A new cast recording out today

[frontrowcentre2]

Posted: 10/20/09 at 12:44pm

In THE DROWSY CHAPERONE, our host plays for us the "original cast recording" of an obscure 1920's musical comedy. It's a put-on and the writers of that 2006 Tony award winner used pastiche to re-create the style of a 1920's musical comedy.

But did you ever wonder if there really were a 1920's musical that has been forgotten, sitting in some storage boxes, waiting for The Man in the Chair to rediscover it.

That's pretty much what has happened.

PS Classics is releasing today a CD of the score for KITTY'S KISSES.

The recording stars Rebecca Luker (as Kitty) along with Victoria Clark, Kate Baldwin, Philip Chaffin, Christopher Fitzgerald, Andrea Burns, Sally Wilfert, Danny Burstein and Malcolm Gets! The cast alone should be enough to spur many of you to check out this CD.

The story behind it is fascinating. KITTY'S KISSES was a minor hit musical comedy in 1926, but it has never been previously recorded. Not even a 78-rpm of "vocal gems" was done at the time.

The show went to London where producers combined the book for this musical with songs from Rodgers and Hart's THE GIRL FRIEND. After that the score and scripts were packed away in boxes and sent to the music publisher, where they sat unopened for almost 60 years.

When producer Tommy Krasker discovered the score among the many boxes of material found in the Secaucus warehouse in 1986, he was determined to make a full recording of the show. The songs were by Con Conrad and Gus Kahn. Conrad would later win the first Academy Award for Best Song for "The Continental" in 1934. It took another 22 years to finally start recording the score, but the final CD comes out today.

And it's a total delight! From the "Choo Choo Love" with its very authentic 20's sound to the counterpoint duet of "I'm in Love" and "Promise Your Kisses" this score will leave you with a smile, and a longing for an era when shows like this were churned out 30 or 40 a season, and next season there would be 30 or 40 more!

The script leans heavily on farcical situations, with vaudeville-styled comedy routines inserted. An unmarried woman pretends to be married so she can stay at a prestigious hotel, and - horror of horrors - winds up spending the night in a bridal suite (innocently, I assure you) with a married man! What to do when his very jealous wife arrives the next morning. AS the editor of The Best Plays of 1925-26 wrote in his synopsis "Explanations at 11 pm."

The recoding is a sprightly 48 minutes of fun, with brief bits of dialogue and a couple of the comedic telephone operator scenes included. The songs, though unknown, are loaded with charm and authentic period style. When the warehouse failed to yield the show's original finale the record producers came up with an innovative one of their own. (I won't spoil the surprise but even if it isn't totally authentic, when I heard it I thought it was a brilliant idea!)

So, if you enjoyed DROWSY CHAPERONE, if you enjoy NO! NO! NANETTE, GOOD NEWS, LADY BE GOOD, Oh, KAY! and those other 20's musical comedies, or if you are a cast album collector looking for something different, buy KITTY'S KISSES on CD and give it a listen. Maybe buy an extra one and donate it to your local library or give as a unique Christmas gift.

Tommy Krasker promises that if this sells well, there are other forgotten scores that might get recorded. (No, Bryan, he is NOT going to record CRY BABY - so don't even ask!)







KITTY's KISSES

Updated On: 10/20/09 at 12:44 PM

[givesmevoice]

Posted: 10/20/09 at 1:06pm

I ordered my CD from amazon yesterday and am really excited to get it!

[lvpblues]

Posted: 10/20/09 at 1:37pm

I've listened to the album twice already. They've brought together some impressive talents (Vicki Clark as the grande dame was especially hilarious) and it's quite the charmer.

Agree about the finale; what a pleasant surprise! I hope this is the beginning of many more lost treasures on record!

~K

[PalJoey]

Posted: 10/20/09 at 1:45pm

Who wrote the songs?

[tazber]

Posted: 10/20/09 at 2:30pm

Con Conrad - music
Gus Kahn - lyrics

Updated On: 10/20/09 at 02:30 PM

[frontrowcentre2]

Posted: 10/20/09 at 3:12pm

As I said...

The songs were by Con Conrad and Gus Kahn. Conrad would later win the first Academy Award for Best Song for "The Continental" in 1934.

Con Conrad (1891-1938 ) had a number of hit songs including "Margie", "Ma, He's Making Eyes at Me", "Barney Google" and "Prisoner of Love."

I'll be featuring selections from this new CD on my radio program this Sunday morning (October 25.)

Updated On: 10/20/09 at 03:12 PM

[TimesSquareRegular]

Posted: 10/20/09 at 6:03pm

This definitely sounds like fun!

[frontrowcentre2]

Posted: 11/9/09 at 5:23pm

A lesson in cast album economics.

This CD was issued 3 weeks ago. Max Preeo on the Cast Record group reports sales to date: 350 copies.

Given that the hardcore cast album collectors number 3-4,000 I would ahev expected at least half that number.

Now true, there is no production of KITTY'S KISSES on the boards to promote this release, and it is an obscure (virtually lost) show from 1926, but I have yet to hear from anyone (of the few have have actually heard it) who was not charmed by this release.

Meanwhile it is reported that the producers of the revivals of RAGTIME and FINIAN'S RAINBOW are having a tough time getting the financing to make new cast albums.

Is it any wonder?

First of all any revival cast album has to share the market with the originals (2 each in these cases) and it is rare for a revival album to outsell the original. (CHICAGO is a rare exception.)

Yet as soon as a revival is announced - or even rumored - we get all sorts of posts hoping for a new cast album. My question is, do any of you actually BUY the albums??

How many bought the revival casts of HAIR? WEST SIDE STORY? GYPSY? SOUTH PACIFIC?

[CATSNYrevival]

Posted: 11/9/09 at 5:36pm

I purchased all of those revival recordings and actually prefer them to the original cast recordings.

Posted: 11/9/09 at 5:56pm

Sorry, I'm shocked a completely forgotten show by a less-than-first rate composer gets recorded at all, not that only 350 had an extra $15 to shell out for it.

It's goofy projects like this that took us down to 3500 hard-core showtune fans.

[Yero my Hero]

Posted: 11/9/09 at 6:05pm

How many bought the revival casts of HAIR? WEST SIDE STORY? GYPSY? SOUTH PACIFIC?

I bought GYPSY and my boyfriend bought HAIR and SOUTH PACIFIC (because we're both broke, we try not to buy duplicates since we'll be one household someday and it's silly to have two of everything), but I, too, generally prefer revival recordings to originals, with a few exceptions. The sound quality with new technology is much better. When I've seen the revival and I'm a fan of an actor in the cast, it's an even better reason to enjoy the revival recording.

[frontrowcentre2]

Posted: 11/9/09 at 6:53pm

I can buy into the argument that the newer recordings offer more material and better sound. I would welcome a new CD of FINIAN'S RAINBOW for that reason. But people are clamoring for a new set of RAGTIME which was recorded in 1996/98 so the sound on the existing disc is fine and the Broadway set is note complete.

Joe, I don't think this is what has thinned our ranks. It is a rapidly aging group, and we have lost many members due to illness and old age the last few years. Yet I would think collectors would leap at a chance to hear the first ever recording of a forgotten hit from 80 years ago than the umpteenth recording of JESUS CHRIST SUUPERATAR!

[CATSNYrevival]

Posted: 11/9/09 at 7:07pm

I agree about Ragtime. I don't see the need for another Ragtime recording, but Finian's Rainbow I would love. I'd put up the money myself if I had it.

[bk]

Posted: 11/9/09 at 7:58pm

First of all, there are hardly 3000 - 4000 hardcore collectors anymore. When I first started back in 1993, yes, there were. That was pre-Internet, and I think our lowest selling cast album, whether reissue, Broadway or off-Broadway was around 4500. Unfortunately, many of those hardcore collectors were older and have since passed on, not to be replaced by younger collectors who only want new, and downloads, and free.

After people here and elsewhere went on and on about how desperately they wanted Cry For Us All's cast album on CD, how many do you think we've sold thus far? Not as bad as Kitty's Kisses, but about 600. Anya and Illya Darling took four months to sell their 1000 copy limited edition run. House Of Flowers has sold around 700, Show Girl a little less. So, no, the hardcore collectors are not what they used to be, I'm afraid, and the youngsters only want what's being done today - not all of the youngsters, of course, only about 98% of them.

That is the reality. However, since I believe that Kitty's Kisses was a funded recording, it's all gravy. It's the recordings that actually have to be paid for in cold, hard cash by labels (and not funded by non-profit or estates or grants or by producers) that are disasters when they only sell in the hundreds. Which is why I've been sitting on a contract for one of the most desired cast album reissues ever - because given the deal that the company wants I cannot sell in the hundreds - it would lose money and that I will not do.

[After Eight]

Posted: 11/10/09 at 6:32am

I bought all of these revival recordings, and must say I prefer all the originals. There's seems to be something about creating a new work, to have invested oneself in the creative process from the beginning that gives a certain extra something to the original cast recordings. The revivals, no matter how well sung or orchestrated, have not been able to duplicate that certain something, and that makes all the difference.

I'm sorry to hear the small sales numbers for these reissues and studio recordings-- I'm one of those who bought them. But I wonder, what were the sales numbers for a flop like "Cry for Us All" when it first came out on lp?

[divarobbie2]

Posted: 11/10/09 at 3:22pm

I would just like to point out that Kitty's Kisses was funded soley by the label, and not by any other group. (Whenever anyone funds an album like there, there is always (in a PS Classics release anyway) a "Special Funding for this recording was provided by..." in the liner notes.)

[ChiChi]

Posted: 11/10/09 at 4:16pm

Very nice write up.

[bk]

Posted: 11/11/09 at 3:57am

divarobbie thanks for the clarification. I just made the assumption based on some of their past releases. Certainly, there was no negative connotation about anything in my post, which I hope you know.

[Basely Tearful]

Posted: 11/11/09 at 4:02am

I think it's horrible that the amount of people who purchase virtually every cast album has dropped. It saddens me that the younger generation mostly seems to want to look forward. While I'm no spring chicken, my generation (late 70's born) certainly doesn't worship classic flops like they should. Still, I'm proud to say that I covet these lost treasures and thank those who continue to fight to keep their legacies alive.

[divarobbie2]

Posted: 11/11/09 at 12:04pm

BK, of course there wasn't. I just wanted to set it straight that in this case, it wasn't gravy for the label at all, just something recorded and released by the label because of thier love of the score.

Now, where's my Brent Barrett album?

[bk]

Posted: 11/11/09 at 12:43pm

Brent is on his way - the reaction to his CD has been fantastic, but then he's fantastic.

And yes, it's sad that the core collectors who buy everything has dropped from 4000 to maybe 400 - shocking indeed. Of course, there must be more than 400, given that we sold out Anya and Illya Darling, but 400 seems to be the number you can count on for one of these reissues.

[fgreene1938]

Posted: 11/11/09 at 2:18pm

I want to add that until the huge CD explosion of the late 80s/early 90s, many Golden Age cast recordings had been out-of-print for decades. Because CDs were less cumbersome and lengthier than LPs, old recordings of every category of music came back into print by the thousands. However, those days are over. I live just outside of Boston and in the past decade almost all music stores have closed. Only the chains are left and they seem to carry only what's new. The music sections of both Borders and B&N are miniscule now, with very little back catalog items. Also, I work with teenagers who commonly say they haven't bought a CD in years...it's all downloads.

Times are changing. Even the top pop releases only sell a fraction of what they use to because the focus is on downloads and MP3s, not complete albums. I read an article recently that stated that most CDs are purchased by people over 50 (not sure I believe that) and that the LP/CD/album is retro and a thing of the past because musicians are focussing more on individual downloads.

When you add to this the fact that Broadway/musical theater has been significantly marginalized in popular culture (less so in the New York area), you have to accept the fact that most of the younger generations will not develop an interest in the art form. Opera and ballet were once populular art forms in certain societies. Now they're niche. That's what musical theater has become. It's sad, and I love musical theater, but it's just the way things are.

[Soliantu]

Posted: 11/12/09 at 12:23am

Interesting! Thanks