V/A: Moana (soundtrack) [WALT DISNEY]

Why you'll love it

This LP gathers the film's songs, from Auli'i Cravalho's "How Far I'll Go" to Dwayne Johnson's "You're Welcome." The soundtrack sold more than a million copies in the US, and "How Far I'll Go" earned an Academy Award nomination for Best Original Song.

About the album

Lin-Manuel Miranda wrote these songs with Opetaia Foa'i, leader of the Pacific band Te Vaka, and composer Mark Mancina. Foa'i's chants and Pacific-language lyrics give the music its roots, while Miranda brings the big Broadway hooks. The story follows a chief's daughter who sails out to return the heart of the island goddess Te Fiti, guided by the ocean itself.

Auli'i Cravalho, who was 14 when she was cast, sings "How Far I'll Go" with a voice that goes right to the back row. Dwayne Johnson clearly enjoys himself on "You're Welcome," Jemaine Clement camps it up as a glam-rock crab on "Shiny," and "We Know The Way" carries the island spirit. "Where You Are" introduces the whole village of Motunui in one bustling number, and "I Am Moana (Song of the Ancestors)" gives Moana's grandmother a moving moment by the sea. Canada's own Alessia Cara closes the record with her pop take on "How Far I'll Go."

Ten years on it's still sung loudly in cars across the country. We have heard "You're Welcome" in the shop more times than we can count, and in fairness, it never once thanked us either.

Also at Kops: more Moana on vinyl · browse Soundtracks

Tracklist

Listen

On Walt Disney Records (cat# D002535401 ST01), a reissue of the 2016 soundtrack.