Genesis of a Song: Alan Menken Shares How He Wrote ‘Go the Distance’ for Disney’s Hercules

While "Go The Distance" is now an anthem for the film Hercules and a “tentpole for the score,” according to Menken, it was almost never written.

Menken and Zippel had written a song called “Shooting Star.” (You can hear Menken play it in the video above.) The song felt too wistful, with not enough drive. And so the duo wrote “Go the Distance.” In the video above Menken plays through both songs, explaining the choice and what the 1997 movie needed, how he found the melody, why the horns are so important, and the “confetti of brilliance” that is Zippel’s lyric.