NY, Nov 15: In his ever-evolving career, Phil Collins has achieved every possible major success in music and film, from selling millions of records to starring and singing in hit movies to winning a slew of prestigious awards. But with the new Disney film "Brother Bear," Collins accomplished something he has never done before: composing music for a film. He collaborated on the film's score with composer Mark Mancina.
Collins also wrote all the songs with vocals on the "Brother Bear" soundtrack, which was released Oct. 21 on Walt Disney Records. The "Brother Bear" movie opened Oct. 24 in New York and Los Angeles and had a wider U.S. release Nov. 1.
The animated film is about a young man who turns into a bear and discovers life lessons in his transformed state. The movie features the voices of Joaquin Phoenix, Michael Clarke Duncan, Rick Moranis and Dave Thomas.

Disney hired Collins for the "Brother Bear" project even before he won an Academy Award for best original song for "You'll Be in My Heart" from the 1999 Disney animated film "Tarzan."

Collins tells Billboard, "One of the reasons why I said yes to is because Disney and I have been very good collaborators. They also offered me the chance to score the film, and in some respects it's the most rewarding work I've ever done."
Even with his great track record with Disney, Collins reveals that there were some bumps in the road on the project:

"I originally wanted to sing all the songs, just like I had done on 'Tarzan,' but Disney didn't want me to sing all the songs in 'Brother Bear' because they wanted to avoid comparisons to 'Tarzan.' I was a little disappointed, because I like to write songs for myself, but then I started to realize I was pushing against an immovable object."

Luckily, Collins says, he was happy with the artists who were selected to perform three of his "Brother Bear" songs. Tina Turner sings on "Great Spirits," the Bulgarian Women's Choir performs "Transformation," and the Blind Boys of Alabama sing "Welcome."

Collins performs his own version of "Transformation" and "Welcome" on the soundtrack. Other songs he sings are "Look Through My Eyes" (the soundtrack's first single), "No Way Out" (the theme to "Brother Bear") and "On My Way," which is featured prominently in commercials for the film.

Turner and Collins performed songs from the soundtrack at the Oct. 20 world premiere of "Brother Bear" in New York. Bureau Report