Gypsy - 2008 Broadway Cast Recording
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Free Music Notes for Gypsy - 2008 Broadway Cast Recording
Free Music Review: Here She Is, World!
Hit: 5 Stars
Ladies and gentleman, presenting Ms. Patti LuPone in her finest hour.
Upon what feels like the umpteenth Broadway production and cast recording, is it really worth it to add this "Gypsy" to your CD collection? You can bet your bottom dollar.
Not only has this tight, supremely gifted cast immortalized its performance on this recording (seeing them perform the show live, however, cannot be equaled - this team works like gangbusters on a nightly basis; I've seen the show on 3 occasions over 3 months), but dusted off many Stephen Sondheim/Jule Styne compositions cut from the original 1959 production and given them a home on record for the first time.
Selections like "Who Needs Him?," which was intended to follow Herbie's departure, or "Smile, Girls," an upbeat, humorous, castanet-filled selection for Rose only heard during one ever performance of "Gypsy" - a 1959 tryout in Philadelphia with the inimitable Ethel Merman - are expertly delivered with equal passion and gusto as staples like "Everything's Coming Up Roses" and "You'll Never Get Away From Me," making this particular cast recording a warm, scintillating time capsule.
Boyd Gaines also injects "Nice She Ain't," cut from the original production due to Jack Klugman's reluctance to sing it (on account of his pedestrian vocal abilities) with finesse and personality.
The orchestra is so precise and full of pitch-perfect timing that its performance on record is equal to that of one of the show's nightly performances scheduled to play through January 2009. The sound is tight, inspired and perfectly professional. You can't ask for better.
Without the benefit of between-numbers dialogue, the listener can still perceive Louise's transformation from awkward, underappreciated teenager to bodacious brunette bombshell Gypsy Rose Lee thanks to Laura Benanti's remarkable abilities. LuPone makes Rose as larger than life as Gaines makes Herbie sympathetic and forsaken.
Key contributions from Tony Yazbeck ("All I Need Is the Girl") and Leigh Ann Larkin ("Broadway") also shine with all the sparkle and sizzle exemplary of a top-notch production of "Gypsy."
If there's any way possible, make your way to the St. James Theater by January 4, 2009. Either way, get your hands on this disc.
Free Music Review: It's become one of my favorite musicals
Hit: 5 Stars
I didn't know that much about the musical "Gypsy" until this new production hit Broadway but it's fast becoming one of my top favorite musicals.
I think Patti LuPone is easily the top Broadway actress at the moment and does a fantastic job as Mama Rose. "Everything's Coming Up Roses" and "Rose's Turn" are true show-stoppers. I'd love to be able to see both songs perform live as it would probably be a goosebumps moment for me. By far my favorite song on the recording is "The Strip". I can't tell you how many times I've listened to it already. I love the way the Laura Benanti uses her voice in this song. You can hear the exact second that Louise changes. "Little Lamb" is another one of my favorite tracks.
The additional songs are a great addition to this recording. I don't know why anyone would think that this recording is not needed when these tracks are not available on any other "Gypsy" recording. "Tomorrow is Mother's Day" and "Smile Girls" are my favorites from the addition.
The CD booklet is lovely but my only complaint is that it does not include the lyrics. I always prefer lyrics to be printed in the CD booklet. The booklet does, however, include a wonderfully written note from Patti and includes some sketches of the costumes for the musical.
I think this recording is a must for any fan of musical theatre. Patti LuPone, Laura Benanti, and Boyd Gaines all deserved their Tony Awards for their performance and I hope that "Gypsy" has a long run on Broadway.
Free Music Review: A GYPSY RECORDING FOR THE AGES.....
Hit: 5 Stars
.....possibly the finest all around recording of this legendary not having witnessed in person the other classic Mama Roses performed by the likes of Merman, Lansbury, and Daly, I did grow up with the stupendous original cast recording and to this day whenever I hear the overture and Merman's voice, it produces goose-bumps on my arms.......now comes this masterfull interpretation and I'm transported back to my front mezzanine seat where I was lucky enough to witness the superb LuPone this past spring.....this recording preserves her fabulous interpretation and we are lucky that original cast recordings are still being made today........acting with that rich, full, expressive voice of hers while never "screaming" the role as she could have easily done......the entire cast is spot-on-perfect ....what makes this recording so special for me is the true "theatrical" feel it produces without being a "live" recording of a specific performance......a sense of theatre crackles & sizzles from the start of the overture, the various "Baby/Dainty June" vaudeville numbers, an awesome "Everything's Coming Up Roses that is a bit frightening to listen to, through the best recorded version of "Together" and reaches it's stunning climax with LuPone's brilliant & monstrous "Rose's Turn".........goose-bumps once again on my arms all the way through this wonderful & magical recording.....
Luigi ~ NYC
Free Music Review: Wonderful CD
Hit: 5 Stars
I saw this cast perform the show on Broadway in May and I was very impressed at the time. I have heard many actresses as Rose,in person (LuPone, Daly, Lavin) and on record (Merman, Lansbury, Peters, Russell/Kirk, & Midler). This recording simply confirmed the impression Patti LuPone made on me live. Her voice is so powerful, so colorful, but with so much control, I am amazed. It pours out like a force of nature and suits the overbearing, overwhelming Mama Rose perfectly. She is more vulnerable and subtle than Merman (and a better singer by any standard), more brassy and blowsy than Lansbury (a little too ladylike in my view, but sang beautifully), sings so much better than Daly & Russell (who got the character mostly right, however), and is just more appropriate than the petite and underpowered Peters and Lavin. In my opinion, only Bette Midler compares to LuPone for the combo of singing and acting and, even then, I think LuPone is the better singer. Her performance is operatic in its power, while being totally true to muscial theater style. The things she does with dynamics & top notes (which are always under control and never shouted or belted) are amazing. Gyspy is a great show and Rose a great role for a Broadway diva, so it lends itself to many interpretations and performances, but this is the best Rose I have heard and that is reason enough for me to have the CD.Free Music Review: The role of a lifetime
Hit: 5 Stars
This is the only recording of Gypsy that I own and the only one I will ever need to own. Sure, Ethel Merman's Rose is iconic. Yes, the score was written specifically for her. Okay, Bernadette Peters, Angela Lansbury, and Tyne Daly all received glowing reviews for their performances as the overbearing mother. But Patti Lupone is simply giving the most ridiculously phenomenal performance of her lifetime in a role that a novice would never know was not written just for her to perform.
So you have the fantastic performance by Lupone, not to mention one of the first performances by a Herbie that can actually sing (Boyd Gaines) and a stunning supporting performance by the perfectly cast Laura Benanti as Louise (who later becomes the show's title character). All three won well-deserved Tonys for their work. Plus, you get the most complete recording ever produced, with extra songs that were cut from the show during its developmental stages so many years ago. And hearing that overture, so full and lush, is a spectacular treat.
Don't pass this one up.