Company (2006 Broadway Revival Cast)
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Free Music Notes for Company (2006 Broadway Revival Cast)
Free Music Review: Loved it
Hit: 4 Stars
Loved it as it reminded me so much of going to see the show itself. Had a lot of dialog, and bridges and made it ever so easy to understand whether you'd seen it or not. Everyone was in wonderful voice. Raul Esparza is the most moving Bobby I've every seen, and I go back to the original.Free Music Review: Maybe I am partial to Esparza
Hit: 4 Stars
I love the revival of this show. I think its a beautiful version of Company with lovely vocals. I might be partial to Esparza but I truly think that this was a great revival. I think its a wonderful rendition of the Sondheim classic.Free Music Review: Company
Hit: 4 Stars
Excellent production values characterize this latest Sondheim CD. Vocals and instrumentals came through with remarkable clarity so that the words could be understood and none of the Sondheim wit was lost.Free Music Review: A refreshingly new version of classic Sondheim
Hit: 4 Stars
New voices, somewhat new orchestrations, but still one of the true breakthrough musicals.
"Being Alive" still talks to me as no other song ever has.
Free Music Review: London Cast Recording Still the Best Ever of "Company"
Hit: 3 Stars
Stephen Sondheim's 1970 musical, "Company", boasts one of musical theatre's greatest song scores; unfortunately, "Company" also suffers from perhaps "the worst" book ever written for a musical. George Furth's script is almost painful to watch unfold even in anticipation of hearing the wonderful Sondheim songs in between the inane, totally messy scenario which is devoid of any character development or humanity. No one could elevate Furth's convoluted script, not even Dean Jones, Larry Kert or even Elaine Stritch. So the same problem with the 1970 original still plagues all productions of "Company", including the 2006 revival from which this recording derives. Raul Esparza sings well but is not nearly as good as Larry Kert, the best Bobby ever, or even Dean Jones on the Original Cast recording and to make matters worse the new orchestrations actually detract, rather than enhance Sondheim's fabulous score. The greatest recording of "Company" remains the CBS London Original Cast Recording, which features the incomparable Larry Kert as Bobby and is, in actuality, with one exception, the Broadway Cast Recording sessions with Kert's vocals replacing Dean Jones. The same cast as the Broadway version also appeared in the London production, the exception being Julia Mackenzie as April so the song 'Barcelona" was re-recorded and is different from the Broadway Cast album to reflect this cast change. Kert took over the role on Broadway early in Company's original theatrical run, but not soon enough to be featured on the Broadway Cast Album which has Dean Jones, who opened the show. The London Cast Recording has not been released on CD but is worth seeking out on vinyl; in the meantime you can hear Kert's definitive performance of "Being Alive" as a bonus track on the current CD of the Broadway Cast. Kert's rendition can still send chills up your spine with his still unsurpassed combination of great acting and singing, the like of which, alas, we shall not see or hear again on Broadway, if the 2006 revival of "Company" and other recent revivals of classic shows are any indication. Most of these productions seem to rely heavily on some hack director's "creative vision" rather than concentrating on the merits of what made the original show worthy of revival in the first place. In the case of any future revival of "Company", throwing out George Furth's abysmal book would be a welcome step in the right direction as it is not one of the things that made the original production memorable or great.