The Road to El Dorado (2000)

Pop songs penned for animated films often lack color, and you wind up with the kind of washed-out sap Elton John came up with for The Lion King. On his new project, The Road to El Dorado, he adds pep to his performance and dash to the melodies. El Dorado benefits most, though, from the words of Tim Rice, which represent the lyricist's jauntiest, most taut work to date. Rice makes this album a rare thing: a cartoon soundtrack that doesn't dumb things down. B