Anastasia Soundtrack CD

Live Recording

Producers include: Lynn Ahrens, Stephen Flaherty, David Newman, Trevor Horn, Emelio Estefan Jr.
Engineers include: John Kurlander, Danny Wallin, Stephen Fitzmaurice.
Principally recorded at The Hit Factory, New York, New York; Sony Scoring Stage, The Village Recorder, Signet Sound and M5 Studios, Los Angeles, California.
Original score composed by David Newman. Songs written by Stephen Flaherty and Lynn Ahrens.
Principal cast includes: Liz Callaway (Anastasia); Kelsey Grammer (Vladimir);
Jim Cummings (Rasputin); Jonathan Dokuchitz (Dimitri); Bernadette Peters (Sophie).
Producers: David Newman, Lynn Ahrens, Stephen Flaherty.
Personnel: Ellen Bernfeld, Cindy Mizelle, Ted Sperling, Robert DuSold, Curtis Rance King, Jr., Madeleine Doherty, Emily Skinner, Kyle Gordon, Kenny Karen, Frank Simms, David Lowenstein, Al Fritsch, Glen Burtnik, Gregg Edelman, Ted Brunetti, John Jellison, Jeff Blumenkrantz, Brooks Almy, J.K. Simmons, Bill Nolte, Joseph Kolinski, Jan Horvath, Judy Blazer, Karen Silver, Lillias White, Alix Korey, Michele Pawk, Mike Harvey, Patrick Quinn, Darius de Haas, Vaneese Thomas, Billy Porter, Victoria Clark, Robin Clark, Vivian Cherry (vocals); Tim Pierce (guitar); Rene Toledo (acoustic guitar); Michael Thompson (electric guitar); Anne Dudley (piano); Henry Jackman, Tim Weidner (keyboards, programming); Marty Frasu (synthesizer); Jeanette Jurado (shaker); Edwin Bonilla (percussion); Randall Barlow, Guy Roche (programming); Darryl Phinnessee, Selina King-Murrell, Niki Haire, Jim Gilstrap, Sue Ann Carwell, Marlena Jeter (background vocals).
Audio Mixers: Javier Garza; John Kurlander; Mick Guzauski; Steve MacMillan.
Recording information: Hit Factory, NY; Signet Sound, Los Angel; Sony Pictures Scoring Stage, Culver City, CA; Village Recorder, Los Angeles, CA.
Ensembles: Ellen Bernfeld; Cindy Mizelle; Ted Sperling; Robert DuSold; Curtis Rance King, Jr.; Madeleine Doherty; Emily Skinner; Kyle Gordon; Kenny Karen; Frank Simms; David Lowenstein; Al Fritsch; Glen Burtnik; Gregg Edelman; Ted Brunetti; John Jellison; Jeff Blumenkrantz; Brooks Almy; J.K. Simmons; Bill Nolte; Joseph Kolinski; Jan Horvath; Judy Blazer; Karen Silver; Lillias White; Alix Korey; Michele Pawk; Mike Harvey; Patrick Quinn; Darius de Haas; Vaneese Thomas; Billy Porter; Victoria Clark; Robin Clark; Vivian Cherry.
Translators: Patricia P. Azar; Juan Carlos García.
Arrangers: Guy Roche; Richard Marx.
Since Anastasia is animator Don Bluth's attempt at a sweeping epic along the lines of Disney's Beauty and the Beast or The Hunchback of Notre Dame, it's not surprising that its score duplicates the Disney formula of balancing big show tunes from the film with re-recorded MOR pop versions of the same song. In this case, it's Aaliyah singing "Journey to the Past," and Deana Carter's cover of "Once Upon a December," and the Donna Lewis and Richard Marx duet on "At the Beginning" -- fine versions of fine songs that sound better in their original incarnation (also included on the disc). Fortunately, the bulk of the album is comprised of selections from the soundtrack. Lynn Ahrens and Stephen Flaherty have written the songs for Anastasia, and their work is generally quite good; occasionally the lyrics are silly ("Rumor in St. Petersburg"), but perhaps that should be expected, given the difficulty of making the story of Anastasia into an animated musical. On the whole, Anastasia might not live up to the high standards that The Little Mermaid and Beauty and the Beast set, but it's as good as Pocahontas and The Hunchback of Notre Dame, and that's not bad company at all. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine
ANASTASIA's soundtrack captures all the majesty and drama of the animated tale of love and intrigue. Liz Callaway's bright, pretty voice is well-suited to the role of Anastasia, the legendary last survivor of the Romanovs, while Kelsey Grammer is lovable as Vladimir, the fallen aristocrat who befriends her. Jim Cummings is