Shleep [Original recording remastered]

shleep [original recording remastered]

Editorial Reviews
Amazon.com's Best of 1998
Robert Wyatt described the recording of Shleep, his first album in six years, as a "beavering away" process; you'd be hard pressed to find a more accurate term. It is a painstakingly assembled, lovingly executed album of warm, delicate beauty. Like the deep sleep that inspires this work, and eludes its creator (Wyatt suffers from "fevered insomnia"), Shleep soothes like few records can. --Matt Hanks

Product Description
Founding member of art rock group Soft Machine, Robert Wyatt, helped set the tone of the sixties psychedelic scene in the UK. With his distinctive drumming and vocals, Wyatt attracted a massive following across Europe. An accident in 1973 left the drummer paralyzed forcing him to shift efforts on solo recordings. His distinct style of mixing simple and effective keyboard melody lines with poignant lyrics, often filled with personal and political references, have proved both haunting and reflective. Rykodisc is proud to introduce you to 4 re-mastered Wyatt classics - Old Rottenhat, Nothing Can Stop Us, Dondestan (Revisited), Shleep.

Shleep [Original recording remastered]

Shleep,Robert Wyatt,Hannibal,Pop,Prog-Rock/Art Rock,Rock,Rock/Pop

Shleep [Original recording remastered]

The Apple Tree (1966 Original Broadway Cast)

Average customer rating:

Very good show which I hadn't heard of...
THE APPLE TREE (1966 ORIGINAL BROADWAY CAST)
I still remember these songs after 40 years
Really 2.5
Boring material that you forget very easily

The Apple Tree (1966 Original Broadway Cast)
Sheldon Harnick
Manufacturer: Sony
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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ASIN: B0000027WD
Release Date: 1992-11-24

Tracks:

Eden Prelude
Here In Eden
Feelings
Eve
Friends
The Apple Tree (Forbidden Fruit)
Beautiful, Beautiful World
It's A Fish
Go To Sleep, Whatever You Are
What Makes Me Love Him?/Eden Postlude
The Lady Or The Tiger? Prelude/I'll Tell You a Truth/Make Way
Forbidden Love (In Gaul)
The Apple Tree (Reprise)
I've Got What You Want
Tiger, Tiger
Make Way (Reprise)/Which Door/I'll Tell You a Truth (Reprise)
Passionella Prelude
Oh, To Be A Movie Star
Gorgeous
(Who, Who, Who, Who) Who Is She?
I Know
Wealth
You Are Not Real
Passionella Postlude/Finale

Customer Reviews:

Very good show which I hadn't heard of..........2007-05-13

I was very into theatre in high school and college and thought I was up on most musicals, but had never heard of this show until recently. It's comprised of three short stories which were adapted into the musical format. The first two stories are tied together very well, although the last seems tacked on. But the songs are catchy and it's fairly easy to figure out what's happening simply by listening to the songs. There are two songs which are tied for my favoritism: "It's a Fish" from Adam and Eve and "You Are Not Real" from Passionella. Check it out.

THE APPLE TREE (1966 ORIGINAL BROADWAY CAST).......2007-04-10

IT WAS EXACTLY WHAT I WAS LOOKING FOR. I WENT TO THE REVIVAL OF THE APPLE TREE ON BROADWAY IN NEW YORK CITY AND LOVED THE SCORE BUT THERE WASN'T A SOUNDTRACK AVAILABLE SO I PURCHASED THE ORIGINAL VERSION AND I ABSOLUTELY LOVE IT!

I still remember these songs after 40 years.......2006-11-05

I saw this show on the stage when it first ran, and have never forgotten it. The key to a good Broadway show is this question: Are you humming the songs when you leave the theatre? In the case of The Apple Tree, the answer is a resounding "Yes." I have been waiting 40 years for this show to be revived, and I have tickets for the revival opening in December at the Roundabout. I hope not to be disappointed, for the trio of Barbara Harris, a very young Alan Alda, and the late Larry Blyden were terrific. The three-part concept can be jarring because just when you're getting into the story, it ends -- but just enjoy the kind of songs they just don't write anymore.

Really 2.5.......2006-07-25

SO this is another show thats actually three one acts. The first "The Diary of Adam and Eve" is the best by far. It has really cute songs and nice plot. Thats the only reason I rounded this up from 2.5 to 3 stars. The rest of the show is nothing great. "Lady and Tiger" is short and boring. And "Passionella" is exactly what it sounds like, a knock off of Cinderella. But hey, its a good show for collectors and "The Diary of Adam and Eve" is nice. Favorite Song: "Its A Fish"

Boring material that you forget very easily.......2006-06-29

According to some reviews, this musical was supposed to be very good and I bought it. Unfortunately, I was quite dissapointed. It's composed of three different tales, the first one referring to the Adam & Eve biblical story. The lyrics here are very silly and tedious. The second tale, "The Lady or the Tiger?" contains songs that are simply awful, probably the worst ever written for a Broadway show. The third story, "Passionella", contains music that does nothing to make things better. The album contains a good informative booklet in English, German, French & Italian (as Sony uses to do)which says that Time magazine defined this show as "three moldy figs". I entirely agree. I would recommend this musical to those suffering from insomnia: it will put them to sleep right away.

Average customer rating:

The Most Beautiful Recorded Tenor Voice?
Very, very truncated.
incomplete pleasure
Finally available on CD!

Babes in Toyland / The Red Mill
Victor Herbert , Kenny Baker , and Eileen Farrell
Manufacturer: Decca Broadway
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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Victor Herbert: Babes in Toyland; The Red Mill

ASIN: B00006AWG2
Release Date: 2002-07-30

Tracks:

Opening - From Babes in Toyland (Herbert & MacDonough) with Kenny Baker and Karen Kemple
Toyland
Floretta
Never Mind Bo-Peep, We Will Find Your Sheep
March of the Toys
I Can't Do the Sum
Go To Sleep, Slumber Deep
Song of the Poet
The Military Ball
Hail to Christmas
Finale: He Won't Be Happy Till He Gets It and March of the Toys
When You're Pretty and the World Is Fair - From The Red Mill (Blossom & Herbert) with Wilbur Evans, Eileen Farrell, and Felix Knight
Moonbeams
In the Isle of Our Dreams
Because You're You
Every Day is Ladies' Day With me
The Streets of New York

Customer Reviews:

The Most Beautiful Recorded Tenor Voice?.......2005-06-22

Is any recorded, tenor, singing voice as lovely as Kenny Baker's? As a child, I often heard him during the 1930s on the Jack Benny show, but have scarcely thought of him since. Amazon.com offers him on four CDs: BABES IN TOYLAND, LOVE WALKED IN, THE STARLIT HOUR and WEILL FROM BERLIN TO BROADWAY. Over the years, I have heard the recorded voices of many tenors, mostly operatic. Their fine voices were excellently trained, often to a wider range and more difficult music. But note for note, their sound as recorded is not I think as sheerly beautiful as Kenny Baker's. A splendid, unspoiled, unstrained, natural gift, put to disciplined and tasteful use! His enunciation is remarkably clear, and his musical line, perfectly smooth. He makes each song a different story, as in the six pieces here from BABES IN TOYLAND.

My claim is easy to test. This website has CDs with excerpts for listening to the best tenors of the 20th century, including Enrico Caruso, John McCormack, Giovanni Martinelli, Beniamino Gigli, Tito Schipa, Richard Tauber, Richard Crooks, Jussi Bjoerling, Morton Downey, Mario Lanza, Giuseppe di Stefano, Nicolai Gedda, Jan Peerce, Leopold Simoneau, Fritz Wunderlich, Luciano Pavarotti, Placido Domingo and Jose Carreras. Of course, the earlier the career, the greater the damage to the recorded voice from primitive technology. Heard live, who knows which voice was most beautiful? But at least we have what earlier centuries could only imagine: lasting copies of live performances. Listen to Kenny Baker's voice on tracks 2 and 8 of BABES IN TOYLAND, and then compare.

The numbers from THE RED MILL will make you want to hear more. This operetta, also composed by Victor Herbert, was first produced in 1906, three years after BABES IN TOYLAND. "Moonbeams" (well sung by Eileen Farrell) is lovely; "Because You're You" (a duet between Farrell and Felix Knight) is quite simple but surprisingly affecting. The last two are the best: "Every Day Is Ladies' Day with Me," and "In Old New York." They are patter songs, perhaps inspired by, and surely as deft, as the ones that Gilbert and Sullivan were writing two decades earlier. Both are sung by Wilbur Evans, in a rich baritone, with perfect enunciation and marvelous comic flair. Great fun!

The selections on this CD were recorded in 1944 and 1945, then released in 1946 on both 78s and 10" LPs. For this CD, they were remastered from wartime lacquered-glass originals. Baker and Evans emerge in radiant form, surely much closer to live sound than reached our family radio via AM transmission 65 years ago. The orchestral and choral sound is less attractive. Poorly miked?

Very, very truncated........2002-12-09

The scores of Victor Herbert's "Babes in Toyland" and "The Red Mill" are lovely classics, but the incomplete scores represented by this Decca Broadway remastering of its antiquated 78s are not the best reprentation. My advice: wait for the John McGlinn "Babes in Toyland" to be released. As for "The Red Mill", you'd do better to pick up the Ohio Light Opera's double-CD from Albany Records.

incomplete pleasure.......2002-11-09

Two terrible mistakes keep this from 5 stars.. BABES IN TOYLAND is not complete as they are missing the delightful IN THE TOYMAKER'S WORKSHOP. Why? In THE RED MILL they use a butchered take of EVERY DAY IS LADIES DAY WITH ME. Again, why?
John McGlinn will be out with a complete BABES soon - and there is a lot of music in it - so you may want to wait.

Finally available on CD!.......2002-08-01

Decca's 1946 album of selections from Victor Herbert's celebrated musical was a welcome addition to record libraries, covering most of the major songs plus some of the delightful dance music. The album was reissued as a ten-inch Lp in 1949. A later reissue in 1957 dropped 4 songs to fit the score on one side of a twelve-inch Lp backed by six selections from Herbert's THE RED MILL. That pairing is reproduced here but the CD contains the complete BABES IN TOYLAND program! It's nice to have it back too! Nice of Decca to give us this early Christmas present this year. But BABES IN TOYLAND is a score that enchants all year round. How strange that no other complete recording exists.

The six selections form THE RED MILL offer a nice bonus, and the selections are well sung.

This Is the Army & Call Me Mister
Average customer rating:
This Is the Army & Call Me Mister

Manufacturer: Jasmine Music
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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ASIN: B00006J9M1
Release Date: 2002-11-19

Tracks:

Overture: This Is The Army, Mr. Jones/I Left My Heart At The Stage Door/Canteen/That Russian Winter/This Is The Army, Mr. Jones (Reprise) - All-Soldier Chorus
This Is The Army, Mr. Jones - Irving Berlin & Chorus
I'm Getting Tired So I Can Sleep - Private Stuart Churchill
I Left My Heart At The Stage Door Canteen - Corporal Earl Oxford
Dialog With Staff Sergent Ezra Stone, Corporal Philip Truex & Private Julie Oshins - Staff Sergent Ezra Stone
The Army's Made A Man Out Of Me - Staff Sergent Ezra Stone
What The Well Dressed Man In Harlem Will Wear - Corporal James 'Stump' Cross
How About A Cheer For The Navy - All-Soldier Chorus
American Eagles/With My Head In The Clouds - Soldier Chorus
Oh, How I Hate To Get Up In The Morning - Irving Berlin
My British Buddy - Irving Berlin & Chorus
This Time - Cote Glee Club
Going Home Train - Lawrence Winters & Male Chorus
Along With Me - Danny Scholl
Little Surplus Me - Betty Garrett
The Red Ball Express - Male Quartet
Military Life - Harry Clark
Yuletide, Park Avenue - Betty Garrett
When We Meet Again - Paula Bane
The Face On The Dime - Lawrence Winters
South America, Take It Away - Betty Garrett
Call Me Mister - Bill Callaghan

Average customer rating:

Marti Webb in emotional one-woman song-cycle
A FINE MIXTURE OF SONG & DANCE

Song and Dance

Manufacturer: Decca Broadway
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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The Likes of US
Whistle Down The Wind (1998 Original London Cast)

ASIN: B000BSM284
Release Date: 2006-01-31

Tracks:

Overture
Let Me Finish
It's Not The End Of The World
Letter Home To England
Sheldon Bloom
Capped Teeth And Caesar Salad
You Made Me Think You Were In Love
Reprise: Capped Teeth And Caesar Salad
It's Not The End Of The World (If He's Younger)
Second Letter Home
The Last Man In My Life
Come Back With The Same Look In Your Eyes
Take That Look Off Your Face
Tell Me On a Sunday
I Love New York
Married Man
I'm Very You, You're Very Me
Let's Talk About You
Reprise:Let Me Finish
Nothing Like You've Ever Known
Reprise:Let Me Finish

Tracks:

Introduction And Theme
Variations 1-4
Variations 5
Variations 6
Variations 7
Variations 8
Variations 9
Variations 10
Variations 11 And 12
Variations 13 And 14
Variations 15
Variations 15 1/2
Variations 16
Variations 13 And 14
Variations 17
Variations 18
Variations 19 And 20
Variations 5 (Varied)
Variations 22 And 23
Song-When You Want To Fall In Love
Dance

Customer Reviews:

Marti Webb in emotional one-woman song-cycle.......2006-12-27

SONG AND DANCE, is actually two different programs ('Tell Me on a Sunday' and a dance piece called 'Variations'). 'Tell Me on a Sunday' was originally made as a concept recording for popular West End star Marti Webb, and it was so successful that Andrew Lloyd Webber decided to expand it with 'Variations' to become his 1982 musical SONG AND DANCE.

'Tell Me on a Sunday' is the story of an English hat designer called Emma (played by Marti Webb), who follows her new boyfriend to New York, and vents her romantic illusions and shattered dreams through a series of songs. It's a very demanding and relentless one-woman song-cycle, filled with great numbers like "The Last Man in My Life", and "Take That Look Off Your Face". Don Black's lyrics perfectly capture the rollercoaster of emotions, and Webb is a powerful force in the role of Emma.

Former Royal Ballet superstar Wayne Sleep led the dancers in the 'Variations' section (which occupies the entire second act of the show). For this section, composer Andrew Lloyd Webber took Emma's songs and used themes of them to litter throughout the orchestrations. The dance piece is used to explore Emma's story through the language of choreography (by Anthony Van Laast).

SONG AND DANCE opened at London's Palace Theatre to largely-postive reviews; later played a return season at the Shaftesbury; and opened on Broadway in 1985 starring Bernadette Peters.

[Universal/Really Useful Records 9874451]

A FINE MIXTURE OF SONG & DANCE.......2006-06-01

Song & Dance premiered in West End in 1982. It is comprised of two pieces Andrew Lloyd Webber wrote in the 70-is: the short musical called "Tell me on a Sunday" and the instrumental piece called "Variations" that he composed based on the work of 18-19th century violin virtuoso Niccolo Paganini. The latter was written for Webber's brother Julian, who plays the cello, although not in this recording. The title is derived from the fact that the first part is formed by the songs only and the second by the orchestra and Wayne Sleep's dancing troupe.

"Tell me on a Sunday" tells the story of a young English girl in New York, going through various love affairs and dealing with the life in another country. The music consists of beautifully composed pop and ballad songs, among the finest Lloyd Webber has ever done. The orchestrations are neatly made; I am especially fond of the parts when the orchestra takes the lead within a song, especially the saxophone part in "Come back with the same look in your eyes." Other noticeable songs are "Take that look off your face", "You're the last man in my life"; "Tell me on a Sunday" and many more. The lyrics of Don Black, Lloyd Webbers later co-operator on "Aspects of love" and "Sunset Blvd" are as witty as always. The first disc with the musical is almost entirely sung-through and although various characters are mentioned, we only see and hear the English girl.

The role of the English girl was originally written for Marti Webb, who played it as a solo part in the 70-is. She reprised her role on this live recording as well. She sounds perfect for the character of a young girl because her vocal abilities seem very suitable for that particular role. She brings a touch of a childish playfulness to it and that works very well. After Marti, many others played the role outside Song & Dance framework, including Sarah Brightman for a TV special and, most recently, Denise Van Outen for the current UK Tour. Marti herself is still playing the part at some parts of the said tour. The show was modernized to match today's standards, so instead of writing letters to her parents as she does on this recording, today the English girl emails them and among other things mentions "Friends" in the show. Also, songs were re-written and some new ones added. Despite of that, this original live 1982 recording works more than well.

"Variations" loosely based on Paganini's compositions are a group of songs performed by the orchestra alone to which the group of professional dancers headed by Wayne Sleep danced. It was quite a sight according to the pictures in the booklet. Here Webber combines pop, jazz and even step dancing. The result is a wonderful mixture of fabulously composed music, which is attested by the enthusiastic response from the audience on this recording. As such, this CD works lovely as background music.

Song & Dance therefore is an obligatory part of any Lloyd Webber fan's collection.

Average customer rating:

Kelly Hops Again!
A FITTING TRIBUTE TO MOOSE CHARLAP
WHERE ARE THE ORIGINAL SONGS?

Kelly (1998 Studio Cast)
Eddie Lawrence
Manufacturer: Original Cast Record
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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ASIN: B00000DGNP
Release Date: 1998-12-15

Tracks:

Ode To The Brooklyn Bridge - Brian D'Arcy James
Heavyweight Champ Of The World - Eddie Lawrence/Chorus
That Old Time Crowd - Marcia Lewis/Chorus
The Times That Linger - Brian D'Arcy James/Marge Redmond
Augie Masters - Conrad John Schuck/Chorus
Home Again - Sandy Stewart/Chorus
I'll Never Go There Anymore - Sally Mayes/Brian D'Arcy James
It Kinda Makes You Wonder - Brian D'Arcy James/Jane Connell/Eddie Lawrence
The Insurance Game - George S. Irving
Go To Sleep Early - Jane Connell
Ballad To A Brute - Sandy Stewart
The Big Town - Conrad John Schuck/George S. Irving
Everyone Here Loves Kelly - Jane Connell/George S. Irving/Brian D'Arcy James/Eddie Lawrence/Marcia Lewis/Sally Mayes...
Bonus Track: I'll Never Go There Anymore (Pop Version) - Sandy Stewart

Customer Reviews:

Kelly Hops Again!.......2001-04-01

Compared to the "original" cast album, which was the two writers and a piano, this album is a dream. Still, it would have been great to hear the original orchestrations instead of a studio band. The performances on this CD give the show some credibility, unlike the first album. One wants to see more of this type of thing done. But put in the original orchestrations. How about Breakfast at Tiffany's, The Yearling, La Strada? If you are a serious collector nab this while you can.

A FITTING TRIBUTE TO MOOSE CHARLAP.......2001-03-22

HAVING BEEN ONE OF THE VERY FEW WHO SAW "KELLY" in 1965,I WAS VERY PLEASED TO FIND THIS STUDIO RECORDING OF THE ORIGINAL MUSIC. I DO MEAN ORIGINAL. SOME OF THE SONGS THAT WERE WRITTEN WERE LATER REMOVED BY A GROUP OF PANIKY PRODUCERS PRIOR TO THE NEW YORK OPENING. THEIR ACTIONS RESULTED IN A COMPLETELY DIFFERENT SHOW THAN HAD BEEN ENVISIONED BY THE COMPOSERS. IT ALSO MADE "KELLY" A MONUMENTAL FLOP SO MUCH SO THAT ITS DEMISE WAS THE SUBJECT OF A COVER STORY IN "SATURDAY EVENING POST". IF YOU READ THE CD NOTES..IT IS ALL EXPLAINED THERE. THE CD IS DEDICATED TO MOOSE CHARLAP. THE PERFORMERS ARE FIRST RATE, INCLUDING BRIAN D'ARCY JAMES (TITANIC) AND RIGHT OUT OF THE 60'S, SANDY STEWART. IT MAY HAVE SOME SHORTCOMINGS, BUT OVERALL..EDDIE LAWRENCE SCORED WITH THIS CD!

WHERE ARE THE ORIGINAL SONGS?.......2000-02-10

TO START OFF WITH. THIS DOES NOT SOUND LIKE A BROADWAY CAST ALBUM. IT SOUNDS LIKE AN OFF BROADWAY ALBUM BY LISTENING TO THE ORCHESTRA. IT SOUNDS MORE LIKE A BAND THAN AN ORCHESTRA. SECOND,I THOUGHT THIS WAS THE SCORE FROM THE ORIGINAL SHOW. WELL, READINNG MY BEST PLAYS OF 1964-1965, THEY LIST THE SONGS ON OPENING NIGHT AND A BUNCH OF SONGS ARE NOT ON THE ALBUM AND SONGS ON THE ALBUM ARE NOT LISTED IN THE BOOK. I AM CONFUSED. ANWAY, WHATEVER IS ON THE CD IS FAIR. ALL THE PERFORMERS ARE FIRST RATE, BUT LISTENING TO THE CD, IT DOESN'T SOUND LIKE MUCH. PRETTY AVERAGE MUSIC. TAKE A LESSON FROM THE DRAT!THE CAT! RECORDING ON VARESE SARABANDE. NOW THATS A GREAT STUDIO CAST ALBUM. I DON'T KNOW WHY THEY PICKED KELLY OVER MANY OTHER SHOWS THAT HAVE A MUCH BETTER SCORE THAT WERE NEVER RECORDED LIKE THE BODY BEAUTIFUL OR SHERRY OR LOVELY LADIES, KIND GENTLEMAN TO NAME A FEW. IF YOU ARE A BROADWAY SHOW COLLECTOR THAN THIS SHOULD BE IN YOUR COLLECTION, OTHERWISE, I WOULD PASS.

Average customer rating:

Romance! Music! Comedy! And ELLEN FOLEY!

Shelter (1997 Studio Cast)
Nancy Ford , Gretchen Cryer , and Ellen Foley
Manufacturer: Original Cast Record
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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Grey Gardens - A New Musical (2006 Original Broadway Cast)
The Pirate Queen (2007 Original Broadway Cast)
Now Is the Time for All Good Men (1967 Original Off-Broadway Cast)
Curtains (2007 Original Broadway Cast)

ASIN: B000004CST
Release Date: 2000-01-01

Tracks:

Tune Up
The Last Days Of Isaac
A Transparent Crystal Moment
My Most Important Moments Go By
Love, You Came To Me
My Most Important Moments( Reprise)
Woman On The Run
Changing
Welcom To The New World
Woke Up To Day
It's Hard To Care
Mary Margaret's House In The Country
Sleep My Baby
I Bring Him Sea Shells
She's My Girl
Like A River
Too Many Women In My Life
Goodbye Plastic Flowers
Sleep My Baby ( Reprise)
Goin' Home With My Children

Customer Reviews:

Romance! Music! Comedy! And ELLEN FOLEY!.......2000-02-02

Live stage shows are an art form much overlooked in America; so finding this CD was a wonderful surprise, as it allowed me to enjoy something I wouldn't otherwise ever have a chance to see: a play starring my favorite actress, ELLEN FOLEY! I've always been more impressed with her acting (NIGHT COURT) than her singing (BAT OUT OF HELL) and this CD contains more of her presence and personality than any record I've heard her on! It's mainly the story of a woman who has 2 encounters with a man who, while he comes across as optimistic and uplifting on the surface, is really a self-destructive personality with problems of his OWN! (I could probably relate because I've met the type!) Highly entertaining; highly recommended! (Now if only someone would reissue her solo album, NIGHTOUT; or get her to do a new album... we can hope, right?)

Average customer rating:

Smashing Album
Great singers, not so great music
Once again, unsung perhaps, but often wonderful
A Must-Have for Musical Fans

Unsung Musicals II (Studio Cast)

Manufacturer: Varese Sarabande
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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Unsung Musicals - The Ultimate Collection
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Lost in Boston, Vol. 4
Lost in Boston II Unsung Musicals

ASIN: B0000014VL
Release Date: 1995-03-14

Tracks:

Stomp The Blues Away - Melba Joyce, Armsted Christian, Victor Pond, Dori Rosenthal, Kimberlee L. Wertz
Roadside - Lynnette Perry, Guy Haines
Lawyers - Gregory Jbarra, Lee Wilkof
One Promise Come True - Glory Crampton
That Man Is Doing His Worst To Make Good - Debbie Shapiro Gravitte
Sleep, Baby, Don't Cry - Sally Mayes
Everything In The World - Jolie Jenkins, Harry Groener
For A Moment Of Your Love - Rebeca Luker
Smashing New York Times - Jason Graae
When It Happens To You - Lynne Wintersteller
The Memory Of Tonight - Carolee Carmello, Gregg Edelman
I Took My Time - Liz Larsen
Run, Run, Run Cinderella - Liz Callaway
Beyond My Wildest Dreams - Michelle Nicastro
The Phantom Of The Opera - Davis Gaines

Customer Reviews:

Smashing Album.......2005-11-11

Any album that gives us Jason Graae singing "Smashing, New York Times" is worth having.

Great singers, not so great music.......2001-12-26

I love hearing songs from forgotten and lost musicals, and I enjoyed Unsung Musicals I, but I was disappointed with this one. "Lawyers" is easily the best song on the CD. Most of the other songs are ballads, and dull ones at that. (Admittedly, I am not a big ballad fan.) Looks like Bruce Kimmel's song selection process kind of flattened out here. Why, for example, did they choose a ballad from Foxy, when by all accounts the songs originally sung by Bert Lahr in that show were a lot of fun? On the other hand, the singers are very respectable and always worth listening to. Glory Crampton definitely needs more leading roles! My advice is to listen to the song snippets first, to determine if these songs are your thing.

Once again, unsung perhaps, but often wonderful.......2001-02-15

This is the second fine CD in the series of three. These selections may be songs that are not well known from shows in the same category, but some of these are real gems, sung by fine show singers. My favorites are "Lawyers" (from A Broadway Musical), "Everything in the World" (The Yearling), "Smashing New York Times" (also A Broadway Musical), "Run Cinderella" (Foxy), and "Phantom of the Opera" (title song from the Rupert Holmes show). There was a third CD in this series. If its not longer available, they should reissue it. Its on a par with the other two in the series.

A Must-Have for Musical Fans.......2000-03-25

The Unsung Musicals albums are a treasure for those who are "mega-fans" of musical theatre. All the songs share the tragic fate of being in a musical that just never made it on the Great White Way.

Some of the songs are somewhat cloying, such as "One Promise Come True." However, there are also some real gems, such as "Lawyers," which has some clever rhymes and a catchy tune. You also get the added bonus of hearing some great singers perform such as Sally Mayes, Rebecca Luker and Davis Gaines.

Overall, this recording is great for both its entertainment and its historical value.

Beggar's Opera / Polly
Average customer rating:

One stop on the road to immortality

Must Stop Ordering When Drinking - Or Maybe I Got Foxed

Beggar's Opera / Polly
Gay , and Austin
Manufacturer: Symposium
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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John Gay - The Beggar's Opera / Jonathan Miller · John Eliot Gardiner · Roger Daltrey · English Baroque Soloists

ASIN: B0000799KV
Release Date: 2003-03-25

Customer Reviews:

One stop on the road to immortality.......2006-11-19

This is a more than competent CD transfer of acoustic recordings of Sir Nigel Playfair's legendary 1920s revivals of The Beggar's Opera and its sequel Polly. Quite sufficiemt to show why the Beggar;s Opera production, meant to fill a few weeks' gap at the Lyric Theatre, Hammersmith, ran for three years. And while Gay's sequel was like most sequels, not up to the original, this recording is the only source for the second-best ballad opera.

Must Stop Ordering When Drinking - Or Maybe I Got Foxed.......2006-09-02

Right. Can't remember what state of sobriety I was in when I ordered this cd and I may have missed some key clues about its nature. But I was so excited to find anything claiming to relate to Gay's "Polly" (which otherwise seems to have completely disappeared after it was censored in the 18th century - even internet wise) that I bought this cd. Turns out it is a cd version of some music originally recorded in the early 1920's. It is moderately interesting even for someone who is not primarily interested in antigue recordings (aka "scratchy records") because the style may be closer to that of the original performance. (There is no reason to think that common tastes were better in the 18th century than in 1920.) It is certainly different than contemporaneous performances of BO.

Don't mean to be sexist - which I am - but the duets, choreses and male performances seem to be less antigue than the soprano pieces. The broads are simply squeaky. Something to do with frequency loss in early recordings, I expect. On the other hand, the bass songs are equally abrasive and archaic.

Even the notes about "Polly" in this cd are disappointing. No mention of the history of "Polly", no mention of the source for the music. Try googling for a link for Gay and Polly. If you find one, be sure to post - I would love to know.

Unless you are an academic involved with some of the most obscure corners of the history of recorded music, I would forget this one. Instead, root for someone to find and record Gay's Polly. And buy a more modern interpretation of the Beggar's Opera. I have certainly heard antique recordings restored more vibrantly than this cd - but I would think that depends to a large extent on the quality of what you have to start with.

The only reason I gave it 2 stars (for some reason, Amazon refuses to record my change from 1 to 2 stars; but that is computers for you) instead of 1 was because of I love the melodies of the songs so much. But I will also admit that it is possible that Gay have been lucky that Polly was suppressed - the melodies and lyrics are not nearly as good as BO. On the other hand, this cd is so antique that is an unfair basis for judgment, But what the H!

This Is the Army / Call Me Mister / Winged Victory

Average customer rating:

Fine music, tone-deaf pricing from Vivendi
At long last and timely to boot

This Is the Army / Call Me Mister / Winged Victory
Irving Berlin , Harold Rome , and Moss Hart
Manufacturer: Decca Broadway
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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Mexican Hayride (1944 Original Broadway Cast)
Those Were Our Songs: Music of World War II

ASIN: B0000A9D1N
Release Date: 2003-07-29

Tracks:

Overture - Irving Berlin
I'm Getting Tired So I Can Sleep - Irving Berlin
I Left My Heart At The Stage Door Canteen - Irving Berlin
Ihe Army's Made A Man Out Of Me - Irving Berlin
The Army's Made A Man Out Of Me - Irving Berlin
What The Well Dressed Man In Harlem Will Wear - Irving Berlin
How Bout A Cheer For The Navy - Irving Berlin
American Eagles - Irving Berlin
Oh, How I Hate To Get Up In The Morning - Irving Berlin
Going Home Train - Harold Rome
Along With Me - Harold Rome
Little Surplus Me - Harold Rome
The Red Ball Express - Harold Rome
Military Life - Harold Rome
Yuletied, Park Avenue - Harold Rome
When We Meet Again - Harold Rome
The Face On The Dime - Harold Rome
South America, Take It Away - Harold Rome
Call Me Mister - Harold Rome
Winged Victory - Sgt. David Rose/ Winged Victory Chorus And Orchestra
My Dream Book Of Memories - Sgt. David Rose/ Winged Victory Chorus And Orchestra
The Whiffenpoof Song - Sgt. David Rose/ Winged Victory Chorus And Orchestra
The Army Air Corps - Sgt. David Rose/ Winged Victory Chorus And Orchestra

Customer Reviews:

Fine music, tone-deaf pricing from Vivendi.......2007-05-09

"This is the Army" is the first, and by far the greatest. When the word historic has lost all meaning this revue truly was -- perhaps the biggest show-biz charity fundraiser ever (for the Army Emergency Relief, which exists to this day), an incalculable morale booster on two fronts, a show whose too-small number of black players nonetheless helped break down the military's color barrier. It also sired the first major-label musical cast album; Decca rushed it into production at the end of July, 1942 to beat the AFM's notorious recording ban. That (and perhaps some reticence with an untested genre) may explain why the public only got four 10" 78s, shorter than they should have been. (Victor rushed its own studio recording into print as well, with mediocre arrangements and Fats Waller.) The following year Decca atoned for its mistake when it declared peace with the musician's union to record "Oklahoma!", making the cast album a permanent part of our musical lives. If we got only a fraction of what must have been it must have been tremendous. On the evidence this was Irving Berlin's finest score to date, and after the slog through multiple continents with a war hardened company he dug deep and wrote "Annie Get Your Gun." The tragedy is that no one tried to revive this show when enough of the boys were still alive, say in the eighties; perhaps Berlin, by then a hopeless recluse, turned it down. As touching and as stirring as these songs are it is preposterous that this score has remained all but buried since the last production in 1945. That this show is inextricably tied to a war is no excuse; the memory of a brave generation deserves better.

We go inevitably downhill from there, starting with the first track of "Call Me Mister", a postwar show with a lighter touch, and a lighter songwriter in several ways. Harold Rome could write a mean lyric, and he was good at the sort of situational humor that worked with topical shows, but despite his ambitions -- at the end of his career he foolishly adapted "Gone with the Wind" -- he just could not write the fine ballad that would have put him in the first rank. So where "This is the Army" can move the soul "Mister" just sits there, despite a haunting tribute to the "Face on the Dime." Its comic relief saves the day and it's pretty good as a recording too, as it's from 1946, and gives us a flavor of the old-time Broadway sound that makes these early albums so appealing. The four concluding sides of incidental music from Moss Hart's play "Winged Victory" are negligible. These are from David Rose, author of "Holiday for Strings" and patron saint of easy listening (until he wrote "The Stripper" and no doubt caused Red Skelton to swallow his kaddidlehopper). As might be expected from a man Spike Jones parodied he writes the most self-important music with the most showoffy grandiose charts, undercutting whatever patriotic feeling it had. His orchestral yelling even makes "The Army Air Corps" ("Off we go into the wild blue yonder") tiresome, a true negative achievement. It's easy to see why this has never been revived -- and never could be.

Despite its shortcomings of production (and in the last two works of inspiration), this is a fine and valuable recording. Which brings us to Vivendi. When the company revamped its cast-album catalog it decided to price these completely amortized albums at full-line-plus. It's especially galling here as all the selections from "This is the Army" and "Winged Victory" and at least one from "Call Me Mister" have enough surface noise and distortion to indicate they're likely from commercial pressings. Maybe Mr. Bronfman Junior needed the money for his ultimately failed investment; but such gouging underscores the contempt the record business has for its customers, whom it sees as saps whose pockets will empty endlessly when it grabs them face down by the ankles. The public is now richly returning the favor by tuning itself out to the majors and its endless parade of tunelessness. For all the gold-chained clan's howls of denial it isn't good for the record trade -- and in the end, by eviscerating the one stable source for new music, it isn't good for us.

At long last and timely to boot.......2003-09-01

Having scored a triumph during World War I with his "Yip Yip Yaphank," Irving Berlin was a natural to be asked to create a similar revue for World War II, and the all-male "This Is the Army" did very well. An original cast recording came out in 1942. The very next year, the Air Force got its chance with Moss Hart's "Winged Victory." Four of the songs appeared in boxed set of 78 rpm discs. When it was all over, the returning GI was saluted in yet another revue called "Call Me Mister." That original cast album appeared in 1946. Now you can hear them ALL on a single Decca CD (BOOOO831-02).

There is a soundtrack recording from the film "This Is the Army" that is extremely fuzzy, making this Decca release far preferable, all the more so because it does give us the original all-soldier cast that included Irving Berlin himself singing (more or less) his immortal "Oh, How I Hate to Get Up in the Morning." Other songs include "I Left My Heart at the Stage Door Canteen," "How About a Cheer For the Navy," and "American Eagles."

The focus here is how men made the transition from civilian to military life, and most of the problems they faced are mentioned in the opening number, "This Is the Army, Mr. Jones." We must also note with some sadness that the real problems of joining an army are never explicit, but the purpose of the show was to reassure and not to look at the "dark side of the force."

"Winged Victory" originally contained only two discs holding four songs: "Winged Victory," "My Dream Book of Memories," "The Whiffenpoof Song," and "The Army Air Corps." That last one thrilled my generation whenever it was played over the radio and especially during the wartime films; and it has lost none of its potency over the years. (The line about going "down in flame" still chills.) This was also the first military revue that included women, a fact which makes it even more of an historical document.

In 1946, Harold Rome lent his talents to putting together a revue for those returning to civilian life. Early in the war, Dinah Shore was able to praise "A Boy in Khaki," but Vaughn Monroe later in the war sang about looking forward to wearing "Just a Blue Serge Suit." I have a particular fondness for this set, because I owned a copy as a boy, played it to death, and eventually lost track of it. I never knew there was a 1950 LP version which included "This Is the Army," and I spent years trying to find the company that held the copyright that would get it onto a tape or (later on) a CD. So 57 years after the album first was released, my prayer has been answered!

The first number, sung by Lawrence Winters (a great portrayer of Porgy, by the way), takes place aboard a "Going Home Train" and is replete with optimism. A sketch in which a group of men are waiting to be assigned work for the day included Winter's rendition of "The Red Ball Express" on which the Black GIs carried supplies to the troops. He is the only one denied work at the end of the scene. We had an even older enemy than the Nazis to face.

A young newcomer named Betty Garrett delighted audiences with "Little Surplus Me" and "Yuletide, Park Avenue" in which many of the New York shops are mentioned in Christmas carol style. But it was her rendition of "South America, Take It Away" that brought down the house and raised her to stardom.

You get the expected comic number, "Military Life," sung by Jules Munshin (remember him from the film "On the Town"?) and two other men, while Winters sings "A Face on a Dime," a song that needs some explaining to those who were born after the minting of the "Roosevelt Dime." "Along With Me" and the full version of "When We Meet Again" are the ballads, while the title song acts as a finale number.

Tracks:

The Dancing Years: Orchestral Pot-Pourri: Leap Year Waltz - Uniform - My Life Belongs To You - Waltz Of My Heart - Primrose - Wings Of Sleep - I Can Give You The Starlight - My Dearest Dear - Finale
The Dancing Years: Waltz Of My Heart
The Dancing Years: The Wings Of Sleep
The Dancing Years: My Life Belongs To You
The Dancing Years: I Can Give You The Starlight
The Dancing Years: My Dearest Dear
The Dancing Years: Primrose
Glamorous Night: Orchestral Pot-Pourri: Her Majesty Militza - Shine Through My Dreams - Fold Your Wings - When The Gipsy Played - Far Away In Shanty Town - Royal Wedding
Glamorous Night
Glamorous Night: When The Gipsy Played
Careless Rapture: Why Is There Ever Goodbye?
Careless Rapture: Studio Scene
Crest Of The Wave: Rose Of England
Crest Of The Wave: Haven Of Your Heart
Crest Of The Wave: Why Isn't It You?
Crest Of The Wave: If You Only Knew
Theodore & Co.: What A Duke Should Be
Theodore & Co.: Oh, How I Want To Marry

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