Friday, August 13, 2010

Snow White Soundtrack on Compact Disc 1993/1997/2001

The first ever Snow White compact disc was officially released by Disney in 1987 (see it in an earlier post.) The recording (first issued on LP record in 1980) was a combination of the film's soundtrack intertwined with the story narrated by Hal Smith.

The first CD to contain just the soundtrack (without additional narration) was a 1988 disc issued by BMG (RCA). It included the same recordings found on the original Victor 1938 shellac records (with the deleted Dwarfs' Yodel Song lyrics).

Today's archive entry is a look at some of the compact discs produced in the US:
  • 1993 re-release of the film
  • 1997 soundtrack series
  • 2001 platinum DVD release

On June 8, 1993, about three 3 weeks before the final North American theatrical release of Snow White, a digitally remastered soundtrack appeared in stores. In addition to the normal songs and musical orchestration, the album also included the two deleted numbers: Music In Your Soup and You're Never Too Old to Be Young.

Front Cover

Rear Cover


Walt Disney Records. Catalog no. 60850-7 is printed on the spine and no. 60850-2 on the disc.




In the liner notes dated January 1993, album producers Randy Thornton and Michael Leon share how the digital restoration was pieced together from seven different original sources.

Also included are the lyrics for each song as well as a chart showing what each of the four composers/songwriters (Churchill, Morey, Harline, Smith) contributed to the final soundtrack.


The 1993 CD was also sold in the Soundtrack Collector's Series. A separate cassette tape was available too.


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In 1997, the album was released as part of the Classic Soundtrack Series. The CD came shrinkwrapped with a round sticker placed on the outside that read, "Digitally Remastered--Includes lyrics and artwork."



Original jewel case security seal.


Front Cover

Back Cover


ISBN: 0-7634-0385-7. Walt Disney Records. No. 60959-7 (spine) and 60959-2 (disc).




The insert booklet contained different artwork from 1993 but the same song lyrics. The liner notes, dated December 15, 1997, were nearly identical except for an update from producer Randy Thornton. He reveals that 7 seconds of music which had been omitted from the 1993 edition of "Love's First Kiss (Finale)" was now included in this new disc.



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On September 25, 2001, shortly before the picture premiered on DVD, the digitally remastered CD was again released in the US.

Front Cover

Rear Cover


Walt Disney Records. Same as the 1997 version: ISBN: 0-7634-0385-7. No. 60959-7 (spine) and 60959-2 (disc).




Like in the previous CDs, the lyrics for each song were included with the insert booklet, though the artwork was changed. Identical liner notes.



Upcoming Archive entries:
1993 UK 'Snow White' Soundtrack CD
2001/2006 UK 'Snow White' Soundtrack CD

8 comments:

  1. Here is the paper envelope cover for the RCA Victor Y-6 album from my own collection (circa 1944):

    http://flic.kr/p/8WyHgf

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  2. Grinning- Very cool. It's interesting to see that no original Snow White artwork was included on the cover of your 1944 album.

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  3. I still have my 1980 Snow White Picture Record!

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  4. Jessica-- It's quite a novelty...a winner in my book.

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  5. Yeah I purchased the top record (1993) at the local thrift store last year. It's an absolute gem, getting to hear the music from the movie and seeing the entire movie play out in my head!

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  6. The first Snow White CD officially released by Disney was in 1987, it was a combination of the film's soundtrack with dialog and a narrator (which the book "Mouse Tracks A History of Walt Disney Records" claims it is Hal Smith) explaining the story.

    http://www.amazon.com/Walt-Disneys-White-Seven-Dwarfs/dp/B000VXAIYE/ref=sr_1_8?s=music&ie=UTF8&qid=1364489863&sr=1-8&keywords=Snow+White+and+the+seven+dwarfs

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    Replies
    1. Thanks Andrew! I've added this additional information to the post.

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