Suggestions for CD's?

#1

Suggestions for CD's?

Posted: 5/15/04 at 4:01pm

Does anyone have any suggestions for cast recordings of shows? I like darker things like Bat Boy, Parade, and Sweeney, but also enjoy brighter things like Avenue Q or Hairspray. Maybe there is something recent I might have missed? I'd appreciate any input. Thanks!

Updated On: 5/15/04 at 04:01 PM

#2

re: Suggestions for CD's?

Posted: 5/15/04 at 4:06pm

If you don't have RENT yet, GET IT. Also I don't have this CD yet, but THE LEGEND OF SLEEPY HOLLOW will probably be my next purchase... It seems interesting. Both are at Amazon.com. Also pre-order the new FIDDLER CD!

#3

re: Suggestions for CD's?

Posted: 5/15/04 at 4:11pm

Wicked.
It's funny because I wasn't impressed by the Wicked cast recording when I frst heard it, but it grew on me and now I love it.
That cd is dark and light hearted all in one.

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"It's the little things; the details, that distinguish the Barbra Streisands from the Rosalyn Kinds."~Gilmore Girls~

#4

re: Suggestions for CD's?

Posted: 5/15/04 at 4:12pm

I second RENT and Wicked.

Also, if you like light kind of stuff, "Tick Tick Boom" and "Zanna Don't" are both really good shows with some great music.

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I have my books and my poetry to protect me...

#5

re: Suggestions for CD's?

Posted: 5/15/04 at 5:05pm

Urinetown is a fantastic cast recording to one of the funniest shows ever written.

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"Noah, someday we'll talk again. But there's things we'll never say. That sorrow deep inside you. It inside me, too. And it never go away. You be okay. You'll learn how to lose things..."

#6

re: Suggestions for CD's?

Posted: 5/15/04 at 5:10pm

:) that is a good cd.
I love the Cop Song, Privelage to Pee, and Run, Freedom, Run.

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"It's the little things; the details, that distinguish the Barbra Streisands from the Rosalyn Kinds."~Gilmore Girls~

#7

re: Suggestions for CD's?

Posted: 5/15/04 at 5:36pm

I could go on for days about "must haves" for your B'way CD library ... Gypsy, Guys and Dolls, Hello Dolly!, The Music Man, West Side Story ... but I digress.

My current guilty pleasure is The Boy From Oz OBC. The score is delightful, bouncy and fun at moments and touching at others. Very entertaining and featuresone of the most acclaimed male performances in a musical (in recent years).

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Laughter is much more important than applause. Applause is almost a duty. Laughter is a reward. Carol Channing

#8

re: Suggestions for CD's?

Posted: 5/15/04 at 5:53pm

I second the suggestion of Gypsy, and I'd add in My Fair Lady. For more contemporary stuff, Sunday in the Park With George is absolutely wonderful, Falsettoland is quite good, and You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown is just plain fun.

Oh, and Sondheim. Anything Sondheim. Just because.

#9

re: Suggestions for CD's?

Posted: 5/15/04 at 5:59pm

If you don't already own it, I recommend the darker comedy "Little Shop of Horrors".

My favorite musical is "The Last 5 Years", which both funny and depressing.
"Once on This Island" was my favorite for years. It's sorta like "The Little Mermaid" about people instead of mermaids. Very sad, but kinda "Disney-ified" ending. Both of these shows are good recordings to own without seeing the show because the majority of the story is played out in the songs.

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I starred in a short film called Magnetic Personality. Check it out!

#10

re: Suggestions for CD's?

Posted: 5/15/04 at 6:15pm

Wow! Thanks for all of the suggestions! I do have Rent and Wicked, and Little Shop (Off-Broadway) and listen to them frequently. I'll try to get some of these, maybe Urinetown, Tick Tick Boom, The Last 5 Years, Once on This Island, and of course some more Sondheim.

#11

re: Suggestions for CD's?

Posted: 5/15/04 at 6:35pm

Do add THE BOY FROM OZ to the list - the songs are not originally composed for the stage but are fun ( and occasionally poignant) to listen to. You may also want to find out why this is considered an award-winning performance.

#12

re: Suggestions for CD's?

Posted: 5/15/04 at 6:50pm

Well, I was going to put that on the list but I want John Tartaglia to win Best Actor! And if I hear Hugh I'll probably want him to win, and I wouldn't feel right wanting someone to beat the nicest guy on Broadway! It's not fair! Why couldn't Boy From Oz come out next year so John could get his Tony!

Alright, Hugh probably deserves it more, and I'm sure I'll love his performance even more, but I think I might wait until AFTER June 6 to get it. YAY GO JOHN!!



I'm not crazy by the way, if that's what you guys were thinking.

#13

re: Suggestions for CD's?

Posted: 5/15/04 at 7:10pm

Trust me, that's not what I was thinking....

#14

re: Suggestions for CD's?

Posted: 5/15/04 at 7:26pm

I would get Songs for a New World, Tick Tick Boom, and Zanna Don't! Those are some cds that arn't really popular but are really good!

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"Chicago is it's own incredible theater town right there smack down in the middle of the heartland. What a great city! I can see why Oprah likes to live there!" - Dee Hoty :-D

#15

re: Suggestions for CD's?

Posted: 5/15/04 at 7:29pm

Here are three suggestions:

RAGTIME - Get the full 2 disc OBC recording.
THE MOST HAPPY FELLA - I prefer the OBC recording with Robert Weede and Jo Sullivan
PURLIE - Worth it for "Walk Him Up The Stairs" and "He Can Do It"

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Ray is the author of the Brad Frame mystery series, and two suspense novels. He is also the author of a one man play based on Ben Franklin. http://www.rayflynt.com

#16

re: Suggestions for CD's?

Posted: 5/15/04 at 7:41pm

Non-Sondheim, in case you have all those ... an ecclectic bunch from very different eras: 110 IN THE SHADE (Fantastiks team), THE APPLE TREE, PROMISES PROMISES, HALELUJAH, BABY, RAGS (Strouse's most ambitious piece), SIDE SHOW. You want dark: BLOOD BROTHERS, THE BEAUTIFUL GAME.

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"I'm a comedian, but in my spare time, things bother me." Garry Shandling

#17

re: Suggestions for CD's?

Posted: 5/15/04 at 7:55pm

Urintetown is good and Gypsy isn't so bad...

#18

re: Suggestions for CD's?

Posted: 5/15/04 at 8:18pm

I saw THE BEAUTIFUL GAME in London and it has to be one of the saddest musicals ever. There are some very beautiful songs there - God's Own Country and Our Kind of Love.

#19

re: Suggestions for CD's?

Posted: 5/15/04 at 8:29pm

If your open to musicals in different languages, I would suggest the French cast recordings of "Roméo et Juliette - de la Haine à l'Amour", "Autant en Emporte le Vent" (aka Gone with the Wind), or "Cindy: Cendrillon 2002"

Tendres Baisers,
Juliette Capulet

#20

re: Suggestions for CD's?

Posted: 5/15/04 at 9:58pm

Jerry Springer - The Opera. It's an import, but worth the extra money. It is definitely dark and humorous. A fascinating score with beautiful orchestrations and gorgeous voices. The song I Just Wanna Dance is memorable and stunning.

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"What can you expect from a bunch of seitan worshippers?" - Reginald Tresilian

#21

re: Suggestions for CD's?

Posted: 5/15/04 at 11:36pm

Merrily We Roll Along
The Civil War
Songs For A New World
Tick, Tick...BOOM!
Gypsy
Candide

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BSoBW2: I punched Sondheim in the face after I saw Wicked and said, "Why couldn't you write like that!?"

#22

re: Suggestions for CD's?

Posted: 5/16/04 at 2:49pm

I want to suggest the Broadway cast recording of Taboo when it comes out because I loved the show; but since the cd has not yet been released, and therefore I have not heard it and cannot say if I like it, I cannot reccommend it. lol
I have not bought the London version because I would rather buy the Broadway version. :P

<---done rambling now.

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"It's the little things; the details, that distinguish the Barbra Streisands from the Rosalyn Kinds."~Gilmore Girls~

#23

re: Suggestions for CD's?

Posted: 5/16/04 at 3:26pm

Wicked, Little Shop of Horrors, Hairspray, The Phantom of the Opera, Rent, Thoroughly Modern Millie, Urinetown

#24

re: Suggestions for CD's?

Posted: 5/16/04 at 8:05pm

Auggie27, I am glad you mentioned "Rags". That does have some wonderful music in it (like "Children of the Wind" - makes me want to cry every time). I thought that it was by Stephen Schwartz, though. I might be wrong.

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I starred in a short film called Magnetic Personality. Check it out!

#25

re: Suggestions for CD's?

Posted: 5/16/04 at 11:22pm

Les Miserables- The Dream Cast
Jekyll and Hyde (a darker show that's awesome)
Ragtime
Into The Woods- OBC
West Side Story- OBC
The Scarlet Pimpernel