My 2014 MISS SAIGON Live Recording Has Dispatched!

[morosco]

Posted: 9/20/14 at 11:49am

Just got an email from Amazon.co.uk saying that my copy is on it's way!
Miss Saigon 2014 Live Recording

[carlodowd]

Posted: 9/20/14 at 7:29pm

Same and I can't wait for it!!!!

[morosco]

Posted: 9/20/14 at 7:32pm

I noticed too that this recording is tagged as an Amazon AutoRip which I'm hoping means I can listen to the entire recording beginning Monday as I wait.

[Alan Henry]

Posted: 9/20/14 at 11:33pm

I'm waiting for it to appear on Spotify.

[pathman2]

Posted: 9/21/14 at 10:28am

Do Amazon UK's Autorips work if you and your billing address are in the US?

[morosco]

Posted: 9/21/14 at 12:08pm

^ You might be right. Not sure.

[CATSNYrevival]

Posted: 9/22/14 at 7:13pm

I can't decide if I like this or not. There are moments that I enjoy but they are few and the changes are distracting. I will say I'm impressed with how the recording sounds. It's amazing how far technology has come that a live recording can sound this crystal clear. The orchestra and singers are perfectly balanced and if it weren't for the occasional stage noise, applause and laughter from the audience you wouldn't even know this was recorded live. It sounds that pristine.

The cast is adequate with the exception of Jon Jon Briones as the Engineer who always sounds like he's singing through a wad of tobacco in each cheek. "Maybe" is a big upset for me. I understand that the writers have always had issues with Ellen's song and If the new song was amazing I could understand cutting "Now That I've Seen Her" in favor of it, but it's not amazing. It's bland.

While on the subject -- why so many lyric changes? Again, I could understand it if the substituted lyrics were better than the lyrics they're replacing but in most cases they're not. They're not an improvement they're just different. And they replaced the wrong ones! Why is Kim still rhyming "pain" with "again?" That's the lyric to change! The soldiers have also been assigned a new attitude about the war. I'm sure there were soldiers who felt the same way about the war then as some soldiers feel about the war now so it's not entirely out of place for them to say things like "turns out this war is a joke, turns out the joke is on you," but that sounds more like a political jab at Bush's war in Iraq and Afghanistan rather than Vietnam.

There are a few new lyrics that I didn't mind. I do like the revised lyrics in "Please" which are slight, but allowed for the reinstating of the "too much for one heart" lyric and title change, but it too isn't entirely necessary. The finale is also a bit puzzling because it is titled "Little God of My Heart," but that's not what it is. It's actually the revised finale from the symphonic recording that was inserted into the show in the 90s. I like it, but it doesn't make sense to call it "Little God of My Heart." That's not the finale they're using here.

I'm familiar enough with the old lyrics that most of the new ones just stick out to my ear and disturb the flow. I could get used to them, but I don't think I will need to because this recording is simply not going to replace the original cast recording or symphonic recording on my playlist. There are simply too many changes that do nothing but deter my enjoyment of the piece.

[Eurotrash]

Posted: 9/23/14 at 5:22am

It has now popped up on Spotify in the UK.

[Pasdechat]

Posted: 9/23/14 at 8:22am

I just listened to it on Spotify and am disappointed by Eva's performance, while technically having a great voice it lacks the emotionality of previous recordings. Also don't like her timing in the songs. After the glowing reviews I expected more.
As CATSNYRevival mentioned before, the sound quality is eerily good and I like the orchestration. Also don't understand the title of "Little God...", after reading about it I always thought this was a whole new song, which it's not.
Call me nostalgic, but I'll stick with the older recordings!

[smallvillefan16]

Posted: 9/23/14 at 10:37pm

Anyone know when US itunes will have the recording?

Updated On: 9/23/14 at 10:37 PM

[tazber]

Posted: 9/23/14 at 10:42pm

It's on amazon.com here in the states for pre-order with a release date of next Tuesday (9/30/14).

[lambchop2]

Posted: 9/23/14 at 11:17pm

The Facebook page for the West End production said that it was going on sale in the US and Canada on 9/23 (aka today) on itunes but, obviously, it's not up on either one. Strange. :x

[broadwayghost1]

Posted: 9/24/14 at 2:38pm

Will it be available in US iTunes?

[Alan Henry]

Posted: 9/24/14 at 2:40pm

Not on spotify either...

[Mister Matt]

Posted: 9/24/14 at 2:48pm

The listing on amazon.com is a ripoff at $42.00 with a 9/30 release date. I ordered from amazon.co.uk for $19.43 including shipping. AutoRip is only available for customers in the UK.

[ggersten]

Posted: 9/24/14 at 4:28pm

Pasdechat:
We saw Eva twice in London in the first few weeks of previews, so I understand what you are saying about technical versus emotional. She is not helped by a leading man who is very handsome and has a nice voice - but whose acting is passable at times when he is with Eva. He is better interacting with the actor playing Ellen. So, depending on how the "live" shows was going, Eva's emotional connection to the material is going to fluctuate. The problem with younger musical actors seem to be that they focus on vocal technique and let the music lead their acting, rather than imbuing the music with acting.

In any event, it is not fair to compare her with Lea Salonga - because Lea was much more experienced at the same age - and, well, there are few who compare with how Ms. Salonga is able to connect with the core of a song and give it life.

[Wildcard]

Posted: 9/24/14 at 4:36pm

Alistair has a very distant quality to him. It works well for the tortured marine who doesn't want to be in Vietnam but the connection with Kim is indeed lost on stage. Their chemistry does improve during Last Night of the World though.

[Eurotrash]

Posted: 9/24/14 at 6:17pm

Huge credit to the recording producers because it sounds fantastic. As opposed to the From Here To Eternity CD where the live sound is disappointingly thin, in comparison.

[broadwayghost1]

Posted: 9/25/14 at 12:16pm

I just received my CD in the mail

[Brywal88]

Posted: 9/25/14 at 3:20pm

Found it streaming on Grooveshark. Free and legal for those who don't want to wait for CDs to come in or the US release.

I'm surprised by the reactions to Jon Jon Briones. His performance made this show for me. I loved it as a whole but man he really stood out.



Grooveshark full album stream Updated On: 9/25/14 at 03:20 PM

[PapaGe]

Posted: 9/25/14 at 3:30pm

Thanks for the link! I've been looking everywhere for a legal place to stream it. Haven't listened to much yet, but the many lyric changes are already a little off-putting.

[Mr. Nowack]

Posted: 9/25/14 at 5:36pm

It sounds really great, especially for an online stream. I like the performances and love some of the new orchestration tweaks, but those new lyrics! Sure maybe they rhyme a little better and make a little more sense in context, but they seem so clunky and lack the flow of earlier versions.

A quick question: have the many lyrical changes on this recording been around for a long time, or are some of them new to this production? I only have the London cast recording as a reference.

[lambchop2]

Posted: 9/25/14 at 5:41pm

I know there have been some lyric changes in previous productions, but not to this extent and I don't think they were the same as those in the West End revival. For example, in an Australian production circa 2007-ish (with Laurie Cadevida, who had just finished up the US tour) there's a few lyric changes, like "When the moonlight fills the night, I know" instead of "When the moonlight fills my room, I know" or "Please come inside, where are my manners?" instead of "Please come inside, no one will hurt you."

Some of the lyric changes in the new recording work but IMO some of the music suffers from it. I don't like the new lyrics in the Sun and Moon reprise... "I feel you near/I reach your face(place?)/I know you're hear/I touch your face."

[PapaGe]

Posted: 9/25/14 at 6:07pm

A couple comments on this recording now that I've listened to it:

-I hadn't listened to any of the Youtube versions of "Maybe" because I was waiting to judge it in context. Having listened to it here, all I can say is...ew. It's like with each version of Ellen's song they've done more to soften her character until there's nothing left. At least "It's Her Or Me" gave the audience a strong woman they could empathize with and, in other circumstances, even root for. "Now That I've Seen Her" tried to make her more likeable/less confrontational. Now "Maybe" doesn't provide any justification for Chris's genuine love for Ellen.

-That Sun and Moon reprise is simply heartbreaking! Anyone know if that's brand new to this production?

-I love "Please" and I love "Too Much For One Heart" (the cut song from the original), but this weird mishmash of the two into the new "Too Much For One Heart" doesn't work for me.

-I'm surprised by how much I like Jon Jon Briones. I usually skip the Engineer's songs in other recordings, but they're very entertaining here.

-The new melodies thrown it at various parts (which might have existed in other versions but not been on the recordings?) seem very Pirate Queen-ish to me (which is not a compliment).

-Eva Noblezada does a nice job on the recording. She sounds very young throughout. I wish she sounded a little rougher and older in the later portions.

-Really don't like this John. His timing in "Bui-Doi" is terrible (maybe that's a directorial choice, I don't know).

[CATSNYrevival]

Posted: 9/25/14 at 7:43pm

I'm pretty sure the Sun and Moon reprise has always been there. It just wasn't included on the original cast album. It's on the symphonic cast recording.