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You’ll Be in My Heart

(Phil Collins)

This song was written by Phil Collins after he’d been taken on as a songwriter for Disney in 1995.  He wrote this originally as a song for his daughter Lily with the title “Lullaby” which was changed to “You’ll Be In My Heart” and was one of five songs he wrote for the 1999 animated film Tarzan.

Phil Collins recorded the five songs himself and then he was chosen to perform them for the film too as a narrator instead of it being one of the characters as was the norm.  The songs were overlaid into the movie after he had performed them.  A demo version is featured as a bonus on the Special Edition 2-DVD of Tarzan and there is also a version of him singing it with the actress Glenn Close.

This song finishes on the first verse in the movie where it is sung by Tarzan’s adoptive mother, the gorilla Kala who is encouraging him not to cry, but is played in full on the end credits.  It became so successful that it won the Academy Award for Best Original Song, with Collins performing it live at the ceremony,  the Golden Globe for Best Original Song and a Grammy Award nomination.

It was released as a single, with an extra version sung with he actress Glenn Close as the 2nd track, and went to No. 1 on the US Adult Contemporary Chart for 19 weeks consecutively, No. 1 on the Canada Adult Contemporary Chart,  reached No. 21 on the Billboard Hot 100 and No. 17 in the UK. It was certified platinum in the US, the UK and Denmark and Gold in Spain.

It was sung by Phil Collins in English, French, German Italian and Spanish so also gave him a No. 32 song on the Billboard Hot Latin Tracks chart as well as entering the charts of numerous other countries.

The singer/songwriter and musician Kevin Godley of 10cc fame was the director for the music video of the song where Phil Collins walks through a city and a forest.

Phil Collins recordings
Walt Disney Records 0100736DNY

Sources:

  1. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/You%27ll_Be_in_My_Heart
  2. https://disney.fandom.com/wiki/You%27ll_Be_in_My_Heart
  3. https://www.songfacts.com/facts/phil-collins/youll-be-in-my-heart
  4. https://www.billboard.com/artist/phil-collins/chart-history/asi/
  5. https://www.imdb.com/title/tt10198588/plotsummary/?ref_=tt_ov_pl
  6. https://www.allmusic.com/song/youll-be-in-my-heart-mt0026742773
  7. https://www.discogs.com/release/1842340-Phil-Collins-Youll-Be-In-My-Heart