Stay Awake: Various Interpretations of Music From Vintage Disney Films by Various Artists (CD, Oct-1988, A&M Records USA)

A wonderful collection of contemporary artists doing covers of Disney classics. At times slightly surreal (Senaide O'Connor singing "Someday my Prince Will Come") to the delightfully dead on (Buster Poindexter singing "Castle in Spain") the collection never fails to keep your interest. My personal favorites are the "bookend" tracks by "Word Jazz" artist Ken Nordine. Strangely atmospheric, and a little discomforting, they set up perfectly the lost childhood you find in these songs.

I got this cd primarily for the Tom Waits cover of Heigh Ho and it certainly didnt disappoint. As always he creates a resonant atmosphere that makes me a little freaked out by the dwarfs.

The surprise of this was the excellent quality of the other songs on the album. Buster Poindexter and Los Lobos are some of the high points. I think the James Taylor song drags but not enough to stop me from listening regularly.

Grade A, there need to be more albums like this.

If you are a fan of Disney movies, you will enjoy the varitey of all the different songs from the classics . But, unlike the music in the movies, this cd version adapts each of the songs to the style of what each recording star sing the song usually sings. (For example: "I Wanna Be Like You" from The Jungle Book actually actually has a rockin' sort of "cantina" sound in Los Lobos' arrangement, and "Baby Mine" from Dumbo has a definite bluesy turn to it in Bonnie Raitt and Was (Was Not)'s arrangement--oh that WONDERFUL bass line!). I usually end up listening to the actual movie soundtracks when I need my Disney fix (I'm hard core that way), but it's pretty grand to have one cd with such recording GREATS on it like Ken Nordine (!), Yma Sumac, Ringo Starr, The Replacements, Tom Waits, and etc.. It's safe to say there is a little something for everyone's musical taste on this. Fun stuff.