It is hard to believe that The Sound of Music is 50 years old.  It is even harder to believe that when the show opened in 1959 seats sold for $5.  The first release of the original cast recording took place within weeks of the opening of the show on vinyl.   Since then it has been released and updated quite a few times (The first cd release of the album was in 1986).  Now for the 50th anniversary we get the original master restored using 20 bit technology.  What sounded great 50 years ago sounds fantastic now.

There has always been a dispute about whether the Broadway performance by Mary Martin, or the film performance by Julie Andrew, is  better.  To me, this dispute has always been a non-starter.  The only way that you could really compare the two is if they had each performed the role in both venues.  It is likely that there will never be another full scale movie of The Sound of Music so there can be no comparison.  However,  there have already been many revivals of The Sound of Music, the most recent in 1998,  and though I really like Rebecca Luker, her performance does not touch that of Mary Martin.  This new 50th Anniversary release only reminds us again how spectacular the voice, clarity and diction of Mary Martin really is.  The rest of the cast included: Theodore Bikel portrys Captain von Trapp with Patricia Neway as the Mother Abess, Marian Marlowe as Elsa Schraeder and Kurt Kasznar as Max Detweiler.

The notes that come with this album, and the pictures that are contained, are an added bonus, as are the three additional bonus tracks which are included in this release. The first bonus comes from the tv special  “Julie Andrews and Carol Burnett at Carnegie Hall.”  This show was done three years before Andrews would make the film.  It is a wonderful spoof of the family……now 20 children strong (19 brothers and Burnett) and their mother (Andrews).  The second track comes from the 2005 production in Austria, the first mounted production in that country.  It is a performance in German of “Edelweiss,” the last song that Oscar Hammerstein wrote before his death.  The third bonus track is from the 1995 production of the show in Stockholm.  They did not record the album as the show was performed, but rather, cast members performed songs fromt he show.  This track features Tommy Korberg singing “Climb Every Mountain.”

Even if you have previous recordings of the original cast album, this one is special enough, in sound and bonus, to add to your library.

Categories: Original Broadway Cast Recordings
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Shrek the Movie has had a long and successful run.  That run helps make Shrek the Musical a success, but it also acts as a limiting factor on the score,  the musical itself and this cast recording.  This show will make those who know Shrek the Movie happy because it so closely follows the movie story line.  As a result the film has dictated song placement.   Thus the music and lyrics by Jeannine Tesori and David Lindsay-Abaire, move the story line, but are not very creative.  There are some fairly good songs in the show,  but there is nothing that I believe will be lasting.  That being said, those that loved the film and thus the musical will find this cast recording a good story telling record.

Sutton Foster, who seems to move from one Broadway hit to another (Thoroughly Modern Millie, The Drowsy Chaperone, Young Frankenstein) and is outstanding in each one, is terrific here and she has the very best songs of the show in Morning Person and I Think I Got You Beat.  You understand each and every word she sings and there is great life and excitement in her voice.  While I like Brian D’Arcy James, the part demands that he sound like Shrek the Ogre and this takes away from the usual quality that we expect from his singing.  Daniel Breaker is not Eddie Murphy, the movie voice of the donkey,  and suffers by any comparison, although I believe this to be the show’s toughest role.  Christopher Seiber is a very good Farquaad and his Ballad of Farquaad is a lot of fun.

I think this cast recording will be quite fun for children who love the movie and have seen the show, but overall I find the score and this cast recording disappointing.

Categories: Original Broadway Cast Recordings
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Company is one of my all time favorite shows.  I have seen it performed many times and I never tire of seeing it.  However, trying to pick the best cast recording from the recordings available is another matter.  There are three American recordings.  The 1970 original cast recording featured Dean Jones as  Bobby and Elaine Stritch in the role of JoAnn.  The 1995 revival cast recording featured Boyd Gaines as Bobby and the 2006 production, which was unlike either of the other two, featured Raul Esparza as Bobby.    Larry Kert (West Side Story) replaced Dean Jones early in the original run, but all we have of him as Bobby is a bonus track on the rereleased 1970 cast recording.    There are London  cast recordings, but I find them untenable so I have decided not to include them here.

So, what to recommend?  I recommend you buy all three Broadway cast recordings  and then, for your own listening pleasure,  make your own Company Perfect Cast Recording(CPCR).  While no one recording is totally superior to the others, there is something from each to be added to you CPCR.

Below are my choices for each number to help you create your own CPCR.

The Opening – Company (The 1995 revival cast recording) – There are a lot of reasons to choose this version.  It has more life than either of the other two, the tempo is crisper, the harmonies are very clear and the sound of the recording is just superior.

The Little Things We Do Together (The Original 1970 Recording) – I really like the tempo here better than in any of the others.  The rhythm seems more punctuated as well.  But, the main reason for my choice is Elaine Stritch.  Some people own certain parts.  Elaine Stritch owns JoAnn and no one has ever touched her performance.

Sorry Grateful (The 2006 revival cast recording) – The 1970 and 1995 versions are both very good, but the 2006 recording is the most insightful and has greater interplay between voice and instrumentation which creates a much better effect.

You Could Drive A Person Crazy (The 1995 revival cast recording) – All three performances are very good.  I really like the people on the original recording, but the 1995 recording is clearer and crisper.  The sync of the voices is such that every word is understood.  The instrumentation in the 2006 recording makes it unsatisfying.

Have I Got A Girl For You (The 1995 revival cast recording) – Hands down, the 1995 recording is the winner here.  The rhythmic punctuations help drive the excitement of the piece.  It is great from beginning to end.

Someone is Waiting (The 1995 revival cast recording) – The voice of Boyd Gaines makes the difference here.  Dean Jones cannot compare and Raul Esparza’s version is vocally nice, but we hear his slurred  “s” sounds and that is bothersome.  Additionally,  instrumentally it is to bare.

Another 100 People (The 1995 revival cast recording) – This is a dynamite number.  The enunciation, diction, pitch and orchestration of the 1995 recording are far better that what you find in the 1970 recording.

Getting Married Today (The 1995 revival cast recording) – What I really like the most about this version is the enunciation and diction.  You understand every word.  Nothing of the text is lost and that makes this version spectacular.

Marry Me A Little (The 2006 revival cast recording) – I do not like that recording very much, but Raul Esparza is wonderful here.  He croons.  This song was cut from the original and appears for the first time in the 1995 recording.

Side By Side / What Would We Do Without You (The 1995 revival cast recording) – This performance is really fun.  It reminds me of a number that could have been seen in Follies. It just sounds more Sondheim like than either of the others ones.  You cannot get through this version without wanting to get up and dance.

Poor Baby (The Original 1970 Recording) – This is the real hen party version.  The women are clear, crisp and snippy.  Neither of the other versions comes close here.

Barcelona (The 1995 Cast Recording) – Boyd Gaines just has exceptional vocal power and vocal control and he shows it here.   His phrasing and breath contol are great and his vocal acting is terrific.

The Ladies Who Lunch (The Original 1970 Recording) – I have said it before, but it deserves repeating.  This part and this song belong to Elaine Stritch.  No one can touch her.

Being Alive (The 1995 Cast Recording) Boyd Gaines has the strongest voice of the three Bobby performers and it is in this number that this becomes the most obvious.  Bobby gains more and more insight with each phrase and Gaines uses his vocal ability to grow the sound through the piece.  It is a wonderful performance.

So there you have it……..The Company Perfect Cast Recording.  You may ask……..So what if I can only afford to buy one of these albums…….which one?   I suggest buying the 1995 revival recording and then buying each of the other numbers as singles…..then put it all together.  It will cost you bit more than buying just one recording, but then you will have The Company Perfect Cast Recording.

Categories: Broadway Revival Cast Recordings, Original Broadway Cast Recordings
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Take Australian Peter Allen’s rags to riches life, add his biographical music, sprinkle in his relationship with Judy Garland and Liza Minnelli, and then ice the cake by adding Hugh Jackman, and you get The Boy from OZ.

The show was originally presented in Sydney without Jackman as the star.  Though he had been asked to be the show’s star, he was unable to accept because of conflicting screen commitments due to his growing movie popularity.  However, upon seeing the show in Sydney, he realized that he really wanted to play the Peter Allen role and he agreed to bring the show to Broadway.

The show was spectacular.  Jackman lit up the stage.  He changed himself from the Wolverine to a flamboyant, bi-coastal Peter Allen.  His singing ability surprised few, but his dancing ability and the ease with which he recreated Peter Allen style repartee wlith the audience astounded many.  His performance won him the 2004 Tony Award.

Isabel Keating as Judy Garland  startled people.  When she first appears on stage and then speaks, it is as if Judy Garland has come back to life.  And when Keating sings,  it gave you chills.  Stephanie J. Block was also terrific as Liza Minelli.

All of this is recreated on the original cast recording produced in 2003.  The recording and mixing by Frank Filipetti is excellent.  It is one of those cast recordings that does great justice to a great Broadway evening.  There are many short videos from the show on You Tube, but none of them recreate the sound of the show as does this recording.

It is hard to imagine anyone coming along in the near future who can recreate what this cast did on stage and on CD.  This is a must for any musical collection.

Categories: Original Broadway Cast Recordings
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Every serious actor, at sometime or other, wants to play Hamlet.  Cast a great actor to speak “To Be Or Not To Be” and people will come to the theater.   Gypsy is like that. Frank Rich of the New York Times actually called it a musical King Lear. Five great Broadway musical stars have opened Gypsy on Broadway and taken their shot at “Rose’s Turn.”   The people came and three of the stars walked off with a Tony.  Ethel Merman, Angela Lansbury, Tyne Daly, Bernadette Peters and Patti LuPone – each brought her own stamp to Mama Rose and each cast recording has something special to offer.  Which one should you own?

A look at the cast recordings of Gypsy must begin with the original Mama Rose, Ethel Merman.  Composer Jule Styne  (Funny Girl, Bells Are Ringing) wrote Gypsy for Merman.  He knew her range and her vocal power.  Stephen Sondheim (originally considered as a potential composer for Gypsy) agreed to work as lyricist with Styne. Sondheim wrote the lyrics knowing that Merman was the best enunciator in the business.  He was able to write lyrics knowing that they would be understood.  Twenty-Five years  later, Merman could bring the house down singing “Everything’s Coming Up Roses.” Don’t take my word for it,  check out the performance on You Tube.

Merman was never suave; she was a pre-microphone Broadway belter….and that is what she did in every song in the show, on the CD and actually on almost every recording she ever made, belt.  That is not to say there is no nuance in her CD performance, but there are only shades, not dramatic vocal variations in sound.  She may not have been the world’s best actress, but when she sings “Rose’s Turn,” actress be damned, this is Merman’s show.  Stereophonic sound on recordings was perfected in 1957 and this was the first Merman recording done in Stereo.  The album won the Grammy award. Those who followed Merman had to do her score, in her range, and were always aware that she created a classic performance on stage and on CD and that they would be compared to her.

This is one of my favorite recordings of Gypsy.    I believe it should be a part of everyone’s collection.  Interestingly enough, Merman did not win the Tony for her performance.  The 1959 Tony went to Mary Martin for The Sound of Music.

In 1973, Angela Lansbury opened Gypsy in London.  It was a great success there and moved to New York for a limited 120 performance run which ended in January of 1975.     She later brought the show to the Schubert Theater in Los Angeles.  The album and CD that came from this revival was a remix of the London production with a newly recorded “Some People.”

Lansbury, who had already won a Tony for Mame in 1966, would also win the 1975 Tony for Gypsy. Lansbury,  in her acceptance speech, gave credit to Ethel Merman.  Although Lansbury is not a belter, she has a great voice with great power.   She is, however,  an actress and, as such, she was able to add vocal nuance and drama to her performance on stage and on the CD that Merman was unable to do.  It is unfortunate that they did not make a cast recording of the Broadway production.  Although Lansbury is marvelous in every number she performs, her surrounding cast, especially the younger and older kids, have very strong English accents that, I believe,  hurt the recording.

It should be noted that after 1975, future Mama Roses would now, not only have to compete with the Merman power, but also with the Lansbury acting.  Up until 2008, these two performances and recordings set the standard for the future revivals.

You Tube has Lansbury doing “Everything’s Coming Up Roses” as well as her acceptance speech for her Gypsy Tony.

This too, is one of my favorite recordings of Gypsy, inspite of the strong English accents previously noted.  I believe it should also be a part of everyone’s collection.

Arthur Laurents, who had written the book,  directed the next revival of Gypsy on Broadway in 1990.  This one starred Tyne Daly.  Best known at that time for her television work in Cagney and Lacey, Daly is known as an actress, but she has performed on CD in On The Town and on the musical stage in Call Me Madam.  I never saw this performance, but those who did said that she stalked the stage and brought a new level of acting to the role.

Frank Rich, in his review of the Tyne Daly Gypsy said, “It cannot be done without a powerhouse performance in its marathon parental role. Ms. Daly, a television actress who might seem inappropriate to the task, follows Angela Lansbury in proving that not even Ethel Merman can own a character forever. Ms. Daly is not Merman, and she is not Ms. Lansbury. Her vocal expressiveness and attack have their limits (most noticeably in ”Mr. Goldstone”), and warmth is pointedly not her forte. But this fiercely committed actress tears into – at times claws into – Mama Rose, that ”pioneer woman without a frontier,” with a vengeance that exposes the darkness at the heart of ”Gypsy” as it hasn’t been since Merman.”

She did the role on Broadway for almost two years and won the Tony for her performance, but, unfortunately, while you hear drama in her voice on the CD, especially in ‘Rose’s Turn’, she was just unable to carry off the totality of vocal demands for Mama Rose.  The supporting cast is quite good, but one buys a cast recording of Gypsy because of the star playing Mama Rose and this one just falls short.

I am sorry I never got to see this production because I am a real Tyne Daly fan, but I do not suggest that you buy this recording unless, for history’s sake, you desire to own all of them.

In 2003, Gypsy came to Broadway again.  This time Mama Rose was played by Bernadette Peters.  There are those who love Ms. Peters and for them she can do no wrong.  The show won the Tony for best revival in 2003 and Ms. Peters was nominated, but like Merman, she did not win.  Reviews said that she changed the concept of Mama Rose from earlier productions.  I have always thought that she was just wrong for the part, but, the show ran for over a year.  I believe this was due to her popularity, not because of her performance.

Of all of the cast recordings of Gypsy, this is my least favorite.  I just do not like her sound on the recording or her sound in the performance at the Tony Awards of 2004 which can be heard on You Tube.  To me her voice is too shallow for this role.  Peters is not a belter, though she tries.  If drama can be heard in the performances of Lansbury and Daly,  it is lost with Peters’ performance.  Her diction, which for me is always a problem,  just cripples her on this CD.

I know that prior to the show opening there was a lot of talk that Arthur Laurents and Stephen Sondheim were not happy with the direction of Sam Mendes nor the performance of Bernadette Peters.  Even in the last rehearsals before the show opened, Ms. Peters had her understudy perform.  There is no doubt that Ms. Peters is a talented Broadway performer (Sunday In The Park with George, Into The Woods, Mack and Mabel, Annie Get Your Gun) and has the resume and the following to prove it.  But, I think that Gypsy was just not her show.

I do not suggest that you buy this CD.

The last of the five cast records was released in 2008.  This newest revival starred Patti Lupone as Mama Rose, Boyd Gaines as Herbie and Laura Benanti as Gypsy Rose Lee.  Lupone first did the role at the Ravinia Festival in Chicago in 2006 and in July of 2007 for  Encores in New York.  From that performance came the push to bring it to a Broadway house as a full scale revival.  It opened on Broadway in March of 2008 and closed almost a year later when Lupone left the show.  While the show did not win the Tony for best revival, Lupone, Gaines and Benanti all won Tonys for their performances.

Lupone has proven to be equally comfortable on Broadway in both musicals (Evita, Sweeney Todd, Anything Goes) and plays (Journey’s End, Pygmalion).  She also appeared in the original production of Sunset Boulevard in London.  She is a concert and cabaret favorite and has a great following.  She brought everything into the role of Mama Rose.  She is a belter and an actress and her Mama Rose was a real monster.  She croons to Herbie in “You’ll Never Get Away From Me.”  Her “Everything’s Coming Up Roses” is filled with revenge and determination.  Her “Mr. Goldstone” is simply the best ever recorded.  In “Rose’s Turn” she growls “….. if it wasn’t for me,  just where would you be, Miss Gypsy Rose Lee.”  You immediately know the answer…….Seattle, and you realize that though Mama is the ultimate stage mother and a monster, the success of her daughters would have been impossible without her.

I believe that Lupone has set a new Gypsy standard with her performance on Broadway and on this cast recording and I predict it will be a long time before Gypsy comes to Broadway again.

Every performance on the CD is outstanding. This is my favorite recording of the five and if you can only choose one, choose this one.

Categories: Broadway Revival Cast Recordings, Original Broadway Cast Recordings, Original London Cast Recordings
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Early this October, following his cabaret performance in Orange County,  I talked for a few moments with Stephen Schwartz about Pippin. I had first seen Pippin in New York in the early ’70’s and we discussed that version, as well as, a new anime version that I had just seen performed by the East West Players in Little Tokyo, Los Angeles, in June of 2008.  Schwartz had seen and greatly enjoyed that version.  He then told me that he was taking an active role in a new pre-Broadway production of Pippin at the Mark Taper Forum in Los Angeles in early 2009. This 2009 version to be produced by Deaf West Theater will be the first fully staged Broadway production of the musical since the original.

Pippin opened on Broadway in 1972. Stephen Schwartz wrote both the music and lyrics.  Roger O. Hirson wrote the book and Bob Fosse  directed and choreographed.   Fosse’s “subtext” style (the use of dance rather than dialogue to portray ideas) and use of lighting and  gloves were found in Pippin and would also be found in his next big show Chicago. His prior Broadway successes include: Pajama Game, Damn Yankees and Sweet Charity.

Pippin opened to mixed reviews and quite average sales.  In response to this, Fosse and star Ben Vereen put together a television commercial to advertise the show.   This had never been done before and helped to bring success to the show.  The show ran for over 1900 performances.   Pippin has been a favorite with both school and regional companies ever since.  Schwartz told me he really loves this show and marvels at its continued success.

The cast featured Ben Vereen as The Leading Player. Vereen had been nominated for a Tony for Jesus Christ Superstar the year before and would win a Tony for his performance in Pippin. John Rubinstein would make his Broadway debut as the title character. Rubinstein comes from a very musical family, his father being Artur Rubinstein the concert pianist. He would later receive a Tony for his performance in Children of a Lesser God. He has remained very active on the stage in New York and Los Angeles and most recently played the part of the Wizard in the Los Angeles production of Wicked. Eric Berry portrayed Charlemagne (Pippin’s father), Leland Palmer played the part of Fastrada, the wife of Charlemagne, but not Pippin’s mother. She no longer performs, but is still active in the theater.  Jill Clayburgh played Catherine,  Pippin’s love interest. Clayburgh had appeared in quite a few shows on Broadway, but Pippin would be her best musical role. Irene Ryan played Pippin’s grandmother, the role of Berthe.  Most famous for her TV role as Granny on The Beverly Hillbillies, Ryan had been diagnosed with a brain tumor prior to the opening of the show.  This fact that was kept secret from her and when the show opened she was in it and brought the house down every night.   She died in April of 1973, several days after suffering a stroke during a performance.

The show opens with a dazzling prologue featuring almost the entire cast as a show troupe of players led by Vereen as The Leading Player.  “Magic to Do,” sets the stage for the play “The Life and Times of Pippin” that the audience is about to see.  (A video of the number is shown on the site)   At the end of the prologue, we are introduced to Pippin. Rubinstein’s Pippin displays a sweet,  almost Candide like optimism sings the most popular song of the show, “Corner Of The Sky.” Pippin sings,  “I’ve got to be where my spirit can run free, gotta find my corner of the sky.  The play about “The Life and Times of Pippin” now begins and we follow him in his search to find that corner.

Eric Berry as Charlemagne has a deep round baritone voice.  He uses it not only to welcome his son Pippin home from school, but, singing along with a rhythmic chorus, explains to Pippin  that “War is a Science.”  Having been prepared for war, Pippin now heads into battle seeking  “Glory,” but finding onle gore.

Pippin leaves the battlefield deciding war is not for him.  The Leading Player, in the number “Simple Joys” leads  Pippin through the countryside to the home of his grandmother.  Berthe welcomes Pippin and in “No Time At All” explains to him her philosophy about life.  Before it is all over the rest of the cast and the audience are proclaiming her philsophy, “Live Life to the Fullest.”

Pippin tries a little free love and sex and decides that, without feeling real love, he feels vacant and he continues his journey.

Pippin is then convinced by The Leading Player that he should fight tyranny and so, with the help of Fastrada, who at this point sings her big number of the show,  “Spread A Little Sunshine,” he kills his father and in “Morning Glow” talks about the new future with him as king.   He soon learns that being king is not fun and he begs The Leading Player to bring his father back to life….which he does.  The Leading Player tells Pippin in a great song and dance duet that he is “On The Right Track” and so Pippin begins to experiment with music, art and religion and, while experimenting, he comes upon Catherine……falls in love…….and also comes to love her son Theo.  Pippin has now found a relationship and he and Catherine sing their love duet, “Love Song.”

Pippin eventually realizes that this new life is not for someone who is “Extraordinary”  and he leaves to search for true meaning.  He winds up on the stage surrounded by the troupe who encourage him to reach the grand finale of his life by jumping into the flames to his death.   Pippin agrees to do this, but he is stopped by one of the actresses in the troupe, the one who has played Catherine. The Leading Player is furious and the troupe leaves Pippin, Catherine and Theo alone on a dark, empty and silent stage.  The lights are turned off, the orchestra packs up and leaves and the troupe removes their makeup…..they are alone in a plain and unadorned world.  Pippin is not sad, he has become a happy man.  He has found his corner of the sky.

The Pippin CD is a great cast recording. The orchestration was novel and exciting in 1972 and remains so today. The score is terrific.  It is one of those cast recordings that brings great memories to those who have seen or performed Pippin.  But, even if you have not it is quite a wonder, especially if you are hearing it for the first time.

Recorded on vinyl in 1972 and transferred to CD, Pippin is a really great cast recording and one you should own.

Categories: Original Broadway Cast Recordings
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