Is Wildhorn that bad?

[Daniel3]

Posted: 2/15/05 at 7:49am

I only know "this is the moment" and a few of his pop songs, is he really really bad, or just a bit lame?

[redhotinnyc2]

Posted: 2/15/05 at 8:58am

Personally I feel that he is really bad. He may write a decent pop melody once in a while - but the lyrics (no matter who he writes with) are always horrifically bad from an acting viewpoint. I think he should stick to writing pop stuff and not for theatre.

[joeyjoe]

Posted: 2/15/05 at 9:01am

remember, Wildhorn doesn't write lyrics for his own shows... blame that on Leslie Bricusse, Nan Knighton, Jack Murphy, and Don Black..., Updated On: 2/15/05 at 09:01 AM

[baddadnpa]

Posted: 2/15/05 at 9:03am

I think he is a great pop song writer. That doesn't mean he is a good musical writer.

[PleaseChangeMe]

Posted: 2/15/05 at 9:07am

I find that he is overly dramatic, to the point where it's just annoying. Like Les Miz over and over and over and over.

[Jamie Hat]

Posted: 2/15/05 at 9:18am

The bad subject matter is hard to work with a lot of the time.
I'd like to see someone else write J&H, I don't know if it could be done much better.

But there are producers who love it (and him) so we can all expect more of it...(i.e. Frankenstien)

[Mister Matt]

Posted: 2/15/05 at 9:35am

I do not think he is that bad at all. J&H was actually an amazing show before it went to Broadway. I thought Scarlet Pimpernel (the first one) was absolutely delightful and had quite good lyrics. When I Look at You is one of my all-time favorite showtunes. The staging and performances were terrific from beginning to end. When it was over, I wanted to sit and watch the whole thing again. The Civil War was simply a bad concept to begin with and made no sense. I was surprised it got produced at all. I have not seen Dracula, so I cannot fully comment on it, but I heard the score and I definitely think it is Wildhorn's weakest effort. Svengali showed promise, but was very poorly staged and I have heard good things about Camille Claudel. I think Wildhorn is simply an easy target and people enjoy making fun of him. There are far worse composers out there.

PleasChangeMe - I think the Les Mis comment is one of the greatest compliments you could give to Wildhorn. LOL I have seen Les Mis over and over and over and I will be seeing it again soon. To compare the work of Wildhorn to one of Broadway's (and the world's) longest running and beloved shows is quite an honor.

[redhotinnyc2]

Posted: 2/15/05 at 9:43am

thats why I said NO MATTER WHO HE WRITE WITH...the lyricists he chooses are just as bad as he is...lol...

[WOSQ]

Posted: 2/15/05 at 9:51am

I don't think Wildhorn is "bad" per se, but I think his work is sustained mediocrity.

The music isn't bad, just familiar and generic. All the dots are connected, but without a singular voice.

Dull, as in "not sharp" and "unkeen" and/or "not shiny" and "matte".

[Loge]

Posted: 2/15/05 at 11:04am

I like Wildhorn. I enjoyed Jekyll & Hyde and think the score of SP is fantastic! Writing a musical is no easy task and it's easy for us to sit here and take wacks at him, but could any of us write as good as him? Of course not, or we'd be on Bdway and not here. I think he is an easy target and people like to make fun of him. There are definitely better composers out there, but there are a lot who produce worse works and get much more respect (AIDA comes to mind).

[bostonbroadwayfan]

Posted: 2/15/05 at 11:16am

He didn't do Linda Eder any favors by doing GOLD, Linda should be sticking with standards and not going into pop.

[umgeoboy]

Posted: 2/15/05 at 11:23am

he is not bad at all. He does not have the best colaborators. He like ALW are easy to dig into because of the pop sound of their shows.

But both ALW and Wildhorn have their followers and lots of producers willing to give them money to bring their shows to broadway. I hope both of them find a new hit sometime soon.

[broadwaynut20]

Posted: 2/15/05 at 11:23am

i love frank wildhorn. jekyll and hyde was amazing and i actually prefer it over other hits like the phantom of the opera. so what if he is a pop writer, his material is not the only pop on broadway. this is the moment has become a broadway standard and in my opinion linda eder would not be who she is without him

[baddadnpa]

Posted: 2/15/05 at 11:26am

He writes songs with no idea where the songs fit into a musical and does not take into account character. Good songs, but they don't belong to a particular setting or character. That is why so much of what he writes ends up cut - it just doesn't fit.

[umgeoboy]

Posted: 2/15/05 at 11:28am

broadwaynut your right that linda probably would nto be where she is without frank. I love linda's voice and have seen her many times but without j&h and frank writing numerous scores, and songs for her she would be no where.

[broadwaynut20]

Posted: 2/15/05 at 11:30am

in my last post i made it seem like lina eder is not that good and is just good b/c of the material. i think linda eder is very talented and can really sing. just wanted to clear that up

[baddadnpa]

Posted: 2/15/05 at 11:34am

In my opinion, Wildhorn has held Linda back. She spent years on Jekyll & Hyde and aside from a few cds and numerous concert appearances, there has been no return to Broadway. She should have done at least two non-Wildhorn shows already since she left Jekyll which was a mediocre show at best. Wildhorn has not done right by Linda by holding her in his back pocket for his own music/musicals.

[umgeoboy]

Posted: 2/15/05 at 11:37am

baddadnpa if you think that then you don't know the whole truth. Wildhorn wrote 3 shows for linda btu the producers would not back them because linda was too old for the parts written. So Frank went back to write a new one for her. I'm not sure that counts as holding her back.

[Mister Matt]

Posted: 2/15/05 at 11:44am

Actually, I think Linda has to be seen live to really get it. Every time I have seen her on stage, she has "IT". That indefineable talent that completely captures an audience and knocks their socks off. All you have to do is listen to every sing audience reaction to every one of her performances. It's pretty hard to ignore. She is a vocal powerhouse than can perform the hell out of any material she is given.

[baddadnpa]

Posted: 2/15/05 at 11:47am

He may have written other shows for her, but that is the problem. If it wasn't a Wildhorn show, it wasn't considered for Linda. Wildhorn isn't the only one casting or writing shows. How many of us thought she would have been amazing as Aldonza in Man of La Mancha. There are other writers and producers on Broadway who would love to have a name talent singing in their shows. The problem has been that those writers and producers were not named Frank Wildhorn. The word had gotten around that if it wasn't a Frank show, Linda wouldn't consider it.

Not that they are separated, I am hoping that Linda will be open to non-Wildhorn projects.

[umgeoboy]

Posted: 2/15/05 at 11:48am

I agree that I think Linda should consider other shows BUT I do not think Wildhorn held her back at all.

[bostonbroadwayfan]

Posted: 2/15/05 at 11:57am

I've seen Linda numerous times and love her. I don't like the direction she went in with Frank. Re-recording songs they already did and doing covers of pop songs.
I liked J&H but it's an interesting question where Linda would have been without it.

[baddadnpa]

Posted: 2/15/05 at 12:37pm

I think Wildhorm was good for her in that it got her motivated and put her on the map. However, once her talent was recognized, it is my opinion that she was held back by not considering other work not associated with Frank. I stress, IN MY OPINION.

[Mister Matt]

Posted: 2/15/05 at 1:10pm

Well, she has done numerous concerts across the country that included non-Wildhorn material, but I would love to see her in a non-Wildhorn role. I wonder if she is really that interested in performing shows other than cabarets or concerts. Most likely she has been approached on numerous occasions, but she could have any number of reasons for turning them down. From various interviews and articles I've read, I understand she is completely devoted to her children and her horses. She definitely burst into the public's eye, so the advancement of her career is really up to how much personal interest she has in pursuing it at this point. I would definitely love to see more of her. When I met her, she was one of the most gracious, lovely and down-to-earth celebs I've ever had the pleasure to meet.

[wickedrentq]

Posted: 2/15/05 at 1:14pm

I don't know, I own the Jekyll & Hyde OBC and I honestly love it! I did see the David Hasslehoff version on TV so I basically know where they fit in the show. I see that at times the plot wasn't fully developed to mesh with all the themes, but still I really love the CD and there are songs I especially love to here the way they are sung-Facade(my absolute favorite Broadway song EVER!, Take Me As I Am, This is the Moment, and In His Eyes to name a few. I've honestly never seen or heard music from his other shows, but I dunno, I always felt I liked J&H more than most.