Disney Jr.’s wildly successful new series The Lion Guard is going strong with eight episodes under its belt, plus the movie event that started it all Return of the Roar. One of the best parts of the series is the music, which has now been collected in the first of presumably many soundtracks. The Lion Guard (Must from the TV series) is now available wherever music is sold.
Singer/songwriter Beau Black lends his talents to these new songs, which follow the spirit of the Elton John/Tim Rice/Lebo M. music from the original The Lion King films. The catchiest song that has been in heavy rotation on my phone is “Here Comes the Lion Guard.” Black uses a bit of Swahili in each song, including this single. You can hear the track in this music video:
Black’s vocal talents are also lent to two narrative songs, “It’s a Beautiful Day” and “It is Time.” The rest of the songs are sung by the character’s in the show. My personal favorites are “Zuka Zama,” “My Own Way” and “We’re the Same.” The songs that have the potential to grate on your nerves are those sung by the hyenas, particularly “Tonight We Strike” and “Panic and Run.” Those looking for some of the score from the series will find it in the first and last tracks. “Call of the Lion Guard” is the instrumental opening to every episode, while “Call of the Lion Guard” collects some of the musical themes from the show.
Prior to listening to this soundtrack, I had only seen The Lion Guard: Return of the Roar and was delighted by the new songs from the series, which are better than the character songs from that film. But it is the three Beau Black tracks that steal the spotlight on this release and I will be interested to see where his career at Disney goes in the future. While kids will likely want this because it has Kion on the CD, adults will enjoy some of the catchy tunes as well. This isn’t your typical Disney Jr. kids music.