King David

[mwjr16]

Posted: 9/5/05 at 2:28am

Does anyone know where I can get the music, sheet music, cd, etc. I know its like the holy grail of cast recordings but uts worth a try.

[melissa errico fan]

Posted: 9/5/05 at 9:38am

The cast recording pops up on eBay and Amazon Marketplace every now and then, but be prepared to pay through the nose for it.

[melissa errico fan]

Posted: 9/5/05 at 9:52am

Here's an older thread about the OCR that might help.

The CD is currently on Half.com and Amazon Marketplace for $99.98. Given what I've seen this go for in the past, that's a "reasonable" price.
http://www.broadwayworld.com/board/readmessage.cfm?thread=724388#1242145

[N M]

Posted: 9/6/05 at 2:11pm

You can listen to it online!
Just visit the link.
http://www.alanmenken.info/downloads/downloads1.html

[LizzieCurry]

Posted: 9/6/05 at 2:12pm

$99.98?!

I should sell my copy, sheesh.

[JBSinger]

Posted: 9/6/05 at 2:19pm

There are few songs published in the Alan Menken Songbook, but otherwise, you need to contact his agent/publisher and see if they'll send you copies of what you need. Don't contact Hal Leonard because they won't know anything except what they published. You can look up his publisher (agent) on the BMI.com website. Good luck.

[Gothampc]

Posted: 9/6/05 at 2:35pm

$99.98?! I should sell my copy, sheesh.

Me too!

[Mister Matt]

Posted: 9/6/05 at 2:37pm

It's Menken's dullest score. Seriously.

[joniray]

Posted: 9/6/05 at 2:55pm

"Seriously"

You say that as if to say "trust me" or to make is sound like it's fact instead of opinion.

Obviously, though, it is opinion and so I feel compelled to counter with saying that I'm rather fond of the score and find much of it thrilling (especially "You Have It All" and "Hunted Partridge").

Then again, I don't think I would categorize any of Menkin's scores that I've heard as dull (and I think the only ones I haven't heard are "God Bless You, Mr. Rosewater" and "The Apprenticeship of Duddy Kravitz") so I don't know what I would say his dullest score was if asked.

[mwjr16]

Posted: 9/6/05 at 2:55pm

Thank you soo much, i've wanted this forever!!!

[Mythus]

Posted: 9/6/05 at 2:56pm

My friend got it off eBay for forty dollars. If you're patient, you might find it for less than one hundred dollars.

[Mister Matt]

Posted: 9/6/05 at 3:00pm

joniray - Ok then, if you want to nitpick, of everyone I have ever known to have listened to King David, you are the first to describe it as "thrilling" or even recall a single number. And when I say "seriously", I mean that I am being serious. I think it's his dullest score. Seriously. I've owned the CD since it was released and given it numerous tries simply because I love the cast and I usually love Menken's work, but I found it surprisingly dull and forgettable.

PS - I'll sell my copy. Seriously.

Updated On: 9/6/05 at 03:00 PM

[joniray]

Posted: 9/6/05 at 3:20pm

Well, to nitpick some more, I didn't say all of it was thrilling. I said much of it was thrilling. Did you see the concert? Certainly not everyone attending seemed to enjoy it, but there were enough there that liked what they heard enough to form a big line to pre-order the CD afterwards.

There are some songs on there that I go "eh" to - but there are plenty of other moments that I remember really soaring when I saw it, and the CD reminds me of those moments.

I can't tell you how disappointed I was when it was released as a single CD instead of the whole thing which was originally promised on 2-discs. I didn't think the piece as a whole worked as a theatrical "musical" but I thought it was one hell of an oratorio and I think it worked much better as a whole then it does on the highlights CD. (I mean, to get a good idea as to what Les Miz is all about, what would be a better representation? "Highlights from Les Miz" or "The Complete Symphonic Recording?")

[Mister Matt]

Posted: 9/6/05 at 3:30pm

I did not see the concert, but I would have loved to have seen it just to see the cast. I'm glad you enjoyed it. But I do think the highlights from Les Mis is a lot more interesting musically than the highlights from King David. And the Les Mis highlights that was released was a pretty good representation of the actual "highlights" of the show. If the tracks on the King David CD were the "highlights", I doubt I would be interested in a full recording. Even the Dreamgirls Broadway CD is a terrible representation of the show, but it still manages to be an engaging and exciting recording.

[joniray]

Posted: 9/6/05 at 3:48pm

Okay, that's fair. I was just wondering to myself out loud if I may enjoy the CD more than those who didn't see the concert because it is a reminder of what was to me an exciting (if flawed) more complete evening of music.

And I honestly think that some of the songs, even on their own, have the kind of terrific melodies Menken is known for in his other scores. I wanted to put another opinion out there because I do think King David has music in it worth listening to. I must admit that I've listened to the King David CD more than any of the CDs from the past season's crop of shows. I still find myself pulling it out from time to time.

[JohnPopa]

Posted: 9/6/05 at 4:18pm

I saw the concert and it was a first-rate bore. The CD, which I like, eliminates the lengthy sung dialogue patches and the endless reprises of the same handful of songs and makes the show seem much more interesting than the staged concert ever was. The problem is the show is almost another hour of music than the CD and it's either emotionally exact reprises of the big songs off the CD or sequences of music that are all noticeably less interesting than the worst moments on the CD. To me, 'King David' proved that Alan Menken was in over his head trying to compose a complete sung-thru score and that he's much more effective just writing straight-forward songs.

It's got some strong work from Tim Rice, though, much better than any of his other Disney work.
Updated On: 9/6/05 at 04:18 PM

[Mister Matt]

Posted: 9/6/05 at 4:22pm

I know how you feel, joniray. I listen to Rags or Metropolis more often than I listen to Wicked, Dirty Rotten Scoundrels or The Producers. Currently, I am hooked on Two Gentlemen of Verona, which is considered something of a sin amongst Sondheim enthusiasts. But honestly, I have been a Galt MacDermot fan for many many years. I know how seeing a performance can change your perspective as well. I never really cared for Children of Eden until I saw the show and now I like it much more. And then there are shows like Pippin, where I didn't like the recording. Then I saw the DVD and I still didn't like it. And I am amazed by the amount of people who think it's Schwartz's best work. Without Fosse's vision, I just didn't think the show had much to offer. Stuart Ostrow would probably kill me if he heard me saw that. LOL

[joniray]

Posted: 9/6/05 at 4:33pm

I've listened to Rags more than any of those as well! Love it. Yea! I knew we could agree on something

[joniray]

Posted: 9/6/05 at 4:38pm

Actually JohnPapa, one of my favorite melodies in the piece was a reoccurring theme that Stephen Bogardus sang as narrative through some of those "sung dialogue patches." And that melody didn't end up anywhere on the CD. Yet it was strong enough (or catchy enough I suppose) that I can still hum it to this day. So to each his own.

[sharonkurland]

Posted: 9/6/05 at 7:41pm

I saw the show. Was working at The Disney Store in Staten Island at the time because I was a big ol' Disney geek and I wanted to see the theater that they had bought and restored.

The New Amsterdam was (and is) gorgeous. But as much as I adore Menken, I hated the show and the CD (which I still bought, because I collect Disney CDs. I have 600-and-something of them). Boring as hell, in my humble opinion.

Your milage may vary.

-Sharon-
Orlando FL

[Menken Fan]

Posted: 9/7/05 at 7:39am

I was lucky enough to be in NYC to see King David. I was thrilled to see the re-opening of the New Amsterdam, the first-rate cast and, of course, a new Menken show. It was certainly a vast departure from his other work, but I really don't think he was out of his league in attempting a sung-through show. I was very entertained and thought the show had promise, but still could use some tightening and rework. For the most part, the music was beautiful and I think the cast recording features some of the best.

I didn't find the show dull, but it was really a staged reading, so it would certainly benefit from a full staging to make it more visually appealing, especially during some of the longer less-exciting passages.

I'm hoping they still work on this one and give it another chance. There is a lot to work with. I guess I'm glad I got the cast recording when it was first released. I hope Disney re-releases it so more people can hear the music and judge for themselves.

[Pinguin]

Posted: 9/7/05 at 7:57am

I personally love this score -I actually listen to this CD a lot, I just don't often listen to it all the way through. I find that at least by themselves many of the songs are really great, fun, beautiful, etc. Heck, I really like Never Again, Saul Has Slain His Thousands, New Jerusalem, When in Love, and many more.

I think it's a worthwhile CD to have. Just not for 100 dollars.