So Close (Enchanted song) performer Jon McLaughlin
"So Close" is a song written by composer Alan Menken and lyricist Stephen Schwartz for the musical fantasy film Enchanted (2007), recorded by American singer Jon McLaughlin. In the film, the song is performed by McLaughlin as himself, a band vocalist, musically accompanying main characters Giselle and Robert as they dance together at a costume ball. The song's lyrics describe both their relationship with each other, as well as Giselle's journey and growth as a character.
Enchanted's songs become more contemporary in style as Giselle matures into a modern-day young woman, with "So Close" resembling the style of music featured in Disney films during the 1990s, a theme similarly reflected by the character's choice of wardrobe during the scene. A romantic pop ballad, Menken and Schwartz based "So Close" on the title song from Disney's Beauty and the Beast (1991), a song Menken himself had written the music for, while its cinematography was designed to invoke the camera movement in Beauty and the Beast's famous ballroom sequence. The track was arranged and produced by Robbie Buchanan, who had previously arranged pop versions of the theme songs from Beauty and the Beast, Aladdin (1992) and Pocahontas (1995).
The song has received generally negative reviews from film and music critics, who were unimpressed with its slow tempo. "So Close" was one of three songs from Enchanted nominated for an Academy Award for Best Original Song at the 80th Academy Awards. McLaughlin's live performance during the telecast was met with critical acclaim, and is credited with introducing the singer to a wider audience while bolstering sales of his own material.Writing and recording
"So Close" was written by composer Alan Menken and lyricist Stephen Schwartz. Menken and Schwartz based "So Close" on the title song from Beauty and the Beast (1991), a song Menken himself had written the music for. In addition to conceiving the song's title, director Kevin Lima specifically asked that the song's final lyrics be "So close and still so far" to mirror the idea that this appears to be Enchanted's main characters Giselle and Robert's final moment together. The songwriters enlisted Robbie Buchanan to produce the track; Buchanan had previously arranged and produced the single version of "Beauty and the Beast", as well as "A Whole New World" and "Colors of the Wind" from Aladdin (1992) and Pocahontas (1995), respectively.Menken recorded an early demo version of the song before it was forwarded to Buchanan, who created its backing track. In addition to Buchanan, many musicians contributed to the track before it was finally returned to the producer, and then Menken. Menken proceeded to use Buchanan's track to orchestrate the song while developing an instrumental "middle section" during which the characters would dance. Menken and Schwartz co-produced. Although arranger Danny Troob contributed some orchestration to the song, he attributes the majority of its arrangement to Buchanan. "So Close" was recorded by singer-songwriter Jon McLaughlin, who was recruited from his record label by the film's music supervisor after Menken and Schwartz began searching for a suitable singer. Instrumentalists on the track include bassist Neil Stubenhaus, drummer John Robinson and guitarist Michael Landau, while Buchanan himself contributed both piano and synthesizer.Menken had written an alternative version of "So Close", which the filmmakers enjoyed but ultimately rejected in favor of the final version used in the film. Additionally, a song originally written for the villain Queen Narissa (Susan Sarandon) was eliminated from the film because Lima felt that the musical number would occur too close to "So Close", wanting to prevent the film from becoming a "full out" musical. The song was released on November 20, 2007 as part of the film's soundtrack.
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