Recording Cast Recordings

I don't know firsthand, but the impression I've always gotten was that it's very turn and burn. They're not cheap to record, so I think they're very get in, sing the song through and, barring any major errors, call it a day.

Like I said, that's just my assumption.

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On the "old days," a Broadway cast album was traditionally recorded the Sunday after opening night (Sunday was then the traditional day off instead of Monday), and was in stores within a week to ten days.

You would sometimes see dislaimers on the record sleeves like "Song List was Prepared prior to album recording" which would cover them in case a song mentioned was dropped. (A photo from "Come and Be My Butterfly" was on the "Hello Dolly" album cover, even though the song was dropped right after opening and never recorded.)

While there were certainly alternate tracks done on many numbers in those days, there wasn't the technical ability that came with digital recording to meld together or "comp" (composite) vocals, so it was "What you see is what you get." Hence the trauma on the COMPANY recording when Stritch was too drunk and tired to nail "Ladies Who Lunch" late into the evening. (See the documentary on DVD).

Nowadays, with all the technology to "perfect" these recordings something is gained and something is lost. You certainly get a smoother product. but lose a little of the "live" edge that the older cast albums had. They also seem to take two-three months to get released (if at all) instead of the short time it took in the old days.

Listening to old and new, I think the old ones captured the spirit of live performance much better.