The Lion King (soundtrack)

The Lion King: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack is the original motion picture soundtrack for the 1994 Disney animated film, The Lion King. It contains songs from the film written by Elton John and Tim Rice, and a score composed by Hans Zimmer. Elton John has a dual role of performer for several tracks. Additional performers include Carmen Twillie, Jason Weaver, Rowan Atkinson, Whoopi Goldberg, Jeremy Irons, Cheech Marin, Jim Cummings, Nathan Lane, Ernie Sabella, and Sally Dworsky. The album was released on April 27, 1994 on CD and audio cassette. The soundtrack was recorded in three different countries: the U.S., the U.K. and South Africa. It is the best-selling soundtrack album to an animated film in the United States with over 7 million copies sold, with 4,934,000 copies sold in 1994.[6]
Professional ratings	Professional ratings
Review scores 	Review scores
Source 	Rating
AllMusic 	[1]
Robert Christgau 	C[2]
Filmtracks 	[3]
Vox 	(10/10)[4]
Sputnikmusic 	5/5[5]
An expanded version of The Lion King soundtrack, featuring 30 minutes of previously-unreleased material, was released as part of the Walt Disney Records: The Legacy Collection series on June 24, 2014. In 2014, Hot Topic released a vinyl picture disc of the soundtrack.[7]
== Track listing ==
All music composed by Elton John and Hans Zimmer with lyrics by Tim Rice.
The Lion King (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)[8]	The Lion King (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)[8]	The Lion King (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)[8] 	The Lion King (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)[8]
No. 	Title 	Performer(s) 	Length
1. 	"Circle of Life" 	Carmen Twillie and Lebo M. 	3:59
2. 	"I Just Can't Wait to Be King" 	Jason Weaver, Rowan Atkinson, and Laura Williams 	2:50
3. 	"Be Prepared" 	Jeremy Irons, Whoopi Goldberg, Cheech Marin, and Jim Cummings 	3:40
4. 	"Hakuna Matata" 	Nathan Lane, Ernie Sabella, Jason Weaver, and Joseph Williams 	3:33
5. 	"Can You Feel the Love Tonight" 	Joseph Williams, Sally Dworsky, Nathan Lane, Ernie Sabella, and Kristle Edwards	2:57
6. 	"This Land" 	Hans Zimmer 	2:55
7. 	"...To Die For" 	Hans Zimmer 	4:17
8. 	"Under the Stars" 	Hans Zimmer 	3:45
9. 	"King of Pride Rock" 	Hans Zimmer 	5:59
10. 	"Circle of Life" 	Elton John 	4:51
11. 	"I Just Can't Wait to Be King" 	Elton John 	3:37
12. 	"Can You Feel the Love Tonight" (End Title) 	Elton John 	4:01
Total length: 	Total length: 	Total length: 	46:40
The Lion King: Special Edition[9]	The Lion King: Special Edition[9] 	The Lion King: Special Edition[9] 	The Lion King: Special Edition[9]
No. 	Title 	Artist(s) 	Length
13. 	"The Morning Report" 	James Earl Jones, Jeff Bennett and Evan Saucedo	1:36
14. 	"Can You Feel the Love Tonight" (Remix)	Elton John 	4:08
Total length: 	Total length: 	Total length: 	5:44
=== The Legacy Collection release ===
Main article: Walt Disney Records: The Legacy Collection § The Lion King
Walt Disney Records released an expanded edition of The Lion King soundtrack containing an additional thirty minutes of previously-unheard material from the film, as well as a collection of demo versions of cues.[7] This revision contains a new remastered mix by Alan Meyerson.
== Chart and commercial success ==
The soundtrack shipped over 10 million copies in the U.S. and eventually went 10x platinum in 1995, thus becoming the biggest-selling soundtrack ever from an animated film. Its certification was promoted to Diamond when the award was instituted in 1999. According to Nielsen Soundscan the soundtrack, as of April 2014, has sold a total of 7.873 million copies in the US.[6] It is also the best-selling vinyl album in the Nielsen Sound Scan era (starting 1991), with 1,043,000 copies sold as of June 2014.[10]
In 2010, Rhapsody called it one of the all-time great Disney & PixarSoundtracks.[11]
=== Charts ===
==== Weekly charts ====
{| class="wikitable sortable"	Chart	Peak
position
Australian ARIA Album Chart[12] 	3 	
Austrian Albums Chart[13] 	4 	
Belgian Albums Chart (Flanders) [14] 	16 	
Belgian Albums Chart (Wallonia)[15] 	5 	
Canadian RPM Albums Chart[16] 	1 	
Dutch Albums Chart[17] 	6 	
Finnish Albums Chart[18] 	19 	
French SNEP Albums Chart[19] 	1 	
German Media Control Albums Chart[20]	7 	
Japanese Oricon Albums Chart[21] 	20 	
New Zealand Albums Chart[22] 	1 	
Swedish Albums Chart[23] 	4 	
Swiss Albums Chart[24] 	1 	
U.S. Billboard 200[25] 	1 	
=== Certifications ===
Region 	Certification 	Certified units/Sales
Original album release 	Original album release 	Original album release
Austria (IFPI Austria)[37] 	Platinum 	50,000*
Brazil 	 	1,200,000[38]
Canada (Music Canada)[39] 	Diamond 	1,000,000^
France (SNEP)[40] 	Platinum 	1,260,000[41]
Germany (BVMI)[42] 	3× Platinum 	1,500,000^
Japan (RIAJ)[43] 	Gold 	100,000^
Netherlands (NVPI)[44] 	Platinum 	100,000^
New Zealand (RMNZ)[45] 	Platinum 	15,000^
Poland (ZPAV)[46] 	Gold 	50,000*
Sweden (GLF)[47] 	Gold 	50,000^
Switzerland (IFPI Switzerland)[48]	2× Platinum 	100,000^
United Kingdom (BPI)[49] 	Platinum 	300,000^
United States (RIAA)[50] 	Diamond 	10,000,000^
Summaries 	Summaries 	Summaries
Europe (IFPI)[51] 	3× Platinum 	3,000,000*
Original cast recording 	Original cast recording	Original cast recording
Australia (ARIA)[52] 	Gold 	35,000^
France (SNEP)[53] 	Gold 	100,000*
Germany (BVMI)[54] 	Gold 	250,000^
United Kingdom (BPI)[55] 	Silver 	60,000^
United States (RIAA)[56] 	Platinum 	1,000,000^
Sing-Along shortform 	Sing-Along shortform 	Sing-Along shortform
United Kingdom (BPI)[57] 	Silver 	60,000^
United States (RIAA)[58] 	2× Platinum 	1,000,000^
Hans Zimmer Re-release 	Hans Zimmer Re-release 	Hans Zimmer Re-release
United Kingdom (BPI)[59] 	Silver 	60,000^
Summaries 	Summaries 	Summaries
Worldwide (IFPI)
Total available sales	N/A 	18,255,035
*sales figures based on certification alone
^shipments figures based on certification alone	*sales figures based on certification alone
^shipments figures based on certification alone	*sales figures based on certification alone
^shipments figures based on certification alone
=== Accolades ===
Awards 	Awards 	Awards 	Awards
Award 	Category 	Recipient(s) and nominee(s) 	Result
Academy Awards 	Best Original Song 	"Can You Feel the Love Tonight" – Elton John and Tim Rice 	Won
Academy Awards 	Best Original Song 	"Circle of Life" – Elton John and Tim Rice 	Nominated
Academy Awards 	Best Original Song 	"Hakuna Matata" – Elton John and Tim Rice 	Nominated
Academy Awards 	Best Original Score 	Hans Zimmer 	Won
Golden Globe Awards	Best Original Song 	"Can You Feel the Love Tonight" – Elton John and Tim Rice 	Won
Golden Globe Awards	Best Original Song 	"Circle of Life" – Elton John and Tim Rice 	Nominated
Golden Globe Awards	Best Original Score 	Hans Zimmer 	Won
Grammy Awards 	Best Musical Album for Children 	Mark Mancina, Jay Rifkin, Chris Thomas, Hans Zimmer 	Won
Grammy Awards 	Best Instrumental Arrangement Accompanying Vocalist(s)	Hans Zimmer and Lebo Morake – "Circle of Life" performed by Carmen Twillie	Won