Lion King Special Edition

[Dirk]

Hey there, Hi there, Ho there,

when Disney announced a CD for the Special Edition release of the Lion King my hopes were high - but the final product seems to be too much geared at the general audience ... why isn't WDR able to release a true "Special Edition CD"?

I mean: what did this Special Edition get us?

- a new cover (a nice lenticular one in the case of the Disney Store exclusive version)
- the new Morning Report song - which has the problem of starring new voices not really fitting into the movie
- a (as far as you would ask me) terrible Remix of Can You Feel the Love Tonight

And that's it - a bit weak if one sees what they could have included:

- Hyenas: score track released on the German soundtrack CD back when the movie premiered and once again on the new Special Edition soundtrack
- Can You Feel the Love Tonight performed by the Circle of Stars of the Disney Channel - even so it is not a stellar cover version it beats the Remix now found on the CD. Why I mention it here at all, even so it is advertised to be included on Disney Mania 2? Because it is included in the German Special Edition soundtrack release.
- more score material? A wish, but we have discussed the problem with the orchestra contracts often enough here...
- some of the demo recordings as heared on the DVD, e.g. the first part of Hakuna Matata performed by Timon about his life in the colony, ...


Now that would have been a true "Special Edition CD". Right now I must say: I'm disappointed with the CD-release.


Yours
Dirk

 

[Dalboz]

Although I agree with you that MORE SCORE would have been the best, I should note that if you buy the LK: SE cd at Target, you don't get a fun lenticular cover, but you DO get a second cd for free: the old "Rhythm of the Pride Lands" album, which now includes a new version of "Circle of Life" performed by that Disney Channel "Circle of Stars". And the two cds are packaged together in a nice clear 2-disc case.
So I guess the German album would be a plus, but if you're a completist, the Target-only album has "new" stuff on it too.

 

[Dirk]

HI Matt,

the Target-CD-offer certainly is a good deal - no question. Especially as I'm surprised that they included the Circle of Life by the Circle of Disney Stars on the second CD. I had expected that it would not be released "outside" DisneyMania2 and that the German soundtrack only included it because DisneyMania2 might not be scheduled for a release here.

What I thought was so disappointing was that the "special edition" approach of the 2-DVD set with all the bonus material wasn't mirrored in the soundtrack release.

Especially the fact that the "Hyenas"-score is missing once again is a letdown. I mean: this track has been released on WaltDisneyRecord-CDs, even so outside the US, so this means: they must have a contract with the orchestra including the release rights for that track, so why is it not included in the US-release??


Yours
Dirk