Kurtopia

In the world of musical theater, it’s certainly not uncommon for a song, or an entire show, to have several different recordings.  Between various casts, revivals, and Broadway stars’ albums, popular numbers get re-recorded ad nauseam.  I’m going to pick a couple well-known numbers, and tell you the best and worst recordings of them… in my humble opinion, of course.

• Memory (from Cats)
  Hits: My two favorite recordings of this best-known song from Cats are by Betty Buckley and Barbra Streisand.  Betty Buckley originated the role of Grizabella on Broadway, and won a Tony Award for her performance.  Barbra Streisand was never in Cats – she just recorded the song for her 1981 album Memories.
  Misses: Elaine Paige originated the role of Grizabella in London.  Her recording, which I first heard on Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Premiere Collection, is whiney and, well… painful.  Sarah Brightman has recorded it at least twice (once in Italian!), and both make me cringe.
• Don’t Cry For Me Argentina (from Evita)
  Hits: I have yet to hear an Eva Peron better than Patti LuPone.  Patti originated the role of Evita on Broadway, and won a Tony Award for her performance.  Surprisingly, the Carpenters also recorded this song, with Karen giving an outstanding performance.  Madonna’s rendition for the movie gets an honorable mention.
  Misses: Also on the Premiere Collection is Julie Covington’s recording of this song.  All I have to say is ick — it feels completely lifeless and uninspired compared to Patti LuPone’s original recording.  Sarah Brightman also attempted this number.  That’s all I’ll say about that.

Don’t get me wrong, Sarah Brightman isn’t all bad — just more often than not.  I think she does a great job on the Phantom of the Opera recording, and I’ve never heard a better version of "Everything’s Alright" from Jesus Christ Superstar than hers (found on Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Premiere Collection Encore).  But most of the time, she’s either far too operatic or simply light, airy, and annoying.  When it comes to Elaine Paige, however, I have yet to hear a recording of hers that I’ve enjoyed.  Patti LuPone is usually fantastic on recordings, but I thought she sounded pretty awful on the Patti LuPone Live! recording of a concert, especially on "I Dreamed A Dream" in which she literally sounds like she’s dying at the end.  Patti, Fantine doesn’t die until later in the show.  C’mon, girl.

There was a time when I considered myself to be a bit of a musical theater buff.  (Shocking, I know.)  It’s been a while since I’ve kept up very closely with Broadway, though.  Sure, I catch the occasional show, but I’m still out of the loop for the most part.  However, from time to time I find myself rediscovering my favorite shows, remembering every word to every song despite how long it’s been since I last heard them.

I’d like to share a few of my favorite shows.  They’re quintessential, at least to me.  They represent some of the greatest and timeless music in musical theater… at least as far as I’m concerned.  Keep in mind that my primary focus when talking about musicals is the music itself.

• The Phantom of the Opera
  Ok, so the movie wasn’t very good, but you don’t become the longest running show on Broadway for nothing.  Yes, the show is a visual spectacle, but it’s got some fantastic music: "Music of the Night", "All I Ask of You", "Wishing You Were Somehow Here Again", the list goes on.  I think this show was my first real introduction to musical theater.
• Les Misérables
  Talk about good music — I don’t think there’s a bad song in the entire show… and it’s a really long show!  My favorites include "At the End of the Day", "Empty Chairs at Empty Tables", and "The Confrontation".  If you’re interested in picking up a recording of it, you have about a billion to choose from.  While I’m not familiar with all of them, I’m partial to the Complete Symphonic Recording, which at the time of its release was the only complete recording of the show.  After recording the orchestra in London, they went around to different productions across the globe and recorded a few roles from each.  There’s no Patti LuPone (boo!), but there’s also no Colm Wilkinson (yay!). 
• Sunset Boulevard
  As far as I’m concerned, this was the last good show by Andrew Lloyd Webber, and it probably is my absolute favorite show of all.  While a few of the musical numbers are less than stellar, the majority of them are amazing, especially "With One Look", "As If We Never Said Goodbye", and "Let’s Have Lunch".  In terms of recordings, I much prefer the World Premiere Recording with Patti LuPone, even though it’s the pre-reworked version and isn’t totally complete.  Though Glenn Close may have done a fantastic job acting the role, her singing on the American Premiere Recording is a little painful at times… and the guy who plays Joe Gillis sounds like he has a poll shoved up his… well, you know.  There have been rumblings about a movie version, and all sorts of names have been thrown around, like Glenn Close and Barbra Streisand, but so far not much has materialized.
• The Secret Garden
  This is an amazing little show that is extremely underrated.  The music, by Lucy Simon (sister of Carly Simon), is nothing short of beautiful.  And the cast on the original recording is amazing, including a haunting Rebecca Luker.  ("Haunting" is an especially good descriptor for her here, as she plays a ghost.)  Unfortunately, I’ve never seen a professional production of this show.
• Beauty and the Beast
  You may not like its presence on Broadway, but there’s no denying that Disney’s telling of this story is simply magical.  The stage version includes all your favorite songs from the movie, as well as new ones, not to mention one that was cut from the original movie!  I’ve always thought of Beauty and the Beast as a Phantom of the Opera with a much happier ending (not to mention generally cutesier music).  In terms of the new songs, "Home" and "If I Can’t Love Her" are my favorites.  And who doesn’t like "Belle"?