The opening track "El Dorado" tells the tale of a mystical city of gold and sets the tone for the entire soundtrack. Full of memorable, well-produced pop songs that will appeal to both kids and adults, I wouldn’t be surprised if ‘The Road To El Dorado’ yields a few top 10 hits for Elton John.

Contemporary soft rock ballads with a touch of the blues thrown in are Elton John’s specialty and the tracks "Without Question," "Someday Out of the Blue" and "Friends Never Say Goodbye" are standouts. The song "My Heart Dances" with its light, Latin-influenced sound is the most memorable ballad on the album.
Some of the more upbeat and rhythmic songs on the album are "The Trail We Blaze" and "16th Century Man." The album is well-sequenced, moving from ballads to up-tempo numbers to orchestral pieces that convey the plot of the movie while maintaining a nice musical flow.

Having recently worked on some animated musicals (Disney’s ‘Toy Story,’ ‘Toy Story 2’ and ‘A Bug’s Life’) himself, Randy Newman joins John for a duet on the album. "It’s Tough To Be a God" is a number in which the two heroes lament (not) the oh-so-hard gig of posing as deities for the El Dorado locals. Although not the best track on the album, this cameo by Newman is a nice addition to both the film and the soundtrack.

Another artist whose work can be heard on the album is film composer Hanz Zimmer, who also collaborated with John on ‘The Lion King’ soundtrack. He provides the orchestral score for the entire film. Four of his tracks are included on this CD. It seems as if no expense was spared on the production of this album. The fact that the London Orchestra performs on many of the tracks, combined with the fact that it was recorded and mixed at 14 different recording studios, shows how ambitious this soundtrack is. The clarity of the album and the recording quality are excellent. There are a few times when the production is a little excessive, but this is to be expected. Elton John didn’t get to where he is by being a minimalist.

I always feel that a soundtrack is not truly great unless it can stand as a separate entity apart from the film. ‘El Dorado’ not only passes this test, but it’s also a great way to relive the movie if one has already seen it. Some of the tracks on the CD do not appear in the actual film, but I feel this gives the soundtrack its own identity. Adults and children alike will enjoy the music here. The younger set won’t necessarily know who Elton John is, let alone the broad scope of his career, but they will love singing along to the music. Older fans of Elton John will be happy to know that he is still making music that is fresh and new, yet retains his signature style and flair.