Colors Of The Wind - Music

Frogtoon Music - Song Info: Colors Of The Wind

Vanessa-Williams - Greatest Hits: The First Ten Years

The First Two Notes Of Alan Menken's Melody Span A Musical Interval Of A Major Sixth. Overall The Span Of The Melody Reaches An Eleventh. Because The Melody Spans A Slightly Larger Range Than Some Instruments Such As The Native American Flute Can Reach Alternate Versions Of The Melody Have Been Arranged That Span A More Modest Interval. Described As A "stirring Anthem To Animism" This Song Is Pocahontas' Exhortation To Captain John Smith About The Wonders Of The Earth And Nature Including The Spirit Within All Living Things Encouraging Him Not To Think Of Them As Things He Can Conquer Or Own But Rather As Beings To Respect And Live With In Harmony. She Also Urges Him To Accept Humans Who Are Different In Appearance And Culture And To Learn From Them. Colors Of The Wind Is A Song Written By Lyricist Stephen Schwartz And Composer Alan Menken For Walt Disney Pictures' Thirty-Third Animated Feature Film Pocahontas 1995 . The Film's Theme Song "Colors Of The Wind" Was Originally Recorded By American Singer And Actress Judy Kuhn In Her Role As The Singing Voice Of Pocahontas. American Recording Artist Vanessa Williams' Cover Of The Song Was Released As The Lead Single From The Film's Soundtrack On March 23 1995. A Pop Ballad The Song's Lyrics Speak Of Respecting Nature And Living In Harmony With The Earth's Creatures. The Became A Major Success Charting On The Australian ARIA Singles Chart At Number 16 On The Irish Singles Chart At Number 16 On The New Zealand RIANZ Singles Chart At Number 25 On The UK Singles Chart At Number 21 On The US Billboard Hot 100 At Number 4 On The US Billboard Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks At Number 2 US Billboard Hot Adult Top 40 Tracks At Number 10 And US Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs At Number 53. "Colors Of The Wind" Won The Academy Award For Best Original Song At The 68th Academy Awards In 1995 Becoming Composer Alan Menken's Fourth Win In The Category. It Also Won The Golden Globe In The Same Category As Well As The Grammy Award For Best Song Written For A Movie. The Song Poetically Presents The Native American Viewpoint That The Earth Is A Living Entity Where Humankind Is Connected To Everything In Nature.
There Is Some Debate Over Where The Song Begins Within The Narrative Of The Movie. The First Part Sung When The Music Technically Begins Has Pocahontas Talking About How Having Experience With Other Races Does Not Necessarily Mean Understanding Them And Has Her Asking John Smith Whether She Is The Savage Between The Two Of Them. As She Sings This She Angrily Shoves His Gun Into His Hands Implying That That European Attitude Towards Guns Violence And Racism Is Far More Savage Than The Views That The Native Americans Have. Pocahontas Then Tells John Smith That There Is A Lot About The Earth He Doesn't Know. At This Point It Is Considered That The Song Actually Begins. The First Line Of The Chorus Tells Of The Wolf Crying To The "blue Corn Moon" With The Second Line Varying With The Verse Context. The Phrase "blue Corn Moon" Has No Actual Meaning In Native American Folklore. It Was Made Up By Lyricist Stephen Schwartz Because He Liked The Sound Of It Being Inspired By A Native American Love Poem That Read "I Will Come To You In The Moon Of Green Corn". The Second Time The Chorus Is Sung In The Single Version The Second Line Becomes "Or Let The Eagle Tell You Where He's Been" Since The Film Version Only Has The One Chorus Already Mentioned. The Third Line Tells Of Singing With The Voices Of The Mountains As The Fourth Line Concludes With The Title Imagery Of Painting With The Colors Of The Wind.