REVIEW: The score of this musical is classic Broadway and one of the best written by Cole Porter. As you all know, there have been several recordings of it through the years. Ethel Merman, created the character of Reno Sweeney on the original Broadway production, but other followed, among them the likes of Patti Lupone, Elaine Paige and Kim Criswell. Now we have a new cast recording, this time with Sutton Foster in the leading role and, guess what? This is my favorite rendition of the score.

I know many people don’t like Foster that much, but I’m not among them. I think her Reno is livelier than any other of the ones I heard before and she brings an energy to this recording that is missing from some of the previous recordings. Just listen to her in the title song or belting “Blow, Gabriel, Blow” and you’ll understand what I mean. At her side, Joel Grey is perfect as Moonface Martin. Together they deliver a really comic “Friendship”. As the romantic couple, Colin Donnell and Laura Osnes sound loving in “Easy to Love” and “All Through the Night”; they also give us a lovely “It’s De-Lovely”.

One of my favorite songs is the funny “Buddie, Beware”, sung with delight by Jessica Stone. I’m also very fond of “The Gypsy in Me”, here sung by Adam Godley.

What this new CD has more than any of the previous recordings is dance music. And I love that! The new dance arrangements by David Chase are really exciting; “Anything Goes” never sounded better and “Blow, Gabriel, Blow” never sounded less religious and more sexy.

I know we probably didn’t need another recording of this score, but when it’s as good as this one, I don’t mind. Give it a try; it’s kind of contagious!

REVIEW: Charles Laughton’s only movie as director is one of the darkest and more poetic fairy tales in the Cinema story. It’s simply beautiful and haunting! When I heard that it was to be transformed into a musical I feared the worst. But, although I never saw it in stage, it works perfectly on this concept album.

Composer Claibe Richardson wrote a score as haunting as the movie, which begins just like a fairy tale with the great Dorothy Loudon telling a story. Stephen Cole’s lyrics are very character oriented and respectful to the spirit of the movie; just listen to the powerful “Love & Hate”. In the whole it’s a rich score, where we can find a kind of gospel number, “The River Jesus”, a beautiful ballad that transforms into a highly dramatic song, “Wedding Night”, a playful number that ends in murder, “Trading Secrets”, and a sexy blues little number, “Ruby at the Drug Store”.

The cast was very well chosen and it’s hard to imagine someone else than Ron Raines as Harry (the Robert Mitchum role). His strong dramatic voice is perfect, that’s evident on his first song “The Lord Will Provide”, and he never fails to deliver the goods. Dorothy Loudon sounds sweeter than ever and has her big moment with “One More Harvest”. Sally Mayes shines in “Lookin’ Ahead” and, as the kids, Frankie J. Galasso and Andrea Bowen are really convincing.

It’s one of those recordings that you should listen to with your eyes closed, imagining the dark fairy tale that its unfolding. Its evocative score and great cast makes it a must for any musical fan.

REVIEW: Subtitled “songs from the great Talking Pictures Musicals, 1929-1939”, this recording was made in 1990 and released in 1991 by Shadowland Music Rialto Recordings. I don’t know if it sold many copies or not, but one thing I know, it should have been a hit!

Like they wrote on the CD sleeve, “once you entered this world, the harsh realities of the Depression were mocked – or more often simply forgotten – by the happy-go-lucky denizens of the talkies”. And believe me, this is a different world, where a simple melody lift-up our heart and a contagious rhythm make us tap. The fact that we’re living in another Depression era makes this even more important. Unfortunately, today the talkies don’t give us this kind of songs, but thankfully we can travel back in time and listen to these old wonderful tunes.

There are 28 tracks here and all of them are a pleasure to the soul. Things start with Paige O’Hara singing a delicious melody of “Good Morning Glory” and “Sing Before Breakfast” and end with Kevin McMahon “Sweepin’ the Clouds Away”. My favorite track is the amusing “Give Her a Kiss” that Rodgers & Hart wrote for the movie THE PHANTOM PRESIDENT; here it’s sung by Ann Morrison, who also has a terrific time with “I Love to Walk in the Rain”. Gordon Goodman manly delivers “One Song” from Disney’s SNOW WHITE AND THE SEVEN DWARFS. Another highlight is a Harry Warren & Al Dubin medley sung by Gregg Edelman, George Dvorsky and Kevin Ligon. There are many more enjoyable and, sometimes, forgotten songs here, and they are all sung by a terrific cast that includes Randy Graff, Jason Graee, Diana Canova, Rebecca Luker, Greg MacKellan, Adam Gruper and Anna Marie Gutierrez.

This album is a little jewel, with plenty to discover and it should be part of every musical fan CD library.

REVIEW: On the day of my 11th birthday my mother took me to the cinema to see HELLO,DOLLY!. Three things happened on that day. I fell in love with the movie, I fell in love with Barbra Streisand and I fell in love with the Jerry Herman (of whom I never heard before) score. Later, much later, I discovered that a lot of people hated the fact that Streisand took the leading role, but for me she was perfection.

After seeing the movie I went crazy looking for the movie soundtrack, but I was only able to get a copy of it (on a audio tape) years later. Since then it become my favorite of all movie soundtracks, a place it still holds “near and dear to my heart”. When, later, I bought the Broadway cast recording with Carol Channing, I confess I was a little disappointed. Don’t get me wrong, I love Carol, but she didn’t have the pipes of Miss Streisand.

But let me talk about this unforgettable soundtrack. Things begin beautifully with the amusing “Just Leave Everything to Me” that suits Streisand’s talents; later she has another great comic number a la Mae West with “So Long Dearie”. Between these two numbers she strongly delivers the powerful “Before the Parade Passes By” and no one sings it like she does. She’s also at her best with the sad ballad “Love is Only Love”.

It’s true, Walter Matthaw is a terrible singer, but he has his moment with the sexist “It Takes a Woman”. On the other hand, Michael Crawford is great as Cornelius, sings the sweet “It Takes a Moment” (later used in WALL.E) and together with Marianne McAndrew, Danny Lockin and E.J. Peaker give us the amusing “Elegance”. McAndrew, as Irene Molloy, has her solo with “Ribbons Down My Back”, the poorest song of the score.

Back to Streisand and my three favorite numbers of the movie. The third one is the terrific “Dancing”, which unfortunately wasn’t recorded in its entirety for the soundtrack. The second one is the fabulous title song, where she leads the male company and has a classic moment with Louis Armstrong. The first one is the contagious and exciting “Put on Your Sunday Clothes”; I’m passionate about this song! I think it’s one of the best ever written and it never sounded better than in this soundtrack.

I could put here all the positive adjectives I know, but that’s not necessary. I simply love this movie and its soundtrack. They are both irresistible! If you never listened to it, please say hello to Dolly/Streisand and company, you won’t regret it.

REVIEW: This musical opened at the West End in 1980 and closed after 57 performances. The fact that the production flopped could have been the death of the show, but fortunately someone (Norman Newell) thought they should do a cast recording and at least the score leaves on.

The subject of this musical was similar to the one of MACK AND MABEL and, like that show, the result is a very tuneful score. Written by David (HALF A SIXPENCE) Heneker, who co-wrote the lyrics with Warner Brown, the songs are easily assimilated and catching, with atmospheric orchestrations by Michael Reed & Alan Roper. The cast is also in perfect tune with the era of the silent movies, with Sheila White delivering a terrific performance as Mary Pickford.

Things start with the nostalgic “The Moving Picture Show” and move to the amusing “Working in Flickers”, sung by a shy Mary Pickford. Later, Lillian Gish sings two sad ballads “Every Lady Needs a Master” and “More Than a Man”. The one and only D. W. Griffith leads the company with the epic “Beyond Babel” and Adolph Zukor leads the company at the rhythm of tango with “The Industry”. But there’s more to enjoy, like Mack Sennett’s “I Just Want to Make Him Laugh”. The only odd song is the modern, kind of out of place, “Diggin’ Gold Dust”.

My favorite songs are the delicious “I Like to be the Way I Am in My Own Front Parlour” and the very 20s “Nineteen Twenty Five” and the title song. It’s true, I have a love affair with the music of the 20s and so it’s easy for me to love these songs.

This is true Broadway in its best style; traditional, funny and tuneful! I just hope that one day someone will give this show another chance. Until there, I hope you’ll enjoy the delights of this delightful cast recording.

REVIEW: The brothers Richard M. and Robert B. Sherman are mainly known for their work for Disney, that includes MARY POPPINS and BEDKNOBS AND BROOMSTICKS, but for me their best work was the score they wrote for this 1976 British movie.

The first time I saw this new adaptation of the famous Cinderella tale was back in 1977 (I was 13 years old). I was instantly conquered by its charms and by its melodious score. One song in particular sent me to heaven and stayed forever in my mind – “Suddenly It Happens”. For me, it’s the best Cinderella song ever written and it’s one of my all time favorite songs. But that’s more to enjoy, a lot more.

A solid group of British actors, not famous for their singing talent, have a ball as the members of the court and give us the funny “What Has Love Got To Do With Getting Married?” and “Protocoligorically Correct”; among that group of actors there’s dancer Christopher Gable, who leads the cast into the big production number “Position and Positioning”. As the Fairy Godmother, Annette Crosbie couldn’t be sweeter and it’s she who introduces the magical “Suddenly It Happens”.

As the Prince, Richard Chamberlain is truly charming and reveals a nice singing voice with “Why Can’t I Be Two People?” and perfectly duets with his Cinderella in the romantic ballad “Secret Kingdom” and in the beautiful waltz “He Danced With Me / She Danced With Me”. As Cinderella, Gemma Craven couldn’t be better; she makes her way to our heart with “Once I Was Loved” and breaks it with the sad “Tell Him Anything (But Not That I Love Him)” and “I Can’t Forget the Melody”. But she’s at her best with the terrific “Suddenly It Happens”.

I don’t know if the movie was a big box-office hit, but the Sherman Brothers got two Oscar nominations for their work: Best Original Song Score and Its Adaptation and Best Original Song (He Danced With Me / She Danced With Me). They should have won both. Anyway, although this musical was later adapted to the stage, this original movie soundtrack is the only recording of the score available and I strongly recommend it. It’s magic, melodious, charming, uplifting and deserves to be discovered!

REVIEW: In 1938 Richard Rodgers and Lorenz Hart adapted Shakespeare’s “The Comedy of Errors” into one of their best musicals – THE BOYS FROM SYRACUSE. In 1981, Michael Valenti and Donald Driver took the same Shakespeare play, placed the story in the Middle East and the result was OH, BROTHER! Unfortunately, this new show didn’t do well on Broadway (it closed after three performances), but even so it got a cast recording.

When, and if, you play this CD don’t expect to discover a forgotten gem. It isn’t. What you got here is a very entertaining score, best described in the title of one of its songs – “A Loud & Funny Song”, that by the way it’s my favorite on the whole album. Yes, this is kind of loud, but it’s also very funny.

The idea of taking the action to the Middle East works perfectly in numbers like “We Love an Old Story” and “Opec Maiden”. I guess it didn’t work on stage, but I believe that, besides the titles already mentioned, songs like “How Do You Want Me?” and “Everybody’s Calls Me By My Name” should get a life. There’s also a jazzy “My World’s Comin’ Unwrapped”, sung with style by Joe Morton and a very seventies “It’s a Man World” sung by the ladies and the company.

Let me get your attention by telling you who the ladies are - Judy Kaye, Alyson Reed and Mary Mastrantonio (before being known as Mary Elisabeth Mastrantonio). Alone they sound great, but together they had a wonderful time with the winning “A Loud & Funny Song”. As for the boys, besides Joe Morton, there’s Harry Groener, David-James Carroll, Alan Weeks and Richard B. Shull.

If you love musical comedy, I’m sure you can have a good time with this cast recording and some of the songs are really catchy.

REVIEW: We had to wait 20 years for this studio cast recording. It was about time!

Let me explain. This Gershwin musical had two versions, one in 1927 and one in 1930, and in 1991 a studio cast was made of both versions but, for reasons unknown to me, the 1930 version was put on hold and only now, thanks to PC Classics (Tommy Krasker was part of the 1991 group), we’re able to listen to it.

I guess that if, like me, you have the 1927 version you may think you don’t need the 1930 one. After all, the double CD of that recording had (as a kind of bonus) a few tracks from this one. But if you like classic musicals as much as I do, you shouldn’t miss it.

The 1930 version changed the main subject of the musical from cheese to chocolate and things became lighter and, for my delight, it seems more dance was introduced. As for the Gershwin’s score it didn’t lose any of its qualities and there’s plenty to enjoy here, in fact there isn’t a dull track here. From the star cast to the chorus, everyone involved gives their best and the result is a great album, with great orchestrations and the delicious sound of Broadway’s golden age.

I can’t resist numbers like “I Mean to Say”, “I’ve Got a Crush on You” and “Hangin’ Around with You”, here sung by the charming duo of Jason Graae and Juliet Lambert. It’s a pity that Rebecca Luker and Brent Barrett only share a song, the melodious “Soon” (in the 1927 version they had more duets, among those one of my favorites – “Meadow Serenade”), but Barrett strongly delivers the title song. Another couple that enjoys a funny moment, “If I Become the President”, is Beth Fowler and Charles Goff. I also love “Mademoiselle in New Rochelle”, “How About a Boy?” and “Ring-a-Ding-a-Ding-Dong Dell”. They sure don’t write songs like this anymore.

This is a great way to introduce STRIKE UP THE BAND to new generations and this is the kind of CD that should be in every Musical fan’s library. I have to end this review with a big thanks to PS Classics; you did it again!

REVIEW: The idea of a musical about Mormons may sound strange, but years ago there was a musical on Broadway entitled URINETOWN and it was a hit, so why don’t give Mormons a chance to sing and dance? The result was a big winner at this year Tonys and a box-office success.

I haven’t seen the show yet (living in Lisbon, Portugal, makes it a little bit difficult), but the Broadway Cast recording has already arrived at my hands and I had a fun time listening to it.

Written by the guys responsible for the famous “South Park”, with the help of AVENUE Q’s Robert Lopez, this score has a lot of four letter words in its lyrics and sometimes I think they went too far (“Joseph Smith American Moses”), that meaning it isn’t for everyone’s taste. Even so, the lyrics are sometimes hilarious and we forget all the “sinful” words” (“Hasa Diga Eebowai”). The authors we’re really inspired and their imagination and humor is, most of the time, contagious; just listen to “All American Prophet”, “I Believe” or “Turn It Off” to understand what I mean.

Surprisingly, most of the music is melodious. Although this isn’t exactly my type of music (sometimes it’s too modern for me - “Spooky Mormon Hell Dream” or “Man Up”) there are some catchy tunes like “Two by Two” and, no surprise here, my favorite “Turn It Off”. Some of the songs reminded me of Stephen Schwartz.
The cast sounds great and the “saint” boys really shine here. Andrew Rannells strongly delivers “I Believe”, Josh Gad has his big moment in the duet “Baptize Me” and Rory O’Malley has a terrific time with “Turn It Off”. On the female department, Nikki M. James is a revelation with “Sal Tlay Ka Siti” and “Baptize Me”.

I’ve to confess that if I had power over the Tonys, I would have given the Best Original Score to SISTER ACT, but even so this is a joyful score, with plenty to discover and to laugh with.

REVIEW: Let me begin by saying that this is my all time favorite score.

There are several recordings of this musical, including a fine movie soundtrack, and although the terrific Broadway Revival Cast is more complete, I have to choose the fantastic Original Broadway Cast starring Gwen Verdon, Chita Rivera and Jeff Orbach.

When I was 12 years old, my parents gave me this cast album as a Christmas gift and, from the first time I played it to today, it never fails to give me a fabulous time. Everything in it is perfect: the brilliant songs, the exciting Ralph Burns orchestrations, the decadent front cover, a cast made in heaven and a strong theatrical feeling that is missing from all the other recordings of the score. Nevertheless, I’ve to confess that I can’t resist the contagious “Me and My Baby“ and “Hot Honey Rag” tracks of the Broadway Revival Cast.

There isn’t a song here that I don’t like (not an easy task), but I always have a special spot in my heart for the emotional “My Own Best Friend”, the terrific “Nowadays” and the genial “Cell Block Tango”.

When I’m listening to it, all I have to do is close my eyes and I’m there, in a dark theatre with the best cast in earth and Bob Fosse’s debauched staging. It’s an unforgettable experience!

REVIEW: The musical NICK & NORA opened on Broadway on December 8, 1991, and closed on December 15, 1991. It only lasted 9 performances. Even so, it got a Tony Award nomination for Best Original Score, Music by Charles Strouse and Lyrics by Richard Maltby Jr., and someone had the good idea of releasing the score on CD.

I don’t know how it worked on stage, but there’s plenty to enjoy in the cast recording. Among the songs, there’s one of my all time favorites, “Everybody’s Wants to Do a Musical”, sung with gusto by a terrific Christine Baranksi, in what I believe is her musical theatre debut. In the leading roles, Barry Bostwick & Joanna Gleason, sound just swell and had a good time with songs like “Is There Anything Better Than Dancing” and “As Long As You’re Happy”. Also in the cast there’s Faith Prince, who strongly delivers “Men”, Debra Monk with the funny “People Get Hurt”, Chris Sarandon doesn’t sound bad with the ballad “Class” and Yvette Lawrence gives us a kind of out-of-place “Boom Chicka Boom”.

As you can see, this had a really strong cast, but somehow (I read somewhere the problem was the book) it failed on Broadway and that’s a pity. Composer Charles Strouse score (his last for Broadway, at least until now) deserves to be discovered. His songs are melodious and catchy, with excellent orchestrations by Jonathan Tunick, and the lyrics by Maltby Jr are very character oriented and funny. Besides “Everybody’s Wants to Do a Musical”, I’m very fond of “Busy Night at Lorraine’s”, where the entire cast reveals their feelings for the murdered Lorraine (Faith Prince’s character).

So forget all about this show detractors and give the cast recording a chance. You may get a nice surprise.

REVIEW: As far as new musicals go, this one had a lot in its favor: famous characters, a terrific cast, a promising composer and a personal look. Unfortunately, by listening to this cast recording (I haven’t seen the show yet), it seems things didn’t work that well.

I can’t say this it totally bad, but the songs sound, with a few exceptions, too much alike and the cast doesn’t have big chances to shine. Nathan Lane sings like he just exited THE PRODUCERS and the rest of the cast, Bebe Neuwirth included, don’t have anything that make their performances personal.

Nevertheless, there’re two numbers that I really enjoyed. Both are in the traditional Broadway style I love so much and, for me, are the only songs that stand-up in the entire score. I’m talking about “Just Around the Corner” and “Let’s Not Talk About Anything Else But Love”.

The big problem is the fact that everyone believed this could really be a good bet for a musical or, at least, a funny one, but the dark humor of the original material doesn’t translate into the songs. But the show is doing well at the box-office, so maybe the score works better on stage.

REVIEW: Recorded live at Feinstein’s, Jane’s solo album is a great surprise and makes for a perfectly enjoyable listening.

Mainly know for her work in the television series “Ally McBeal” and “30 Rock”; Jane is in fact a Broadway baby in every sense. She can act, sing and dance, and does it all with talent. I was lucky to see her live on stage in NINE and GUYS AND DOLLS and she was terrific in both roles. She also had a warm quality that embrace us, making us fall in love with her.

It’s that warm quality that makes this CD so special. She delivers all her numbers and conducts the act like she was among friends and I’m sure that by the end of the evening every member of the audience wishes to be her friend.

She excels with a hilarious version of “Zip” (with lyrics written specially for her by Marc Shaiman & Scott Wittman) and gives us the strangest version of “Diamonds Are a Girl’s Best Friend” I’ve ever listened. We can feel the love she puts in her renditions of the title song, “My Handy Man” and “Thirteen Men”” among others, she even makes Eartha Kitt’s “Old Fashioned Girl” her own. And her encore number, “Rubber Duckie” is truly delicious.

I strongly recommend everyone to meet “The Laziest Gal in Town”; in fact, Jane is the nicest girl (with a naughty sexy side that made her irresistible) in town and it’s a pleasure to meet her. One of the CDs of the year.

REVIEW: No one who knows me will be surprised to learn that this studio cast recording is, so far, my favorite CD of the year. They know I’m a sucker for an old fashion Broadway score and I love this innocent but naughty musical.

Of the entire score of this 1934 musical I only knew “You’re a Builder-Upper” in a candy version by Julie Andrews, so the rest was all-new for me and there’re several good songs in here that are worthy of discovery like “Spring Fever”, “Shoein’ the Mare” and “I’m Not Myself”.

PS Classics couldn’t get a better cast to give life to this Harold Arlen and Ira Gershwin & Yip Harburg score and everyone sounds like they’re enjoying every minute of it. Everyone has a chance to shine singing ballads or comic numbers or big production numbers, and they do: Kate Baldwin with “Spring Fever”, Faith Prince with “I Couldn’t Hold My Man”, Christopher Fitzgerald and Jessica Stone with “You’re a Builder-Upper”, Rebecca Luker with “It Was Long Ago”, Montego Glover with “Shoein’ the Mare”, Brad Oscar with “Things” and Philip Chaffin (with Baldwin) with “Fun to Be Fooled”.

On the old golden days even lesser known shows like this one had interesting scores, rich with melody, humor and contagious rhythms. This may not be almost as good as last years KITTY’S KISSES, but it’s much better than most of the new shows that opened on Broadway and Off-Broadway last seasons.

This is a must for all musical fans and we should all be grateful to Tommy Krasker for producing the CD and to Larry Moore for restoring the score. Please boys, give us more delightful recordings like this one.

REVIEW: For “A Little Night Music”, Stephen Sondheim, wrote the most haunting of all Broadway scores. There’s a hypnotic quality to it that drawn us deeper and deeper with each listening.

Sondheim’s most famous song, “Send in the Clowns”, is part of this beautiful score but, although I love it, my favorite song is “Every Day a Little Death” (that only happened after a few listenings of the score and suddenly that song become one of my all time favorites).

But must of you know the virtues of the score and probably have one or more recordings of it. For me the best one is the London National Cast starring Judi Dench as a perfect Desiree. Now there’s a new one, probably the most complete (I missed “My Husband the Pig”) of them all, and it includes parts of the dialogue to help people understand what’s going on.

I confess that, although the score sounds great as ever, this isn’t an exciting rendition of it. My big problem is Catherine Zeta-Jones (I understand that thanks to her an all new audience will discover this show); she doesn’t convince me as Desiree. She sounds false and her hush voice doesn’t do full justice to the role. The rest of the cast is very good, specially Alexander Hanson as Enrik, but the strongest reason to buy this recording is the presence of the one and only Angela Lansbury, who delivers the best “Liaisons” that I’ve ever heard.

Anyway, even with its faults, this recording sounds beautiful and haunting.

REVIEW: I’m probably the worst person in the world to review this kind of score. I love the traditional Broadway sound and I’m very resistant to other kind of music. Sometimes I found modern musical scores that I truly enjoy (SIDE SHOW comes to mind), but that’s rare and MEMPHIS isn’t one of them.

The best thing about it is its high power energy and I believe it can really work on stage, but to give it a Tony for best new score it’s too much.

As usual in new musicals, many of the songs are too much alike and only a couple stands out, “Someday” and “Make Me Stronger”. The cast give it all with talent and strong voices, with Montego Glover being the big revelation. This lady can really sing! As for Chad Kimball, he rocks with “Tear Down the House” and a couple of other songs.

I’ve already played the CD a few times, but its loudly score doesn’t grow in me; at least it isn’t boring. I’m sure people with broader tastes than I will enjoy its rhythm and if you like Rock ‘N’ Roll this one is for you.

REVIEW: Two actors, an original score, a small orchestra, a true story, lot’s of tap dancing and the result is an almost enjoyable little score.

The show suffers from a problem that is common to many new musicals, most of the songs sound exactly the same and it becomes hard to distinguish one from the other. Here the mother’s numbers sound almost like one long song (exception for “How Can I Put It Any Plainer?”) and only a couple of the son’s numbers (“The Tap Drunk” and “My Shadow”, the best song of the score) are kind of exciting (okay, there are traditional tap numbers).

The two actors, Shonn Wiley and Karen Murphy, are good, but I believe the score may benefit if played by a big orchestra and with better orchestrations. As it is, it’s only a small musical that probably works better on stage than on CD.

REVIEW: Let me begin by saying that I never thought that the original Broadway cast recording was that good. It’s true that Burt Bacharach and Hal David had a particular enjoyable music style, but I’m not sure it could work on a musical.

Forward in time and here’s the revival cast of that show, with a couple of Bacharach & David standards, “I Say a Little Prayer” and “A House Is Not a Home”, added to the score and for me that makes the difference. Thanks to that songs and a few that I enjoyed from the original, and, finally, I like this score.

The cast (although I don’t think Sean Hayes has a great voice) and the new orchestrations turn it more lively and less dated. Even a number that I really didn’t care in the original, “A Fact Can Be a Beautiful Thing”, here, thanks to Kate Finneran, becomes a highlight.

Kristin Chenoweth may not look the part, but she can really sing and that she does with gusto, specially with my favorite song of the score “Knowing When to Leave” and with “A House Is Not a Home”. Dick Latessa and Hayes have a good time with “A Young Pretty Girl Like You”. As for Hayes, he gives his best with the title song and with “She Likes Basketball”. Tony Goldwyn has his moment with the melodious “Wanting Things” and the company delivers an energetic “Turkey Lurkey Time”.

Probably most musical fans will always prefer the original, but not me. I can’t say this is great, but it’s an enjoyable listening.

REVIEW: This new cast recording of FINIAN’S RAINBOW it’s the third rendition of the score that becomes part of my CD library. Did I need another one? Probably not, but when a score is as delightful as this one, there’s always time to listen to new interpretations of these old songs.

This is probably the more complete version of the score, including lots of dance music, which I believe was previously unrecorded (“Dance of the Golden Crock” for example) and a winning cast.

I confess I’m not crazy about Kate Baldwin’s Sharon (I prefer Melissa Errico in the Irish Repertory Theatre recording), who delivers her songs with gusto. I think her voice is sometimes too strident for my taste, I prefer when she sings with a lower voice. At her side, Cheyenne Jackson sounds perfect as Woody (he beautifully sings “Old Devil Moon”) and Christopher Fitzgerald has a good time as Og. It’s him who sings my all time favorite song of the score, “When I’m Not Near the Girl I Love”.

But there’s more, Terri White strongly leads the company with “Necessity” and Chuck Cooper with the help of Bernard Dotson, James Stovall and Devin Richards, gives us an exciting “The Begat”.

Of the three recordings of this classic Burton Lane and Yip Harburg’s score, this is my favorite one and there’s always time to know “How Are Things in Glocca Morra” and to have “That Great ‘Come-and-Get-It’ Day”.

REVIEW: After the delightful recordings of THROUGH THE YEARS and FINE AND DANDY, PS Classics give us another forgotten score.

If, like me, you love the musicals of the 20s, this one is definitely for you. Its carefree atmosphere and melodious score take us back to a time where musicals were simpler, entertaining and you left the theatre humming a song or two.

Until now I confess I never heard anything about this musical and of the composer, Con Conrad, I was familiar with “Makin’ Whoopee“ and ”The Continental” from the Astaire & Rogers movie FLYING DOWN TO RIO. This award winning song (the first ever to won an Oscar) wasn’t part of KITTY’S original score, but its addition was a nice touch from the guys at PS Classics.

As for the score, I simply love the contagious “Wakin’ the Track” and “Choo Choo Love” is highly hummable. “I’m in Love” is a beautiful romantic ballad and “Two Fellows and a Girl” is the kind of song that could only have been written on those days. The cast couldn’t be better and they all sing like if the songs have been written specially for them. It may be an exaggeration, but I think this is best recording of the year for all musical lovers who love the traditional sounds of Broadway.

I read in an interview that, in order for PS Classics to be able to give us more CDs like this, they need to sell 2500 copies of this delicious recording, so what are you waiting for? Christmas is here and KITTY’S KISSES deserves to be discovered by anyone who loves good music; go and by one or two copies. I’m sure there’re more than 2500 musicals fans out there.

REVIEW: If you’re in the mood for some spiritual disco pop sounds, you’ll love this. Personally I’m not a fan of pop music, but I always had a thing for the rhythmic sounds of disco and so I’m glad to say that I enjoyed this new cast recording.

Alan Menken came up with a contagious (although some of the songs sound to much alike) score, hard to resist and, specially, very fun to listen to. This may not be serious music or a new modern classic, but it doesn’t pretend to be. What it is, is a very entertaining score, which reaches its better moments with the irresistible nun’s chorus.

Patina Miller shines with her strong voice as Sister Dolores (the Whoopi Goldberg character) and the other sisters are immaculate. For me, the best song is “Bless Our Show”, that with its Christmas feeling is the most traditional tune of the entire score.

I’m sure it works better on stage, but free your spirit and I’m sure you’ll have a good time with this new recording. You can even “Raise Your Voice” with the sisters.

REVIEW: When I was a child, my parents gave me a LP that included the soundtrack of the 1954 movie version of this musical and I always enjoyed listening to the delicious “Indian Love Call”. But my LP player stayed at my parent’s house and it’s been years since the last time I listen to it, so, besides that song, I only remember the title song. So every time I played this CD I felt transported to another era of my life.

Many people may feel that this is too old fashioned for their taste; in fact this sounds more like an operetta than a musical. But with a young and very talented Julie Andrews (she was just 23 years old when she recorded this) in the leading role, this is a must in every musical lover’s library.

As for the classic score, besides the mentioned songs, there’s plenty here to be appreciated. There’re the usual comic numbers like “Hard-Boiled Herman”, you can join the man in the manly “The Mounties”, Andrews enchants with “Lak Jeem” and “Pretty Things”, Marion Keene delivers the very musical “Totem Tom-Tom” and, of course, Andrews and Giorgio Tozzi give us a great “Indian Love Call”.

This CD also includes tracks from the 1925 London cast starring Edith Day and other bonus tracks like the famous “Indian Love Call” duet by Jeanette MacDonald and Nelson Eddy and a more exciting version of “Totem Tom-Tom” by Elizabeth Allen (already a personal favorite).

Until now, I didn’t knew of the existence of this recording, but It’s a nice surprise and we should be thankful to the guys at Sepia Records for giving us this little gem.

REVIEW: Since its opening, SHREK has been trying to succeed on Broadway, but unfortunately it seems the public isn’t buying the idea of seeing this famous Ogre as the hero of a musical comedy. But I believe that if they listen to this entertaining score, they will probably run to the theatre.

I’m not the kind of guy who likes pop music, but composer Jeanine Tesori give us an interesting score, that mixes several types of music, including a couple of more traditional Broadway tunes like “What’s Up, Duloc?”. It’s true that I don’t care much for songs like “Donkey Pot Pie”, “Who I’d Be” or “Build a Wall”, although Brian d’Arcy James strongly delivers these two last songs, but I can’t resist to “Story of My Life” or “Travel Song”.

The great Sutton Foster delivers, with the help of two young girls, the comic “I Know It’s Today” and has her big moment with the contagious “Morning Person”, that I’m sorry to say was trunked for the CD. Daniel Breaker is an amusing Donkey and Christopher Sieber is hilarious with “What’s Up, Duloc?”, my favorite track, and “The Ballad of Farquaad”. The rest of the cast gives true life to the colorful characters and the end result is a recording that’s far from monotonous and quiet enjoyable, with fine orchestrations by Danny Troob.

REVIEW: The musical MAN OF LA MANCHA put the name of Mitch Leigh in the history of the Musical and its “The Impossible Dream” is one of the greatest songs ever written for a musical. I imagine the pressure and expectation to strike gold with another show must have been intense, but the result wasn’t that good.

CRY FOR US ALL opened on Broadway in 1970, lasted nine performances (plus eighteen previews) and it was recorded for posterity. That original Broadway cast is finally available on CD. But don’t get very excited, like I did, because this is far from the LA MANCHA score.

Things start with the LA MANCHA style “The End of My Race”, then gets operatic with “How Are You, Since?”, sung by Joan Diener (the Aldonza/Dulcinea of LA MANCHA), and even more operatic with Robert (THE MOST HAPPY FELLA) Weed’s “The Mayor’s Chair”. This isn’t bad, but its too dramatic and serious; almost all songs sound heavy and there’s no much space for fun. Of course things get livelier with Helen Gallagher terrific rendition of “Swing Your Bag”, that sounds kind of out of place in the score; Steve Arlen also has some fun with the big number “This Cornucopian Land”. As for Diener, she has her way with the pretty “That Slavery is Love” and the melodious “Verandah Waltz”.

Anyway, this is one of those flops that I believe many musical fans were dying to have and I confess I feel proud for having it on my CD library. In case you don’t know, this is a limited edition of 1000 copies, so hurry up to get one.

REVIEW: In 1960 the Jules Dassin movie NEVER ON SUNDAY was a surprise hit, won an Oscar for best original song (the title song) and its leading lady, Melina Mercouri, was nominated for best actress. I never saw the movie, so I don’t know if turning it into a musical was a good idea, but someone thought so and in 1967 it opened on Broadway under the title ILLYA DARLING (Mercouri’s character).

The show reunited the leading lady with the movie director (who were married at the time) and with the movie composer, the Greek Manos Hadjidakis. Although it was nominated for several Tonys, including best Musical, Actress and Composer & Lyricist, it wasn’t a big hit.

By listening to the original Broadway cast recording, one thing is clear, after a while the Greek inspired rhythms become a little bit monotonous. As for Melina Mercouri, she sounds like a poor Marlene Dietrich (or Jeanne Moreau in the movie QUERELLE) with a Greek accent and she’s better with “Piraeus, My Love” than with “Love, Love, Love”. Of her male co-stars, only Titos Vandis convinces me with the title song, that has a lively orchestration by the great Ralph Burns. As for the famous “Never on Sunday”, well, let’s just say that I’m not a big fan of the song.

In 1968, a new Greek themed musical opened on Broadway, ZORBA. The score was by John Kander and Fred Ebb and it’s far superior to this one. But this is a must for show music collectors, who didn’t waste any time and hurriedly sold-out the limited 1000 copies of this CD.

REVIEW: The classic tale by J. M. Barrie has been the subject of several stage musicals, the best and more famous being the one by Mark Charlap & Carolyn Leigh (with additional songs by Jule Styne and Betty Comden & Adolph Green). Now, from England, comes another version.

The new score is by George Stiles and Anthony Drewe. The first one was the responsible for the breathtaking music of THE THREE MUSKETEERS (one of those scores that deserves to be discovered by musical fans) and both wrote the new songs of the MARY POPPINS stage show.

Unfortunately there’s no excitement here. The songs sound too much alike, making this a boring piece of music. There’s much talk of magic in the songs, but none come through in the songs. The songs aren’t bad, but the orchestrations aren’t very exciting, too Celtic for me, and there are too many tender ballads. In the cast, James Gillan as Peter Pan sings with a very sweet voice and David Birrell sounds perfect as Captain Hook.

I miss the excitement of flying, the emotion of the more dramatic sequences and the fun of the comic ones. I hoped that songs like “There’s Always Tomorrow” or “Just Beyond the Stars” would get me emotional, but they didn’t. For me the best track is the pretty “Build a House”.

In truth this isn’t really my cup of tea, but I’m sure some people may find it interesting.

REVIEW: Stephen Sondheim has been trying to fix his musical about the Mizner Brothers for years. First it was called WISE GUYS, then GOLD, later opened as BOUNCE and finally (at least, until now) arrived Off-Broadway as ROAD SHOW. I didn’t have the chance to hear the first two incarnations of the score, but I have the cast recording of BOUNCE and now I have this one. One thing is clear, this isn’t prime Sondheim and I think it’s time for him to move on.

It’s impossible not to compare this new recording with the one of BOUNCE, and ROAD SHOW looses. The score continues interesting, but monotonous. The orchestrations by Jonathan Tunick are great; the new cast lead by Michael Cerveris and Alexander Gemignani sounds like the real thing and there’s plenty to enjoy here, but Sondheim can do much better.

As for the songs, the best ones continue to be “Bounce”, now renamed “Waste”, and the beautiful ballad “The Best Thing That Ever Has Happened”, this time around sung by the gay brother and his lover (Claybourne Elder, who also delivers a strong “Talent”). I prefer the big numbers, like “Boca Raton” or “The Game”, of the previous recording. The new song “It’s in Your Hands” sounds like it was written for ASSASSINS and in fact the music was originally written for that musical, but it gives William Parry a good chance to shine.

If you have to choose between BOUNCE and ROAD SHOW, I recommend the first one.

REVIEW: The show opened on Broadway in 1970 and closed after 84 performances, but fortunately on those days almost everything got recorded and so some lesser shows got a life after closing its doors. Like many musicals of the late 60s early 70s, JIMMY didn’t have a terrific score, but at least it had an entertaining one, like you can check by listening to this cast recording.

The action takes places in the 20s, but with a few exceptions the songs sound more like 60s Broadway than 20s Broadway. As Jimmy, Frank Gorshin doesn’t have a great singing voice and is better with lighter songs like “Riverside Drive” than with dramatic ones like “What’s Out There for Me?”. As for the ladies, Julie Wilson has fun with “The Charmin’ Son-of-a-Bitch” and has her way with “I Only Wanna Laugh”. The always reliable Anita Gillette duets with Gorshin in the beautiful ballad “One in a Million” and gives us my favorite track, the contagious “Oh, Gee!”; I also enjoyed “The Walker Walk”.

This was a nice addition to my CD library, with plenty to enjoy and make me wish that more unpretentious scores like this one were written today.

REVIEW: Not all Rodgers & Hammerstein’s musicals turn into gold. Written in 1947, after CAROUSEL and before SOUTH PACIFIC, ALLEGRO didn’t match the success of those two shows and its score isn’t among their classics.

A cast recording was made of the original Broadway cast; with only 10 tracks it was a very truncated version of the score. Now, more than 60 years after its opening, a complete recording of that score is finally available.

With an all-star cast, this is better than the previous recording, but I regret to inform that the Rodgers & Hammerstein magic touch isn’t in full motion here. The most famous song of the show is the “The Gentleman is a Dope”, here sung with gusto by Liz Callaway, but there are other songs worthy of note like “You Are Never Away”, that gives Patrick Wilson his big moment, the beautiful “So Far” by Judy Kuhn, the ladies have a good time with “Money Isn’t Everything” and Norbert Leo Butz nicely delivers the unfortunately short “It May Be a Good Idea” and leads the company in the rousing title song.

The orchestrations are very rich and there’s plenty of instrumental tracks, plus several dialogue sequences. The cast is flawless and it’s a pity that people like Audra McDonald or Laura Benanti don’t shine more, on the other hand was a nice touch to have Marni Nixon singing “I Know It Can Happen Again”. Curiously one of the more entertaining instrumental tracks uses the song “Mountain Greenery”, written by Rodgers and Lorenz Hart in 1926 for the musical THE GIRL FRIEND.

Let’s hope the future will bring us more studio cast recordings like this one.

REVIEW: You’ve all the right to ask me why am I reviewing this album in a site about musical theatre. The answer could easily be because Luba Mason is a singer/actress who had starred in more than a couple of musicals; but the truth is because, for my surprise, I found this album quite enjoyable.

I confess that if I hadn’t received an email regarding this album, asking me to cover it on my site, I would never buy it. The reason is simple, I’m not a fan of Brazilian music, my musical tastes are rather narrow (I’m one of those guys who only likes traditional musical scores) and, although she sings in the revival cast of HOW TO SUCCEED IN BUSINESS…, Luba Mason’s name didn’t ring a bell.

For all those reasons, this KRAZY LOVE was a nice revelation. It’s a melodious album that takes us to a Brazilian world of rhythms and sounds, where it’s easy to let go. Luba, who sounds so delicious funny as Hedy la Rue in HOW TO SUCCEED IN BUSINESS…, here reveals a warm lush voice that blends perfectly with this kind of music. Her renditions of “Krazy Love”, “A Summer Night” and “Gorgeous Fool” are the highlights; all these songs were written by her, in fact only two of the album songs aren’t originals: “Olhos nos Olhos”, where she sings with a perfect Portuguese accent and “É Com Esse Que Eu Vou”, a fine duet between Luba and her husband Ruben Blades.With its rich orchestrations, bossa nova rhythms and relaxation mood, it “smells” of those longing summer afternoons by the sea. A nice surprise that I’m sure you’ll enjoy.