Stay Awake: Various Interpretations of Music from Vintage Disney Films

Various Artists - Children's Music, Various Artists - Rock

Product Details

• Audio CD (October 25, 1990)
• Original Release Date: October 18, 1988
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: A&M
• ASIN: B000002GFM
• Also Available in: Audio Cassette  |  Vinyl
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars See all reviews (31 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #14,287 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

  Popular in these categories: (What's this?)

  #31 in	Music > Miscellaneous > Compilations > Decades > 1980-1989
  #32 in	Music > Pop > By Decade > 1980s
  #35 in	Music > R&B > Funk > Jazz Funk

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Wonderful Interpretations of Disney Tunes, January 9, 2001

By	James Jones (Clive, IA United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

There's a lot more in the music of Disney films than one--than _I_--thought, and the musicians here do a fine job of making it clear, giving you a different point of view but always with respect for the music. You can tell that in Tom Waits's vision, the dwarfs sweat, belong to the UMW, and head out for a beer after a day at the mines. Buster Poindexter's utterly over-the-top "Castles in Spain" is as much fun to listen to as it clearly was for him to sing. "Feed the Birds" is heartbreakingly beautiful, as is Bonnie Raitt's "Baby Mine." Ken Nordine's soundscapes set the mood at the beginning and especially near the end. Disney film music is not just for kids, and this CD proves it.

12 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Mouse never roared like this ..., January 7, 2000

By	Marcus Wright (Orlando, Florida) - See all my reviews

Disney Music can sometimes seem a little too ... well ... Disney. Neat, catchy little tunes sung by voices that you just KNOW have never seen a zit in their lives. Subject matter that is trite at best, portraying characters so cute that they're almost embarrassing.

Embarrassing, because even at thirty years old, you still whistle Zip-A-Dee-Doo-Dah from "Song of the South" when you're happy.

Don't you?

Fear not, closet Disney-phile. This album takes all those songs from your favorite movies, and gives them an adult twist. This album will serve a two-fold purpose. First, you can get your fix of Disney anytime your middleaged-child heart desires. But most importantly, if you get "caught" by your friends, you can pass it off as serious music.

Whether a mere fresh coat of paint (as with "I Wanna Be Like You" from Jungle Book) to a slight sarcastic tone on old favorites (Sinead O'Conner singing "Someday My Prince Will Come" -- 'nuff said there!), to downright spooky versions of bettime songs (Suzanne Vega's acapella version of "Stay Awake"), to absolutely twisted rehashes of formerly tired standby's (Tom Waite rebuilds "Heigh Ho" in his own graven image), this album is a fantastic work. It not only transforms these scores into wonderful new pieces of art, but it also remains true to the basic spirit of Disney. Perhaps it is irreverent in places. Yes, it may even poke a little fun at our favorite childhood icon. But it is still a respectful tribute to the original artists who put these tunes in our heads in the first place.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Worldwide appreciation, October 4, 2004

By	the passionate listener (Rome, Italy) - See all my reviews

Well... it's not that easy to add something significant to the other reviews as I share very similar feelings with all people loving this album. I found this vinyl, earmarked as "second choice", in a clearance shop in the periphery of Rome, Italy in spring 1990, paying some $3 for it (!!!), and since then it became one of my favourite albums. Were it not worth listening for the superb renditions of Susanne Vega or Sinéad O'Connor, it is just amazing to hear Michael Stipe doing backing vocals in "Little April Shower" or discover Bill Frisell and Wayne Horvitz performing in the opening medley and two more tracks. Were it only one reason to own this album, it would be the Tom Waits track, that with the parallel Brecht version in "Lost in the stars" (the 1985 album dedicated to Kurt Weill) are absolutely necessary to be able to own the complete Tom Waits hell collection. Last but not least, it's the eclectic producer Hal Willner that has to be credited for this incredible, everlasting music that unveils the very nature of disney world. It's very good news that this album is available in cd, I would have never believed. Quality wins at the end.