Phil Collins: An Era of Disney

By Miller Wilkinson

Born January thirtieth, 1951, Phillip Collins is one of the most successful musicians of the late twentieth century. From his time with Genesis, where he was the drummer and vocals, which resulted in multiple top ten United Kingdom singles, to his solo career which had multiple platinum rated albums and numerous number ones. He is a household name and is forever immortalized in both the Hollywood Walk of Fame and the Songwriters Hall of Fame. But one aspect of his career stands out for those who grew up in the nineties and early two thousand’s, his contribution to iconic Disney film soundtracks.

First, a little backstory on Disney animated films. After the death of Walt Disney, Disney films entered into what is known as the Bronze Age of films, which included Fox and the Hound, The Rescuers, and The Aristocrats. While many were not bad films, they lacked vision and did not follow the classic Disney formula of retelling classic stories. Their market also decreased, notably with The Black Cauldron, which was a financial bomb. Disney needed a new direction. With the profits made from The Great Mouse Detective, Disney premiered The Little Mermaid in 1989 and entered into The Renaissance Era. This ten-year stretch contains what many consider to be the best Disney films ever published, including: The Hunchback of Notre Dame, Aladdin, Mulan, and Hercules. Culminating with Tarzan, which is where Phil Collins comes in.

Collins was brought in as a songwriter for the film, however the executives decided that instead of merely writing the songs, he would also perform as they did not want the main characters to sing, contrary to Disney tradition. So instead, Collins performed the three tent post songs “Two Worlds’’, which served as a setup narration in the opening act, “Strangers Like Me”, and the acclaimed “You’ll Be in My Heart” both the duet with Glenn Close and the solo version. This song netted Collins an Academy Award and Golden Globe Award. It is adored by fans, constantly ending up on top Disney song lists. Disney noted the success of Collins work and brought him back to work on Brother Bear in 2003, performing about half of the songs on the soundtrack. While not as successful as Tarzan, the main song “Look Through My Eyes” is a fan favorite song. Brother Bear is considered one of the best films of the Post-Renaissance Era. Granted that is not hard when considering its contestants *cough* Chicken Little.

Now only having written and performed for two Disney films, notable as they may be, how can we attest an era to Phil Collins? Well, it is twofold. In one regard it is that Tarzan represents the culmination of the Renaissance Era. Some of the best soundtracks built into the near perfect blend of vocals, instrumentals, and narrative strength in Tarzan’s soundtrack. On the other hand, it is the new practice of having musical elements that are not sung by the main characters. Disney seemed tied to the idea if there was any lyrical music, it must be diegetic. Collis showed this did not have to be the case. This would go on through the 2000’s with other successful films like: Wreck It Ralph 2, Big Hero 6, and Zootopia. Kind of. There is a song performed at the end but is not the main characters, but Shakira being Shakira, just as a gazelle. Other films that follow suit are Treasure Planet and Bolt that all bring in recording artists to lend their vocals when the story would not fit the protagonists breaking out in song and dance.

Phil Collins not only shaped contemporary music, but also left an notable impact on Disney and shaped the childhood of many 90’s babies and the influence to films currently being made.