Loving the musical while indifferent to the score

Perhaps I'm thinking about this more because I'm debating possible shows on my upcoming New York trip, or because it keeps coming up as a topic here, but I have been pondering what I value in a musical. 

And one of the things I realized is that all of my favorite musicals have scores I really enjoy. Everyone's taste is different, of course, so one person's wonderful score is another's dreck. And my taste is a bit all over the place, so I really like everything from classic Rodgers & Hammerstein scores to Hedwig and the Angry Inch. I loved Hello, Dolly!, Chicago, West Side Story, Hamilton and Great Comet - and while all of those shows have a lot more going for them than some good tunes, it's the scores that draw me the most.

I can appreciate a musical with a score that isn't fantastic for other reasons, but when I think about seeing something again or listening to it, those shows always take a back seat to the ones with great songs.

A really good score is difficult to write, and maybe that's why I value them so much. It spooks me a bit when I read a lot of comments trashing a score. I might disagree with their opinion (as many of you have undoubtedly disagreed with the shows I've said had good scores) but it does give me pause about shows that are supposed to have good books but pedestrian scores. If I'm going to see a musical, I guess I want good music. Otherwise, why shouldn't I see a good play instead?

What are some musicals you love without really liking the score?  And why?

The Prom is the first thing that comes to mind. Saw it just a few weeks ago, thoroughly enjoyed, but other than the chorus of "The Lady's Improving", I couldn't hum any of the melodies to you.

To me, this seems to be more of a complaint about the melodic nature of the score, and less about the functionality of it. For a musical to truly work, the score (and in particular the lyrics) must drive the story and convey the emotions appropriately. Like A GENTLEMAN'S GUIDE –– it didn't win Best Score, and it doesn't have the sweeping emotions of BRIDGES, but it completely works within the context of the show, and it's one of the reasons why that show was so successful. One of the criticisms of BIG FISH was that, for once, it was a musical with a strong book but people hated Lippa's score.

Agree re Billy Elliott, but not sure it reflects the subject correctly.  Apparently, Elton John's approach to phoning in the score was too accurate a statement in this case.  IMO the score turned a great show into an okay show.  Hell, IMO the best thing was the Swan Lake number, and the second best was Solidarity, which was about the staging.  I thought a huge portion of the first act was one filler number after the next.  Also, I agree totally re Camelot.  I didn't like it the first time, mainly because of the score, which I thought was terrible.  The second time, in a local company that sat 250 people maxi loved it, even though I still thought the score was awful.  The intimacy of the theatre contributed a lot (even though I had a good seat in the Shubert, it was not intimate.  Also agree re Mean Girls.  Re The Prom, the score is certainly the worst part of the shows (other than the tacky sets and costumes which I assume were due to budget constraints, coupled with lack of creativity by the design team) and I did NOT love it; that said, I suspect that I would have enjoyed it a LOT more if the score was decent..

Disagree re Gentleman's Guide.  The score is delightful, with great lyrics.  It is clearly an homage to Gilbert and Sullivan, but I think it is better than any of those.  If you like jazzy, this is not the one, but it is wonderful if your tastes are more diverse.  Listen to the OCR.  Also disagree re The Producers; I think the score is delightful, with rare exception.

To the list  I would add Me and My Girl.  I loved the show enough to see it four times in its original run and couldn't get through the album once; even the Lambeth Walkis boring the album because it is so repetitious.  I thoroughly enjoyed Grand Hotel, but liked about three songs.  I purchased the album and could not get through it once either.  And, sacrilege, I loved How to Succeed the first time I saw it, but really didn't kill the score.  Other than The Brotherhood of Man, and I Believe in You, IMO the score was  uninteresting.

And finally, A Funny Thing.  Still the funniest show I think I have ever seen, but the score was a bore other than Comedy Tonight and Everyone Ought to Have a Maid.  I am sure the lyrics were terrific, but the screws a bore.

Tootsie comes to mind. Not that I absolutely loved it, but the score is so forgettable but I had a good night out at the theatre and enjoyed the sum of the whole show more than its parts. I seriously could not name you a single song from Tootsie. I did not think the music was bad during the show-it aided the show and showed us character development and plot points, just nothing I'm going to listen to on the train or whatever.

BritCrit said: "Am I the only one who has noticed that the overwhelming majority of the musicals listed here (with the exception of Miss Saigon or Billy Elliot) are comedies?"

A funny book with a so-so score is at least funny.

A dramatic book with a so-so score ends up looking melodramatic -- or even worse, boring.

It also works the other way. There are musicals where I loved the score but not so much the actual musical. For instance I loved the score to Bandstand. But as a musical I found the drama lacking. Also loved the score to An American in Paris but that musical's book was too big of a mess for me to enjoy the overall experience.

Goes back a ways, but how about "1776".  I heard the score on CD and thought 'nope'.  I saw it later and thought 'YES'.  Fascinating show with a great libretto.  The score serves the show well but on it's own is rather forgettable.

Bell0708 said: "Light in the Piazza for me, loved the story, songs were pretty weak."

?!

The Light in the Piazza is anything but weak! I get it might not be your cup of tea but I'd definitely avoid this term ...