Music Review: The Greatest Showman Soundtrack

Stars: 5 out of 5

Pros: Wonderful songs that capture the movie

Cons: None

The Bottom Line:

Movie musical

Produces a great soundtrack

All fans will wear out

A Great Soundtrack

When I saw The Greatest Showman last month, one of the reasons I loved it was the songs.  That’s always a good thing for a musical, right?  I loved them so much that a few days later, I went out and bought the soundtrack, which I have been enjoying ever since.

The soundtrack contains 11 tracks, which are all the songs in the movie.  In keeping with a traditional musical soundtrack, there are no instrumental tracks on the disc.

Unlike many musicals, these have a modern feel, some of them could easily pass for pop songs, in fact, and most of them are very upbeat.  If you are looking for traditional Broadway style songs, look elsewhere.

If you’ve missed the movie, you should fix that right away.  But to give you a little background, it tells the story of PT Barnum as he starts the show that would eventually become the circus he is most famous for.

And if you are looking for great music, you’ve come to the right place.  Obviously, some of them apply very much to the story here.  For example, the disc opener, “The Greatest Show,” is very much a song for this movie.  But it’s a very fun number that gets the entire cast involved in inviting the audience into the show they are about to put on.  Since this song opens and closes the movie, it works for the audience of P.T. Barnum’s show as well as us.

Another similar song is “The Other Side,” the song where Barnum convinces Phillip Carlyle to become his partner.  However, it really is a fun song that brings a smile to my face each time I hear it.  Of course, that might be because this High School Musical lover is happy to have Zac Efron on another soundtrack.

For the rest of the songs, I refer you to my comment about pop songs.  Oh, they have content that fits the movie, don’t worry, but out of context they still work.  For example, while “A Million Dreams” is a young Barnum singing to his future wife about his dreams, it really does work outside the movie.  Oh yes, the aging characters complicate things as a radio single, but it’s still a great song outside the movie.

Likewise, “This is Me” is a fantastic anthem of personal acceptance.  “Tightrope” is a great reminder of the struggles that arise in life when our priorities get out of whack.  And the cause of those wrong priorities?  Thinking it will “Never Enough.”  Heck, even the duet “Rewrite the Stars” could work for any lovers facing problems, although it does fit Zac Efron and Zendaya’s characters perfectly.

About the only tracks I don’t absolutely love are the two Reprises we get, one for “A Million Dreams” and the other for “Never Enough.”  They don’t add much to the disc.  But this is a soundtrack, so they should be included for that reason.  I get it.  I’m being very nitpicky here.

Speaking of which, I am going to have to pay more attention next time I see the movie since I’m surprised there is no reprise for “The Greatest Show.”  I’m guessing the one track gets divided up in the movie, but I was expecting the song to open and close out the disc.  Again, this is something I’m noting only in passing.

I’m counting down until this movie hits Blu-Ray so I can watch it to my heart’s content.  Until then, I will be playing The Greatest Showman Soundtrack to relive these moments again and again.

CD Length: 39:51

Tracks:

1. The Greatest Show

2. A Million Dreams

3. A Million Dreams (Reprise)

4. Come Alive

5. The Other Side

6. Never Enough

7. This is Me

8. Rewrite the Stars

9. Tightrope

10. Never Enough (Reprise)

11. From Now On