"Somewhere Out There" is a song released by

MCA Records MCA Records was an American record label owned by MCA Inc., which later became part of Universal Music Group. Pre-history MCA Inc., a powerful talent agency and a television production company, entered the recorded music business in 1962 w ...

and recorded by American singers

Linda Ronstadt Linda Maria Ronstadt (born July 15, 1946) is a retired American singer who performed and recorded in diverse genres including rock, country, light opera, the Great American Songbook, and Latin. She has earned 11 Grammy Awards, three American ...

and

James Ingram James Edward Ingram (February 16, 1952 – January 29, 2019) was an American singer, songwriter and record producer. He was a two-time Grammy Award-winner and a two-time Academy Award nominee for Best Original Song. After beginning his career ...

for the

soundtrack A soundtrack is recorded music accompanying and synchronised to the images of a motion picture, drama, book, television program, radio program, or video game; a commercially released soundtrack album of music as featured in the soundtrack ...

of the animated film ''

An American Tail ''An American Tail'' is a 1986 American animated musical adventure film directed by Don Bluth from a screenplay by Judy Freudberg and Tony Geiss and a story by David Kirschner, Freudberg and Geiss. The film features the voices of Phillip Glass ...

'' (1986). The song was written by

James Horner James Roy Horner (August 14, 1953 – June 22, 2015) was an American composer. He was known for the integration of choral and electronic elements, and for his frequent use of motifs associated with Celtic music. Horner's first film score was in ...

, Barry Mann, and Cynthia Weil, and produced by

Peter Asher Peter Asher, (born 22 June 1944) is an English guitarist, singer, manager and record producer. He came to prominence in the 1960s as a member of the pop music vocal duo Peter and Gordon before going on to a successful career as a manager and r ...

and

Steve Tyrell ''yes'Steve is a masculine given name, usually a short form (hypocorism) of Steven or Stephen Notable people with the name include: steve jops * Steve Abbott (disambiguation), several people * Steve Adams (disambiguation), several people * Steve ...

. It reached number eight in the United Kingdom, number six in Ireland, and number two in both the United States and Canada.

Background

Steven Spielberg, the film's producer, invited songwriters Barry Mann and Cynthia Weil to collaborate with James Horner on four songs for its soundtrack, to be completed in a four-week timeframe. The composers "felt no pressure to come up with a radio-friendly hit" and were surprised when Spielberg felt the song had

Top 40 In the music industry, the Top 40 is the current, 40 most-popular songs in a particular genre. It is the best-selling or most frequently broadcast popular music. Record charts have traditionally consisted of a total of 40 songs. "Top 40" or "cont ...

hit potential and recruited world-renowned recording artists,

and

, to record a pop version of it for the film's closing credits. In the main body of the film, the song was performed by Phillip Glasser and Betsy Cathcart in the characters of the anthropomorphic mice Fievel and Tanya Mousekewitz. Produced by Ronstadt's regular producer

, the single release of the Ronstadt/Ingram track made its debut at number 31 on the Adult Contemporary chart in '' Billboard'' dated 15 November 1986, crossing over to the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 dated 20 December 1986 with a number 83 debut. In January 1987, the song returned Ronstadt to the Top 40 after a four-year absence to eventually peak at number 2 on the week of March 14.

Music video

The music video for the song was directed, produced, and edited by Jeffrey Abelson. It was filmed in New York City and features Ronstadt and Ingram, in two separate rooms, sitting at their desks while drawing and coloring scenes from the film. They both look out the windows, in the same manner as Fievel and Tanya in it. Clips from the film appear throughout the video.

Theme

The lyrics convey the love felt by two people separated by vast distances, but cheered by the belief that their love will eventually reunite them to be with each other once again. In the main body of the film, the fictional characters singing the song, Fievel and Tanya Mousekewitz, are brother and sister, and the love they share is described as general. However, in the end title pop version of it, the love is described as more romantic.

Awards

At the

30th Grammy Awards The 30th Annual Grammy Awards were held March 2, 1988, at Radio City Music Hall, New York City. They recognized accomplishments by musicians from the previous year. Album of the Year went to U2 for ''The Joshua Tree'', and Song of the Year went ...

, the song won two awards, one for Song of the Year and the other for Best Song Written Specifically for a Motion Picture or Television. It also garnered Ronstadt and Ingram a Grammy nomination for

Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal Best or The Best may refer to: People * Best (surname), people with the surname Best * Best (footballer, born 1968), retired Portuguese footballer Companies and organizations * Best & Co., an 1879–1971 clothing chain * Best Lock Corporation ...

. It earned nominations for Best Original Song at the 44th Golden Globe Awards and the

59th Academy Awards The 59th Academy Awards ceremony, organized by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS), took place on March 30, 1987, at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion in Los Angeles beginning at 6:00 p.m. PST / 9:00 p.m. EST. During ...

, but lost both to "

Take My Breath Away "Take My Breath Away" is a song written by Giorgio Moroder and Tom Whitlock for the 1986 film ''Top Gun'', performed by American new wave band Berlin. It won the Academy Award for Best Original Song, as well as the Golden Globe Award for Best ...

" from '' Top Gun''. At the Academy Awards ceremony,

Natalie Cole Natalie Maria Cole (February 6, 1950 – December 31, 2015) was an American singer, songwriter, and actress. She was the daughter of American singer and jazz pianist Nat King Cole. She rose to success in the mid-1970s as an R&B singer with the h ...

performed the song live with Ingram.

Charts and certifications

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

Covers

In the spring of 1987, singer Liza Minnelli performed, in the words of music critic Stephen Holden of ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...

'', "a stunning rendition" of the song at Carnegie Hall for her three-week concert engagement at the historic music venue. The concert was recorded by Telarc Records and released in late 1987.

References

{{Authority control 1980s ballads 1986 songs 1986 singles Linda Ronstadt songs James Ingram songs Songs written by James Horner Songs written by Barry Mann Pop ballads Songs written for animated films Songs with lyrics by Cynthia Weil Love themes An American Tail (franchise) Grammy Award for Song of the Year Grammy Award for Best Song Written for Visual Media MCA Records singles Male–female vocal duets