Carnival (1961 Original Broadway Cast)
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Free Music Notes for Carnival (1961 Original Broadway Cast)
Free Music Review: Dreams from the Upper Shelf
Hit: 4 Stars
Having somewhat vilified Bob Merrill in previous reviews, I thought I should give him credit when he got it right. And he did, big time, with his 1961 score for "Carnival." I can't say it's one of the great Broadway scores of all time, but it's splendid nonetheless. The simplicity and warmth of the story seems to have brought out the best in Merrill. Song after song, the score is fresh, exuberant, clever and emotionally rich. Credit is due as well to a committed cast, most notably Anna Maria Alberghetti who perfectly personifies Lili's naivete and heart.
The image of "Beautiful candy, too pretty to eat" is a perfect one for the score of "Carnival": It's sweet, delicate and lovely; a treat to which you'll come back again and again.
Free Music Review: Underrated classic!
Hit: 4 Stars
I uncovered this gem in my local library, only to discover what a neat musical it is! I've never seen it performed onstage, which is too bad--the music is great! Ms. Alberghetti has such a nice, "legit" voice, contrasting with the hilariously bawdy, strong Kaye Ballard ("Humming" is probably one of the best overlooked songs in this genre!). Another thing I really liked was Jerry Orbach's singing--he has two angry, difficult songs, and does a masterful job with both. To sum up, this is a fantastic album for anybody who likes old-style musical theatre. It's not slickly produced, but it is well-sung good music that tells a compelling story.Free Music Review: Botched CD assembly ruins listening experience
Hit: 3 Stars
Bob Merrill's CARNIVAL was a charming, magical, lovely night in the musical theatre. It was a small production, intimate and sweet, making much use of lighting to enhance mood. MGM produced the show and album as they owned the rights to the source, their film LILI. They produced the cast album and hoped to film the show. It had a successful run (over 700 performances) and the flim was already cast (Robert Goulet, Yvette Mimieux and George Chakiris) when the project was shelved. The cast album did not do the show justice. Sound was harsh and there was much tape hiss. The CD release mixes all of the numbers up and intersperses them with recordings of the songs by various artists, including the composer himself. This is a very botched attempt to fill out a cast album to CD length. It seems this show has a history of being fiddled with by folks who just don't have a clue as to what they're dealing with. The effect is that of hanging wrecking balls on a butterfl! y.Free Music Review: Nice, but uninspiring, idea
Hit: 2 Stars
There are several raving reviews of this CD on Amazon already, so I thought I would add my $.02, since I differ from the crowd. I am not a musical critic by any means; I just know what I like - and, I am currently playing in the orchestra for a local production of Carnival. So, my opinion: for some reason this CD and the music/lyrics in general are irritating. First, the CD performance: Ms. Alberghetti has a "swoopy" style where she slides into and out of the melody line and "speaks" the lyrics too often....She won a 1962 Tony award for best musical actress -- her acting must have been better than her singing. Also, the gentleman who plays Marco does not sing well...when singing with Kay Ballard in "Always You". The CD is rounded out with Bob Merrill singing some of the tunes, I assume as a demonstration of how his songs go. The only bonus song on this CD that's worth listening to is Mel Torme's rendition of "Her Face", which sounds good in his smooth style. But why did they feel a need to put these bonus tracks on this CD?
Second, the music and lyrics. I must first say that "Love Makes the World Go 'Round" is a very nice blend of melody and lyrics, although seems too short at 1:30.... There is a lot of repetition in the lyrics, and some of the lyrics seem to wander for the sake of rhyme or to fit the melody line. Many songs jump in meter from 2/2 to 3/4 to 4/4 to 6/8, making them unnecessarily complex. Complexity can be wonderful, as in Berstein's score for "West Side Story", but it doesn't seem to work well in some of the Carnival songs. "I Hate Him" is a particular example of trying to mash words and music together.
To balance this out through, I must say that Kay Ballard in "Humming" is excellent -- you can almost see her facial expression as she sings "my darling baby boy...", and she does use the "spoken" melody very effectively -- "...striking matches in the air to get rid of her perfume!"
In summary, this CD and the music/lyrics of the production are definitely not the caliber of a "Sound of Music" or "My Fair Lady" or "Camelot". The play won the New York Drama Critics Circle award in 1961 for best musical -- so the acting and production must have been done well. You may later be singing "Love Makes the World Go 'Round" to yourself, but I think the rest of the tunes are easily forgotten.