Are you ready for more “Wicked”? “Wicked: For Good – The Soundtrack” is an extended look at the music of the second act of the original musical “Wicked”, based on again stellar vocals from Cynthia Erivo like the misunderstood but defiant Elphaba and Ariana Grande like the conflicted but changing Glinda. New songs and lyrics raise the stakes—even if the music itself is sometimes plot-heavy, it helps move things along. like the movie it accompanies.
The soundtrack opens with “Every Day More Wicked”, a lengthened version of a section of the original Act II opener “Thank God”, with new verses about Elphaba's supposed evil and Glinda's supposed goodness, complete with bold orchestration that matches the first film's opening number, “No One Mourns for the Wicked”. The drum beats and ensemble singers here are the world builders, turning the melody into a march.
The first solo of the album went to Michelle Yeoh Madame Morrible, the sorceress at the center of the propaganda campaign against Elphaba, is a choice that works for the plot but offsets the strength of Erivo and Grande's upcoming vocals. These are introduced later, through brief intercuts of the first act highlights of “The Wizard and Me” and “Popular”. All of this makes for a fast-paced film, but more fragmented in audio form, save for the sumptuous visuals and character developments that tie these musical references together on screen.
Thankfully, “Thank God I Couldn't Be Happier” soon follows, bringing Grande center stage and giving a rare opportunity for her soprano voice to give way to a deeper belt (her impassioned tone, like other Glindas before her, turns those nearly meaningless lyric, “There are bridges you cross that you didn't know you crossed until you crossed them,” into a revelation). This isn't the last we hear from this capital “G.” Okay, Glinda. “Wonderful,” typically a duet between Elphaba and the Wizard of Oz, is “Galinda-esque,” with Grande adding welcome harmonies—and a brief “Defying Gravity” interlude—to Jeff Goldblum Magic fuss.
This album was always going to have a hard time living up to the soundtrack of the first album, “Wicked,” which ended with Erivo taking on the iconic battle cry of “Defying Gravity” and showed Grande owning the unparalleled brilliance of “Popular.” But this greatness is reproduced at key moments: in the operatic soprano Grande, in Erivo and Jonathan Bailey the sensual “As Long As You're Mine”, in which Bailey as Fiyero manages to keep pace with Erivo's alluring vocals, and “No Good Deed”, which is the album's sonic peak.
The 44-minute, 52-second soundtrack adds over 15 minutes of music to the length of the second act of the original Broadway cast recording. This includes two brand new songs written for the film (making them eligible for Oscar consideration): one for Erivo's “Elphaba” and one for Grande's “Glinda.” Extending the shorter second act into a 2-hour, 17-minute film, director Jon M. Chu stretches some of these songs across scenes, filling them with dialogue, additional lyrics by composer and lyricist Stephen Schwartz, and additional music by composer John Powell. It's all a double-edged sword (a broom? a wand?), at times detracting from the power of the intense original tracks and at other times adding emotional stakes ripe for satisfying listening.
For example: Some elements of Marissa Bode, Ethan Slater and Erivo's drama “The Wicked Witch of the East,” a song performed on Broadway that was also left out of the original cast recording, are weakened by which bits of interspersed dialogue remain and which don't in the soundtrack version of the song. Like The Tin Man, it feels a little fragmented.
But the new tracks are highlights that complement the album. “There's No Place Like Home” Erivo continues the iconic line spoken by Dorothy in The Wizard of Oz, giving this Oz-inspired show its own take on the theme, just like the other Oz-inspired show, “The Wizard,” found earlier. (“Home”, a reference to this line, was sung by Erivo at this year's Oscars). The song is at its core a political, timely story about boundaries, defiance and community. It begins with Erivo's voice almost isolated, the strings swelling behind her, and ends with the first of her transcendent vocal numbers restored to a full open note (after being interrupted by the Cowardly Lion on screen) on the album.
That power is felt tenfold in Erivo's performance of “No Good Deed.” The film may follow Glinda's emotional trajectory, but it's Erivo who steals the soundtrack's climax. The drums return, the agony in her voice intensifies, the strings swell in her final call.
Glinda's emotional journey may be more subtle at first glance, but Grande portrays it deftly. Airy and introspective, “The Girl in the Bubble” becomes a turning point, filling in the gaps in Glinda's inner calculations. Her voice is restrained but emotional, Schwartz's lyrics are simple and cheesy, which feels earned and therefore sincere. After all, it's Glinda, not Grande.
Both songs add to the emotional payoff of the character's final duet, the fan-favorite tearful “For Good.” It's no surprise that after years of traveling with their characters, Erivo and Grande were able to bring out the chemistry of their characters' friendship.
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“Wicked: For Good – Soundtrack”
Three and a half stars out of five.
On repeat: “There is no good deed,” “Thank God,” “For good.”
Skip: Wicked Every Day, Wicked Witch of the East.
For fans of: “Wicked”, musical theater ballads, chilling vocals.
