Once Upon a Dream (Sleeping Beauty song)

"Once Upon a Dream" is a song written for the 1959 animated musical fantasy film Sleeping Beauty produced by Walt Disney. Its lyrics were written by Jack Lawrence and Sammy Fain while the music is adapted by George Bruns. The song's melody is based on the "Grande valse villageoise" (nicknamed "The Garland Waltz"), from the 1890 ballet The Sleeping Beauty by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky.

"Once Upon a Dream"
Song by Mary Costa and Bill Shirley
from the album Sleeping Beauty
PublishedWalt Disney Music Company
ReleasedJanuary 29, 1959 (1959-01-29)
Recorded1958
GenreSoundtrack
LabelWalt Disney[citation needed]
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)George Bruns[citation needed]
Scene
"An Unusual Prince/Once Upon a Dream (From 'Sleeping Beauty')" from DisneyMusicVEVO on YouTube

"Once Upon a Dream" serves as the film's main theme, and as the love theme of Princess Aurora and Prince Phillip. It is performed in the film by a chorus as an overture and third-reprise finale, as well by Mary Costa and Bill Shirley, who voiced the roles of Aurora and Phillip, respectively.[2][3][4]

Certifications

edit
Region Certification Certified units/sales
United States (RIAA)[5] Gold 500,000

Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

Notable covers

edit

American girl group No Secrets recorded the song "Once Upon (Another) Dream", whose chorus is based on "Once Upon a Dream", in 2003 for the two-disc DVD release of Sleeping Beauty.[6] The song was then included in the 2004 compilation album Disneymania 2.

"Once Upon a Dream" was covered by Emily Osment in October 2008 for the Platinum Edition release of the film.[7] Osment's rendition was included in the 2008 compilation album Princess Disneymania.

Seth MacFarlane covered the song for his 2020 show tunes album Great Songs from Stage & Screen.

Lana Del Rey version

edit
"Once Upon a Dream"
 
Single by Lana Del Rey
from the album Maleficent (soundtrack)
ReleasedJanuary 26, 2014 (2014-01-26)
Recorded2013
GenreOrchestral pop
Length3:23[8]
LabelWalt Disney[8]
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)Dan Heath[10]
Lana Del Rey singles chronology
"Young and Beautiful"
(2013)
"Once Upon a Dream"
(2014)
"West Coast"
(2014)
Licensed audio
"Once Upon a Dream" on YouTube

"Once Upon a Dream" was covered by American singer and songwriter Lana Del Rey for the dark fantasy film Maleficent (2014), which serves as a re-imagining of the original 1959 film. The song was released on January 26, 2014; it was made available as a free digital download during its first week of availability by the Google Play Store.[11] On February 4, the digital download was made available for purchase.[12]

Critical reception

edit

The cover received generally positive reception. Forbes called the cover "moody and low-key"[13] while Stereogum described it as "swoony" and "spaced-out".[14] Hypable said the cover was "much darker" than the original and pointed out the "slight radio effect" over Del Rey's and called her performance of the song "haunting":[15] Spin said of the song snippet from the trailer: "Smoky vocals, a bewitching come-hither delivery, and delicate piano turn the 1959 fairytale song into a haunting lullaby."[16] Complex remarked that Del Rey's cover had a "somber and sinister" feel in comparison to the original.[17]

Charts

edit
Chart (2014) Peak
position
Australia (ARIA)[18] 96
France (SNEP)[19] 122
Ireland (IRMA)[20] 71
UK Singles (OCC)[21] 60
US Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles (Billboard)[22] 5

Certifications

edit
Region Certification Certified units/sales
Australia (ARIA)[23] Gold 35,000
United Kingdom (BPI)[24] Silver 200,000
United States (RIAA)[25] Platinum 1,000,000

Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

References

edit
  1. ^ Disney: Once Upon a Dream at AllMusic
  2. ^ DisneyMusicVEVO (2014-10-21), An Unusual Prince/Once Upon a Dream (From "Sleeping Beauty"), retrieved 2016-02-14
  3. ^ "Once Upon a Dream by Mary Costa and Bill Shirley". Songfacts.com. Retrieved 25 April 2021.
  4. ^ "Sleeping Beauty (1959)". IMDb. Retrieved 25 April 2021.
  5. ^ "American single certifications – Bill Shirley, Chorus - Sleeping Beauty, Disney, Mary Costa – An Unusual Prince/Once Upon a Dream". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved May 2, 2023.
  6. ^ "Once Upon Another Dream by No Secrets on WhoSampled". WhoSampled.com. Retrieved 25 April 2021.
  7. ^ "Emily Osment 'Once Upon a Dream'". Crushable. Archived from the original on 3 February 2016. Retrieved 19 September 2014.
  8. ^ a b Once Upon a Dream (From Maleficent) – Single by Lana Del Rey, retrieved 2019-11-02
  9. ^ Phares, Heather. Maleficent (Original Soundtrack) – James Newton Howard at AllMusic
  10. ^ "James Newton Howard – Maleficent". Discogs. 30 May 2014. Retrieved 2019-11-02.
  11. ^ "Lana Del Rey's Maleficent Track to Debut During Grammys - Disney News". Stitchkingdom.com. January 23, 2014. Archived from the original on January 25, 2014. Retrieved January 27, 2014.
  12. ^ "Once Upon a Dream". Amazon.com. Archived from the original on February 23, 2014. Retrieved February 4, 2014.
  13. ^ Mendelson, Scott (January 26, 2014). "Lana Del Rey Covers 'Once Upon A Dream' For Angelina Jolie's Maleficent". Forbes. Retrieved January 27, 2014.
  14. ^ Nelson, Michael (January 26, 2014). "Lana Del Rey – "Once Upon A Dream"". Stereogum. Retrieved January 27, 2014.
  15. ^ Sims, Andrew (January 26, 2014). "Lana Del Rey's 'Once Upon A Dream' released – listen!". Hypable.com. Archived from the original on April 23, 2014. Retrieved January 27, 2014.
  16. ^ McGovern, Kyle. "Hear Lana Del Rey's Creepy 'Once Upon a Dream' Cover in Maleficent Trailer". Spin. Retrieved January 27, 2014.
  17. ^ X, Dharmic (January 26, 2014). "Listen to Lana Del Rey's Cover of "Once Upon A Dream" as The Maleficent Theme Song". Complex. Retrieved January 27, 2014.
  18. ^ "Australian Web Archive: Week Commencing 26 May 2014 – ARIA Chartifacts" (PDF). Pandora Archive (1265). Australian Recording Industry Association: 2. May 26, 2014. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2014-06-20. Retrieved January 18, 2015.
  19. ^ "Lana Del Rey – Once Upon A Dream" (in French). Les classement single. Retrieved February 15, 2014.
  20. ^ "Chart Track: Week 24, 2014". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved February 15, 2014.
  21. ^ "Official Singles Chart UK Top 100 – 7th June 2014". Official Charts Company. Archived from the original on June 3, 2014.
  22. ^ "Lana Del Rey Chart History (Bubbling Under Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved February 15, 2014.
  23. ^ "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 2023 Singles" (PDF). Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved November 2, 2023.
  24. ^ "British single certifications – Lana Del Rey – Once Upon A Dream". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved July 13, 2024.
  25. ^ "American single certifications – Lana Del Rey – Once Upon A Dream". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved November 24, 2021.
edit