My 2014 MISS SAIGON Live Recording Has Dispatched!- Page 2

[lambchop2]

Posted: 9/25/14 at 11:33pm

The Sun and Moon Reprise has always been there! It's just now slightly revised. It is a lovely reprise.

Speaking of lyric changes... I understand revising clunkers like "This little girl, we could be in the sack, for what it costs me to buy a Big Mac" but some of the changes remove emotional lyrics and replace them with nothing.

Like this bit from The Revelation, where John tells Chris that Kim has a child:

The original goes: A child/what do I do/I shattered Kim/now Ellen too

The revision is: A child/what can I do/Oh Jesus, Kim/What can I do

What purpose does this revision serve? It doesn't add anything. "Oh Jesus, Kim" is an exclamation, while the original lyrics were Chris acknowledging this his actions will have shattered the lives of two people.

[CATSNYrevival]

Posted: 9/26/14 at 1:05am

That one bugs me too! But, clearly they don't want Chris taking responsibility for his actions and they certainly don't want to remind us about Ellen less we have negative thoughts about her since she's so likable now with her new song.

[lambchop2]

Posted: 9/26/14 at 2:15am

"But, clearly they don't want Chris taking responsibility for his actions"

I was thinking the exact same thing, I'm glad it's not just me.

This revision from the Confrontation seems like it's meant to soften Chris, too:

"It was just two weeks, it was years ago!" was changed to "Yes, we were in love, it was years ago, we were torn apart!"

It's really strange, IMO, because some of the revisions + reviews I've read + commentary about some of the staging all point to the show being even more of a biting criticism against American involvement in the Vietnam War than the original... so why soften Chris?

[Eurotrash]

Posted: 9/26/14 at 3:15am

"Shattered Kim" has no genuine meaning, though you can surmise it.

[lambchop2]

Posted: 9/26/14 at 9:24am

How do you mean? "I shattered Kim" seems pretty clear.

[PapaGe]

Posted: 9/26/14 at 10:16am

Until this moment I always thought Chris was saying "I shouted Kim, now Ellen too", referring to his nightmares in "I Still Believe." You learn something new every day...

I only have the original London recording, so I guess that's why I don't recall ever having heard the Sun and Moon reprise before this (though I've seen it on tour a couple of times).

[RW3]

Posted: 9/26/14 at 7:48pm

I'm not going to post all of my thoughts because I would start rambling, but here are a few.
You Will Not Touch Him- Holy crap! Eva and Kwang sound phenomenal You can hear the anger coming out of both of them. I think Eva uses her lower register excellently.
Too Much for One Heart- I thought it was really cool how they incorporated both Kim and John and later The Engineer into the song.
Little God of My Heart- Completely heartbreaking! On all the other cast recordings of Miss Saigon, I never got too sad or sentimental but with this one, I was on verge of tears.

[eatlasagna]

Posted: 9/26/14 at 8:29pm

I like using Sun and Moon in the Ent'racte... sounds nice

[SporkGoddess]

Posted: 9/26/14 at 8:53pm

I've only started listening to it, but not loving most of the lyric changes.

Updated On: 9/26/14 at 08:53 PM

[ChrisTyler12882]

Posted: 10/1/14 at 5:14pm

What happened to the US release? I thought it was supposed to be this past Tuesday.

[Anshel2]

Posted: 10/1/14 at 5:30pm

Anyone have the lyrics to MAYBE? I have a hard time understanding some of them.

[CATSNYrevival]

Posted: 10/1/14 at 5:48pm

I think it's better that way. But, I agree. Is she saying "maybe" the whole time and then at the end she says "but my heart might just break if what may be may be?" Or something else?

Updated On: 10/1/14 at 05:48 PM

[Anshel2]

Posted: 10/1/14 at 5:57pm

I agree, I HATE this song and would've preferred either Now That I've Seen Her (which I still find awkward) or It's Her or Me, but I still want to understand the lyrics.

[Wildcard]

Posted: 10/1/14 at 8:01pm

I love the previous Ellen songs but I much prefer Maybe over them. It makes the song about Ellen and Chris versus Ellen and Kim (Her or Me) or Ellen's own selfishness (Now that I've Seen Her). It also gives us an inkling that Ellen and Chris's relationship is true as well. However, I do prefer the versions of Maybe where the last note is higher and sustained and more defiant (Stephanie J Block/Rachelle Ann Go versions)
_____

Help me,
Am I fooling myself, if I've already lost you?
Nothing's changed, you're still mine, we can try to ignore this,
But if she has come back in your life, well then maybe, you were never mine,
And yet my heart cries maybe, it's a trick, it's a lie she's just trying to use you,
But I looked in her eyes, it could kill her to lose you,
And maybe, just maybe you need her too,
Back when we met, you were broken and wild,
And I held you at night, and I ached when you cried,
But despite what we lacked, we tried staying on track no regret,
Yet, maybe, it was fate that suddenly brought her back to you,
And your love was true love, before I even knew you,
If the life of your dreams, is the life she is giving,
Should I be the one to stop your dream from living?
If you're hers, then be hers, and forget about me now,
I've been blind for so long, that perhaps I can see now, and maybe,
Just maybe, I'll find the strength I need to set you free now,
I'll be strong, and stand firm, so my tears won't betray me,
But my heart might just break, if what may be, maybe.

[morosco]

Posted: 10/1/14 at 8:08pm

I've listened to both discs several times now and I continue to find the recording absolutely thrilling.

Does anyone know if the orchestra was sweetened with additional musicians during post production? Sure sounds like an unusually large number of strings in the pit (or is it synths playing along with a few strings?).

Also I wonder if recording a show live is any less expensive than going into a studio to make the recording? I hope we get more live recordings. It sounds awesome.

[broadwayghost1]

Posted: 10/1/14 at 8:30pm

Ive been listening to it non-stop since it arrived in the mail last week.

I Still Taste Your Kisses-------my favorite part.

[Jeffrey Karasarides]

Posted: 10/1/14 at 11:02pm

"Also I wonder if recording a show live is any less expensive than going into a studio to make the recording? I hope we get more live recordings. It sounds awesome."

It is!

[ggersten]

Posted: 10/2/14 at 9:35am

I liked "Maybe" when we saw the show - initially. To me, it elevates Ellen as a person. She loves Chris so much that she's willing to give him up out of her own love. It's not an "either/or" or a battle between Ellen and Kim. It's just a difficult situation. You actually feel for her in the dilemma. But then...she turns on a dime when Chris tells her that she is the one he wants to stay with - in part because she saved him (and they've had a bit more time together than he and Kim had..just sayin'). All of a sudden, she's "that girl is not going to live anywhere near us" and is completely lacking in caring or understanding or humanity. I so wanted to get out of my seat, go the stage and slap her - which is not how I reacted to Ellen before. In effect, the song "Maybe" becomes a lie she has just told herself. As an audience member, I feel anger that I was manipulated into liking a person that I DO NOT LIKE. So, in the end, the song - to me - creates the exact enmity to Ellen that it was supposedly designed to minimize or avoid.

[Mr. Musical]

Posted: 10/2/14 at 10:13am

Miss Saigon just announced on their FB page that it will be available in the US digitally on Oct. 14th and physically on Oct. 28th

[MunchkininOZ629]

Posted: 10/3/14 at 4:44am

Does anyone know of a way to record the gala performance to mp3 that's going to air later today on BBC Radio 2?

[fashionguru_23]

Posted: 10/3/14 at 8:15am

I am not familiar with this show at all, and have never really had access to a production or cast album. But, if I'm looking for a first exploration of the show, would this live recording be where I should start? Also, I know its from the same era-ish as Phantom/Les Mis where they are all sung through completely, so would listening to a whole recording give me the whole show?

[Wildcard]

Posted: 10/3/14 at 3:03pm

The 25th anniversary gala is streaming in the next hour



BBC radio link Updated On: 10/3/14 at 03:03 PM

[CATSNYrevival]

Posted: 10/3/14 at 3:19pm

Fashionguru, I would advise listening to the symphonic recording first. That recording preserved the full score except for the exit music if you want to get technical and it represented what became the final version of the show at least for a while. Then go back and listen to the original recording with Lea and then try this new one out.

[ggersten]

Posted: 10/3/14 at 3:50pm

Couldn't get BBC2 to play on Chrome - but it does play in Explorer.

[South Florida]

Posted: 10/3/14 at 4:25pm

Can you guys help me out with what's going on and when tonight regarding this, is there going to be a video replay any time tonight?