Welcome back to our Golden Globe decade study series! This series focuses on the Best Original Song award given by the Hollywood Foreign Press, which is presented to the songwriters who have written an original song specifically for a feature film. Today, we travel back in time to the award show's fourth decade, starting at the show's 49th iteration in 1992.
1992
The 49th Golden Globe Awards were held January 18th, 1992 and celebrated film and television achievements from 1991. The ceremony was hosted by actress Jacqueline Bisset and actor Pierce Brosnan.
Best Original Song - Beauty and the Beast by Peabo Bryson & Céline Dion (written by A. Menken, H. Ashman)
Beauty and the Beast, with music by Alan Menken and lyrics by Howard Ashman, was one of five total nominees for Best Original Song 1992, beating out Be Our Guest from Beauty and the Beast; Dreams to Dream from An American Tail: Fievel Goes West; (Everything I Do) I Do It For You from Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves; and Tears in Heaven from Rush. The song was featured in Gary Trousdale & Kirk Wise's 1991 film Beauty and the Beast, which is Disney's animated adaptation of the 1740 Jeanne-Marie Leprince de Beaumont fairy tale of the same name. Starring Paige O'Hara and Robby Benson, Best Original Song was one of three wins out of four total nominations for the film at this ceremony, the others being for Best Motion Picture - Musical or Comedy and Best Original Score - Motion Picture. Notable covers of this song include those by Angela Lansbury, Ariana Grande & John Legend, Kenny Loggins, Diamond Rio, and Jordin Sparks. I know I've mentioned several times how much I love Beauty and the Beast, and I fully agree with every award it received. This was a powerhouse of a year for this award, but I'll always be glad when a favorite of mine gets its due recognition.
Tale as old as time, true as it can be/Barely even friends, then somebody bends unexpectedly/Just a little change, small to say the least/Both a little scared, neither one prepared, beauty and the beast/Ever just the same/Ever a surprise/Ever as before and ever just as sure/As the sun will rise
1993
The 50th Golden Globe Awards were held January 23rd, 1993 and celebrated film and television achievements from 1992. The ceremony was hosted by actor Louis Gossett Jr., actor Leslie Nielsen, and actress Jane Seymour.
Best Original Song - A Whole New World by Peabo Bryson & Regina Belle (written by A. Menken, T. Rice)
A Whole New World, with music by Alan Menken and lyrics by Tim Rice, was one of five total nominees for Best Original Song 1993, beating out Beautiful Maria of My Soul from The Mambo Kings; Friend Like Me from Aladdin; This Used to Be My Playground from A League of Their Own; and Prince Ali from Aladdin. The song was featured in John Musker & Ron Clements's 1992 film Aladdin, which is Disney's animated adaptation of the tale Aladdin and the Magic Lamp from One Thousand and One Nights. Starring Scott Weinger and Robin Williams, Best Original Song was one of three wins out of six total nominations for the film at this ceremony, the others being for Best Original Score and a Special Achievement Award for Williams. Notable covers of this song include those by Brad Kane & Lea Salonga, Mena Massoud & Naomi Scott, Zayn Malik & Zhavia Ward, Jose Mari Chan & Lea Salonga, and Ben Platt & Idina Menzel. This song is absolutely one of the quintessential Disney classics, and honestly I would've been okay seeing any of Aladdin's three nominations in this category win. It's one of the best soundtracks out there, and this song in particular is so magical and romantic, it never gets old. I can show you the world, shining, shimmering, splendid/Tell me, Princess, now when did you last let your heart decide/I can open your eyes, take you wonder by wonder/Over, sideways and under on a magic carpet ride/A whole new world, a new fantastic point of view/No one to tell us no or where to go or say we're only dreaming/A whole new world, a dazzling place I never knew/But when I'm way up here, it's crystal clear that now I'm in a whole new world with you/Now I'm in a whole new world with you
1994
The 51st Golden Globe Awards were held January 22nd, 1994 and celebrated film and television achievements from 1993. The ceremony was hosted by actor Tim Curry and actress Faye Dunaway.
Best Original Song - Streets of Philadelphia by Bruce Springsteen (written by B. Springsteen)
Streets of Philadelphia, with music and lyrics by Bruce Springsteen, was one of five total nominees for Best Original Song 1994, beating out Again from Poetic Justice; The Day I Fall in Love from Beethoven's II; Stay from Faraway, So Close!; and Thief of Your Heart from In the Name of the Father. The song was featured in Jonathan Demme's 1993 film Philadelphia. Starring Tom Hanks and Denzel Washington, Best Original Song was one of two wins out of three total nominations for the film at this ceremony, the other being for Best Actor in a Motion Picture - Drama for Hanks. Notable covers of this song include those by Melissa Etheridge, The Fray, and Elton John. This song is a beautiful song, very chill to listen to and quietly emotional as well. I've never seen the movie, but from what I understand the song matches the tone perfectly.
I was bruised and battered/I couldn't tell what I felt/I was unrecognizable to myself/Saw my reflection in a window/And didn't know my own face/Oh brother, are you gonna leave me wastin' away/On the streets of Philadelphia/I walked the avenue 'til my legs felt like stone/I heard the voices of friends vanished and gone/At night I could hear the blood in my veins/Just as black and whispering as the rain/On the streets of Philadelphia
1995
The 52nd Golden Globe Awards were held January 21st, 1995 and celebrated film and television achievements from 1994. The ceremony was hosted by actor John Larroquette and actress Janine Turner.
Best Original Song - Can You Feel the Love Tonight by Elton John (written by E. John, T. Rice)
Can You Feel the Love Tonight, with music by Elton John and lyrics by Tim Rice, was one of six total nominees for Best Original Song 1995, beating out Circle of Life from The Lion King; The Color of the Night from Color of Night; For Longer than Forever from The Swan Princess; I'll Remember from With Honors; and Look What Love Has Done from Junior. The song was featured in Roger Allers & Rob Minkoff's 1994 Disney film The Lion King. Starring Matthew Broderick and Jonathan Taylor Thomas, Best Original Song was one of three wins out of four total nominations for the film at this ceremony, the others being for Best Motion Picture - Musical or Comedy and Best Original Score - Motion Picture. Notable covers of this song include those by Pentatonix, Jackie Evancho, Caleb & Kelsey, and Elliott Yamin. This is another indisputable Disney classic, and a beyond incredible Elton John song to boot. The lyrics from Rice are just so good, and the whole song is just hopeful and serene and beautiful.
There's a calm surrender to the rush of day/When the heat of a rolling wind can be turned away/An enchanted moment and it sees me through/It's enough for this restless warrior just to be with you/And can you feel the love tonight, it is where we are/It's enough for this wide-eyed wanderer that we got this far/And can you feel the love tonight, how it's laid to rest/It's enough to make kings and vagabonds believe the very best
1996
The 53rd Golden Globe Awards were held January 21st, 1996 and celebrated film and television achievements from 1995.
Best Original Song - Colors of the Wind by Vanessa Williams (written by A. Menken, S. Schwartz)
Colors of the Wind, with music by Alan Menken and lyrics by Stephen Schwartz, was one of five total nominees for Best Original Song 1996, beating out Have You Ever Really Loved a Woman? from Don Juan DeMarco; Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me, Kill Me from Batman Forever; Moonlight from Sabrina; and You've Got a Friend in Me from Toy Story. The song was featured in Mike Gabriel & Eric Goldberg's 1995 film Pocahontas, which was Disney's interpretation of the life of the real life Pocahontas from American history. Starring Christian Bale and Irene Bedard, Best Original Song was the only win out of two total nominations for the film at this ceremony. Notable covers of this song include those by Judy Kuhn, Ashanti, Christy Carlson Romano, Vanessa Hudgens, Brian Wilson, Tori Kelly, and Postmodern Jukebox. This will always and forever be in my top 5 Disney songs of all time, no doubt. Menken and Schwartz truly created magical art with a stunning message that is still relevant in today's world.
You think you own whatever land you land on/The earth is just a dead thing you can claim/But I know every rock and tree and creature/Has a life, has a spirit, has a name/You think the only people who are people/Are the people who look and think like you/But if you walk the footsteps of a stranger/You'll learn things you never knew you never knew/Have you ever heard the wolf cry to the blue corn moon/Or asked the grinning bobcat why he grinned/Can you sing with all the voices of the mountain/Can you paint with all the colors of the wind/Can you paint with all the colors of the wind
1997
The 54th Golden Globe Awards were held January 19th, 1997 and celebrated film and television achievements from 1996.
Best Original Song - You Must Love Me by Madonna (written by A. Lloyd Webber, T. Rice)
You Must Love Me, with music by Andrew Lloyd Webber and lyrics by Tim Rice, was one of five total nominees for Best Original Song 1997, beating out Because You Love Me from Up Close and Personal; For the First Time from One Fine Day; I Finally Found Someone from The Mirror Has Two Faces; and That Thing You Do! from That Thing You Do!. The song was featured in Alan Parker's 1996 film Evita, which was based on the 1976 Elton John & Tim Rice concept album of the same name. Starring Madonna and Antonio Banderas, Best Original Song was one of three wins out of five total nominations for the film at this ceremony, the others being for Best Actress - Motion Picture Musical or Comedy for Madonna and Best Motion Picture - Musical or Comedy. This is a beautiful song, as anyone familiar with Lloyd Webber's work could expect. Madonna does a good job on the vocals as well, conveying the character's emotional turmoil very well.
Where do we go from here/This isn't where we intended to be/We had it all, you believed in me/I believed in you/Certainties disappear/What do we do for our dream to survive/How do we keep all our passions alive/As we used to do/Deep in my heart I'm concealing/Things that I'm longing to say/Scared to confess what I'm feeling/Frightened you'll slip away/You must love me/You must love me
1998
The 55th Golden Globe Awards were held January 18th, 1998 and celebrated film and television achievements from 1997.
Best Original Song - My Heart Will Go On by Céline Dion (written by J. Horner, W. Jennings)
My Heart Will Go On, with music by James Horner and lyrics by Will Jennings, was one of five total nominees for Best Original Song 1998, beating out Journey to the Past from Anastasia; Once Upon a December from Anastasia; Go the Distance from Hercules; and Tomorrow Never Dies from Tomorrow Never Dies. The song was featured in James Cameron's 1997 film Titanic, which was based on the tragic 1912 sinking of the RMS Titanic. Starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet, Best Original Song was one of four wins out of eight total nominations for the film at this ceremony, the others being for Best Motion Picture - Drama, Best Director, and Best Original Score. While I do see the insane cultural impact this song and its respective film have made, I personally think it's an absolute crime that neither song from Anastasia or Go the Distance were appropriately awarded. That being said, I think this song (a lot like Shallow twenty years later) was just so intensely everywhere and in your face for so long people are still a little tired of it, but at its core this is still a pretty good song.
Every night in my dreams, I see you, I feel you/That is how I know you go on/Far across the distance and spaces between us/You have come to show you go on/Near, far, wherever you are/I believe that the heart does go on/Once more, you open the door/And you're here in my heart and my heart will go on and on
1999
The 56th Golden Globe Awards were held January 24th, 1999 and celebrated film and television achievements from 1998.
Best Original Song - The Prayer by Céline Dion & Andrea Bocelli (written by D. Foster, C. Sager, A. Testa, T. Renis)
The Prayer, with music & lyrics by David Foster, Carole Bayer Sager, Tony Renis, & Albert Testa, was one of six total nominees for Best Original Song 1999, beating out Reflection from Mulan; The Mighty from The Mighty; Uninvited from City of Angels; When You Believe from The Prince of Egypt; and The Flame Still Burns from Still Crazy. The song was featured in Frederik Du Chau's 1998 film Quest for Camelot, which was based on the 1976 Vera Chapman novel The King's Damsel. Starring Jessalyn Gilsig and Cary Elwes, Best Original Song was the only nomination and subsequent win for the film at this ceremony. Notable covers of this song include those by Céline Dion & Josh Groban, Anthony Callea, and Pentatonix. While I hate to see Mulan and Prince of Egypt lose here and also really like Uninvited, this song is beyond gorgeous and couldn't have had two better vocalists for the time to originally perform it. I watched the absolute heck out of Quest for Camelot growing up, and yet somehow forgot that's where this song came from - the ending sky high harmony is still one of my all-time favorite vocal moments and gives me goosebumps with every listen.
I pray you'll be our eyes/And watch us where we go/And help us to be wise/In times when we don't know/Let this be our prayer/As we go our way/Lead us to a place, guide us with your grace/To a place where we'll be safe
2000
The 57th Golden Globe Awards were held January 23rd, 2000 and celebrated film and television achievements from 1999.
Best Original Song - You'll Be in My Heart by Phil Collins (written by P. Collins)
You'll Be in My Heart, with music & lyrics by Phil Collins, was one of five total nominees for Best Original Song 2000, beating out Beautiful Stranger from Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me; How Can I Not Love You from Anna and the King; Save Me from Magnolia; and When She Loved Me from Toy Story 2. The song was featured in Kevin Lima & Chris Buck's 1999 film Tarzan, which was Disney's take on the 1912 Edgar Rice Burroughs story Tarzan of the Apes. Starring Tony Goldwyn and Minnie Driver, Best Original Song was the only nomination and subsequent win for the film at this ceremony. Notable covers of this song include those by Glenn Close & Phil Collins and Kenny Loggins. While I wasn't initially the most die-hard Tarzan fan as a kid (even though I ended up seeing it in the theater three times somehow), as an adult I recognize just how incredible this soundtrack is, with this song in particular. I still love and get emotional over When She Loved Me, but being mere weeks away from meeting my first child has me feeling all kinds of new feelings about this song.
Come stop your crying, it will be alright/Just take my hand, hold it tight/I will protect you from all around you/I will be here, don't you cry/For one so small, you seem so strong/My arms will hold you, keep you safe and warm/This bond between us can't be broken/I will be here, don't you cry/‘Cause you'll be in my heart, yes, you'll be in my heart/From this day on, now and forever more/You'll be in my heart, no matter what they say/You'll be here in my heart always
2001
The 58th Golden Globe Awards were held January 21st, 2001 and celebrated film and television achievements from 2000.
Best Original Song - Things Have Changed by Bob Dylan (written by R. Zimmerman)
Things Have Changed, with music & lyrics by Bob Dylan, was one of five total nominees for Best Original Song 2001, beating out I've Seen It All from Dancer in the Dark; My Funny Friend and Me from The Emperor's New Groove; One in a Million from Miss Congeniality; and When You Come Back to Me Again from Frequency. The song was featured in Curtis Hanson's 2000 film Wonder Boys, which was based on the 1995 Michael Chabon novel of the same name. Starring Michael Douglas and Tobey Maguire, Best Original Song was the only win out of four total nominations for the film at this ceremony. Notable covers of this song include those by Waylon Jennings, The Persuasions, and Margo Price. If I'm being fully honest here, I am not a fan of this song as a whole. It doesn't pack anywhere near the same punch as any other winner from this decade, but I'm sure there's people out there that proudly declare this to be their favorite song.
A worried man with a worried mind/No one in front of me and nothing behind/There's a woman on my lap and she's drinking champagne/Got white skin, got assassin's eyes/I’m looking up into the sapphire tinted skies/I’m well dressed, waiting on the last train/Standing on the gallows with my head in a noose/Any minute now, I'm expecting all hell to break loose/People are crazy and times are strange/I’m locked in tight, I'm out of range/I used to care, but things have changed
I hope you had a great time revisiting these songs, and maybe even their films, today. Happy listening, and see ya'll next week!
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