the Hollywood Studio Cast recording with julie andrews as anna, ben kingsley as the king, lea salonga as tuptim, peobo bryson as luntha and marilyn horne as lady thiang.
I like the revival recording with Donna Murphy and Lou Diamond Phillips. For my itunes playlist I just inserted "Small House of Uncle Thomas" from the London recording with Elaine Paige.
As much as I love your thought, I can't imagine Walnut St ever making a recording of the current production. Bartlett Sher will just have to cast York in his revival if it ever comes to pass!
I vote for the Julie Andrews recording. A collector's item for sure.
Add my vote for the 1977 version. It was a lavish and gorgeous production, and the recording is (something) wonderful. Brynner was brilliant. He was 57, but looked 20 years younger.
The 1977 revival recording is gorgeous! And it has Brynner as the King so you can' t go wrong (not to mention the exquisite Towers as Anna). As close as to perfection as you can get.
Just to throw in one for the home team, The King & I was written for Gertrude Lawrence and the OBC is a memorial to her final role before diagnosis with cancer forced her to leave a short way into the show's run.
It's a shame that they could fit so little material on those 33 1/3 LPs.
The OBC might make a good 2nd string recording to have for Gertrude and historical reasons.
Funny I just stumbled upon this thread in the middle of doing some research on the various productions of "The King and I". I came across this very sexy promotional photo with Yul Brynner and Gertrude Lawrence from the original Broadway production and I just have to share it!
Oh, I almost forgot! I consider the 1977 Broadway Cast Recording to be one of the best - - - if not THE best recording of the score. Martin Vidnovic and June Angela are winning as "Lun Tha" and "Tuptim". Angela especially impresses. She reaches notes in "My Lord and Master" that are thrilling. I believe she was the youngest actress ever cast in the role. She had just come off a long stint as part of the kids singing group, "The Short Circus" on the PBS children's program, "The Electric Company" where she shared screen time with Rita Moreno who played "Tuptim" in the 1956 motion picture.
I heard an anecdote once, that when The King and I was trying out in Connecticut the audience response was very flat. One night after a performance Yul and Gertrude went out to a diner for something to eat. They looked up at each other knowingly, as if each knew what the other was thinking, They agreed that one thing was lacking from the show. Beginning the next night they added the element of sexual attraction.
I wish I could remember if the source was a reliable one.
Now that I think about it, the source was probably Yul Brynner himself. After he discovered that he was dying of lung cancer, he and his wife launched a public crusade to warn off others from smoking. He was frequently interviewed, and I believe that the story of The King and I in Connecticut came from these interviews.