''The Nightmare Before Christmas'' is the fifteenth

soundtrack album A soundtrack album is any album that incorporates music directly recorded from the soundtrack of a particular feature film or television show. The first such album to be commercially released was Walt Disney's ''Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs'' ...

by American composer

Danny Elfman Daniel Robert Elfman (born May 29, 1953) is an American film composer, singer and songwriter. He came to prominence as the singer-songwriter for the new wave band Oingo Boingo in the early 1980s. Since the 1990s, Elfman has garnered internation ...

. It was released on October 12, 1993, by

Walt Disney Records Walt Disney Records is an American record label of the Disney Music Group. The label releases soundtrack albums from The Walt Disney Company's motion picture studios, television series, theme parks, and traditional studio albums produced by its r ...

to promote the 1993 American stop-motion animated musical dark fantasy film ''

The Nightmare Before Christmas ''The Nightmare Before Christmas'' (also known as ''Tim Burton's The Nightmare Before Christmas'') is a 1993 American stop-motion animated musical dark fantasy film directed by Henry Selick (in his feature directorial debut) and produced and ...

''. Composed by

, the soundtrack was nominated for the 1993

Golden Globe The Golden Globe Awards are accolades bestowed by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association beginning in January 1944, recognizing excellence in both American and international film and television. Beginning in 2022, there are 105 members of t ...

for Best Original Score. The album peaked at #64 on the US ''Billboard'' 200. For the film's 2006 re-release in

Disney Digital 3-D Disney Digital 3-D is a brand name used by The Walt Disney Company to describe three-dimensional films made and released by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures mostly under the Walt Disney Pictures label and shown exclusively using digital pr ...

, a special edition of the soundtrack was released, a bonus disc which contained covers of five of the film's songs by

Fall Out Boy Fall Out Boy is an American Rock music, rock band formed in Wilmette, Illinois, a suburb of Chicago, in 2001. The band consists of lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist Patrick Stump, bassist Pete Wentz, lead guitarist Joe Trohman, and drummer A ...

Panic! at the Disco Panic! at the Disco is the solo project of American musician Brendon Urie. It was originally a pop rock band from Las Vegas, Nevada, formed in 2004 by childhood friends Urie, Ryan Ross, Spencer Smith, and Brent Wilson. They recorded their firs ...

Marilyn Manson Brian Hugh Warner (born January 5, 1969), known professionally as Marilyn Manson, is an American rock musician. He came to prominence as the lead singer of the band which shares his name, of which he remains the only constant member since it ...

Fiona Apple Fiona Apple McAfee-Maggart (born September 13, 1977) is an American singer-songwriter. She has released five albums from 1996 to 2020, which have all reached the top 20 on the U.S. ''Billboard'' 200 chart. Apple has received numerous awards an ...

and

She Wants Revenge She Wants Revenge is an American rock band, based in San Fernando Valley, California. Formed in 2004, the band is a duo of singer and guitarist Justin Warfield and multi-instrumentalist Adam Bravin. Their music has been influenced by post-punk, ...

. Four original demo tracks (six on the

Best Buy Best Buy Co. Inc. is an American multinational consumer electronics retailer headquartered in Richfield, Minnesota. Originally founded by Richard M. Schulze and James Wheeler in 1966 as an audio specialty store called Sound of Music, it was rebra ...

exclusive) by Elfman were also included.

Background

The soundtrack was composed by composer and then-

Oingo Boingo Oingo Boingo () was an American new wave band formed by songwriter Danny Elfman in 1979. The band emerged from a surrealist musical theatre troupe, The Mystic Knights of the Oingo Boingo, that Elfman had led and written material for in the ye ...

frontman

. Elfman sought to make the soundtrack timeless and drew on classic popular composers for inspiration. He explained: "I wanted it to sound like it was written 50 or 100 years ago, so I turned my own influences for that stuff.

Kurt Weill Kurt Julian Weill (March 2, 1900April 3, 1950) was a German-born American composer active from the 1920s in his native country, and in his later years in the United States. He was a leading composer for the stage who was best known for his fru ...

's ''

The Threepenny Opera ''The Threepenny Opera'' ( ) is a "play with music" by Bertolt Brecht, adapted from a translation by Elisabeth Hauptmann of John Gay's 18th-century English ballad opera, ''The Beggar's Opera'', and four ballads by François Villon, with music ...

'', which was a major thing in my life, was a source, as well musicals from

Cole Porter Cole Albert Porter (June 9, 1891 – October 15, 1964) was an American composer and songwriter. Many of his songs became standards noted for their witty, urbane lyrics, and many of his scores found success on Broadway and in film. Born to ...

and Gershwin, and to a certain extent,

Rodgers and Hammerstein Rodgers and Hammerstein was a theater-writing team of composer Richard Rodgers (1902–1979) and lyricist-dramatist Oscar Hammerstein II (1895–1960), who together created a series of innovative and influential American musicals. Their popu ...

." For "What's This?" Elfman sought to capture the rapid-pace lyricism of

Gilbert and Sullivan Gilbert and Sullivan was a Victorian era, Victorian-era theatrical partnership of the dramatist W. S. Gilbert (1836–1911) and the composer Arthur Sullivan (1842–1900), who jointly created fourteen comic operas between 1871 and 1896, of which ...

. In a later interview, Elfman likened

Jack Skellington Jack Skellington is a character and the main protagonist of the 1993 film ''The Nightmare Before Christmas''. He is a Living Skeleton who is the Pumpkin King of Halloween Town, a fantasy world based solely on the Halloween holiday. Jack is voiced ...

's experience as the leader of Halloweentown looking to escape to a different world to his discontentment with being the leader of his band,

. He recalled, "'I always felt Jack was a part of me. ... When I wrote those songs, I was in kind of a unique position, because like Jack I was the king of my own little kingdom – that was Oingo Boingo. And like Jack, I really wanted a way out, but I didn't know how to get out because so many people depended on me. So my own psychological mindset at the time was that I was writing from my own perspective as much as his, because I understood what it felt like to want something else."

Track listing

''On some versions of the CD, "End Credits" is two tracks (20 and 21) with lengths of 1:10 and 3:55 respectively. In this case, track 21 is considered a "hidden track" but features the same music as the 20-track release, which keeps "End Credits" as one track.''

2006 reissue bonus disc

''The "Kidnap the Sandy Claws" and "This Is Halloween" demos are reversed in the track listing on the backside of the album cover and in the album booklet.''

Personnel

Credits and personnel adapted from the 2006 edition of the soundtrack's liner notes.

Performers

– principal artist (

, Barrell), vocals *

Catherine O'Hara Catherine Anne O'Hara (born March 4, 1954) is a Canadian-American actress. She is known for her comedy work on ''Second City Television'' (1976–84) and ''Schitt's Creek'' (2015–2020) and in films such as '' After Hours'' (1985), ''Beetleju ...

– principal artist (

Sally Sally may refer to: People *Sally (name), a list of notable people with the name Military *Sortie (siege warfare), Sally (military), an attack by the defenders of a town or fortress under siege against a besieging force; see sally port *Sally, ...

, Shock), vocals *

Glenn Shadix William Glenn Shadix (April 15, 1952 – September 7, 2010) was an American actor and comedian. He was known for his role as Otho in Tim Burton's horror comedy film ''Beetlejuice'' and as the voice of the Mayor of Halloween Town in ''The Nightmare ...

– principal artist (

Mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well a ...

), vocals *

Ken Page Ken Page (born January 20, 1954) is an American actor and singer. Page created the role of "Ken" in the original Broadway production of '' Ain't Misbehavin, and played the role of "Old Deuteronomy" in both the original Broadway and filmed stag ...

– principal artist (

Oogie Boogie This article lists characters seen in the film ''The Nightmare Before Christmas'' and two video games: '' The Nightmare Before Christmas: The Pumpkin King'' and '' The Nightmare Before Christmas: Oogie's Revenge''. Design The filmmakers constr ...

), vocals *

Paul Reubens Paul Reubens (; born Rubenfeld; August 27, 1952) is an American actor, comedian, writer, producer, and children's entertainer. He is known for his character Pee-wee Herman. Reubens joined the Los Angeles troupe The Groundlings in the 1970s, an ...

– principal artist (

Lock Lock(s) may refer to: Common meanings *Lock and key, a mechanical device used to secure items of importance *Lock (water navigation), a device for boats to transit between different levels of water, as in a canal Arts and entertainment * ''Lock ...

), vocals *

Ed Ivory ''The Nightmare Before Christmas'' (also known as ''Tim Burton's The Nightmare Before Christmas'') is a 1993 American Stop motion, stop-motion animated film, animated musical film, musical dark fantasy, dark fantasy film directed by Henry Seli ...

– principal artist (

Santa Santa Claus, also known as Father Christmas, Saint Nicholas, Saint Nick, Kris Kringle, or simply Santa, is a legendary figure originating in Western Christian culture who is said to bring children gifts during the late evening and overnight ...

), vocals

Additional performers

: Sherwood Ball – background vocals : Debi Durst – background vocals : Randy Crenshaw – background vocals : Kerry Katz – background vocals : Susan McBride – background vocals : Bobbi Page – background vocals :

Greg Proops Gregory Everett "Greg" Proops (born October 3, 1959) is an American actor, stand-up comedian and television host. He is widely known for his guest appearances on the U.K. and U.S. versions of ''Whose Line Is It Anyway?''. He has also voiced the ...

- background vocals : Carmen Twillie – background vocals : Glenn Walters – background vocals

Musicians

* Steve Bartek – musical director, song orchestration * Mark McKenzie – score orchestration * Chris Boardman – song conductor *

J.A.C. Redford Jonathan Alfred Clawson Redford (born July 14, 1953) is an American composer, arranger, orchestrator, and conductor. He is also the author of ''Welcome All Wonders: A Composer's Journey''. Artistic development A wide variety of musical influenc ...

– score conductor *

Mark Mann Mark Mann (born 1970) is an American artist. Biography Born in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, Mann lives and works in Brooklyn, New York. His work has been purchased and collected by the Los Angeles County Museum of Art The Los Angeles County M ...

– additional orchestration

Technical

* Danny Elfman – producer * Bob Badami – associate producer, music editor * Richard Kraft – associate producer * Bill Jackson – vocal recording engineer * Robert Fernandez – song recording engineer * Shawn Murphy – song and score recording engineer, audio mixing * Sharone Rice – assistant engineer * Bill Easystone – assistant engineer *

Mike Piersante Mike Piersante is a recording engineer and mixer. 2009 Grammy Awards Mike Piersante won two Grammy Awards in 2009 for his work as Engineer/Mixer. The first Grammy was for "Please Read the Letter" a duet track by Alison Krauss and Robert Plant. ...

– assistant engineer * Andy Bass – assistant engineer * Dave Collins – digital editing, mastering engineer * Letitia Rogers – assistant music editor * Bobbi Page – vocal contractor * Patti Zimmitti – orchestra contractor * Marc Mann – music preparation * Joel Franklin – music copyist * Megan Cavallari – demo assistant * Gary Adler – art director

Bonus Content

1. " This Is Halloween" : Produced and Mixed by

and

Tim Skold Tim Skold (born Thim Sköld) is a Swedish musician and record producer who produces solo work and has also collaborated with multiple musical groups including Shotgun Messiah, KMFDM, Marilyn Manson and Motionless in White. Biography Early li ...

2. "Sally's Song" : Produced by

Mike Elizondo Mike Elizondo (born October 22, 1972) is an American producer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist. A protege of Dr. Dre, Elizondo has worked with 50 Cent, Eminem, Carrie Underwood, Fiona Apple, Mastodon, Ry Cooder, Skylar Grey, Twenty ...

: Mixed by Adam Hawkins : Engineered by Adam Hawkins @ Phantom Studio, Westlake Village, CA : Assistant Engineer: Erin J. Funk-Dublan :

Keyboards Keyboard may refer to: Text input * Keyboard, part of a typewriter * Computer keyboard ** Keyboard layout, the software control of computer keyboards and their mapping ** Keyboard technology, computer keyboard hardware and firmware Music * Musi ...

: Zac Rae :

Upright Bass The double bass (), also known simply as the bass () (or #Terminology, by other names), is the largest and lowest-pitched Bow (music), bowed (or plucked) string instrument in the modern orchestra, symphony orchestra (excluding unorthodox addit ...

: Mike Elizondo :

Drums A drum kit (also called a drum set, trap set, or simply drums) is a collection of drums, cymbals, and other Percussion instrument, auxiliary percussion instruments set up to be played by one person. The player (drummer) typically holds a pair o ...

Charley Drayton Charles Leslie Drayton (born May 9, 1965) is an American multi-instrumentalist and producer, known primarily as a drummer. Artists he has recorded or performed with include The Cult, Keith Richards, The Rolling Stones, Paul Simon, Neil Young, Mi ...

Strings String or strings may refer to: *String (structure), a long flexible structure made from threads twisted together, which is used to tie, bind, or hang other objects Arts, entertainment, and media Films * ''Strings'' (1991 film), a Canadian anim ...

The Section Quartet The Section Quartet is a string quartet founded by Eric Gorfain that performs cover versions of rock songs. History Eric Gorfain founded the quartet after working for the 1996 tour of Robert Plant and Jimmy Page. He said the quartet fulfilled h ...

Eric Gorfain Eric Gorfain is an American violinist and founder of The Section Quartet, a string quartet that plays cover versions of rock songs. He is married to singer-songwriter Sam Phillips, with whom he has toured and recorded. Gorfain studied music at UC ...

, Daphne Chen, Leah Katz,

Richard Dodd Richard Dodd (born April 25, 1965) is an English cellist, recording artist and musician. He has appeared on numerous records beginning from The Three O'Clock's Album Sixteen Tambourines, and spanning different musical genres in Pop, with acts l ...

: String

Arrangement In music, an arrangement is a musical adaptation of an existing composition. Differences from the original composition may include reharmonization, melodic paraphrasing, orchestration, or formal development. Arranging differs from orches ...

by Eric Gorfain : Project Coordinator: Jolie Levine 3. "What's This?" : Produced and Mixed by Neal Avron : Recorded by Neal Avron and Erich Talaba : Pro Tools Engineer: Matt Green : Assistant Engineer: Zeph Sowers : Recorded at The Pass Studios, Los Angeles, CA : Mixed at Paramount Studios, Hollywood, CA : Mix Assistant: George Gumbs 4. "Kidnap the Sandy Claws" : Produced by KoRn 5. " This Is Halloween" : Produced by Panic! At the Disco and

Rob Mathes Rob or ROB may refer to: Places * Rob, Velike Lašče, a settlement in Slovenia * Roberts International Airport (IATA code ROB), in Monrovia, Liberia People * Rob (given name), a given name or nickname, e.g., for Robert(o), Robin/Robyn * Rob ( ...

: Vocals Arranged by Ryan Ross and Brendon Urie : Recorded by Panic! At the Disco at Ryan's house Las Vegas, NV : Orchestra Arranged and Conducted by Rob Mathes : Recorded by Mark Mandelhaum, assisted by Alex Venguer at Legacy Recording Studio, New York, NY : Concertmaster and Orchestra Contractor: Sandra Park : Music Copyist: Mike and Lori Casteel : Mixed by Chris Shaw at Avatar Studios, New York, NY 6-11. Demos : All Demo Vocals Performed by Danny Elfman :

Synth A synthesizer (also spelled synthesiser) is an electronic musical instrument that generates audio signals. Synthesizers typically create sounds by generating waveforms through methods including subtractive synthesis, additive synthesis and f ...

Demo Tracks Arranged, Orchestrated and Performed by Danny Elfman : Recorded by Bill Jackson : Mixed by Noah Snyder : Produced by Danny Elfman and

Tim Burton Timothy Walter Burton (born August 25, 1958) is an American filmmaker and animator. He is known for his gothic fantasy and horror films such as ''Beetlejuice'' (1988), ''Edward Scissorhands'' (1990), ''The Nightmare Before Christmas'' (1993), ...

* A&R: Dani Markman * Business affairs: Jeff Lowy * Mastered by Pat Sullivan at Bernie Grundman Mastering, Hollywood, CA * Creative Direction: Steve Gerdes * Album Design: Greg Ross for Orabor

Foreign-language versions

There are several foreign-language versions of the soundtrack, each features tracks sung by vocalists in their native language as well as original score tracks by Danny Elfman. * French, ''L'Étrange Noël de Monsieur Jack'' ::Jack - Olivier Constantin ::Sally -

Nina Morato Stéphanie Morato (born 2 March 1966), known professionally as Nina Morato, is a French singer and songwriter. Morato is best known for France in the Eurovision Song Contest 1994, representing France in the Eurovision Song Contest 1994 with the ...

::Oogie Boogie -

Richard Darbois Richard Guimond (; born 7 December 1951), professionally known as Richard Darbois (), is a Canadian voice actor who specializes in French dubbing. Darbois is a regular French voice for many actors, including Harrison Ford, Danny Glover, Rich ...

::Santa Claus (

Père Noël Père Noël (), "Father Christmas", sometimes called 'Papa Noël' ("Daddy Christmas"), is a legendary gift-bringer at Christmas in France and other French-speaking areas, identified with the Father Christmas and/or Santa Claus of English-speak ...

) - Henri Poirier * German, ''Nightmare Before Christmas'' ::Jack - Alexander Goebel ::Sally -

Nina Hagen Catharina "Nina" Hagen (; born 11 March 1955) is a German singer, songwriter, and actress. She is known for her theatrical vocals and rose to prominence during the Punk subculture, punk and New wave music, new wave movements in the late 1970s a ...

::Oogie Boogie - Ron Williams ::Santa Claus - Manfred Lichtenfeld * Italian, ''Nightmare Before Christmas'' ::Jack -

Renato Zero Renato Fiacchini (born 30 September 1950), known by the stage name Renato Zero (), is an Italian singer, songwriter, producer, dancer and actor whose career spans from the 1960s to the 2020s. Zero is the only artist to have reached the top of th ...

::Sally - Marjorie Biondo ::Oogie Boogie (Bau-Bau) - Andrea Surdi ::Santa Claus (Babbo Natale) -

Silvio Spaccesi Silvio Spaccesi (August 1, 1926 – June 2, 2015) was an Italian actor and voice actor. Biography Born in Macerata, Spaccesi studied in a Salesians of Don Bosco School, and made his official theatrical debut with the stage company held by Angel ...

* Japanese, ナイトメアー・ビフォア・クリスマス *:Jack (ジャック) -

Masachika Ichimura is a Japanese actor and voice actor. He was born in Kawagoe, Saitama and studied at the Theater Art College in Tokyo after graduating high school. He is best known to anime fans as the voice of Mewtwo. Ichimura is also the ex-husband of actress ...

(市村正親) *:Sally (サリー) - Yuko Doi (土居裕子) *:Oogie Boogie (ブギー) - Kobayashi Atom (小林アトム) *:Santa Claus (サンタクロース) - Tomoaki Nagae (永江智明) * Castilian Spanish, ''Pesadilla Antes De Navidad'' ::Jack - Tony Cruz ::Sally - María Caneda ::Oogie Boogie - Jesús Castejón ::Santa Claus - Julio Núñez * Latin American Spanish, ''El extraño mundo de Jack'' *:Jack - Sergio Zaldivar *:Sally - Gabriela Vega *:Oogie Boogie - Rubén Cerda *:Santa Claus - José Lavat * Russian, ''Кошмар перед Рождеством'' *:Jack (Джек) - Aleksej Kortnyev (Алексей Кортнев) *:Sally (Салли) - Tutta Larsen (Тутта Ларсен) *:Oogie Boogie (Бугимэн) - Nikolai Fomenko (Николай Фоменко) *:Santa Claus (Санта-Клаус) - Sergej Mazayev (Сергей Мазаев)

Charts

Certifications

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Nightmare Before Christmas, The 1993 soundtrack albums 1990s film soundtrack albums Danny Elfman soundtracks Albums produced by Danny Elfman Disney film soundtracks Disney animation soundtracks The Nightmare Before Christmas Walt Disney Records soundtracks Halloween albums

Background

Track listing

2006 reissue bonus disc

Personnel

Performers

Additional performers

Musicians

Technical

Bonus Content

Foreign-language versions

Charts

Certifications

See also

References