It’s The Lion King’s birthday and my, has it had an eventful life. Sequels, Disney attractions, an amazing musical adaptation, and soon-to-be “live action” remake. Even better, The Lion King has one of the best Disney soundtracks ever created. Did you know that it has the best-selling animated film soundtrack in the US? It sold almost 5 million copies in 1994 alone. But what do you expect from Elton John, Tim Rice, and Hans Zimmer?
I am going to do my best to rank the songs from the original Lion King (I specify original because, while the others have lovely songs, I want to only focus on the OG soundtrack for now). Of course, this is just my taste. All of the songs are still some of the best ever penned for film.
(Technical #6) The Lion Sleeps Tonight
This song happens for a hot sec when Timon is strolling through the jungle with Pumbaa. Of course it’s catchy, and so recognizable that maybe your super-cool high school a capella group tried its hand and mastering its awimbawehs. But sorry doo-wop groups, my love for The Lion King’s soundtrack outranks your impact on music history.
#5. Can You Feel the Love Tonight?
I do feel the love, just…not as much as I do with the others. The best part about this song are Timon and Pumbaa’s solos. Yes, this song is a magical exploration on what it means to feel the intangible, and that whole lion sex prelude thing.
But my real reason for this song ranking last on my list is that the Elton John version of it is far superior, in my opinion, to the film version. I still hear it on the radio, and you know what, every time someone turns it up. Beautiful song…just outshined by its composer’s remix.
#4. Hakunah Matata
When I was a young wartHOOOOOG! Great song, great message, great to sing along with too. Let me say, it’s quite fun dancing around one’s living room, swinging one’s head back and forth and pretending to grow up alongside Simba. And then, come right in with adult Simba, Toto’s Joseph Williams (yes, that Toto).
It’s also a great transition song, showing the passage of time, moving the story along all while informing us of the way Simba was raised. Thinking about all this puts me in the mood for some tasty bugs. Okay not really.
#3. I Just Can’t Wait to Be King
This song reminds me of my first karaoke experience, which took place on a Disney Cruise. Good times. It’s fun to play the Simba, Nala, and Zazu (Rowan Atkinson) parts in the song by yourself, too.
I think what makes this song so special to me is the visuals the movie provides. Seeing the colorful characters that made their way onto my pillow cases and bedsheets for a good ten years makes me feel all giddy inside.
Not a fan of the horn-in-butt thing that happens when the animal tower starts to fall, but the last image of Zazu trapped under a bum is such a great way to wrap up a song.
#2. Circle of Life
You put in the VHS and watch the Disney castle credits run. And then “Walt Disney Pictures Presents…” And then, this blackness, stillness, settles. And you know it’s coming but still it always comes as a bit of a surprise. That first note and screen-filling sun just awaken the senses like the smell of Vick’s Vapor Rub. It’s worth to note that Julie Taymor, the director of the original Broadway adaptation, totally plays with the heartstrings during this song, too.
There’s such magic in seeing the landscape, the animals, the invitation into the world in which the movie takes place. I love the scene with Simba and his little sneeze from Rafiki’s magic “dust.” And this is one song where Elton John’s performance does not outshine the film’s, performed by Lebo M (the Zulu vocals at the beginning) and Carmen Twillie (the main vocalist).
And for the record, I very much dislike the “pink pajamas penguins on the bottom” stuff. I get it, it’s cute, but I personally feel it cheapens the song. There’s magic in it, even if the lyrics translate a little…strangely.
#1. Be Prepared
I adore villain songs, and Be Prepared is perhaps my favorite villain song of any Disney character. Jeremy Irons has one of the most delicious voices ever, and the pure venom in his voice just matches Scar’s character so brilliantly. The visuals of the green smoke, the Nazi-inspired hyena march, that part where the hyenas rising on a rock fragment shake their bums to the music…it’s just a visual delicacy to me.
Something else I love about it so much is that the music is frighteningly powerful before the addition of the lyrics. The lyrics, too, feel amazing to speak. Their rhyme and meter provides such interesting poetry, something lots of Disney songs today lack.
Of course, I’m biased with my love of the villain song. But Be Prepared is a gem, often overshadowed by the other songs of the movie. It’s time someone give it the #1 rank it deserves.
Thanks for reading my list! Feel free to comment with your own feels and to share.
And be sure to check out the Platnium Edition of The Lion King, which includes a new song, fully animated!