pop rock, from the Billy Joel lead vocals, to the arena-filling snare banging away on 2 and 4, to the Talking-Heads-Lite rhythm guitar.

The song is better-suited for 80s radio than a movie musical, honestly. The lyrics are fine. It's a generalized ode to New York City, not exactly in the tradition of musical theater, not exactly providing a whole lot of fuel for the plot--just an okay musical number in an okay movie.

#DisneySongsRanked 95-91: Pretty good

95. Little Wooden Head (Pinocchio)
Score: 399/500

Note: One thing that is sure to confuse people about these rankings is that a "pretty good" song could still end up in 95th place. It just means that the top of the field was crowded--lot of bangers up there in the top 50.

"Little Wooden Head" is the song that Geppetto sings happily, almost to himself, after he completes his as-of-now-still-inert puppet, Pinocchio. The instrumentation, creatively, is provided by a music box playing a repeated progression. For me, the highlight is when Jiminy Cricket, attempting to blend in undetected, joins in with the jerky animatronic music box performers, improvising a countermelody.

The lyrics, melody, progression, etc. are all just "fine," and there is one rather uncomfortable bit near the end where Geppetto makes Pinocchio kick his innocent cat in the rear, then lowers the puppet to the floor to jerkily chase after the terrified Figaro. Ahh, the good ol' days, when Disney would include a random scene that causes childhood trauma and move on like nothing happened. #DisneySongsRanked
94. God Help the Outcasts (Hunchback of Notre Dame)
Score: 399/500

I can already hear Hunchback heads shouting about this being ranked below "A Guy Like You," but call off your dogs and check the next entry on the list! It's only 1 point behind.

To me, "God Help the Outcasts" is a real missed opportunity. Esmeralda, whose speaking voice is Demi Moore, is sung by Heidi Mollenhauer. Mollenhauer has an uncommonly resonant low range, and it's a real shame that it wasn't utilized more in the song, because it shines on the few low notes she does hit.

This is not one of Menken's best (you'll be seeing a lot of him in the top 50). It's a soft ballad, with surprisingly uninventive lyrics from the usually exceptional Stephen Schwartz. My main musical critiques of this song are that it 1) lacks a proper climax, and 2) has a very tacky, karaoke-esque piano accompaniment that sounds like something left over from a demo track that should've been scrapped after a full orchestration.

Still, it's beautiful music, that occupies a lovely part in the Hunchback story--it just could've been so much more than it is.

#DisneySongsRanked
Numbers 100-96: Not very good

100. A Dream is a Wish Your Heart Makes (Cinderella)
Score: 385/500

It's important to note that I'm including the reprise in this scoring--and the reprise is is sung entirely by little mice doing the same barely-comprehensible, pitch-shifted vocals from "Cinderelly, Cinderelly." Ultimately, the reprise takes some of the juice out of the original iteration of the song, which is a hazy lullaby, sung gorgeously by the late Ilene Woods. Still, in that early, "Golden Era" Disney, a lot of songs didn't have a climax or even a proper B section, and I think they suffered for it. #DisneySongsRanked
99. Yodle-Adle-Eedle-Idle-Oo (Home on the Range)
Score: 394/500

I didn't even know this movie existed until I started this ranking. Slim, a villainous cattle rustler voiced by Randy Quaid, busts out his yodeling skills and hypnotizes the cattle into following him and his crew.

It's a fun comedic idea, with the grizzled villain breaking out into a flamboyant musical number, chords warbling on steel slide guitar as the cows' eyes glaze over in amazement. Harmonically, it's a typical classic country western number, nothing really of note there.

Listening to this song, I was puzzled by the vocals--something sounded off. Looking into it further, I read that the yodeling was (allegedly) voiced by THREE separate men--each taking a part of the singer's range, each with their own distinct vocal timbre. If true, that's real bargain-bin behavior by Disney, because there are absolutely incredible yodelers out there they could've brought on board to do this and adapt it to be sung by one person.

#DisneySongsRanked 105-101: Not necessarily good, but with some significant redeeming qualities

105. This Wish (Wish)
Score: 338/500

I'm going to get in the weeds a bit on this one, but let's start with the good: Ariana DeBose's vocals as the protagonist Asha are basically unimpeachable. I cannot emphasize enough how borderline heroic this performance is, given the material she's working with. She effortlessly flits between her head, mix, and chest voice, and adopts a teenage-esque timbre without being cloying. DeBose is a charming, phenomenal singer.

The orchestration work is also excellent, with tasteful use of claves, guitar, and other instruments to suggest the movie's Mediterranean setting. Very classy work.

The lyrics and text setting, however, are a real problem. Take, for example, this phrase:

"So I look up at the stars to guide me,
and throw caution to every warning sign."

You can throw caution to the winds--or ignore warning signs. You can't "throw caution to every warning sign." That's an unintentional, non-humorous mixed metaphor, like saying "it's not rocket surgery."

The main hook of the song is also a problem. If you looked at the following sentence, which syllables would you emphasize?

"So I make this wish, to have something more for us than this."

If you answered that you'd emphasize the word "to," then congrats, you're on the same page as this song's writers. The whole line needs to be reworked to better facilitate prosody, something like "so I make this wish, for something more than this." It's too jam-packed with unnecessary syllables.

Finally, there are some audible punch-ins during the song's bridge, remnants of multiple takes by DeBose where her voice suddenly shifts timbre from one phrase to the next. This could be a result of cobbling takes together, or it could be a result of DeBose's reference track itself having many takes spliced together, we don't know. #DisneySongsRanked
104. So this is Love (Cinderella)
Score: 373/500

This song honestly isn't that bad, it's just not that *good* either.

It's very much in the spirit of "Golden Era" Disney (Snow White through Jungle Book, 1930s-1960s). It's a sleepy, rubato-laden waltz set with the signature schmaltzy Disney strings playing lazily resolving lower chromatic neighbors, as the pair sings a love duet. It's a bit more in the style of a jazzy torch song than a waltz, but that's fine--the vocals are okay, though there's a mismatch between the level of projection in Cinderella's almost whispered vocals and Prince Charming's louder tenor line.

The lyrics are fine--not much is said, and the song is not particularly intertwined with the plot in any meaningful beyond being about love. The song really just needs more to it, an actual B section, for instance--it's just too short and superficial for me, personally.

#DisneySongsRanked numbers 110-106: Very, very low-tier.

110. This is the Thanks I Get?! (Wish)
Score: 292/500

I've read a few think pieces now about the reasons why Wish (2023) flopped--unoriginal, bland, incoherent, unfunny, boring--all fair. But one thing that isn't mentioned as often is how flawed the movie's songs are.

The songwriting in Wish is a mess. From what I understand, songs were primarily written by Julia Michaels and Benjamin Rice, two excellent musicians... without much of a musical theater background at all. The real issue, I think, is that clearly neither of these songwriters received the kind of guidance one needs when embarking on a project of this scale for the first time. There are all sorts of technical issues scattered throughout the songs in Wish.

"This is the Thanks I Get?!" was the villain song in Wish, and it reeks of squandered potential. Chris Pine's acting is, of course, lovely, and his vocals have a certain untrained charm. However, whoever produced the song drenched Pine's vocals in pitch correction and other touch-ups, stripping away the natural patina that gives one's voice its character.

The song hits a completely bizarre tonal note in the story--it's in a major key, *very* light-hearted for the most part, and yet it occurs right after Pine's character, Magnifico, has a major evil heel-turn, sowing distrust among the citizens of Rosas (the city where the story takes place). We're jerked from his snarling dialogue into a breezy song complete with background vocals from a male choir singing in falsetto, jerked *back* into an angrily spluttering bridge, then kicked back into the toe-tapping chorus.

The lyrics are an issue as well. "I let you live here for free, and I don't even charge you rent".... okay. Do you also not ask us a fee to reside here? Lyrics need to be streamlined. There are a few of these little interjections of nothing throughout.

However! The song is really catchy. It's a fun sort of pop-rock tune that sits well in Chris Pine's range. If it were used in a different way, dramatically, and if the vocals weren't so overproduced, it'd go way up in the rankings, despite the lyrical issues. #DisneySongsRanked

109. At All Costs (Wish)
Score: 314/500

"At All Costs" is a very rare villain/protagonist duet--exciting! However, it contains many of the same problems as the other songs in Wish.

I have no real complaints about the vocal performances from Chris Pine and Ariana DeBose. The harmonies are cool, the orchestration work really shines, and the melody is nice, especially when the two sing together in close harmony. Love it. The song is pretty slow and sludgy, but hey, they can't all be fast.

Some major technical issues plague "At All Costs," though. There are a few points where there are noticable "punch-ins" in the vocals (i.e., separate takes are chopped up and combined to get the final take). This is standard practice in nearly all recorded music, but it's usually not detectable, and it especially shouldn't be in a genre that's trying to imitate a stage performance, where one take is all you get.

Again, the pitch correction is overdone. Chris Pine sings an utterly baffling melody for a few seconds that swings down low into his range, on the lyric "you still amaze me after all this time."

The lyrics needed 2-3 more rounds of revisions, and it's flabbergasting they made it out in their current state. "Promise, as one does" sounds nice but it's not something anybody has ever said. When the magnificent Ariana DeBose enters, singing as the young Asha, her textual stress is all over the place, with emphasis being placed on the "wrong" syllable in various words, set against a rhythmic push-and-pull that just doesn't work. This is a lyric setting issue, and it really drags down the song.

#DisneySongsRanked numbers 115-111: The worst of the worst.

115. Siamese Cat Song (Lady and the Tramp)
Score: 45/500 (last place)

The "Siamese Cat Song" has earned its place at the bottom of this ranking for a reason. The song serves little purpose in the plot of the movie, the vocals are remedial and cloying, and the lyrics directly mirror the animation's attempts to caricature Asians with the identical, bucktoothed cats speaking in broken English.

The music is a vague facsimile of traditional Thai music, so I suppose it could've been worse--at least they seemed to try to make the Siamese cats from Siam. However, there seemed to be so little musical effort put into this song, that it's little more than a dimwitted attempt to mock Asians, inserted into the movie almost at random as if to satisfy some sort of racism quota. 114. What Makes the Red Man Red? (Peter Pan)
Score: 60/500

Written and performed by whites pretending to be Indigenous, nearly every line of "What Makes the Red Man Red?" seems to be designed to negatively portray Natives. The song gets a rare distinction of somehow managing to be both racist and sexist, with a significant plot point being Wendy's exclusion and repeated reference using "squ*w," which is at worst a slur and at best a highly racialized epithet.

There are a few musically redeeming features. The Chief (yes, that's his official name) is voiced by a prolific bass, who sings some very low, resonant notes, but it was hard to glean any enjoyment from this song due to the astonishingly racist performance.