Jim On Film
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Similar occurrences appear in the works of Rogers and Hammerstein. In comparing both the content and purpose of "Oh, What a Beautiful Morning’," "Our State Fair," and "The Sound of Music" from Oklahoma!, State Fair, and The Sound of Music respectively, we see that these songs establish the location of the story as well as hint at what the characters are thinking. Many of Rogers and Hammerstein’s compositions also have songs about the main characters. "People Will Say We’re in Love" from Oklahoma!, "A Puzzlement" and "Shall I Tell You What I Think of You?" from The King and I, and "Maria" from The Sound of Music are all witty songs that tell what people think of the main characters. To place songs in categories such as songs about desires, love songs, and dance numbers would result in more lists of similarities, but to reduce these musicals to lists would not only do a severe disservice to Rogers and Hammerstein but to the millions of people whom their works have reached.
To do this with the works of Frank Loesser (Guys and Dolls), Alan Jay Lerner and Frederick Lowe (Camelot), and Andrew Lloyd Webber (Evita) would all yield similar results but would only serve to undermine the genius of their work. The same can be said of the Alan Menken films.
When looking at the categories of songs in the Alan Menken films, it is also clear that these are not categories unique to his work. The song establishing the motivating desires of the main character, such as in "Part of Your World," is a long-standing tradition in musicals for a very good reason. The audience needs to know what will propel the plot, and in a world where music is used to express strong emotions, songs like "Maybe" from Annie, "Where is Love" from Oliver!, and "You Can’t Get a Man With a Gun" from Annie Get Your Gun are perfect ways of communicating this to the audience.
Showstoppers, too, are hardly unique to the Disney films. What would Kiss Me, Kate be without "Too Darn Hot," The Pajama Game without "Once-A-Year Day," or Guys and Dolls without "Sit Down, Your Rockin’ the Boat?"
Similarly, to have a romantic musical without a love song is like having football without a football. Jane Eyre has "Sirens," Camelot has "If Ever I Would Leave You," and The Music Man has "Till There Was You," and the Disney films are no different. What would Aladdin be without "A Whole New World" or Beauty and the Beast without "Something There?" These love songs are more than time-filler; they fit the films for which they were written like the glass slipper on Cinderella’s foot. The audience needs to know that love is blossoming, and in a musical, it would be ludicrous to suggest it be done any other way than through song.
(c) Disney
Even within the Alan Menken films, there are significant differences. Some of these include:
For Pocahontas, the love song is also the theme song. In "Colors of the Wind," Pocahontas does not sing about falling in love; instead, her relationship with John Smith develops during the events of the song.
Some have questioned why Ratcliffe in Pocahontas gets to sing in two songs. It’s because the story calls for it. If the creators were following formula, he would only have one (and as it is, Jafar and Hades never got songs).
The music of Pocahontas is primarily ballads, which is different from the other Alan Menken films. The only production number is "Mine, Mine, Mine," which is not much like other Disney production numbers; it cannot be compared to "Under the Sea," "Be Our Guest," or "Friend Like Me."
The Hunchback of Notre Dame has plenty of songs that can be categorized, but that leaves "The Bells of Notre Dame," "God Help the Outcasts," "Heaven’s Light," "A Guy Like You," and "The Court of Miracles" without category. Why? Because the film was never made following any formula. These songs exist for reasons unique to the story.
Hercules is also a difficult film to look for formula in music. The love song "I Won’t Say (I’m in Love)" is a song different from any of the other Disney love songs. Once again, "The Gospel Truth I, II, and II," "One Last Hope," and "A Star is Born" all defy categorization.
In retrospect, the three Alan Menken films that share the most similarities in music are The Little Mermaid, Beauty and the Beast, and Aladdin, and these are the films most audiences and critics hold up as the artistic weight for all recent Disney films to be measured against. These three are the only true fairy tales of the bunch, and it is probably fair to suggest that their musical similarities come from their genre.