"THE WOMAN IN WHITE"
Original London Cast
EMI Classics/Really Useful Records (7243 5 57938 2 9)

Andrew Lloyd Webber's new musical, "The Woman in White," freely adapted from the classic novel by Wilkie Collins, is quite a new direction for the writer of such popular shows as "Evita" from his soft rock inspired period, to "The Phantom of the Opera's" lushness picked up from Puccini melodies and then sprinkled with grand theatrical spectacle, to his "Sunset Boulevard" that winningly adapted a classic Hollywood film to the musical stage if the star was just right, to his recent failing attempts to set a new path in "Whistle Down the Wind" and "A Beautiful Game."

Here, the story of ill-fated and troubled woman is told with much new sounding music. He still writes one standout hit in "I Believe My Heart" that is hard to get out of your mind. Much of the new sound is atonal and far more sophisticated than earlier Lloyd Webber scores. He's experimenting with bold and innovative music and the result is a fascinating score, complete on two CDs, that holds you transfixed. This is not a musical theater score you can wander off and do other things if you except to relish the subtle beauty and David Zippel's rich and telling lyrics that vividly reveal the detailed and complex story.

The show offers other innovations aren't detailed in the accompanying booklets. Included are cast and song listings, brief statements from Lloyd Webber and producer Nigel Wright about the live, opening night recording and the editing done to capture the brilliance of the cast but eliminate the annoying applause and laughter. There is no commentary about the show including how the story was changed by book writer Charlotte Jones or even the barest of plot summaries. You're on your own with this recording.

Also, you'll read nothing about the settings that are said to involve projections and a fluidity that works perfectly for the story's cinematic telling. The booklets contain few cast or production pictures that might help listeners visualize the show's treats.

The cast is magnificent. Maria Friedman does masterful singing and interpretation as Marian Halcombe. Martin Crews sounds robust as Walter Hartright and Jill Paice's lyrical voice captivates especially in her duet with Crews of "I Believe My Heart." Michael Crawford, a performer I've never cared for, is a revelation as Count Fosco. Apparently his appearance is almost unrecognizable in a fat suit and he's disguised his very familiar singing voice remarkably in his big and hilarious solo, "You Can Get Away with Anything," a song he recorded separately for the album due to the amount of audience laughter. The opening night track, complete with those interruptions, is included as a welcome bonus track. Crawford also does well with the first act "A Gift for Living Well."

All in all "The Woman in White" makes me want to board a plane and head to London to see the show, a trip that would no doubt be ill fated since the show is sold out for months. Let's hope its impending Broadway arrival next season comes to pass complete with many of the London cast. This is a show I'm really anxious to see based on this intriguing cast recording. If the accompanying material only told us more about it.
 
Grade: A-

"SUNDOWN"
Studio Cast Recording
Original Cast Records (00002)

Another surprise greeted me when I opened an advance copy of "Sundown," a new musical about the legend of Doc Holliday. The score, with music by Peter Link and lyrics by Larry Rosler plus book by Rosler and Joe Bravaco, is lovely even though it borders on the country sound of which I've never been enamored. There are several wonderful ballads and solo tunes plus a super opening, "Arizona Morning." The show has been done at the Lyric Stage in Irvine, Texas, and Virginia's Barter Theatre after being developed in ASCAP's Musical Theatre Workshop and with a staged reading at New York's York Theatre Company. The recording is with a studio cast and they all sound fine. I would hope musical theater producers around the country pay attention to this piece and if the book is as strong as the score, it deserves productions. I'll be watching for this one here in Phoenix due to the connection with our state's history and one of its most colorful historic characters. "Sundown" looks promising.
 
Grade: A-

"BROADWAY'S GREATEST GIFTS:
CAROLS FOR A CURE VOLUME 6"
Rock-It Science Records (No Number)

This year's annual holiday tribute to the season by the companies of Broadway shows is a two CD affair. Perhaps I am too much a traditionalist when it comes to holiday music but this year's fund-raiser for Broadway Cares Equity Fights AIDS leaves me a bit cold. Lots of weird and far out selections, few traditional carols, and what recognizable tunes are used are often presented with unusual orchestrations dominate the release. Listening to this year's CD certainly didn't put me into the holiday spirit and while all the songs are well sung by the casts involved, I like some of the earlier recordings in this worthwhile series a lot more.
 
Grade: D

"FINIAN'S RAINBOW"
Irish Repertory Theatre Cast
Ghostlight (4402-2)

Burton Lane and E. Y. Harburg's 1946 musical "Finian's Rainbow" has one of Broadway's Golden Age's best scores. Every song in the show is a tuneful delight. It's been the dated book that has kept this gem from revival. Earlier this year, New York's Irish Repertory Theatre did a glorified staged concert version and it proved to be one of the best shows I saw in a New York theater junket. Now, comes the cast recording from that version as the first of three releases from the new Ghostlight label, an off shot of Sh-K-Boom Records. The recording couldn't be better. The staging was done with two on-stage pianos so the rich score doesn't have the original orchestrations but the singing is superb and this version proved that there are creative ways around some of the show's dated racism hints. Melissa Errico's glimmering voice sails through Sharon's songs with relish. If only she used a bit more of an Irish brogue she'd be perfect. Her father, Finian, who accompanies her to the United States' Rainbow Valley in the mythical state of Missitucky from their native Ireland, is essayed with gruff gusto by Jonathan Freeman. They bring a pot of gold with them and the escapades with it and the people they met make up the charming story that throws in some subtle but telling jabs at the evils of racism. As Og, a leprechaun who turns human, Malcolm Gets is fresh and vibrant. As Sharon's love interest, Woody, Max von Essen is robust and stalwart. The two piano players, musical director Mark Hartman and Mark Janas, play the score with divine perfection even without the other accompaniment. This "Finian's Rainbow" is a winner and marks the auspicious debut of the new theater-related label.
 
Grade: A

"THE NEW MOON"
City Center Encores! Cast
Ghostlight (4403-2)

Sigmund Romberg's "The New Moon" was never one of my favorites as I preferred the composer's richer "The Student Prince" but the score is still delightful and melodic. The 2003 City Center Encores! production has been preserved by Ghostlight and a better recording would be hard to find. The cast all have wonderful voices and Christiane Noll playing Marianne is one of Broadway's finest singers today. A couple of Romberg's tunes including "Stouthearted Men," "One Kiss, " and "Lover, Come Back to Me" are recognizable and wonderful. The story, like most of the operettas, is silly and unimportant serving just as a skimpy framework on which to display the gorgeous music. This version is more complete than those available previously as studio cast albums. Now, if Encores! would do an operetta each season and if they were all recorded as gloriously as "The New Moon," we would have a rich and available collection of old chestnuts. Is "The Student Prince" next? Let's hope so.
 
Grade: A-

"IN YOUR DREAMS"
CHRISTINE EBERSOLE WITH BILLY STRITICH
Cabaret Cast
Ghostlight (4401-2)

The final release in Ghostlight's initial offerings is "In Your Dreams," Christine Ebersole and Billy Stritich's cabaret revue. Ebersole's big and luscious voice coupled with Stritich's winning vocals and fine piano playing are used perfectly on a great collection of 16 songs, many of them from Broadway. The pair worked together in the current Broadway revival of "42nd Street" and they work marvelously with each other here. He plays a mean piano and his vocals are solid if unexceptional. She's got a huge, powerful, and rich voice. Highlights include "Baby, Dream Your Dream," "The Surrey with the Fringe on the Top," several "42nd Street" tunes, and a haunting "My Ship." Another winner for the new label.
 
Grade: B+

"COLE PORTER AN ALL-STAR TRIBUTE"
Bell Telephone Hour Telecast January 28, 1964
Vai Audio (VAIA 1239)

The recent DVD release of footage from the famed January 28, 1964 Bell Telephone Hour tribute to Cole Porter is now available as a CD. It has bonus tracks from Ethel Merman's appearance on the January 29, 1960 Bell Telephone Hour. The medley of Porter's hit tunes feature Peter Nero, John Raitt, Martha Wright and Gretchen Wyler, hosted by Ethel Merman. The singing is Broadway inspired because of all the Great White Way veterans and the show boasted it presented 52 of Porter's song hits. The fidelity on the CD isn't great but the singing and composition of the medleys is flawless. I enjoyed the DVD more because of the chance it affords to watch these now famed Broadway stars but the CD is a nice addition to any collection.
 
Grade: A-

"THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA"
Original Soundtrack Cast
Sony Classical (SK 93521)

The first preview of the much awaited film version of "The Phantom of the Opera" came this week as the soundtrack recording was released in two versions. A highlights album is discussed here, and a second two disc set that includes a souvenir program will be reviewed later. The single disc has the big song hits from the show and the one new song, "Learn to Be Lonely." The recording sounds similar if not almost identical to the cast recording and the music is orchestrated similarly to the stage version. The new song sounds as if it dropped in from another show. It sounds nothing like the score we all know. The movie cast sounds fine vocally. Young Emmy Rossum's light lyric soprano glistens in Christine's lovely songs. Patrick Wilson's smooth sounding Raoul is perfect. It's hard to pick out Miranda Richardson's Madame Giry in the one ensemble number she sings, "Prima Donna," the same number for Minnie Driver's only singing and she's dubbed by Margaret Preece. Driver does solo on the new song and the film has already pitched "Learn to Be Lonely" for an Academy Award nomination for Best Song. Gerard Butler's Phantom is rougher sounding than the grandly theatrical vocal theatrics Michael Crawford used in the original and certainly not as satiny and rich as when I heard Davis Gaines, my favorite Phantom, sing the role in San Francisco and New York. The pictures in the highlights CD make it look like a faithful adaptation of the stage version and the music adds to that conclusion. The film opens throughout the country on December 22. My copy of the two disc version is on its way and will be reviewed separately later in this column.
 
Grade: A

"MANILOW SCORES - SONGS FROM 'COPACABANA' AND 'HARMONY'"
BARRY MANILOW
Concord Records (CCD-2251-2)

Barry Manilow recently secured rights to his musical "Harmony" after a messy court battle and he promises to bring the show to New York. In the interim, he's released a solo CD with highlights from that show and his earlier and more widely produced "Copacabana." The songs and his renditions all sound about the same and follow the big, booming melodies he picks for most of his live appearances. How the songs fit the stories that accompany these shows is harder to judge. Manilow early in his career had decided to write musicals. In 1978 after the success of the single "Copacabana" he created an elaborate television and later stage musical about the famous nightclub. For this theme, the songs seem to fit nicely. "Harmony" is a true story about The Comedian Harmonnists, a German singing group of the '20s and '30s. After a famous rise to stardom, the group faded and has been forgotten. Here, one wonders why a show about these legendary singers and their career would contain a new score by Manilow which sounds just like a collection of his other tunes. Although I'm not familiar with this group's music, it seems unlikely that they would have performed music that sounds like tunes from a contemporary Manilow act. The CD can be inserted into your computer where it will take you to a special web site where you can access behind-the-scenes interviews with Manilow, lyricist Bruce Sussman, and other bonus material.
 
Grade: C+

"LIFE HAS BEEN GOOD TO ME"
RANDAL KEITH
Randal Keith (8253461078)

Singer Randal Keith's lush voice has graced many musicals and his CD "Life Has Been Good To Me" is filled with songs from the shows he has sung. The 13 tracks include fine arrangements of 11 songs from shows that range from oldies like "Anything Goes" ( a stirring rendition of "All Through the Night") and a rich "Some Enchanted Evening" from "South Pacific" to newer musicals like "The Phantom of the Opera" ( a wonderful "Music of the Night"), a rousing "Into the Fire" from "The Scarlet Pimpernel," a soaring "High Flying Adored" from "Evita," to "Gethsemane" from "Jesus Christ Superstar." His biggest stage triumph has been as Jean Valjean in "Les Miserables" and he closed the long running Broadway production in that role. His "Bring Him Home" is haunting and intense. Keith has a love of and a marvelous way with a wide variety of musical theater songs and his new album does a great job of showcasing his fine singing.
 
Grade: A

"I GOT RHYTHM"
ETHEL MERMAN
MasterSong (505992)

Boy, the Ethel Merman compilation recordings have been coming fast and heavy in recent months and the latest, "I Got Rhythm," features 20 tracks including several that appear to be from her original cast recording of "Annie Get Your Gun." The recording is pristine and the youthful sound of her voice in these selections suggests the booming voice that captured Broadway's attention during her early career after her triumphant debut. The many tracks from "Annie Get Your Gun" should be credited and the CD listing of the selections tells little about the selections, when they were recorded or other source information that would make this recording far more valuable. There's no question, though, of Merman's style and her way with a song that made her the huge Broadway star she remained until her death. Her later career and her biggest New York performance, "Gypsy," aren't included here. Collections of Merman's work in such wonderfully restored versions are always a nice addition to a show music collection.
 
Grade: B

"LOOK MA, I'M DANCIN'"
Original Broadway Cast
Decca Broadway (B0003571-02)

"Look Ma, I'm Dancin'" opened on Broadway in January 1948 and today is long forgotten. Just 10 songs from the show were recorded and are now available with two bonus tracks from Decca Broadway. The show is quite melodic in the old-fashioned way Broadway scores sounded back then. Written by Robert E. Lee and Jerome Lawrence and conceived by choreographer Jerome Robbins, the show's story concerns a cross-country tour of the Russo-American Ballet Company and focuses on a brash dancer and choreographer, Eddie Winkler (played by Harold Lang). A stage-struck brewery heiress, Lily Malloy (played by Nancy Walker) wants to become a dancer and helps secure her dream by underwriting the show. The score was by Hugh Martin and it includes several delightful gems like "Gotta Dance" and "Let's Do a Ballet." The performance by Walker is especially wonderful and the songs capture some of the excitement generated by her performance. The alternate takes of two songs provide some archival material that hasn't been available before. You'll be surprised and delighted by "Look Ma, I'm Dancin'."
 
Grade: B

"SO IN LOVE WITH BROADWAY"
RON RAINES
Jay Records (CDJAY 1384)

Ron Raines is a leading musical theater singer today and his second solo CD, "So In Love With Broadway" lets him sing a collection of 14 new and old songs from musicals that showcase his strong voice winningly in flawless and exciting arrangements that beautifully display his great singing. His duet with Karen Ziemba, "My Cup Runneth Over" from "I Do! I Do!," is moving. His lusty "All I Care About" from "Chicago" is big and comic with help from The Criswell Girls, and his touching ""My Time of Day"/"I've Never Been In Love Before" from "Guys and Dolls" features composer Frank Loesser's daughter Emily. His "Stars" from "Les Miserables" is triumphant, and his "I Don't Remember You" is a reminder of the fine "The Happy Time" score. It's a relaxing, delightful recording featuring Raines' outstanding voice.
 
Grade: A

"THE BEST OF LIZA MINNELLI"
Columbia/Legacy (CK 92690)

If you are a Liza Minnelli fan, Columbia/Legacy has released a stirring collection of her greatest hits in "The Best of Liza Minnelli," a wonderful 15-track collection that includes a previously unreleased recording of "Me and My Baby" and her standards like "Cabaret" "All That Jazz," and the theme from "New York, New York." The only discordant note is her lousy "Losing My Mind" from "Follies" in a jazzed up and rock embellished orchestration that manages to lose the song's beauty and message entirely.
 
Grade: B

"NO STRINGS"
Original London Cast
Must Close Saturday Records (MCSR 3019)

Richard Rodgers first musical after Oscar Hammerstein's death was "No Strings" and Rodgers wrote both the music and lyrics. The show boasts one of his best scores and includes two of his biggest song hits, "The Sweetest Sounds" and the title tune. The Broadway cast featured Diahann Carroll and her exquisite voice is wonderful in the songs. Richard Kiley was also commanding opposite her in the bi-racial romance. The London cast featured Beverly Todd and Art Lund and the cast album is again available courtesy of Must Close Saturday Records. The score is elegant and tuneful but the London cast can't compare to their Broadway counterparts. Todd does nothing exciting with her songs. Carroll's more powerful renditions are superior. Lund sounds just like his "Most Happy Fella" character, Joey, and he hasn't the depth or richness of Kiley's better singing. The London cast is certainly fine but if you're looking for the best "No Strings" recording, it is clearly the Broadway version.
 
Grade: C

"FROM THE HEART"
BARBARA COOK
DRG Records (91485)

One of Barbara Cook's earliest solo albums, "From the Heart," features the songstress in lovely renditions of Rodgers and Hart song classics. While Cook may tell more story in her current song performances, this collection of standards is refreshing and reveals the soprano in her Broadway prime. She was doing "The Music Man" when this album was recorded. Her singing is lovely, limpid, young sounding, and very alive. She even knew then how to spin a song's story through her vocal interpretation and this CD is a cherished addition to the Cook catalog that is available currently. The 12 tracks are a feast for Cook lovers and for anyone who wants to hear these classic tunes delivered with stunning vocal sureness.
 
Grade: A

"TEXAS, L'IL DARLIN'"
Original Broadway Cast
Decca Broadway (B0003437-02)

The lively, exciting, and highly topical "Texas, L'il Darlin'" was a 1949 Broadway show by Robert Emmett Dolan with lyrics by Johnny Mercer. It's not a great score but the show was successful. The original cast recording included only eight tracks and the newly released Decca Broadway CD is a wonderful bit of show music history. The show was largely forgotten after it played Broadway. Since the cast album was so short, it has been paired on the CD with six tunes from the soundtrack from the film "You Can't Run Away From It" by Mercer and Gene De Paul. These tracks feature stars June Allyson and Jack Lemmon. Amazingly, Lemmon demonstrates a satisfactory voice. This release is definitely for the true show music collector and it preserves a bit of Broadway's past.
 
Grade: C+

"SHOW STOPPERS, TOO!"
DRG Records (94774)

In a collection of hits from seven recent Broadway hits, DRG has released a "Show Stoppers, Too!" CD that features highlights from their recent Broadway cast recordings. Included are "Taboo," "Little Shop of Horrors," "Wonderful Town," "Barbara Cook's Broadway," "Flower Drum Song," "Bea Arthur on Broadway" and ""Elaine Stritch at Liberty." If you have the complete CDs, this is an unnecessary CD purchase but if you don't have those recent cast albums, this release features the best numbers from the shows. There's a lot of Bea Arthur's show, the least interesting of the bunch, and Cook's wonderful show only gets three excerpts. It's not a bad CD to play as background music for show music lovers to see how many they can correctly identify.
 
Grade: C

"MEXICAN HAYRIDE"
Original Broadway Cast
Decca Broadway (B0003125-02)

The resurgence of Cole Porter as a result of the recent film biography has created new interest in his many lackluster Broadway musicals. One such show, "Mexican Hayride," proved popular in 1944 with a 481-performance run but the show itself is definitely lesser Porter. Decca Broadway has released a CD that has eight songs from the original cast recording. The songs, while humable and pleasant, aren't great or lasting contributions. The show's success was partially attributable to star Bobby Clark but he refused to participate in the cast recording because he thought his voice didn't sound good on records. Other stars - June Havoc, Wilbur Evans, and Corinna Mura - are featured. The story was inane but a visually eye-appealing production and the strong performances sustained the show's run. Since the cast recording was so condensed, Decca Broadway added six selections from Mary Martin singing Porter songs. This recording, made in 1940 features Martin at the beginning of her career and her singing is fresh and vibrant. The most memorable tune here is a wonderful rendition of "My Heart Belongs to Daddy" from her triumphant Broadway debut show, "Leave It to Me." She's sexy and fun in this suggestive song and it's easy to understand why she became an overnight star because of it. Grade: B-

"CALL ME MADAM"
Original Soundtrack
Hallmark Music & Entertainment (705252)

Ethel Merman's Broadway star status never translated well in Hollywood musicals and she only got the chance to recreate one of her Broadway roles on the silver screen. Irving Berlin's "Call Me Madam" was the show and watching the recent DVD release of it shows Merman at her best as the brassy Sally Adams, United States ambassador to a tiny fictional country. The soundtrack recording has shown up and it's a good recreation of the movie's song hits. Several of the Broadway tunes were included but others were dropped with new ones added. None of the additions are as good as the original tunes. Merman's co-stars, Donald O'Connor, Vera-Ellen, and George Sanders, are all well cast and do justice to their songs. Better than getting this CD is just buying the DVD and watching the songs unfold as they did in the film.
 
Grade: C

"THE BRODAWAY MUSICALS OF 1960"
Town Hall Cast
Bayview Recording Company (RNBW027)

Another Town Hall Broadway tribute has been recorded by Bayview. This time it's "The Broadway Musicals of 1960," which is filled with 20 tracks of familiar songs from the several musical hits of that season. The best Broadway talent gathered for this tribute and the fine singing of Marc Kudisch, Lisa Vroman, Eddie Korbich, Liz Larsen, Douglas Ladnier, Brent Barrett and Tovah Feldshuh is enhanced by Scott Siegel's witty and pointed comments as host. Siegel also writes and creates this popular series. The only unique track, "Vintage 60," comes from the musical of the same name. It's an interesting find especially when paired with "Bye Bye Birdie's" "Kids." Feldshuh gives her usual deadpan comic twists to both songs. "Kids," of course, comes from the older generation's point-of-view and paints a dismal picture of youngsters. "Vintage 60" features a kid's sarcastic commentary about the hypocrisy and lunacy of parents and adults. Other impressive segments include two "Camelot" solos from Barrett who has played King Arthur at the Paper Mill Playhouse, and two of Guinevere's "Camelot" solos by lush-voiced Lisa Vroman. The only "Greenwillow" entry, "Summertime Love," is not the standard tune extracted from that Frank Loesser show. Only one song from "The Unsinkable Molly Brown" makes the cut, "I Ain't Down Yet," in a disappointingly spiritless rendering by Liz Larsen, who also bombs out with "Bye Bye Birdie's" "One Boy." "Wildcat's" well-known hit, "Hey Look Me Over," gets the disc started featuring the entire company. That musical failure gets two other selections while the better scores of "Tenderloin" and "Irma La Douce" get just one each. "Do Re Mi" gets four selections including the hit "Make Someone Happy." Kudisch does a sexy reflection of "Bye Bye Birdie's" "One Last Kiss" and Ladnier makes "Christine's" title tune memorable. Since these are all shows I grew up with, this series entry brings back nostalgic memories of the original stagings I saw in touring productions as a beginning theatergoer.
 
Grade: A-

"CARMEN JONES"
Original Broadway Cast
Prism Leisure (PLATCD 995)

Oscar Hammerstein II's brilliant updating of Bizet's opera "Carmen" to World War II in "Carmen Jones" featured an African-American cast and resulted in a rich treatment. The original cast recording is back from Prism Leisure, a London record company. It includes 11 tracks from the Broadway cast recording plus three bonus tracks from the show's 1947 radio broadcast that featured the Broadway cast. The performers sound wonderful and the sharp Hammerstein lyrics fit Bizet's zesty score stylishly. Unfortunately, the sound on this import isn't great. The Broadway cast portion sounds like it's from an ancient version that hasn't been re-mastered particularly well. The radio broadcast tracks are even worse but at least this memorable cast recording is again available as part of Prism's ongoing The Broadway Musicals Series. I've never seen a future listing of upcoming entries in this series and, so far, most of them have been of previously available show recordings.
 
Grade: B+

"KISMET"
Studio Cast
Vocalion (CDLF 8104)

It's unlikely that a revival of 1953's "Kismet" will show up for several years due to the musical's setting in historic Baghdad but the score, based on Borodin classical compositions, is exotic and lush. A 1964 studio cast recording featuring Mantovani and his orchestra with vocals by Adele Leigh, Robert Merrill, Kenneth McKellar, Regina Resnik and Ian Wallace is fine if not quite as memorable as the original cast version with the great Alfred Drake in the central role of Hajj, the poet-beggar. Resnik has great comic fun with Lalume, the bombastic Wazir of Police's wife, and Robert Merrill gives an operatic sound to Hajj. The score glistens with such still lovely hits as "Stranger in Paradise," "Fate," "Night of My Nights," and "The Olive Tree." If you don't have the original "Kismet" or can't find it, this is a fine alternative recording.
 
Grade: B

"JOHN BARROWMAN SWINGS COLE PORTER"
First Night Records (CASTCD 91)

John Barrowman is one of our leading musical theater stars today. His new solo album, "John Barrowman Swings Cole Porter," comes as a result of the new interest in Porter's music because of the film about the composer's life, "De-Lovely." Barrowman swings the songs a bit but these wonderful 13 tunes are still recognizable and sound great in the singer's capable hands. There's a bonus track, "Easy to Love," from his 2003 appearance in the London revival of "Anything Goes." Barrowman claims that his musical theater career started with a production of "Anything Goes" and he's done the show twice since including the current London revival. He obviously loves the Porter music. He's playful and fun with "Miss Otis Regrets," but he nurses the other tracks with tender affection that is a delight to hear. "John Barrowman Swings Cole Porter" is one of the best of the recent plethora of albums devoted to Porter songs. The release date is Oct. 5.
 
Grade: A-

"THE FIRST ROSE OF SUMMER"
42nd Street Moon Cast
Music Box Recordings (MBR 04003)

San Francisco's 42nd Street Moon stages unusual musicals sometimes in concert versions and others are fully staged. Many of their shows have been recorded and provide a rich treasure of older shows that are otherwise not available on CDs. They recently did "The First Rose of Summer" subtitled "Rare Early Theatre Songs by Jerome Kern, 1912-1928." The collection of 24 tracks covers 15 of Kern's early shows and is a fabulous collection that provides a valuable look at these early Broadway shows. There are more offerings from 1923's "The Stepping Stones" and 1922's "The Cabaret Girl" plus one or two songs from the other shows. They are all very tuneful and all are reminiscent of Kern's greatest score for "Show Boat." The cast is wonderful and their fine vocals do justice to all the songs. For a rare glimpse into early musical theater history and wonderful collection of fine song hits, "The First Rose of Summer" is a winner.
 
Grade: A

"DIVORCE ME, DARLING!"
Original London Cast
Must Close Saturday Records (MCSR 3013)

Sandy Wilson's biggest hit was "The Boy Friend," that delicious spoof of the foibles and follies of the 1920s. His following shows never achieved the success of "The Boy Friend" until he decided to write a sequel to his hit that used the same characters ten years later. "Divorce Me, Darling!" played fast and loose with the 1930s. The concept proved better in theory than practice, though, and when the show debuted in London in 1965, it was warmly received by audiences but tepidly by critics. It closed after 87 performances and was forgotten until 1979 when various revivals began and the show was ultimately restored to what Wilson had originally written before the London director and producers changed the piece. The original cast recording is now available on CD and the score is delightful and winsome if not quite as tuneful and invigorating as "The Boy Friend's." The cast seems to get the spoofing and mockery down although one of the leads had to be replaced during the recording session because she lost her voice. "Divorce Me, Darling!" is charming Sandy Wilson. It may not be "The Boy Friend" but it would be fun to see the show revived today.
 
Grade: B

"JOHNNY GUITAR THE MUSICAL"
Original Off-Broadway Cast
Definite Maybe Productions (DMCD-0401)

I wasn't sure what to expect from "Johnny Guitar The Musical," the off-Broadway send-up of the 1954 Nicholas Ray cult film classic that starred Joan Crawford. The old west tale about a guitar toting gunman was filled with subtle slams at '50s era political issues including McCarthyism and repressed homosexuality. When I put on the newly released cast album of the show that was named Best Musical by the Outer Critics Circle, it turned out infectious and catchy. The country western twang of Martin Silvestri's music, the clever song lyrics by Joel Higgins, and the plot adapted by Nicholas Van Hoogstraten from the film are all very appealing. The superb cast, including Judy McLane, Ann Crumb, Steve Blanchard, and Robert Evan in the key roles, is top notch as is the band conducted by James Mironchik. The rough old west tale reads charming in the accompanying booklet and I hope the show, now closed in New York, starts showing up in regional productions around the country. "Johnny Guitar The Musical" is a welcome surprise.
 
Grade: A-

"SLOW"
ANN HAMPTON CALLAWAY
Shanachie Entertainment (5118)

Mellow Ann Hampton Callaway's new release "Slow" is another wonderful, rich collection of song hits delivered by the talented singer. The album includes the debut tune "Tonight You're All Mine," written by Callaway with Carole King, that is romantic and lovely. Callaway also performs a wonderful duet with sister Liz Callaway, "Moondance," and Callaway's first recording of the song she co-wrote for Barbra Streisand to sing to her new husband James Brolin on their wedding day, "I've Dreamed Of You." There are pop and jazz standards like "Never Let Me Go" and "Someone To Light Up My Life," other Callaway originals including "Lullaby in Blue" and "My Answered Prayer," plus the contemporary classics "Love Dance" and "Will You Love Me Tomorrow?" all delivered with Callaway's lush, sultry voice and her own unique style. She's backed by a great band playing her perfect arrangements. If you want a relaxing, romantic CD, you won't go wrong with "Slow." It's too bad Callaway, who did one musical, "Swing," doesn't more often share her lovely vocal talents with Broadway.
 
Grade: A

"CENTRE STAGE THE VERY BEST OF ELAINE PAIGE"
Warner Music UK (WSMCD171)

Elaine Paige is one of London's premiere musical theater stars. Her Broadway debut in "Sunset Boulevard" was eagerly awaited as was her recent return to New York to star in "Sweeney Todd" for the New York City Opera. Her new album, "Centre Stage The Very Best of Elaine Paige," includes 38 tracks on two CDs that represent her musical theater career and includes two new songs and six previously unreleased recordings. Her voice and interpretive powers are clear in her renditions of the major shows she's debuted or played in London. She also does several tracks from her solo musical, "Piaf," in which she portrayed the French singer. Several contemporary songs not from musicals and a few songs from films are also included. Her voice and stylish treatments of all her songs make this career retrospective recording a winner and remind us of how prolific a musical theater performer she is in Britain.
 
Grade: A

MARY MARTIN/ETHEL MERMAN
"THE SOUNDTRACK OF THEIR LEGENDARY APPEARANCE ON THE FORD ANNIVERSARY SHOW" on JUNE 15, 1953
VAI Audio (VAIA 1226)

Last time, I reported on the newly released DVD of the famous Mary Martin/Ethel Merman 1953 television appearance. Now, they've followed the DVD with an even shorter CD of the pair's solos and duets. It doesn't include Martin's pantomimed fashion satire since there were no vocals. I'm not sure why you'd want to purchase the CD version because it lacks the visuals of the two great musical theater stars and thus removes the vibrant personality the pair possessed and the bonding they obviously shared on the program. Stick to the DVD as a great way to relive one of the most famous and previously unavailable footage of the Martin/Merman songfest and skip the blander and short CD.
 
Grade: C

"MERMAN SINGS MERMAN" AND "ETHEL'S RIDIN' HIGH"
ETHEL MERMAN
Decca (475 6150 DM)

During Ethel Merman's reign as Broadway star, her stature carried over her over to be a pop music star as well. Two of her old solo recordings, "Merman Sings Merman" and "Ethel's Ridin' High," have been combined in a new Decca release. She is in her prime singing classic Broadway show tunes she introduced as well as other Broadway standards plus some popular period song hits. Merman never varied her singing style and all the songs on the two albums are delivered consistently but with her unique and booming style that she made famous and memorable. On some of the show tunes that were hers originally, she sounds better on older, period recordings or on original cast recordings, but this Merman collection introduces the best of the star in one compact format.
 
Grade: B

"PACIFIC OVERTURES"
English National Opera Cast
Jay Records (CDJAY 1382)

The first London production of Stephen Sondheim's ambitious "Pacific Overtures" came in 1987 from the English National Opera. That production was recorded and a complete, two-disc CD was previously available. Now comes a highlights version that has been re-mastered. The show tried to recreate the arrival of the American's in Japan and the clashing cultures that resulted when the two started trading and exchanging traditions. It is loaded with music that attempts to recreate the sound of traditional Japanese music but it also includes some rich Sondheim tunes that are delightful on their own like "Chrysanthemum Tea," "Welcome to Kanagawa," and "Pretty Lady." The music is well sung by a fine cast and this highlights version contains the show's best and most important musical moments. Perhaps not as strong as the original Broadway cast recording, this version is still pleasing and is a good way to reacquaint yourself with "Pacific Overtures" that Roundabout Theatre Company will revive on Broadway this fall at Studio 54.
 
Grade: B

"SOMETHING TO DANCE ABOUT - THE MUSIC OF IRVING BERLIN"
Kim Criswell
Jay Records (CDJAY 1381)

Kim Criswell is famous for doing Ethel Merman roles and she recently got strong notices in the Goodspeed revival of Irving Berlin's "Call Me Madam." Her new solo CD, "Something to Dance About - The Music of Irving Berlin," is a delightful testament to her fine way with Berlin tunes but it also contains five numbers featuring "Call Me Madam's" central character, Sally Adams, "the hostess with the mostess," and serves as a good indication of how smashing Criswell must have been in the show. The collection of popular Berlin songs is delivered with gusto by Criswell. Most of the song selections aren't from other Berlin musicals but are popular tunes the composer created during his long and prolific career. In addition to the wonderful renditions of the five "Call Me Madam" song hits, Criswell has lusty musical fun with "Heat Wave," "Mr. Monotony," "Blue Skies," "Always," "Down in Chattanooga," "Let Me Sing and I'm Happy," "Count Your Blessing," a wonderfully lush "White Christmas," and a rousing "God Bless America." Criswell usually appears in London theater and rarely comes to America. It's too bad because she's quite a talented musical theater star as proved by her fine new Irving Berlin album.
 
Grade: A

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"ASSASSINS"
Broadway Cast
PS Classics (PS-421)

Forget the book problems that plague stage productions of Stephen Sondheim's "Assassins," the score is interesting and intriguing and the Broadway cast that recently completed an acclaimed run at Studio 54 handles the music brilliantly. The tunes are rich Sondheim creations including the new song he wrote for the first London staging of it, "Something Just Broke." The Broadway cast was flawless and most impressive are Michael Starobin's stunning orchestration. Even Joe Mantello's staging, set in a carnival, helped the weak book better focus on the sick characters, those weirdoes who thought their fame would come from killing a United States president. The songs, many solos, give these characters a chance to express their reasons and logic for their actions. An unusual theme for a musical? Of course, but Sondheim's score is great. The Broadway cast stuns with vivid character interpretations both in the theater and on the recording. Especially brilliant are Mario Cantone's Santa Claus-clad Samuel Byck, a misplaced man who thought piloting a 747 into the White House to kill Richard Nixon was inspired. Denis O'Hare's Charles Guiteau, President James Garfield's assassin, is also strong as are Alexander Gemignani's John Hickley, Becky Ann Baker's off-center Sara Jane Moore, and Neil Patrick Harris' Lee Harvey Oswald. Marc Kudisch presides over the action as the Carnival Proprietor. Paul Gemignani's flawless orchestra provides superb musical accompaniment. While "Assassins" book may have faults, this brilliant recording of the show belongs in every Sondheim-lovers music library.
 
Grade: A

"ARCHY AND MEHITABEL"/"ECHOES OF ARCHY"/"CARNIVAL OF THE ANIMALS"
Studio Cast
DRG Records (19064)

"Archy and Mehitabel" is described as a "back-alley opera." The first recording, which later resulted in a Broadway musical called "Shinbone Alley," has become a classic. It has just been released for the first time on CD by DRG Records. The impressive three-person cast features Eddie Bracken as the cockroach Archy and Carol Channing as the cat Mehitabel, with narration by David Wayne. The fanciful story revolves around Archy, a journalist cockroach, and his love for the trampy cat Mehitabel. George Kleinsinger's score with words by Joe Darion tell a lot about these characters. The performers make their characters vivid and clever with Wayne providing vibrant narration. The release also includes David Wayne's "Echoes of Archy" (which tells us more in song about the cockroach) and Camille Saint-Saens joyously descriptive "Carnival of the Animals" with new Ogden Nash verse spoken by Noel Coward. This release includes several classic performances although not directly related to the musical stage. Kids will enjoy the fanciful tone and vivid descriptive quality of these works and adults will enjoy the superb performances of Channing, Bracken, Wayne, and Coward.
 
Grade: B-

"LA STRADA"
Demonstration Recording Cast
Bayview Recording Company (RNBW028)

Back in 1968, British theater composer Lionel Bart was a phenomenon with five London hit musicals in a row and the Academy-Award winning film version of his biggest hit, "Oliver." There was much interest in his announced musical adaptation of Fellini's film "La Strada" that was to open on Broadway in 1969. Bart's fame made it easy to do a complete cast with full orchestra demo of the completed score for "La Strada" in England prior to the show's Detroit tryout. The show met with unanimously unfavorable reviews and when it finally opened on Broadway where it lasted just one performance. The score was thought to be lost and no cast recording existed. Bayview Records unearthed the demonstration tapes and have re-mastered them for release on CD. Interestingly, the show was so plagued that just two of the 12 songs included in the demo actually remained in the show on opening night. The story is about Gelsomina (played on Broadway by Bernadette Peters) who is sold by her mother to an unscrupulous traveling carnival operator. It's a dark and foreboding story with an unpleasant resolution so was very foreign for the musical theater of that period. The demo score is interesting and sets the somber tone of the plot. This recording is of interest to musical theater aficionados who will relish the discovery of this fabled failure. It's not destined to be a popular recording for the masses but Bayview deserves praise for spending the time and money to make this interesting piece of musical theater history available.
 
Grade: C+

"HAZEL FLAGG"
Original Broadway Cast
Sepia Records (SEPIA 1035)

London English composer Jule Styne had hit Broadway with two hit shows, "High Button Shoes" and "Gentlemen Prefer Blondes," so his 1953 musical "Hazel Flagg" was much anticipated. The show was based on James Street's satire "Nothing Sacred," which had been filmed in 1937. Satires, though, don't always work as Broadway musicals and "Hazel Flagg" wasn't the greatest of shows playing just 190 performances. Styne's score contained a couple of hits, "How Do You Speak to An Angel?" and "Every Street's A Boulevard in Old New York" but Ben Hecht's book wasn't effective. The plot traces the title character. She is wrongly thought to have a fatal disease and desires to spend her last days in New York. The story is picked up by a magazine and Hazel convinces her doctor to go along with the death sentence so she can enjoy New York and the fame the magazine story brings. It ends happily with Hazel in love with the reporter. The cast included Helen Gallagher as Hazel, John Howard as the reporter, Thomas Mitchell as the Doctor, and Benay Venuta as the magazine publisher. The score is delightful if not distinguished and it's great to hear Gallagher at her prime as a new Broadway star. Sepia Records, which has been releasing lots of Broadway shows on CD, deserves praise for continuing to dig deep in the show music catalogues of other labels to find shows that would never be released as CDs. There are ten bonus tracks with many featuring Venuta and other popular period artists in show songs.
 
Grade: C+

"MAKE A WISH"
Original Broadway Cast
Sepia Records (SEPIA 1036)

"Make A Wish" debuted in 1951 and was based on a Ferenc Molnar play, "The Good Fairy." It didn't make the transition to a musical very effectively but Hugh Martin's songs are peppy and melodic and the cast was full of Broadway's future stars. The story was about a French orphan who escapes her miserable life and finds love and glamour in the chorus line of a Parisian nightclub. Nanette Fabray played the orphan, Janette. Melville Cooper was the wealthy Marius whom Janette ditches in favor of a young Law student, Paul, played by Stephen Douglas. Dancer Harold Lang played an American tourist who was interested in a local played by Helen Gallagher. The show was full of dance including "The Sale" that is included on this cast recording and "The Student's Ball" that is not. The score is pleasant and catchy, the cast is exemplary, and the cast recording gives us these well-known performers at the height of their early days on Broadway. With only the dances and elaborate scenery depicting Paris, the show didn't last long and closed after 102 performances. It's nice to have the recording available again along with seven bonus tracks including several featuring Douglas in various bits of show music.
 
Grade: C+

"PROMISES, PROMISES"
Italian Cast
Carosello Records (CARSM 064 2)

"Promises, Promises" is an excellent musical theater adaptation of the film "The Apartment" with a fine Burt Bacharach score. The central character, a bachelor, loans out his apartment to his married male friends so they have a place to cheat on their wives. The show is rarely seen today but a 2002 Italian production has released a CD cast recording that is quite good. The orchestrations are well played by a large orchestra and the cast sings the songs well and often sounding similar to the Broadway originals. Like many foreign cast recordings, there is no information about the production. Exposure to "Promises, Promises" just reminds me how good the show is and makes me wonder why it hasn't been revived.
 
Grade: B

"THE LION KING"
Netherlands Cast
(Stage Music/Universal 986 626-5)

The Netherlands cast recording of "The Lion King" sounds just like the Broadway cast CD but obviously in Dutch. Disney controls the show closely and all productions duplicate the successful Julie Taymor Broadway version. The singing and characterizations are solid and nothing new in the way of interpretations or changes in the score is apparent. The running time of this CD is almost identical to the Broadway version. One must remember that this show is spectacular to watch and is not the success it has become just because of the pleasant score.
 
Grade: A-

"CAROLINE, OR CHANGE"
Original Broadway Cast
Hollywood Records (2061-62436-2)

"Caroline, or Change" is a confused but ambitious new musical that is really a through sung opera. It takes a very perplexing first act before the show comes into focus. It's about an African-American maid, the title character, in 1963 Louisiana. She works for a well-to-do Jewish family and her frustrations and difficult life typify the plight of Blacks throughout the South. The show, with book and lyrics by Tony Kushner and music by Jeanine Tesori, isn't easily accessible. The complex score is challenging with few pleasant melodies but with telling insights into the characters and their thinking. Tonya Pinkins is stunning as Caroline and the cast around her is accomplished. The show program does not list individual songs but the CD divides the score into 53 tracks and gives titles to each selection. The two-CD cast recording captures the show's intensity and preserves the ambitious score as sung by the impressive original cast. The music tends to grow on you as you listen to the score repeatedly but on first hearing it won't impress. I'm glad I got to see this unusual show and that it has been so gloriously captured on CD. It won't be a show I play often but it moves the musical theater in new directions and anything that gives creative spark to that genre is worthy.
 
Grade: B

"SONG OF NORWAY"
Original Broadway Cast
Decca Broadway (B0002471-02)

The 1944 operetta "Song of Norway" tells a sanitized biography of composer Edvard Grieg's bland life. It's not the story that makes this musical chestnut so interesting. It's the rich score, adapted from Grieg's own compositions. Robert Wright and George Forrest made a career of adapting other composers scores into popular tunes used in sugary stories. Their biggest hit was "Kismet" that used Alexander Borodin's compositions in an exotic story. "Song of Norway" hit Broadway just after "Oklahoma," when musicals began the tradition of cast recordings. For the "Song of Norway" recording, the show's opera star Irra Petina had to be replaced by Kitty Carlisle because Petina was under exclusive contract to Columbia and could not participate in the Decca recording. Carlisle, a popular singer, had a voice well suited to Petina's role. The rest of the talented cast sings lovingly. The score is delightful and the Grieg melodies are fabulous and perfect for the tunes Wright and Forrest created. After many years, it is wonderful to again have this original cast recording available although some of the ancient recording techniques weren't or couldn't be fixed so the fidelity of the CD isn't always great.
 
Grade: B

"NO STRINGS"
Original Broadway Cast
DRG Records (19065)

"No Strings" was Richard Rodgers first show after his partner Oscar Hammerstein II's death. Rather than working with a new partner, Rodgers chose to do the music and lyrics himself to Samuel Taylor's book. The show's score, again available on a new DRG CD is wonderful. The story was ambitious for its time. It was about an interracial European romance between two Americans, fashion model, Barbara Woodruff played by Diahann Carroll, and novelist David Jordan played by Richard Kiley. The title referenced both the couple's relationship and that Rodgers score was not orchestrated for any string instruments. The staging was also unusual in that the orchestra played on stage and was incorporated into the action and actors shifted scenic pieces in full audience view. These modern staging ideas made "No Strings" quite innovative for its time. The score is light and includes some of Rodgers best melodies. The show's two hit songs, "The Sweetest Sounds" and the title tune, are outstanding and the cast is wonderful. Carroll won a Tony for her performance. Rodgers also won a Tony for his score and considering that both Jerry Herman and Frank Loesser were up that year the win is quite a tribute to the show's songs. The new CD contains no material not previously available but it's a great cast album to again have available.
 
Grade: A

"BARBARA COOK'S BROADWAY"
Live From Lincoln Center Theater
DRG Records (91484)

Barbara Cook is a Broadway icon. At 76, her lustrous voice remains a lovely instrument and she has perfected the ability of telling a beautiful and touching story with each song she sings. In her latest show, "Barbara Cook's Broadway," she recreates some of her most famous show numbers, tells interesting tidbits about her career, and sings a collection of 20 theater songs exquisitely. The songs capture what is now referred to as the "Golden Years of Broadway Musicals," a period during which Cook starred in several major Broadway shows. Her limpid soprano sails through these songs and she tells her charming backstage stories with candor and honesty about shows she did and her show business experiences. She even hints at her career disappointments including the fact that she never created a role in a Rodgers and Hammerstein show. She did several R&H shows throughout her career, though, and she provides wonderful renditions of songs from "Carousel," a show in which she played both female leads, Carrie and Julie, at different points in her career. She does a great "A Wonderful Guy" and "This Nearly Was Mine" from "South Pacific," and a lush "The Gentleman Is a Dope" from "Allegro." She talks affectionately of "The Music Man," her biggest hit, and tells a story about her co-star Robert Preston introducing her to Gary Cooper after a performance the movie star attended. She did an entire show of Stephen Sondheim songs recently but here her one tribute to him is a thoughtful "In Buddy's Eyes" from "Follies." She has fun with an Elaine Stritch story. Her four songs from her personal hit "She Loves Me" receive a lusty audience response on this live recording. She's backed by her longtime pianist Wally Harper, who knows Cook's voice perfectly and who uses impeccable accompaniment and tailored orchestrations to highlight his star. Cook reveals her most touching disappointment is that she's never had her name up in real light bulbs on Broadway. The backlit plastic signs don't cut it for her and she names the two Broadway theaters that still have marquees that would permit her dream to become a reality. Too bad her wonderful "Barbara Cook's Broadway" couldn't play one of those theaters so her wish would be granted. The show ends with a touching "The Party's Over." Cook remains luminescent.
 
Grade: A+

"GOLF THE MUSICAL"
Original Off-Broadway Cast
Eric Krebs Productions (No Number)

We've had a rash of musicals dedicated to significant events that play important parts in our lives. The latest is "Golf The Musical" and it looks with wicked and pointed humor at those fanatics who spend hours in the sun hitting little balls around lush grass knolls. Even if you aren't a golfer, though, and don't know details of this sport, the songs that accompany this clever off-Broadway show are cute and amusing. The songs themselves aren't wonderful musical compositions but the simplistic melodies are serviceable and allow Michael Roberts lyrics to make their humorous impact. The four-person cast plays the variety of expected stereotypical golfer types and the production pictures show the silly fashions that too many golfers wear. It appears that "Golf The Musical" has a lengthy career throughout the country especially in locations where golf is a year-round pastime. It's a fun listen.
 
Grade: B-

"TABOO"
Original Broadway Cast
DRG Records (94773)

A Boy George fan I am not. Yes, I saw his "Taboo" on Broadway and thought it better than the awful reviews I had read and thought the hardworking cast did more for the discombobulated show than the Boy George score or Charles Busch's contrived and thinly disguised biographical sketch of the singing idol and his unusual lifestyle. The show didn't last long on Broadway where there weren't sufficient fans to support the $100 admission tickets to see the noisy and explosive show. Producer Rosie O'Donnell was very committed to her show and even though it wasn't destined to become a hit, she arranged to have "Taboo" recorded. Now, several months after the show's closure, the cast recording has finally been released. It faithfully preserves the show and the cast's fine performances - especially Euan Morton's stunning portrait of the composer himself. Boy George also played a small role in the show unmemorably and he comes across as blandly on the CD as he did on Broadway.
 
Grade: C

"FINE AND DANDY"
World Premiere Studio Cast
PS Classics (PS-9419)

"Fine and Dandy" is a forgotten show from the 1930-31 Broadway season that marked the first musical from composer Kay Swift, with words by her husband Paul James. Swift has the distinction of being known as the first female composer of a Broadway show although research suggests otherwise. Swift was the paramour of composer George Gershwin and she carried on an affair with him that ultimately resulted in her divorce from James. Gershwin influenced Swift's music and she wrote popular tunes aside from her Broadway scores. "Fine and Dandy" wasn't memorable and revolved around a vaudevillian comedian, Joe Cook, who did his famous routines between the wonderfully upbeat songs and a silly story about star-crossed lovers. The new PS Classics studio cast recording reveals a lovely score full of melodic songs with decent enough lyrics for the time. The title tune is a real toe-tapper and the fine cast assembled by producers Tommy Krasker and Philip Chaffin couldn't be better from Carolee Carmello, Gavin Creel, Mario Cantone, and Mark Linn-Baker plus a great orchestra conducted by Aaron Gandy. After the show's 17 tracks come four bonus renditions of other Swift song hits featuring Ann Hampton Callaway in a sultry "Once You Find Your Guy" and John Pizzarelli and Jessica Molaskey in a lovely "Can't We Be Friends?" PS Classics promises more forgotten musicals in the future. If they are all as good as "Fine and Dandy" I can hardly wait.
 
Grade: A

"FIDDLER ON THE ROOF"
New Broadway Cast
PS Classics (PS-420)

The new revival cast recording of "Fiddle on the Roof" arrived just as I was beginning this update. I only got through it twice but a couple of things are immediately clear. The new cast isn't remarkable but is certainly competent. The new second act song assigned to Yente, "Topsy-Turvy," is cute but not memorable. The best thing the new recording offers is over 70 minutes of music from one of the greatest Broadway musicals, more of this show than has ever been available before. The most disappointing aspect of the new cast is star Alfred Molina's Tevye, who never seems to take command of this "Fiddler" and just blurs into the many interesting residents of the tiny Russian village of Anatevka. For a production of this musical to be completely successful, the Tevye must be outstanding and dominant, something definitely not the case with Molina in the new recording. The rest of the large cast is fine but no one outshines the original Broadway cast's interpretations that are still vibrantly alive on that recording. Because of the extra music, this "Fiddler on the Roof" belongs in true show music lovers' libraries but for those who want the best "Fiddler" they should stick with the original cast.
 
Grade: C+

"ACE OF CLUBS"
Original London Cast
Bayview Recording (CS002)

Noel Coward's 1950 London musical "Ace of Clubs" is now available on a seven-track Bayview recording that includes four bonus tracks of other Coward songs featuring the writer. The show has a catchy, pleasant score and the original cast delivers the witty Coward lyrics with appropriate comic flair. It enjoyed a modest run of 211 West End performances and it used a "Pal Joey"-like story of an improbable love story set against a background of a seedy club and gangland thieves. Many of the musical numbers grew from the heroine's cabaret appearances. The cast recording is far from complete because at the time regular London cast recordings weren't consistently being produced. It's a welcome historical gem and proves how strong Coward's many songs were but "Ace of Clubs" isn't his or the musical theater's finest show.
 
Grade: C

"MAMMA MIA!" SPECIAL EDITION
Original London Cast
Polydor (986 641-2)

Always trying to make an extra buck, Polydor has produced a special edition of the popular "Mamma Mia!" with three bonus tracks that include the mini-concert of ABBA music after the show's finale. Otherwise, this high priced CD has the identical tracks of the London cast recording that has been so big a seller in both England and the United States. A Broadway cast recording was never made. The show is a wonderful tribute to the rich ABBA music and I've said many times that I discovered these tunes through the show since I avoided pop music when ABBA was so big. The show is nothing special and the ordinary staging and physical production don't make it a distinguished show but the music rocks and is sure entertaining. The bonus mini-concert at the end sends audiences away on a soaring high but the songs have never been available before in the cast recording. This release preserves the socko ending that made the show so special and the CD will help us remember the reasons the show was so successful years from now when we listen to this full version of the score. The accompanying booklet has all the song lyrics and scenes from the many world-wide productions. It's an expensive CD but it's the only complete "Mamma Mia!"
 
Grade: A

"THRILL ME - THE LEOPOLD & LOEB STORY"
Original New York Cast
Original Cast Records (OC-7391)

A musical about the terrible child murder by Leopold and Loeb seems an odd premise for a musical and the show by Stephen Dolginoff isn't successful as a recording. The songs aren't particularly melodic but they do tell a lot of details about Leopold's 1955 plea for parole and his recollection of his friendship/sexual/crime for thrills relationship with Loeb. This new look at Leopold provides the circumstances behind the crime that ultimately allowed him to be granted parole many years after his lover, Loeb, was murdered in prison. If you are interested in the gory details of the pair's sexual relationship and their warped sense of thrills through crime, "Thrill Me" might just be your calling. I can't believe the recording will sell well or that many productions of the show will occur. "Thrill Me" is an interesting attempt to stretch the bounds of acceptable topics for musicals.
 
Grade: C

"THE BLACK & WHITE BLUES - THE NEW ORLEANS RESTAURANT MUSICAL"
Original New Orleans Cast
Trylon Music (TM-001)

Restaurant musicals in New York and around the country have become the rage recently. "The Black & White Blues" is set in New Orleans where it has become a hit. It describes the trials and tribulations of working in restaurants and the awful treatment customers give to those who serve them. It has a cute and catchy score and the lyrics are clever and insightful. It seems that the stagings that accompany these newly popular shows make the occasions special and one can envision the production that surrounds "The Black & White Blues" from the short but interesting cast album. Think I'd find the show if I planned a New Orleans trip.
 
Grade: B

"HAIR"
2003/2004 European Tour Cast
Wolfgang Bocksch Concerts (No Number)

Just what we need is another "Hair" recording. The now dated 1968 love rock musical may have been revolutionary when it debuted but today it's a quaint look back at fairly recent history that many middle aged theatergoers lived through. The show marked the Broadway acceptance of the rock music sound that was then sweeping through the pop music world. It also pushed censorship with a cast nude scene and an episodic story about different characters and their drug-influenced lifestyle during this newly permissive Age of Aquarius. Today, the familiar songs seem ancient and the new European tour (in English) doesn't do anything unique with the Gerome Ragni, James Rado, Galt MacDermont show. The over 70 minute recording includes lots more of the score than the earlier cast recordings but the extras are mostly reprises and extended versions of songs better performed by the original cast. The few attempts to update orchestral sounds and move the music to a more contemporary sound doesn't help. If you have the original cast recording, there's nothing to recommend adding this new recording. There are reasons this show is rarely seen today because it is an antiqued but recent history capsule few are interested in seeing. Perhaps to future generations farther removed from the '60s, it will merit a revival. Not today and the new recording has nothing special to recommend it.
 
Grade: C-

"IF WE ONLY HAVE LOVE"
KAREN AKERS
DRG Records (91483)

Musical theater star and cabaret singer Karen Akers has a mellow contralto voice that has deepened and become lovelier as she matures. Her new album, "If We Only Have Love," features a dozen reflective musical theater songs that look back lovingly and affectionately at the singer's life. There's no upbeat songs here but the picks are all wonderful and include both standards like "Try to Remember," Send In The Clowns" and the title tune along with less familiar works like "Baby's" "Patterns," "House of Flowers'" "A Sleepin' Bee," and "Nine's" "Be On Your Own." Don Rebic accompanies Akers with sensitive piano arrangements that do justice by the songs and flatter Akers voice. The CD is short and Akers could have included a few more songs but it is a lovely, touching and moving recording by an artist who knows how to express her deep-felt emotions through what she describes as her favorite theater songs.
 
Grade: A

"BOUNCE"
Original Cast
Nonesuch (79830-2)

"Bounce," Stephen Sondheim's first new musical since "Passion" in 1994, received mixed notices during its Chicago and Washington, D.C. tryout engagements. The reviews and lukewarm audience reaction didn't entice producers to transfer the show to Broadway, but it was recorded in Washington. The almost 75-minute recording captures a Sondheim score that is more melodic than many of his shows, but there's little new in the songs and most recall earlier Sondheim tunes.

"Bounce" is a biography of Wilson and Addison Mizner, two opportunistic brothers who, together and apart, dabbled at several careers and ruined most of their chances before moving on to something else. The brothers parted before they died convinced that they caused their own downfalls.

The music is pleasant and quite charming. "The Best Thing That Ever Has Happened" is one of Sondheim's loveliest ballads and winds its way throughout the score. The music captures the brothers' diverse careers like Alaskan gold mining and show business and the pair's rocky relationship is also caught in melodies.

Howard McGillin's effervescent Wilson is quite the sleazy playboy. His songs with his one-time romantic liaison, Nellie, played with sincere passion by Michele Pawk, are winning. As the more focused and stalwart Addison, Richard Kind makes the part his own as he strikes off on his own to revolutionize architecture in the boom days of pre-Depression era Florida. The brothers' first fling for gold in Alaska has some solid songs and Addison's gay infatuation with Hollis Bessemer is sensitively conveyed in "You." There's also a welcome appearance by Hollywood movie musical legend Jane Powell as the Mizner's ballsy mother.

You will be charmed by Sondheim's score even if the show proved garbled and confusing on stage. Like most of his less successful works, "Bounce" will no doubt go through extensive revisions over time until its problems are fixed and it finally appears in New York. In the interim, the "Bounce" cast recording is a nice addition to the Stephen Sondheim's musical theater canon.
 
Grade: B+

"PETER HOWARD'S BROADWAY"
Original Cast (OC 6075)

Peter Howard has had an extensive Broadway career as a music director and dance music arranger. He's worked on such shows as "Carnival," "The Sound of Music," "Hello, Dolly," "1776," "Annie," "Baby," "My One and Only," "Barnum," "Chicago" and "Crazy for You." In "Peter Howard's Broadway," he sings song hits from his career shows and relates some interesting stories about shows he's worked on. He's not much of a singer and some of the songs are unpleasant renditions but the wide range of shows and his tales make this CD a treasure chest of information for show music aficionados who love bits about behind-the-scenes touches of Broadway musicals.
 
Grade: C+

JANE OLIVOR "SAFE RETURN"
P S Classics (PS-417)

Back in the late '70s, pop singer Jane Olivor overwhelmed me with her mellow and lovely voice. She had a magical way with ballads and love songs. I followed the singer's career and purchased all her albums. Her success continued to rise up to her triumphant 1978 Academy Award appearance singing "The Last Time I Felt Like This." She disappeared then during her then new husband's battle with cancer and when her stage fright further separated from her fans and live audiences. Aside from a few appearances in the early '90s she's stayed away until late last year when she reemerged. Now comes a new live concert album, "Safe Return," of her return concert. The show was recorded and has been released as both a CD and DVD. The CD reveals Olivor's voice as still silken and lovely, not marred by the years but enhanced and strengthened. The 26 tracks include several wonderful arrangements of musical theater songs plus lots of pop tunes including several written by Olivor herself. It was a joy to put the CD on and relish the exquisite loveliness of Olivor's elegant singing. She's never been a screamer and she hasn't changed. It's good to have Jane Olivor back and let's hope she soon tours the country so all her fans can renew a welcome acquaintance with this great singer.
 
Grade: A

"GAY'S THE WORD"
Original London Cast
Bayview Recording Company (CS001)

"Gay's the Word" was Ivor Novello's 1951 attempt to mock the operetta style of show he had made famous in his many London hits. He teamed with Alan Melville, a revue author, on "Gay's the Word." The two wrote a musical that looked at the then musical theater battle between the old style operettas and the new style brought to fruition by Rodgers and Hammerstein. "Gay's the Word" sounds like the operetta musical style won. The show was written for longtime London star Cicely Courtneidge and the new star Lizbeth Webb from "Bless the Bride." Also in the cast was Elizabeth Seal who went on to stardom in "Irma La Douce." The resulting score is full of wonderfully melodic but very old-fashioned sounding tunes during the last stages of the development of a new musical. Courtneidge is funny and charming. The CD includes just eight songs from the original cast with five bonus tracks of show song hits sung by other contemporary singers including Frank Sinatra's take on "If Only He'd Look My Way." "Gay's the Word" is an amazing find from a bygone era and Bayview deserves show music fans praise for restoring this chestnut and making it available again.
 
Grade: B

DAN CHAMEROY "ME"
Dan Chameroy (No Number)

Footlights, the wonderful New York store that sells show music along with movie soundtracks, imports some unusual CDs with show themes. Many feature artists who have not yet become known in the United States. Dan Chameroy's first CD, "Me," is devoted to old and new show tunes and the attractive young performer has a likeable if undistinguished voice. He sings 12 tracks including such standards as "My Fair Lady's" "I've Grown Accustomed To Her Face," "I Can See It" from "The Fantasticks," "The Impossible Dream," and "Camelot's" "If Ever I Would Leave You" along with some unique songs from "Anastasia" ("Journey To The Past"), "Unusual Way" from "Nine," "Not A Day Goes By" from "Merrily We Roll Along," and "High Button Shoes" "I Still Get Jealous." The album ends with a stirring "This Is the Moment," the current male torch song. Chameroy's voice is pleasant and nice if a bit nasal and it would be interesting to see him perform in a musical.
 
Grade: B-

REBECCA LUKER "LEAVING HOME"
PS Classics (PS-415)

Rebecca Luker has starred in a number of Broadway triumphs, most recently "Nine" and "The Music Man." Her new album, "Leaving Home," abandons her show music successes in favor of a return to her roots in folk and rock compositions. She sounds relaxed and comfortable with this repertory but the songs are not as enjoyable to show music fans. Only one song of the 14 tracks return to her Broadway experiences when she does a wonderful and rich duet with her "The Secret Garden" co-star, Alison Fraser, in "Wick." The album exposes us show music people to new music by major artists but I love Luker's voice wrapped around show tunes. "Leaving Home" may be a fine CD but it disappoints me.
 
Grade: C

"THE THING ABOUT MEN"
Original Off-Broadway Cast
DRG Records (DRG 94772)

Were the creators of "I Love You, You're Perfect, Now Change" destined for another big time surprise hit? With their new show, "The Thing About Men," the answer is a big "no." The new show had a short, unsuccessful run. The songs aren't as clever and the melodies aren't as cute and innovative as the team's earlier success. The story traces a cheating husband and wife. The husband moves in with his wife's lover and everyone tries to catch each other. It's based on a German film, "Men," by Doris Dorrie. The heavy-handed adaptation is by Joe DiPietro with music from Jimmy Roberts. The most attractive asset of the Off-Broadway production is the impressive cast headed by Marc Kudisch as the two-timing husband, Leah Hocking as his wife, and Ron Bohmer as the wife's impoverished artist/lover. It makes for easy enough listening but its nothing distinguished and the humor isn't as good.
 
Grade: C

"THE BROADWAY MUSICALS OF 1953"
Original Town Hall Cast
Bayview Recording Company (RNBW026)

Scott Siegel's popular Broadway By the Year series continues with "The Broadway Musicals of 1953," and this was a strong year and a more familiar season for me since these musicals were all relatively new and popular when I started attending musicals in the late '50s and early '60s. The selection of shows is bountiful from Rodgers and Hammerstein's least popular show, "Me and Juliet," to Leonard Bernstein's "Wonderful Town" that is enjoying its own Broadway revival now, to Cole Porter's delightful "Can-Can," and the exotic musical "Kismet" based on Alexander Borodin's classical music compositions. This same prolific season also contributed the less known but still musically robust revue "John Murray Anderson's Almanac," the interesting but unsuccessful "Carnival in Flanders," and the short-lived "Hazel Flagg." "Wonderful Town," "Can-Can," and "Kismet" dominate the 21 selections used to represent the year and, as always, the cast is outstanding with the best talent of the contemporary musical theater interpreting them. Here Davis Gaines shines in several songs that use his rich voice and Debbie Gravitte is a special guest and wonderful singer. The rest of the cast (Andrea Burns, Julia Murney, Ed Staudenmayer, and Scott Coulter) are all great. Favorite selections include "Kismet's" "Stranger In Paradise" with Gaines and Burns, this pair again in the same show's "And This Is My Beloved" that includes Staudenmayer and Coulter, and Murney's "I Love Paris" from "Can-Can" plus "Wonderful Town's" humorous "One Hundred Easy Ways To Lose A Man" with Murney as well. Every show from 1953 may not have been a big hit but all the selections are familiar and melodic. One wonders how recent years will sound if this successful series continues into the future. These By the Year shows are always a welcome new edition.
 
Grade: A

"DESTRY RIDES AGAIN"
Original London Cast
JAY Records (CDJAY 1377)

Although "Destry Rides Again" was a 1959 Broadway success, the show didn't make it to London until many years later in a 1982 Donmar version that was scaled down with actors doubling as musicians. The source material, presented in three movie treatments was adapted by Leonard Gershe from Max Brand's story with music by Harold Rome. It has an attractive old West story about Frenchy, a saloon singer, and Tom Destry, the new deputy sheriff of Bottleneck. It focused on the leads and the conflict between good and evil in a violent frontier town at the conclusion of the 19th century. The score is a lusty and tuneful one and the London leads, Jill Gascoine as Frenchy and Alfred Molina (currently making his Broadway debut in the revival of "Fiddler on the Roof" as Tevye) as Destry, are both winning singers who give the parts appropriate panache and rough tough crudeness to provide the show's necessary grit. Yes, the original Broadway cast recording with Andy Griffith as Destry and Dolores Gray as Frenchy is better, but this London version is a solid and attractive alternative.
 
Grade: B

"CATS"
Original Polish Cast
Really Useful Records/Universal (981 656 6)

Andrew Lloyd Webber controls his shows very tightly so original foreign cast versions of his big hits sound almost identical to the Broadway and London cast versions that set the individual show standards. The new Polish cast "Cats" is no exception. It's well sung with nothing new to any of the characterizations or the way the familiar songs are delivered. The individual voices are strong and the same dramatic moments expected like Grizabella's plaintive "Memory" or "Mr. Mistoffelees" have the same huge buildup and the big chorus numbers, especially "The Journey to the Heaviside Layer," works just as brilliantly. For those who adore this show, the Polish cast version brings another in a long and distinguished series of foreign language versions of this most popular of shows.
 
Grade: A

"THE MUSICAL OF MUSICALS"
Original York Theatre Company Cast
Jay Records (CDJAY 1376)

Only in New York where Broadway musicals so dominate theater offerings have spoofs of the genre really succeeded. There's a large following of musical theater lovers who enjoy insider jokes. "Forbidden Broadway" has played for years in continually updated versions that delight theatergoers. In that revue, actual show tunes are used with witty lyric changes that lovingly mock the musicals. Earlier this year, York Theatre Company presented "The Musical of Musicals," a five-part spoof in which a silly story is carried through in slams at Rodgers and Hammerstein called "Corn;" Stephen Sondheim in "A Little Complex;" Jerry Herman in "Dear Abby;" Andrew Lloyd Webber in "Aspects of Junita;" and Kander and Ebb in "Speakeasy." The show is the brainchild of Eric Rockwell and Joanne Bogart who played two of the roles in the off-Broadway production with Craig Fols and Lovette George. The humor is consistently funny for people who really know their musicals, less so for those with just a passing familiarity with the last 60 years of Broadway tuners. I most enjoyed the Sondheim sequence. I missed the show during a New York trip and had awaited the cast album. It's winsome and clever to be sure, but like the "Forbidden Broadway" recordings, it's not a CD you will reach for often after you've enjoyed the humor once.
 
Grade: C+

"MISS GERTRUDE LAWRENCE IN 'THE KING & I' 'LADY IN THE DARK' 'NYMPH ERRANT'"
Original and Studio Casts
Pearl (GEM 0208)

Gertrude Lawrence was a big Broadway and London stage star. Her most famous musical role was Anna in the original "The King and I" and she died during its run. Pearl has collected three cast albums featuring Lawrence and put them on one CD. "Miss Gertrude Lawrence in 'The King & I' "Lady in the Dark' 'Nymph Errant'" begins with the long available Rodgers and Hammerstein hit at the beginning. Lawrence was ill during "The King and I" run and she often sang flat so her vocals on the cast recording are not stirring. "Lady in the Dark," an earlier show she did by Kurt Weill and Ira Gershwin, was a trendsetter involving dream sequences while the heroine undergoes psychoanalysis. It features better singing by Lawrence as does 1933's "Nymph Errant" by Cole Porter, a show that marked Lawrence's last appearance in a London musical. The last two shows are not cast recordings and the limited selections all feature Lawrence. This is a definitive collection of Gertrude Lawrence's musical theater work. If you don't already have these recordings, this compilation release is welcome.
 
Grade: B

"WISH YOU WERE HERE"/"PAINT YOUR WAGON"
Original London Casts
Sepia Records (SEPIA 1030)

Three Broadway musical hits arrived in London in 1953. Sepia Records has combined the complete London cast albums of "Wish You Were Here" and "Paint Your Wagon" with several bonus tracks by the two London stars of "Guys and Dolls" that did not come from Broadway. There was no complete London cast album made of "Guys and Dolls." "Wish You Were Here" is set a summer camp (changed to a holiday camp for Londoners who wouldn't understand a summer camp) and features a swimming pool. The musical introduced composer Harold Rome to British audiences and its score including the pop hit title tune is catchy and tuneful. The British cast sounds wonderful. Lerner and Loewe's London "Paint Your Wagon" hasn't been converted previously to the CD format and is welcome. It stars Bobby Howes and his daughter, Sally Ann Howes, playing father and daughter on stage. The rousing score backs up the simple story of gold miners. It's definitely lesser Lerner and Loewe but is still a solid show with pleasing songs. The "Guys and Dolls" tracks reflect the British Sarah Brown, Lizbeth Webb, and American Jerry Wayne playing Sky Masterson. This compilation CD is a welcome record of three key American musicals in fine London cast recordings.
 
Grade: A

"WONDERFUL TOWN"
2003 Broadway Revival Cast
DRG Records

Although the current Broadway revival cast recording of "Wonderful Town" won't hit stores until March 9, I received an advance copy and the Leonard Bernstein score sounds great in the Encore production that has garnered glowing notices for star Donna Murphy. Murphy is cast against type as Ruth Sherwood, a budding Ohio writer who hits New York in 1935 with her sister Eileen. The rollicking musical numbers are well performed by a cast that includes Jennifer Westfeldt's perky Eileen and Greg Edelman's Robert Baker, Murphy's love interest. The large orchestra under the superb musical direction of Rob Fisher gives the music the big, well-orchestrated sound it needs. Murphy works hard to be the brassy and pushy Ruth and she plays the role for all its comedic touches. She's certainly not perfect in the role but she gives a good account of Ruth. The recording includes more of the score than other earlier releases and two bonus tracks feature lyric writers Betty Comeden and Adolph Green in medleys of four popular song hits from the show. Murphy struggled when I saw the show in New York with the harmonies in the "Ohio" duet with Westfeldt but on the recording she gets them right. As she does in most of her performances, Murphy drifts off pitch with annoying regularity but overall her numbers sound good here. Perhaps Murphy doesn't equal original star Rosalind Russell but this solid recording of a great score is welcome.
 
Grade: B

"THIS IS THE ARMY"/"TEXAS, LI'L DARLIN'"/"CALL ME MISTER"
Original Broadway Casts
Sepia Records (SEPIA 1005)

"This Is the Army" and "Call Me Mister" have been released together recently by Decca Broadway and that label promises "Texas Li'l Darlin'" later this year. In the interim, London's Sepia Records has released a three-show compilation that adds 1949's "Texas Li'l Darlin" to the already available "This Is the Army" and "Call Me Mister." I've reviewed the two World War II related shows before so I'll focus on "Texas" here. The breezy score with music by Robert Emmett Dolan and lyrics by Johnny Mercer is typical of the era and the eight numbers included are well sung by the original cast. It combined the new "Oklahoma" style integrated book with and some clever political satire in a story about a race for high office between a State Senator and an ex-GI who is the love with the Senator's daughter. A happy ending sees the young man win both the political contest and the girl. It is a good example of the lightweight musicals that dominated Broadway during this period and it's a nice addition to other shows from this period already available.
 
Grade: B-

"FLAHOOLEY"
Original Broadway Cast
DRG Records (19059)

The arrival of any re-release of a Barbara Cook cast recording is always welcome. Years ago, Angel Records released the first CD transfer of "Flahooley," Cook's debut Broadway show, but that CD has long been out-of-print. Now, DRG Records in its continuing series of cast CD releases has reissued the delightful show. It is due in stores March 23.

"Flahooley" has become a legendary show since Cook's career took off but it was not successful when it premiered back in 1951 and lasted just 40 performances. It was a show ahead of its time - complete with Bil Baird marionettes. It also starred the sultry Yma Sumac, who, according to accompanying recollections from Cook, "was actually just stuck into the show" about two young lovers played by Cook and Jerome Courtland. The convoluted plot is inconsequential but the Sammy Fain/E. Y. Harburg score is rich with melodic tunes.

Cook's glistening soprano sounds fresh and alive and it's easy to understand why her debut was greeted with acclaim by the New York critics. She is featured in three of the show's best songs, "Here's to Your Illusions," "He's Only Wonderful," and "Come Back, Little Genie."

Cook claims "He's Only Wonderful" was her favorite but my favorite is the breezy "Here's to Your Illusions." The show may have failed but having the cast album with such a bright score and Cook's charming singing plus the chance to hear Sumac's unique voice makes "Flahooley" a welcome addition to any show music collection. It's nice to have it back!
 
Grade: A

"THE KING AND I"/"GOLDEN CITY"
Original London Casts
Sepia Records (SEPIA 1027)

Sepia Records has been releasing old London shows on re-mastered CDs and its latest includes the original British version of Rodgers and Hammerstein's masterpiece, "The King and I," plus the charming musical romance of the South African Gold Rush, "Golden City," by John Tore.

"The King and I" is one of my favorite musicals with its brilliant integration of the unusual romance between the despotic King of Siam and the independent English school marm, Anna Leonowens, surrounded an elaborate recreation of the Siamese culture including the grand story ballet, "The Small House of Uncle Thomas."

The original Broadway production featured Yul Brynner's classic portrayal of the King opposite Gertrude Lawrence's last stage appearance as Anna. While Lawrence was reported to be lovely in the role, her problematic singing and deteriorating health marred her appearance and the sound of the original cast recording. For London, Herbert Lom was picked to recreate Brynner's role and he sounds like a carbon. For Anna, a dancer turned singer, Valerie Hobson, has a Lawrence sound with a limited and not beautiful singing voice. One suspects she was picked to duplicate Lawrence's sound.

Later recorded and stage Annas have sung the role far better but its nice to have the London "King and I" available to trace this rich show's history.

"Golden City" is a London show that I hadn't heard previously. The score is pleasant and the cast is strong. The musical love story showed the friction between farmers and gold prospectors, and it included lots of spectacle and dance. The sound on these early 1950s shows is quite good and two shows for the price of one makes this a good deal.
 
Grade: B

"GREAT AMERICAN MUSICALS"
Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra
EMI Classics for Pleasure (7243 5 85627 2 9)

Some people enjoy symphonic arrangements of show music but the often pompous and heavy sound of a symphony playing a musical theater score has never appealed to me. The "Great American Musicals" set features the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic in lengthy arrangements of "South Pacific," "Show Boat," "The Sound of Music," "My Fair Lady," "Porgy and Bess," "Oklahoma!," "West Side Story" and "The King and I" on two CDs. The orchestra sounds grand and lush but my usual reaction that the heaviness of the orchestrations and artificial instrumentation makes the music sound like something it isn't. If you enjoy the sound of musicals played by large orchestral ensembles, you'll want "Great American Musicals" but if you like the sound intended for these shows, this is a CD to skip.
 
Grade: C-

"CRAZY FOR YOU"
2000 Polish Cast
Sony Music Entertainment Polska (5010972)

The Polish cast recording of "Crazy for You" sounds just like the original Broadway cast only in Polish. The performances are top notch with strong voices and the orchestra sounds big and brassy which fits the demands of the George Gershwin score perfectly. The orchestrations are on target and the entire production must have been a close approximation if not a duplicate of New York's. One wonders how Polish audiences took to the story set in the American southwest with the exception of the initial scenes set in New York. It appears that the original production's claim to fame - the brilliant dances - are included based on the orchestral interludes and the included production photos that show some of the elaborate numbers. It's welcome to know that a big, very American musical can translate cultures and languages as easily as this fine Polish "Crazy for You" suggests. Obviously, this cast album isn't something to pick over the Broadway version but if you love the show and/or speak Polish, this is a rewardingly faithful recreation of that sharp and entertaining staging.
 
Grade: B+

"THE SOUND OF MUSIC"
2002 Dutch Cast
Universal Music (981 075-4)

The universality of Rodgers and Hammerstein's "The Sound of Music" has seen a variety of international productions and most have been successful. The 2002 Dutch cast recording has just found its way to America but it's not the best version of the show I've heard. First, the script selected is difficult to discern. The live recording opens with the original "Preludium" prior to Maria's rendition of the title tune. It's rare to see this show staged today without shifting or dropping the somewhat dark and somber church opening. The production also uses the strangest orchestrations for several of the popular song hits. Some of the tampering changes the songs enough that they aren't immediately identifiable and, in a couple of cases, it almost turns the tunes into a classical sounding takeoff of familiar symphonic works. Odd, to say the least. The cast is also strange sounding. The Maria of Maaike Widdershovan sounds much older and more mature than Maria is usually played. Was the director attempting to duplicate the look and feel of the original staging when star Mary Martin was well beyond her character's age? Widdershovan's vocals are stronger than Martin's but certainly aren't the best ever heard in the role. On the other hand, Esther Been's Mother Abbess sounds way too young for the role and her voice lacks the depth and range to make "Climb Ev'ry Mountain" the stirring anthem of hope it should be. The best lead is Hugo Haenen's Captain. His "Edelweiss" is quite moving. The children aren't the greatest and some of the expected vocal fun the children have with "So Long, Farewell" is missing. The language's guttural sound doesn't give the lyrics much lilt. A bonus DVD is included that discusses the making of the production but I had no luck playing it on my American DVD player. It must be in the European format. The elaborate cover and booklet make the production look lush and spectacular but the score is much better sung in most other available recorded versions.
 
Grade: C-

"SHERRY!"
Studio Cast
Angel Records (7243 5 33757 0 6)

Back in 1967, a musical version of Moss Hart and George S. Kaufman's "The Man Who Came to Dinner," "Sherry!" opened and closed quickly on Broadway. Following most Broadway musical closings, the original score and orchestrations are sent to the writer's publisher. The "Sherry" shipment never arrived and it was thought the score had been lost. It was one of Broadway's biggest mysteries until producer Robert Sher found the missing materials through a colleague at the Library of Congress. In the interim years, much interest in the show had been expressed in the hope that if it was ever located that a recording could be made. After the "Sherry" discovery, James Lipton, who wrote the book and lyrics, and composer Laurence Rosenthal set about to get the recording made. Leading musical theater performers were attracted and it was made starring Nathan Lane, Carol Burnett, Bernadette Peters, Tommy Tune, Tom Wopat, Lillias White, and Phyllis Newman. It's sat on the shelf until Angel Records decided to finally release it. It doesn't come out until February 24, but review copies have been circulating. After several listens, the "Sherry" score is infectious, a melodic, charming, and clever adaptation of the popular play about Sheridan Whiteside (Sherry), who was based on critic Alexander Woollcott, a crusty bachelor with snotty arrogance. Lane plays Sherry with the appropriate egotism and superiority. Burnett is delightful as Lorraine Cutler, Peters is sincere as Maggie Cutler, the secretary who finally convinces Sherry to marry, and the rest of the stellar cast all contribute wonderful musical moments. So after 33 years, the mystery is solved, "Sherry" has been found, and what an enjoyable surprise it is. Maybe it sounds better than it played in the theater or maybe it's time to give it a second chance.
 
Grade: A

"ANYTHING GOES"
Original Soundtrack Cast
Decca Broadway (B0001933-02)

Back in the heyday of movie musicals, several Broadway shows were adapted but were tailored for their popular stars with little care given to preserving the original script, characters, or even the music. Sometimes, popular songs from other composers were added and sometimes other songs from the show's composer were tapped to fill out the scores. Such a case was the 1956 film soundtrack of Cole Porter's "Anything Goes." The Decca Broadway re-release of the movie's score has a few of the familiar songs from the popular Broadway musical but it also contains other Porter tunes plus new songs from Sammy Cahn and James Van Heusen. Even the arrangements of show's tunes are different and the story was changed to reflect the personalities of stars Bing Crosby, Donald O'Connor, Jeanmarie, Mitzi Gaynor, and Phil Harris. If you are looking for a faithful "Anything Goes," skip this one in lieu of one of the recordings of the Broadway score but this movie musical is still entertaining and the cast delivers bouncy vocals of the catchy score. I guess I wish the popular Decca Broadway series would stick to the still largely untapped catalogue of Broadway recordings that they still haven't released on restored CDs before they spend time and money on movie adaptations of Broadway musicals.
 
Grade: C+

"TOM BROWN'S SCHOOLDAYS"
Original London Cast
Must Close Saturday Records (MCSR 3010)

In 1960, Lionel Bart's "Oliver" started a trend of adapting Victorian stories into West End musicals. Just fill the stage with urchins singing and you were almost guaranteed a hit. By 1972, the trend was waning from over saturation and one of the last shows to use this concept was "Tom's Brown's Schooldays," based on a novel by Thomas Hughes. The show had a book by Joan and Jack Maitland, neither popular names in London musicals, with a score by newcomer Chris Andrews. The resulting show failed but the cast album has now been made available by Must Close Saturday Records in its continuing series of London musical releases primarily from the Decca catalog. "Tom Brown's Schooldays" is a frail piece with a bouncy, catchy score but certainly one that isn't destined to be remembered. It traces the title character's life as he leaves his sheltered home for a boarding school where he is exposed to various aspects of life. The school's head master was played by well known actor Roy Dotrice who sounds over-the-top in his two musical numbers, with the school's matron played by highly touted London musical theater star Judith Bruce who took over Nancy's role in "Oliver" from Georgia Brown. The story gets clouded late by the introduction of the legend behind the Great White Horse of Uffington ancient sculpture. The recording is an interesting piece of London musical theater history but only for true collectors and those interested in British theater minutiae. It's easy to see why this show was quickly scuttled.
 
Grade: C

"ANYTHING GOES"
Studio Cast
TER/JAY Records (CDTEH 6011)

Another recording of Cole Porter's delightful "Anything Goes" seems unnecessary unless it is by a brilliant cast that can equal or better the performances of the fine recorded versions still readily available. After all, the original cast boasted the great Ethel Merman as Reno Sweeney, the on-board entertainer of the SS American on its way to London from New York. The breezy show with its bright and effervescent score demands a robust and rollicking cast - something not the case with John Yap's studio version for his Music Theatre Hour series from the TER/JAY Records label. Here he has cast the bland Louise Gold as Reno and her vocals never send the role's big numbers - "Blow Gabriel Blow," "I Get a Kick Out of You," "You're the Top," and the title tune - soaring as they should. Billy Crocker, the dashing male lead, goes to the competent Gregg Edelman who brings nothing special to the role. The recording's best part is the wonderful National Symphony Orchestra's playing of the Porter score under the majestic baton of John Owen Edwards. With the wonderful Patti LuPone Broadway revival recording, the new London revival version, and even the old transfer recordings still available of Merman's Reno, this "Anything Goes" doesn't even place on the list of possibilities.
 
Grade: C-

Show Music Notes: Two recent original Broadway cast recordings from Decca Broadway have been selling well. Both "The Boy from Oz," with Hugh Jackman's riveting performance as Peter Allen, and "Wicked," the big new Broadway hit, have been recording sales well above those usually seen for cast albums. But the success of these two recent releases hasn't changed the bleak outlook for re-mastered releases of past show hits. With the biggest cast album archives, Decca Broadway, Victor, and Sony plan fewer old show re-releases in 2004. Those 3,000 to 4,000 avid collectors don't represent enough sales to warrant the high costs of releasing as many of the long unavailable shows.

Next week look for my review of "Sherry," the new Angel release of the musical based on Kaufman's and Hart's play, "The Man Who Came to Dinner." The all-star album is an effort of love on a show thought lost until the original trunk of music was found in 1999. The recording is due in stores February 24 but I got a copy on a recent trip to New York City to catch the latest Broadway shows. It's a two-disk recording with enhanced technology that includes some video footage at the end. I've listened to the musical but haven't yet played the video material.

"Wonderful Town" was recorded January 12 by DRG Records and will preserve the Donna Murphy starring revival that was born as part of the Encores series at City Center.

No word on a cast recording of "Never Gonna Dance" but it doesn't look like it will run much longer with the sinking box office receipts for the musical based on a Hollywood movie musical and featuring a collection of old Jerome Kern tunes.

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"OH WHAT A LOVELY WAR"
Original London Cast
Must Close Saturday Records (MCSR 3008)

Joan Littlewood's 1963 hit "Oh What A Lovely War" has become the most brilliant of anti-war musical entertainment ever and now the London cast recording is again available thanks to Must Close Saturday Records. The show uses authentic World War I songs and the cast does wonderful work with the telling statements in these songs that show war's futility. There was never a script; the story around the songs found by Charles Chilton was fashioned by Joan Littlewood and the actors she used in the entertainment. The result was a rich show that brought back the feel and time of the War but also reminded audiences of the awful impacts of war and fighting among peoples. The show played New York in 1964 and a film version was made but the original London cast is the group that created this fine musical and sound great in performing their show.
 
Grade: B

"THE BEST OF THE WEST END"
Various Artists
Jay Productions, Ltd. (CDJAY 8013)

Jay Productions releases collections of song hits from current London musicals featuring the best stars of the English theater and featuring the excellent National Symphony Orchestra under the capable baton of Martin Yates. The latest, "The Best of the West End," includes excerpts from 13 shows including the upcoming stage version of "Mary Poppins." The shows represented include "The Phantom of the Opera," "Chicago," "Bombay Dreams," "Cats," "Thoroughly Modern Millie," "Jesus Christ Superstar," "The Lion King," "Chitty Chitty Bang Bang," "We Will Rock You," "Les Miserables," "Anything Goes," and "Evita." The renditions are always faithful to the source shows and the musical backup is top notch as are the singers. If you like the best of the best, "The Best of the West End" gives the current crop of London musical hits wonderful renditions.
 
Grade: B

"THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA"
Original Hungarian Cast
Really Useful Group Limited (No Number)

How many Hungarian cast recordings do we have of major Broadway musicals? Not many but now comes the original Hungarian "The Phantom of the Opera" in a two-disc, complete cast recording. Most foreign "Phantom's" have sounded like carbons of the Broadway and London casts but here the Phantom, played by Sasvari Sandor, gives a grittier and more demonstrative performance than I've heard on any cast recording to date. The Christine and Raoul both sound similar to the usual castings in these roles. The lush score is well played and it appears that nothing was spared in this successful production. The performance of Sandor makes this foreign cast recording of this major musical worth consideration for show aficionados.
 
Grade: A-

"LISTEN TO MY HEART: THE SONGS OF DAVID FRIEDMAN"
Original Off-Broadway Cast
Midder Music (MMCD201)

The recent Off-Broadway staging of "Listen to My Heart: The Songs of David Friedman" was praised by many who saw it but it didn't last long amidst the abundance of fall shows. A live recording has been released and what a wonderful collection of heartfelt, bittersweet songs it is. Most are about the trials, tribulations, and glories of love. Many hit a tender nerve or bring back personal memories of challenging situations. Most are sad and reflective but a few are comical and funny. The melodies are lovely and lush and after listening to the CD just one time there were several songs that I found myself humming. The songs are all well sung by the six-person cast that includes the composer plus the great Alix Korey and the outstanding Anne Runolfsson. This touching and lovely show deserved a better run but at least those who didn't get to see it have this excellent cast recording.
 
Grade: A

"RAZZLE DAZZLE - THE BROADWAY HITS OF KANDER & EBB
Boston Gay Men's Chorus
Boston Gay's Men's Chorus (BGMC06)

Broadway musicals have songs written to emphasize story points and character motivations. Some are large chorus numbers; others are small groups or solos. Most musical theater songs sound best in arrangements that keep them in the show context. Hearing Kander and Ebb tunes sung by a massive ensemble, the Boston Gay Men's Chorus, in "Razzle Dazzle - The Broadway Hits of Kander and Ebb," give the songs an odd sound that was not intended so the songs sound artificial and out of context in these large renditions. Also this CD includes Kander and Ebb songs that weren't written for Broadway shows making the title a less than accurate depiction of the material. The chorus sounds fine and the soloists are all solid if musically unexciting but "Razzle Dazzle - The Broadway Hits of Kander & Ebb" is a disappointment.
 
Grade: C

"THE SCARLET PIMPERNEL"
Original Dutch Cast
Sound of Music (SOMCD006)

Frank Wildhorn's "The Scarlet Pimpernel" went through three different Broadway versions before it closed after a long but unsuccessful run. Two cast albums resulted that tried to capture the changes between the versions and that featured the various casts. Now comes the Dutch cast recording which incorporates bits and pieces from all three versions but doesn't seem to follow any one version. It's a solid cast but certainly one that doesn't include the big personalities that graced the original Broadway production and the subsequent Broadway replacement casts. One wonders which of the three versions is being marketed to producers who want to mount the work as it is made available to theaters throughout the world. This Dutch cast recording doesn't answer the question and makes one wonder if Wildhorn continues modifications on this trouble-plagued musical as he tries to still fix this seemingly unfixable show.
 
Grade: B

"HOLIDAY IN PLAID"
Studio Cast
Fynsworth Alley (302 062 197 2)

The popular off-Broadway musical hit "Forever Plaid" has spun off a holiday edition, "Holiday in Plaid," which uses traditional Christmas and holiday favorites adapted into the doo-wop, four-part harmony of the '50s that the original show turned into such a hit. It uses "The Forever Plaids" characters - Sparky, Smudge, Jinx, and Frankie - and features 12 vocalists who rotate in the roles with guest star Faith Prince. It's a rollicking frolic and festive holiday tribute and if you enjoy the doo-wop harmonies and song stylings it could become your favorite Christmas CD. The holiday show, also known as "Plaid Tidings" is playing in cities around the country. That show was the inspiration of the Pasadena Playhouse where the show plays annually. The featured friend of The Plaids, Faith Prince, solos on "I'll Be Home for Christmas," and the large cast combines in different ways on different tracks to sing the wonderful holiday songs in these doo-wop arrangements. It would be a fun and warm show to see and the CD is delightful.
 
Grade: B+

"CINDY-ELLA OR I GOTTA SHOE"
Original London Cast
Must Close Saturday Records (MCSR 3009)

Must Close Saturday Records in London has been re-releasing for the first time on CD many London cast albums originally issued on the Decca label. The latest collection includes three rarely heard shows from the early sixties and 1972, "Oh What a Lovely War" and "Tom Brown's Schooldays" plus the very interesting "Cindy-Ella or I Gotta Shoe." "Cindy-Ella" got its start as a Christmas radio broadcast in 1957 and arrived for a holiday run in London in 1962 featuring a quartet of actors - Cleo Laine, Elisabeth Welch, Cy Grant, and George Browne - playing all the parts in this adaptation of the Cinderella story moved to the Deep South of New Orleans and told by a Mammy to her little girl in a tenement yard. It uses African-American songs of suffering plus a few original tunes interpolated for the show's various versions leading up to its London run. It's a fascinating telling of the familiar fairy tale, and the music and the unique twists and turns in the storytelling are clever and fun. And what a cast. Laine is always the consummate artist singing with the luxuriant husky tones she has made famous and Welsh is also an excellent actor/singer. In future weeks, I'll review the other two releases that are of more familiar London shows. "Cindy-Ella" is a wonderful show. It's amazing that more of our African-American theater companies haven't incorporated into their repertory as a holiday favorite.
 
Grade: B+

"WICKED"
Original Broadway Cast
Decca Broadway (B0001682-02)

The biggest Broadway musical hit this season so far has been "Wicked," the musicalization of Gregory Maguire's 1995 novel, "The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West," about the evil one of the famous pair from "The Wizard of Oz." It got mixed reviews but has been a strong box office draw and it's playing at the biggest Broadway house. Now, comes the original Broadway cast recording and it is a conventional sounding score by Stephen Schwartz of "Pippin" and "Godspell" fame. But the collection of songs is filled with catchy, accessible music that is a joy to hear. Too many new Broadway shows by the up and coming composers and lyricists have sophisticated, complex scores that are interesting and fascinating but are not terribly easy to warm to. It's nice to have an old-fashioned style score. And the cast is unbelievably sharp. Kristin Chenoweth is bubbly and buoyant as Galinda, later Glinda, the good witch, and Idina Menzel in a conventional role after "Rent" is quite amazing as Elphaba, the wicked witch. The supporting cast including Carole Shelley as Madame Morrible and Norbert Leo Butz as Fiyero, the love interest, are tops. Decca Broadway's packaging and booklet are up to the usual high standards they've established for all their show music releases. Yes, "Wicked's" score won't set the musical theater ahead but what a pleasure it is.
 
Grade: A

"GYPSY"
Original Soundtrack Cast
Warner Bros. Entertainment (R2 73873)

Rosalind Russell stole Ethel Merman's greatest stage achievement, Mama Rose, from The Merm when the musical's movie was made. Russell gave an adequate performance and used Merman's domineering and overpowering take on the role. Russell found none of the new nuances of Mama Rose that other stars including Angela Lansbury, Bette Midler, and Bernadette Peters have discovered in show revivals. Russell was always sensitive about her singing in the film claiming in her biography that she sung the role. Reality, though, tells us that Lisa Kirk, a stalwart musical theater performer, did most of Russell's vocals and Kirk did a good job of making her distinctive vocal style fit Russell's. Now, after years and years, the first CD release of the soundtrack includes the previously released material that featured a few brief segments of Russell but was almost exclusively Kirk's work. It also includes six bonus tracks of Russell's attempts to sing the songs and they are laughable. She sings off key almost constantly and she runs out of steam on several of the numbers as she is unable to sustain her initial power at the song's beginning. It's a fascinating documentary of Russell's failure to handle the vocals. The rest of the soundtrack is unremarkable and doesn't warrant purchase when the finer original Broadway cast recording is still available as are most of the revival recordings.
 
Grade: C

"FAME ON 42ND STREET"
Original Off-Broadway Cast
Q Records/Atlantic (93097-2)

Inspired by the hit movie, the television series and the Broadway musical, "Fame on 42nd Street" is a new Off-Broadway musical that features new music and some retreads from the original score as it looks at a group of young student actors, dancers and musicians as they interact during their four years leading up to the 1984 closing of New York's High School of the Performing Arts. The school reopened at Lincoln Center. The characters are aware of the 1980 film "Fame" on which the show is based. Throughout the piece you meet the often-quirky characters - each with their special take on a career in the arts. The score is jazzy, upbeat and in character for the booming musical sound of the early '80s. The young cast is energetic and infectious and the show is easy to enjoy. This peppy and entertaining musical won't overwhelm you with creativity but for what it is - a takeoff on an enormously popular movie and stage musical - it's not bad.
 
Grade: C+

"PETER NERO AND THE PHILLY POPS - HOLIDAY POPS FEATURING ANN HAMPTON CALLAWAY"
DRG Records (91478)

In this year's theater-inspired holiday releases, "Peter Nero and the Philly Pops - Holiday Pops featuring Ann Hampton Callaway" is a joy. It's full of upbeat familiar tunes all excitingly executed by the Philly Pops Orchestra. Peter Nero's conducting and solo piano work is a wonderful. But the real plus here for theater lovers is Ann Hampton Callaway's solo work in five of the 11 tracks. Callaway is a sultry, smoky singer with a delicious voice that she wraps around her songs lovingly. The opening number, "Celebration of Christmas," is a clever arrangement of several familiar tunes and Callaway's solo work makes the sparkling piece shine. Callaway does a lush "Christmas Lullaby," a charming "A Christmas Song," a touching "I'll Be Home for Christmas," and a festive "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas." This surprise hit left me well on my way to getting in the holiday spirit after the initial listening and I have put it on several times since as it continues to delight and capture the joys of Christmas. This holiday album is a winner!
 
Grade: A

"MY LIFE WITH ALBERTINE"
Playwrights Horizon Cast
PS Classics (PS-313)

Richard Nelson (book and lyrics) and Ricky Ian Gordon's (music and lyrics) new musical "My Life With Albertine" is an ambitious show with a complex plot and sophisticated music that places this team as one of the up-and-comers in musical theater. Based on Marcel Proust's "Remembrance of Things Past," the musical is a lush and fiery portrait of love, jealousy and betrayal set in turn-of-the-century Paris. It traces a man's obsessive affair with a beautiful orphan girl. The score is complex and contains sharply defined character songs that reveal much about the individuals, lush romantic tunes with lovely melodies, and some large chorus style numbers. The sound evokes early Stephen Sondheim works and this team has the potential to rival his works. The lyrics are telling and require rapt attention because they reveal so much about the characters. The show was premiered by Playwrights Horizon and this recording uses that cast and a better one would be hard to imagine. Brent Carver is the Narrator and the young leads are played by Chad Kimball and Kelli O'Hara. When "My Life with Albertine" arrived, it sat unplayed in a large stack of cast CDs but when I first listened to it, I was drawn to it and listened intently to the score, read the booklet about the plot, and relished the lovely music. "My Life with Albertine" was a surprise and warrants the interest and attention of anyone who has hopes for new creative forces in the American musical theater.
 
Grade: A-

"MAME"
Original Soundtrack Cast
Warner Bros./Rhino (RHM2 7843)

It has never been a surprise that the soundtrack to the unfortunate film version of Jerry Herman's "Mame" was never transferred to CD. The casting of an over-the-hill Lucille Ball in the central role was a huge mistake driven by Ball's ego. Her awful performance in every way is reflected in the finally released CD transfer of the film score. She sounds dreadful crooking and talk/singing her way through Herman's humable and tuneful songs and the rest of the cast that surrounded Ball gives this soundtrack whatever limited worth it may have. From the Broadway production comes Beatrice Arthur's boozy Vera Charles, Mame's actress friend, and Jane Connell's hysterical Agnes, the prime and proper nursemaid who spreads her wings under Mame's tutelage and has an out-of-wedlock baby. Robert Preston is a dashing Beauregard. Preston isn't a singer either but he handles his songs with a relaxed style that makes Ball's awkward attempts at singing even more distressing. "Mame" is a glistening entertainment full of sparkle and razzle-dazzle with a perfect Mame but with Ball, the movie fell flat on its face and the soundtrack is worthless.
 
Grade: F

"JERRY SPRINGER THE OPERA"
Original London Cast - Live
Sony Music UK (514792 2)

There's been plenty of talk about the London production of Richard Thomas and Stewart Lee's opera "Jerry Springer" based on the life of the colorful American TV talk show host. The opera was produced by the National Theatre and a live recording of that staging that recently reopened a commercial London run reveals it to be an ambitious and fascinating look at Springer's often bizarre viewpoints about life. The work is divided into three acts - Earth, Purgatory, and Hell - and starts with his talk show and several pointed songs that look at his often wacky opinions. At the end of Act One, he's killed and then in Act Two he awakens in Purgatory prior to his third act arrival in Hell. It's quite a musical journey and the score is interesting and the songs are often gripping. The cast is superlative, especially Michael Brandon's commanding Jerry. The release contains two CDs and the live recording includes some audience reaction. Word is that the show is headed to Broadway either this season or next and the CD makes one anxious to see this bizarre musical/opera in performance.
 
Grade: B

Show Music Recording Notes - "Wicked," the only real hit musical so far of the new Broadway season, will have its cast recording released December 16 by Decca Broadway... Due to the excellent reviews received by the Broadway revival of "Wonderful Town" and a luminescent performance by star Donna Murphy, there may be recording made... So far there are no plans to record Tony Kushner's new off-Broadway musical hit "Caroline, or Change," although the Public Theatre production has been extended through January 4 and there's talk of a Broadway transfer to the Eugene O'Neill Theatre, soon to be vacated by "Nine's" closing... Finally, the reduced prices on CDs hasn't transferred to cast recordings that remain priced as they have for years in the $16.95-$18.95 range. There have been the standard sale prices in the New York City area on new releases but nowhere are show music CDs showing up for the projected $9.99 we heard would hit for pop albums. The limited audience for show music and the fact that buyers aren't price resistant is reason.

"BROADWAY'S GREATEST GIFTS"
"CAROLS FOR A CURE - VOLUME V"
Rock-It Science Records (No Number)

You know the holidays can't be far away when the annual Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS fundraising CD arrives. This year's is the fifth in the series and it's the first time that it's a two-CD collection of some 21 carols and other music associated with Christmas and Hanukah. It features the casts of 20 current Broadway musicals. For the first time some shows like "Urinetown" and "Wicked" and others are represented by a solo number. But some star driven shows like "The Boy From Oz" feature few solo passages with star Hugh Jackman. As always, traditional Christmas carols are included but always in catchy and clever arrangements. There's less traditional music this year and a few are new. Some are better than others and some don't have much of a holiday sound to them. Highlights include "The Producers" "Too Fat to Fit," a charmer about Santa's excess poundage and how it restricts his annual deliveries. "Cabaret's" "O Tannenbaum" is more traditional and "Rent's" contribution, a nice arrangement of "O Holy Night" is amazingly simple. But if there is a highlight tune for show music lovers, it has to be "Avenue Q's" "Rod's Christmas." It combines Christmas carols with show tunes to hilarious effect and it's sung by the show's puppet stars. The most interesting and unique selection is "Nine's" "Los Peces En El Rio" ("The Fish in the River"), a Spanish tune featuring the show's original star Antonio Banderas.
 
Grade: A-

"WILD WOMEN BLUES"
1997 European Tour Cast
DRG Records (12997)

Linda Hopkins, Maxine Weldon and Mortonette Jenkins toured Europe in 1997 with "Wild Women Blues," a dynamic entertainment that was a collection of swinging, jiving blues songs in a classy revue format. DRG has released a recording of that tour but they have mislabeled it an "Original Broadway Cast" recording. According to the press release, Hopkins is currently touring America in some form of the show. The three artists have long and distinguished careers singing the blues and the collection of 15 tracks is a rockin' and rollin' pleasure. It's hard to pick favorite tracks but Hopkins four solos are high points and there are three that feature two of the women. If there was some plot built around the tunes, the accompanying booklet doesn't tell anything about it. But to listen to three outstanding blues singers belt some classic songs is enough to make this CD a joy to enjoy whether or not there's any show around it.
 
Grade: B

"THE BOY FROM OZ"
Original Broadway Cast
Decca Broadway (B0001578-02)

Hugh Jackman's Broadway debut in "The Boy From Oz," the bio-musical that features the life and music of Peter Allen, has been well documented. Now comes the show's cast album. It's due in stores on Tuesday and it captures Jackman's dynamic performance as Australian entertainer Allen, a modestly talented crooner who wrote mediocre pop tunes. Allen was always a bigger sensation in his home country than here before he died of AIDS. Much his fame came from his collaborations, including an early link with Judy Garland who pushed his career initially and introduced the gay performer to her daughter, Liza Minnelli, whom he married briefly. He used flashy clothes as his trademark and he was flamboyant covering his performing inadequacies with panache. The show traces his life using his story and the many people he encountered in his life and career. It's said the show isn't much without the presence of Jackman and his singing is solid and he captures the sound and feel of Allen. The supporting performers range in quality from Isabel Keating's strong take on Garland to Stephanie J. Block's weak sounding Minnelli. Of the supporting cast, Beth Fowler stands out as Allen's loving mother, Marion Woolnough. Jarrod Emick is touching as Allen's partner, Greg Connell, and he sings "I Honestly Love You" with tender sincerity. Based on the recording, it sounds like "The Boy From Oz" is worth seeing just for Jackman's performance, which transfers effectively to the CD. One wonders how much interest there is in Allen and his music, though, and I suspect that without Jackman's star turn, this show is destined to fade fast.
 
Grade: B-

DEBORAH GIBSON
"COLORED LIGHTS: THE BROADWAY ALBUM"
Fynsworth Alley (302 062 195 2)

Pop artist Deborah Gibson has several Broadway shows to her credit including Eponine in "Les Miserables," Sandy and Rizzo in "Grease," Fanny Brice in an American tour of "Funny Girl," Belle in "Beauty and the Beast," Gypsy Rose Lee in "Gypsy" and Sally Bowles in the current revival of "Cabaret" among others. Now she releases her first Broadway solo album, "Colored Lights." Her arrangements are pop sounding and aren't always faithful to the source-show orchestrations. She includes a Peter Allen tune from the new Hugh Jackman success "The Boy From Oz" plus songs from her many shows. She has a big vocal sound and her orchestrations compliment her voice well. It's an impressive debut album for a pop artist who has also done well in musical theater roles.
 
Grade: B+

"THE BROADWAY MUSICALS OF 1939"
Town Hall Cast
Bayview Recording Company (RNBW025)

The popular series Broadway By The Year continues with "The Broadway Musicals of 1939." It's not a year that had lots of musical theater hits we still see produced but several well-known teams contributed shows during that season. The Broadway series is created, written and hosted by Scott Siegel and the recording includes several of his stories about the shows and stars. His material is interesting, well written and clever. The shows included are "Du Barry Was A Lady," "Too Many Girls," "Very Warm For May," "Set To Music," "Yokel Boy," "George White's Scandals," "Stars In Your Eyes," "Streets of Paris" and first time recordings of "Sing For Your Supper" and "Hot Mikado." The cast, as always, is polished and poised and does all the shows justice. The tunes are charming, quaint and an interesting snapshot of the year. Amanda McBroom does a nice job on "I Didn't Know What Time It Was" from Rodgers and Hart's "Too Many Girls," Bryan Batt does well with the now polit