Bigger Than Life [Original recording remastered] [Import]

Bigger Than Life [Original recording remastered] [Import]

Editorial Reviews
Product Description
Remastered mid-price reissue of the legendary producer's (part of Motown's Holland-Dozier-Holland hit machine) long unavailable 1983 album. One of his best solo efforts. Highlights include, 'Roundtrip Ticket', 'Love Wars', 'Right Where I Wanna Be', 'Second Wind' & 'Hero of My Heart'.

Tracks:

30/90
Green Green Dress
Johnny Can't Decide
Sunday
No More
Therapy
Real Life
Sugar
See Her Smile
Come To Your Senses
Why
Louder Than Words
Boho Days
30/90 Playout

Amazon.com

Rent is usually treated as Jonathan Larson's one and only show, but the truth is that he had a career--albeit a hitless one--before that blockbuster. There was a musical titled JP Morgan Saves the Nation with lyrics by Jeffrey M. Jones and music by Larson. And there was Tick, Tick... Boom!, an autobiographical piece that Larson workshopped for a while before setting it aside and finishing Rent.

In 2001, Tick, Tick is getting a full off-Broadway production, and it's a rather endearing one. Lyrics have never been Larson's strong point, but he was a hell of a melodic composer--and the score here is even poppier than that of Rent (think Top 40 rather than Sondheim). It's hard to pick favorite songs: "Green Green Dress" is built on a rollicking piano boogie, for instance, and "Real Life" and "See Her Smile" are the kind of elegiac ballad that Larson would later perfect with "Seasons of Love." Luckily, this show has a lot more to offer than mere youthful musings. --Elisabeth Vincentelli

Customer Reviews:

A Vocally Dazzling Esparza Rides High on an Exuberant Pre-"Rent" Larson Score.......2007-06-16

Perhaps it's a coincidence that the immensely talented Raúl Esparza plays a character dreading his 30th birthday in this 2001 recording of the hit off-Broadway show by the late Jonathan Larson, while five years later, he would play the elliptical Bobby dreading his 35th birthday in the enthralling 2006 Broadway revival of Stephen Sondheim and George Furth's Company. In both performances, Esparza shows a true affinity for capturing the angst of men undergoing transitional points in their lives which render them emotionally paralyzed. At first glance, Sondheim and Larson would not seem like kindred spirits, but both share a gift for sophisticated lyrics in an unmistakable musical style defined by their oeuvres. Larson even pays tribute to Sondheim in the story's climax and with the sardonic, work-is-hell "Sunday", a take-off of the song with the same name in Sunday in the Park with George.

However, it is the familiar Larson sound of Rent that is heard most in this score - driving, rock-out rhythms with unavoidable pop hooks and yearning, piano-driven ballads. Even the opener, "30/90", is a virtual sound-alike of the bigger show's title tune. If the songs are not quite as polished or even memorable as those in Rent, they feel more personal because the autobiographical story is far more intimate in scale. Set in 1990 in the same SoHo neighborhood as Rent, it's a simple three-character piece about Jon, an aspiring composer who considers giving up his dreams on the verge of his 30th birthday. With charismatic fire, Esparza is equally adept using his beautifully expressive voice in a rock milieu as in a Sondheim character study. He brings energetic brio to finger-snapping rockers like the Twinkie-induced "Sugar" and especially shines on the ballads, "See Her Smile" and the revelatory "Why".

With a slightly pinched voice that reminds me a bit of the Bangles' Susanna Hoffs, Amy Spanger as girlfriend Susan duets nicely with Esparza on the touching "Johnny Can't Decide", the rocking "Green Green Dress", and the comical self-help wordplay of "Therapy". Her shining solo moment comes with the knockout ballad, "Come to Your Senses". As Jon's embattled pal Michael, Jerry Dixon provides powerful vocals, bringing particular warmth to "Real Life" and grit to the fed-up rave "No More". The trio closes the show powerfully with the anthem-like "Louder Than Words". The overall score is a bit derivative and a tad too earnest, but the youthful zest of the cast and Larson's pop craftsmanship more than compensate. Two bonus tracks are offered at the end - an instrumental replay of the opener, "30/90 Playout" and a rare recording of Larson singing "Boho Days" a capella with propulsive hand claps.

Great tunes - great lyrics - great harmonies.......2006-11-04

If you are a fan of the late great Mr. Larson you will love this music. Okay, I have seen the play a couple of times so I know what happens between the songs but this, his autobiography, really moved me. Even my kids like the Green Dress Song.

I hope you like it... The theme is "Actions Speak Louder Than Words" rings true today as the day he wrote it.

John we miss you.

Love the Music.......2006-08-22

I saw this play a few weeks ago, and really enjoyed the music, so I got the CD. The voices, and lyrics are amazing! However, as I often find with CDs of musicals, there wasn't always the right feeling in the voice, particularly in "Therapy" where couple ought to be angry at each other, and it seems more cute on the CD.

Larson Lives.......2006-05-06

I love Tick, Tick... Boom! The show is quite refreshing. The show works so well with three actors. I LOVE "30/90" and "Louder Than Words." Both speak really strongly to the audience because they both are really relatable to anyone's life. Admittedly the middle of the show drags a little, and Spangler's voice can be chipmunkish at times. However those are minor detractions when it comes to this show. It is especially moving if you know Jonathan's story. It is no Rent, but the short piece is really moving

Fantastic Music, but i wouldnt want to see it live.......2006-04-30

I was soo soo very pleased with the music from "Tick...Tick..BOOM!". Rock Operas are my favorite type of musical theatre, and i must say this is one of the best. The storyline, however, although dealing with bohemian problems like AIDS, rehersals, love, didnt meet the power of the music. It was taken from Johnathans original one-man show and made into a three-man show. This was the only way possible to make this conversion, but still it was a dull storyline only going over the time period of one day in the day in the life of Johnathan Larson. Yes, it was an important day, his thirtieth birthday and his friend annoucing that he is HIV positive, but none of this happens until the end. The show lacks obsession, and in order to make a good musical storyline there has to be an obsession. Luckily, the weak storyline is backed with fantastic music, perhaps even better than Rent. 30/90 is my all time favorite song EVER i have listened to it over and over and still am not sick of it. other favorite tracks include:
30/90
Green Green Dress
No More
Sugar
Come To Your Senses (originally from Superbia)
Louder Than Words
and i also enjoy the rest of the songs as well.

Average customer rating:

Sweet Charity: Sweet Memories
Sammy Davis Jr. is awesome
Great Memories (better than current 2005 Broadway Revival)
long-overdue reissue of the classic soundtrack
Sweet Charity

Sweet Charity (1969 Film Soundtrack)
Cy Coleman , Shirley MacLaine , and Sammy Davis Jr.
Manufacturer: Decca
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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Sweet Charity
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Sweet Charity (2005 Broadway Revival Cast)
Cabaret: Original Soundtrack Recording (1972 Film)

ASIN: B0000AYL1W
Release Date: 2003-08-26

Tracks:

Overture
My Personal Property
Big Spender
The Pompeii Club
If My Friends Could See Me Now
There's Gotta Be Something Better Than This
It's A Nice Face
Rhythm Of Life
Sweet Charity
I'm A Brass Band
I Love To Cry At Weddings
Where Am I Going?
Finale

Customer Reviews:

Sweet Charity: Sweet Memories.......2007-07-13

Listening to this Soundtrack brought back so many sweet memories of a fun time in my life - college. Hearing "Rhythm of Life" done by Sammy Davis Jr. was most memorable. This is such a fun soundtrack to play. I look forward to many years of enjoyment and recommend it to anyone who was in college in the late 60's.

Sammy Davis Jr. is awesome.......2007-01-10

I have been converting my old LP's into CD's then putting them on my Ipod. I am picky about what I put on my Ipod, selecting only certain tracks from each CD. This CD, however, I put all tracks onto my Ipod except the overture. While I find Shirley MacLaine's voice a bit weak, the songs overcome any such problems with their energy. And one of the main reasons I wanted the movie rather than broadway CD was because of Sammy Davis Jr. His contributions to this album are worth every penny.

Great Memories (better than current 2005 Broadway Revival).......2005-08-06

I saw the movie version for the first time a couple of years ago and continue with fond memories. I saw the 2005 Broadway Revival in June. Trust me, stick with the movie cast recording. Paula Kelly, Chita Rivera, and even Shirley MacLaine have a magic and zeal that is lost in the current revival. My main disappointment is that the movie soundtrack's version of The Rich Man's Frug is too short and doesn't have the best parts of the full number from the movie. That aside, who could ever top Sammy Davis' performance in Rythm of Life. Chita and Paula are beyond comparison in Something Better Than This.

This cast recording makes me wish I was old enough to have seen them during the original Broadway run.

Consider buying the DVD to the movie to accompany this DVD. That way, you'll also get to see Ben Vereen at his best. I will warn you that the movie was a bit indulgent with extended scenes whose length is not justified by their contribution to the overall film. It's about 20-30 minutes too long. But the musical and dance numbers are really great. Who doesn't love Fosse?

long-overdue reissue of the classic soundtrack.......2003-10-09

SWEET CHARITY was turned into a not-so-successful film in 1969, starring Shirley MacLaine. Originally appearing on Broadway in 1966 starring Gwen Verdon, the musical is based on the classic Fellini film "Nights of Cabiria".

The score was heavily revised for the move to celluloid. "You Should See Yourself" was replaced by "My Personal Property", "I'm the Bravest Individual" was replaced by "It's a Nice Face". The melody for "Sweet Charity" was re-jigged for a more uptempo feel. Songs cut from the score altogether included "Baby Dream Your Dream", "Too Many Tomorrows" and "Charity's Soliloquy".

Shirley MacLaine was joined by a cast including veteran Broadway talents Paula Kelly and Chita Rivera, John McMartin (recreating the role he originated on Broadway opposite Gwen Verdon) as Oscar Linquist, Sammy Davis Jr. as Daddy Brubeck, Stubby Kaye as Herman and Ricardo Montalban.

Shirley MacLaine sings her numbers with her sweet pixie-esque voice, gliding through showstoppers like "I'm a Brass Band" and "If My Friends Could See Me Now" with great ease.

Another fantastic package from Decca Broadway. Peter Filichia, as always, offers comprehensive liner notes, and sound quality is quite good. In addition to this CD I also recommend the still-superb 1966 original Broadway cast album with Gwen Verdon.

Sweet Charity.......2003-09-14

I've been waiting for this version of Sweet Charity to come out for years. My parents use to listen to the Decca LP many years ago and the tunes grew on me. From hey Big Spender, If My Friends Could See Me Now, I'm A Brass Band, etc, etc Great music all around with not one bad track. Before this version I had brought the Broadway Show versions and to me they were all kind of flat. Maybe because I grew up on the film version I couldn't appreciate the show versions as much. The vocals and the scoring are great. Shirley MacClaine doesn't have the greatest voice in the world but she's still great.
My biggest complaint about this CD release is that it is not complete. You think that Decca Records would do a complete Cd release as previous musical soundtracks have done. This is a direct copy of the Lp released so many years ago. There is so much more music in this film that I was disapointed when I found it it was only a Cd of the original album. With Cd's fitting up the 80 minutes of music it is very surprising that this truncated version was released. Maybe because it's not considered a classic. This is am underrated film as far as I am concerned and in my opinion a far better score than Chicago (with all due respect to Bob Fosse who directed this film) This would be a great CD if only it wasn't abbreviated.

Second City Divas-Women of Chicago Musical Theatre

Average customer rating:

Even better than the LIVE recording!
Excellent Divas!
Diva Lovers...

Second City Divas-Women of Chicago Musical Theatre

Manufacturer: Original Cast Record
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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Great Cabaret Performances
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A Star Is Born (Expanded 1954 Film Soundtrack)

ASIN: B00004KD6P
Release Date: 1996-03-15

Tracks:

I'm Lost
Alone and Yet Alive
It's Amazing How a Little Tomorrow
Bill
Patterns
Tell Me on a Sunday
Another Hundred People
If He Walked Into My Life
Suppertime
Somebody, Somewhere
It's Never That Easy/I've Been Here Before
Children Of The Wind

Album Description

The music on this the divas' first recording features the women in music that they were critically acclaimed for in musical stage performances. The songs featured are from well known and also obscure musicals.

Customer Reviews:

Even better than the LIVE recording!.......2001-06-15

I enjoyed this recording even better than their LIVE AT THE MERCURY THEATRE. Great selection of material, great arrangements, and producing. I'm crazy about Susan Moniz and Kathy Santen. These women do Chicago proud!

Excellent Divas!.......2001-06-15

This is a great recording. There is such a wonderful spirit to the LIVE event. The performances are all strong, and are captured well. Special kudos to Hollis Resnick, and the "3 Ingenues 3". The producer of this concert/album is to be commended.

Diva Lovers..........2001-01-16

This collection of 15 songs by some of Chicago's greatest divas is well-worth the purchase. Standouts include Hollis Resnick's "I'll Imagine you a Song" (Lutvak/Hall) and Kathy Taylor's "Losing My Mind" (Sondheim). Cabaret lovers will certainly want to add this to their collection.

Average customer rating:

Broadway

Manufacturer: Intersound Records
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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ASIN: B00005YOX8
Release Date: 1996-03-04

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