God Help The Outcasts by Bette Midler Full Orchestra - Digital Sheet Music

SKU: A0.1654632

"God Help the Outcasts" is a song written by composer Alan Menken and lyricist Stephen Schwartz for Walt Disney Pictures' animated film The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1996). A popballad, the song is performed by American singer Heidi Mollenhauer as the singing voice of Esmeralda on American actress Demi Moore's behalf, who provides the character's speaking voice.

After Menken and Schwartz wrote "God Help the Outcasts", directors Kirk Wise and Gary Trousdaleand Disney CEO Jeffrey Katzenberg debated whether or not the film required a more uplifting song; Menken and Schwartz wrote the inspirational "Someday" with which to replace "God Help the Outcasts" at the behest of Katzenberg. However, Wise and Trousdale ultimately decided that "God Help the Outcasts", a religious ballad, was more suitable for the scene.

American singer and actress Bette Midler recorded a pop rendition of "God Help the Outcasts" for the film's soundtrack. The film version of "God Help the Outcasts" has garnered generally positive reviews from both film and music critics, who enjoyed the song's lyrics and music, as well as Mollenhauer's performance. Conversely, critics deemed Midler's rendition too sentimental and overwrought. In addition to Midler, "God Help the Outcasts" has since been covered by several artists, including singer Lara Fabian in Canadian French and The Little Mermaid's Jodi Benson. The song also appears in the film's stage musical adaptation, performed by Ciara Renée.