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Rating: - One of Disney's best!
Disney's 1996 film "The Hunchback of Notre Dame" is undoubtedly one of Disney's more "underrated" films, and people seem to not notice that it is full of rich details and music that can only be fully appreciated while viewing the movie. However, the music in the film is, in my opinion, good enough to listen to outside of the film.

This soundtrack is definitely one of Disney's better and darker ones. Compared to other Disney soundtracks I own, the sound quality on the CD is superb. I especially enjoy the fact that the tracks on the CD are placed in chronological order (though "Paris Burning" should have been placed in between "Heaven's Light/Hellfire" and "A Guy Like You"), unlike other Disney soundtracks where all the lyrical songs are grouped together followed by all of the instrumental scores. This makes the CD much easier to listen to, because you have the songs broken up by the scores, which in turn gives the CD a nice flow. It also allows you to know just where in the film you "are" while listening. Another added treat comes with the liner notes, where all of the Latin singing in the CD's tracks are fully translated. After reading them, scenes that take place during the tracks "Hellfire", "Sanctuary!", and "And He Shall Smite The Wicked" take on a whole new, powerful, meaning. Some of the lyrics literally sent chills down my spine!

As a whole, the CD is a good one (though I really don't care much for "A Guy Like You", sung by the gargoyles, or the pop versions of "Someday" by All-4-One and "God Help The Outcasts" by Bette Midler). My favorite tracks are undoubtedly "The Bells of Notre Dame", "God Help The Outcasts" (original), "Heaven's Light/Hellfire", "Paris Burning", "Sanctuary!", and "And He Shall Smite The Wicked". These are the most powerful tracks. "The Bells of Notre Dame" starts the film out on a dramatic, epic note, and the part of the track that regales the tale of Frollo and the gypsies and baby Quasimodo is full of dramatic doom and gloom. "God Help The Outcasts" is a much quieter song, but full of earnest emotion. I especially like the piano in the background during this track. "Heaven's Light/Hellfire" starts out sweet and quiet, but once Tony Jay as Frollo starts singing, it takes on a very dark note. Overlying his song is the priests' prayer of confession, which is what the song "Hellfire" ultimately is; Frollo bringing out all the dark feelings he has in his heart concerning the gypsy Esmeralda. And the way Tony Jay's vocals turned out in this song, Frollo sounds burdened by overwhelming torment. "Paris Burning", "Sanctuary!", and "And He Shall Smite The Wicked" are the dark, epic scores from the latter half of the film and are full of Latin vocals that give insight to the scenes at hand.

Other notable tracks that did not make it to my list of of favorite tracks are "Topsy-Turvy" and "The Court of Miracles". Both are sung by the gypsy king Clopin (voiced by Paul Kandel) and are fun to listen to. "Topsy-Turvy" covers the entire Festival of Fools scene, including the musical number that plays during Esmeralda's dance. "The Court of Miracles" is a short number, fun and upbeat but with dark humor.

Overall, I give this soundtrack 5/5 stars. It's wonderful if you are a fan of the film, but people who aren't so familiar may find aspects of it to enjoy and appreciate.

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