Sunset Boulevard Cast Recording

I happen to like both the London and the American cast recording. I prefer the American recording for a couple of reasons. Firstly, the orchestra is bigger and has a stronger, fuller feel, and there are some good orchestrations not in the London recording. Secondly, I love the cast of the American recording. I love Glenn Close, but I think people either love her or hate her. Her voice is good, but she so perfectly inhabits the role with her character. With Patti Lupone, you never think for an instant you are not listening to Patti Lupone, whereas Glenn Close convinces you of the character of Norma Desmond. The other cast members are superior all around as well. George Hearn is exceptional as Max; I love his version of "The Greatest Star of All." And Judy Kuhn is far superior as Betty than the woman in the London recording. And thirdly, the American recording is the entire show, meaning you get the entire Lets Have Lunch routine, which is fantastic, as well as a lot more of the intermittent book. But again, it is one of my favorite musicals, and I think either recording is a good investment.

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Uh oh... you didn't call Alice Ripley aweful, did you!!
:)
Actually, I thought she was fantastic. Her vocals were subdued and just right. And she looked like one of those Barbie dolls from the 50's. (My opinion only of course)...
But I haven't met anyone who didn't enjoy her in that show. (yet...)

Rath - I also was not really a fan of Alice Ripley's "Betty" - that is why she was such a revelation to me in "Side Show"

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even though Patti Lupone is a better singer than Glenn i prefer Glenn's version, Close acts all the time...and i think she is a decent singer. The sound of the orchestra is way better. And also George Hearn is pretty good and so is Alan Campbell and last but not least ...Judy Kuhn!

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Updated On: 12/26/05 at 03:03 PM

It was never released, but there was a BBC online broadcast of the SUNSET BOULEVARD concert in Ireland featuring Michael Ball, Petula Clark, and Emma Williams. Michael and Emma were outstanding ( great voices!) while Petula seemed a little weak vocally ( after all, she is past 70 now) which perhaps lent more authenticity to the role.

The only recording that's worth getting is the London version with LuPone. While Glenn Close can be wonderful if rightly cast, she is simply not vocally up to the score. I saw her in LA before the show came to B'way but I didn't think she was that good. And, believe me, I went to the show wanting and expecting to love it. I'm a HUGE Glenn Close fan. She was wonderful in the first part of the show. After "With One Look" I thought, "My God, this is going to be the greatest performance I have ever seen in my life." After that, unfortunately, things started going down hill. She played the part like an old lady. This is not a matter of interpretation. Norma Desmond must be a woman of about fifty because of when the show takes place and the fact that she was a silent film star. By the end of the second act, her acting was so campy that she reminded me of a drag queen! I later flew to NY to see Elaine Paige in the role but unfortunately she didn't play that night though her understudy (whose name escapes me -- it wasn't Karen Mason)was fine. But, of course, I was disappointed not to see Elaine. Then I saw it with Petula Clark, who was good but, again, not really vocally powerful enough for the score. I would love to have seen it with Patti. I LOVE her on the CD although I have heard mixed things about her performance. I remember when she was first cast I thought she was totally wrong for the part but her singing on the CD convinces me that she must have been amazing. Also, the guy playing Joe on the London CD is far preferable to the Joe in the Broadway version who was beautiful to look at but lacked the seedy, desperate quality that the role requires. When I saw him the second time in NY after he had been playing the role for quite some time, he seemed vastly improved. Agree that George Hearn was wonderful as Max. By the way, I have the CD of Dianne Caroll in the part. She's not as campy as Glenn, but -- like Glenn-- her voice is not powerful enough for the score.

Yeah, 7 Tony Awards is something to be devastatedly ashamed of.

The *mistake* ALW did make, however, was pushing Patti aside and giving the role to a novice, who in fact, only won her Tony because she was up against one other actress that year.

The book and the score are lovely. They only should have moved the London production to Broadway unchanged.

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Updated On: 12/26/05 at 09:54 PM

The Diahann Carroll/Rex Smith recording is priceless.

Any Diahann Carroll recording is priceless.

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"At least it was a hit running 3 seasons and showing a profit, but it was hardly Tony worthy."

I always heard it closed at a loss because the production costs were so high.

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Just to clarify...SMOKEY JOE'S CAFE was a hit that ran 3 seasons and made a profit.

SUNSET had a long run (over 2 years) but closed with a considerable loss. Some have pegged it as high as $11 million though I have never seen that confirmed. The London, Toronto and touring versions also closed in the red. Ironic too because Webber rushed this show out to help save RUG which was in desperate need of more cash flow. The whole thing was a major mistake. Sad.

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