Background
The Song “Friend Like Me” by composer Alan Menken and lyricist Howard Ashman was created for the movie Aladdin which was released in 1992 and would go on to be one of the many great classic Disney movies to come out around that time. According to an interview composer Alan Menken conducted with entertainment weekly when they created the song they didn’t know who was going to play genie but they were hoping for it to sound like a Fats Waller style from the 40’s. Luckily when Robin Williams was casted for the role he turned out to be easily able to replicate the style; Menken said “He was amazing… He took ahold of the creative process, both on that and ‘Prince Ali’ especially.” “Friend Like Me” takes place in a pivotal part of Aladdin’s story when Aladdin first finds Genie’s lamp; the purpose of the song is for Genie to explain what exactly he can do and how Aladdin will benefit from having him as a friend and ally.
Lyrics
https://genius.com/Robin-williams-friend-like-me-lyrics
The lyrics for “Friend Like Me are really cool because they read almost like a normal conversation; you may not know they were song lyrics if you read them on their own. Within the lyrics there is actually very little repetition and you can very clearly understand what genie is saying: that Aladdin is lucky because he can grant three wishes no matter what they are. I think that the reason for this writing and Robin William’s careful pronunciation of the lyrics is that this song plays a crucial role in telling the story because without being able to follow along with the song people would have a hard time figuring out Genie’s importance.
Meter
The song holds a pretty consistent 4/4 time signature throughout. This isn’t really that surprising since 4/4 is considered “common time” and is utilised heavily throughout western music. I think that it was a good choice here.
Timbre
The song has a very smooth, upbeat, and jazzy feel throughout. This makes sense because the characters are celebrating their meeting and the style that the composer claims they were trying to mimic, that of Fats Waller, comes from a jazz musician in the 1940’s. I like the timbre because it is memorable, and gives the song a distinct feel.
Opinion
Of the many great songs from Disney movies, “Friend Like Me” is definitely one of my favorites. I really like this song because it has a memorable sound, It tells an important part of the story, and it sends a good message. I think that “Friend Like Me” sends a really positive message to society that just like in the movie, sometimes a good friend is all the power you need to get through a bad situation. Due to all these reasons this song is always able to put a smile on my face; and for that alone I love it.
Explorations in Music 
I love this song, its my favorite song from Aladdin! I agree with your comments about the lyrics being like a conversation, and that the song has a jazzy feel. I don’t think this song would be nearly as impactful and good without Robbin Williams. However I will admit that the broadway version does pretty good at capturing both the jazz feel and magic feel of the original song. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-UL0CDMhjj4
LikeLike
Thanks for the reminder of this song! It was good to reminisce in good memories. I agree that the song was a good choice for this section of the film. Definitely upbeat and certainly pushes the importance of friendships as you mentioned. The lyrics indeed have little repetition and the rhythm and beat also picks up in complexity as the song goes on.
LikeLike