The Lion King is celebrating its thirtieth anniversary this year, and Disney is making sure to mark the occasion in style with various events. The film has been re-released in American theaters last month, cine-concerts have been held in Hollywood and London, and a collection of merchandise has been released, among other things. Just when we thought we knew everything about the film, the Internet Archive recently published the original soundtrack of the film on its website, but not the one you are familiar with.
More than 40 unreleased songs from The Lion King revealed
On this link, you can explore fully and for free the different songs from The Lion King, but in versions recorded from early 1992 to late 1993, the vast majority of which are not included in the official soundtrack or in the various film compilations released over the years. This digital album, lasting nearly 2.5 hours, offers unreleased tracks as well as alternative versions and demo tapes of the songs performed here by the original voice cast as well as Elton John and other singers who are not in the final version of the film. For example, you will learn that “Be Prepared” and “Hakuna Matata” were originally titled “Thanks to Me” and “Warthog Rhapsody,” respectively. The first song was even supposed to have a reprise after Mufasa’s death. Simba’s father was also supposed to have his own song called “To be King.”
To provide some context, The Lion King was originally titled King of the Jungle and was considered a minor project at Disney, which preferred to focus on Pocahontas, An Indian Legend as the next big film after Beauty and the Beast and Aladdin. Some alternative versions of the songs were likely recorded when the project was still called King of the Jungle. However, some tracks were discreetly used for the film’s promotion (trailers, advertisements, etc.).
By listening to this album, you will get a slightly different vision of what The Lion King could have been.