What FOLLIES recording would you recommend?

[Musicaldudepeter]

Posted: 2/10/12 at 2:15pm

I don't have a single FOLLIES recording & was wondering which one would people recommend? - The OBC, the OLC with Julia McKenzie or the 2011 revival... ?

I'm leaning towards the OLC or the 2011 version..

[ljay889]

Posted: 2/10/12 at 2:21pm

I'd rank them...

1. 2011 Broadway
2. Papermill
3. OBC (Yes, the purists will disagree with this. But I'm honest, and it's a terrible recording. Love the cast though)
4. Philharmonic Concert
5. Original London Cast (Very different version of the piece, and just not that great)

All 5 are worth owning.

Updated On: 2/10/12 at 02:21 PM

[gcal]

Posted: 2/10/12 at 2:54pm

1. 2011 Revival
2. OBC-- the best interpretations of the songs... even in their butchered versions...
3. Papermill
4. Philharmonic
5. London

[MisterSnow89]

Posted: 2/10/12 at 3:28pm

My ranking would be:

1. OBC - Yes, they hacked it to pieces, but the brilliance of the original cast cannot be ignored. Even though other recordings are more complete, this one still captures the show best for me.
2. Papermill - I am a big fan of this cast, and this recording contains a ton of wonderful material, especially because they recorded a lot of the cut songs.
3. 2011 Revival - I am in the minority in that I did not love this production as much as everyone else. Bernadette's Sally did not do a lot for me and I did not like Terri White or Elaine Page. That being said, the amount of dialogue they included is thrilling to hear (Especially Jan Maxwell's Bargains Buddy monologue).
4. 1985 Concert. Some problem performances for sure (Mandy Patinkin), but its still a beautiful recording and Barbara Cook's Sally makes this worth its weight in gold.
5. London - This is a very different Follies than the others and I honestly have not spent much time with it. Definitely worth a listen though, but certainly not as your first Follies recording.

Overall though, I would agree that all are worth having.

[ReggieonBway]

Posted: 2/10/12 at 3:55pm

If you're not a huge Follies obsessee, the 2011 recording is easily the best.

[Gaveston2]

Posted: 2/10/12 at 4:48pm

Continuing with what Reggie just posted, you can always buy the 2011 recording and then if you really, really love it, get the OBC or the Papermill to see what the fuss is about.

(Personally, I am very happy with the new recording and love having the full versions of the songs. But my heart will probably always be with the original, because of the performers.)

[newintown]

Posted: 2/10/12 at 4:50pm

1) Soundboard of the original production - a full recording of the score; these are the performances that Sondheim himself says are best
2) OBC
3) Papermill - a good complete recording of the score, with all the cut songs, orchestrated, as appendix

All others are problematic:
4) 2011 revival - not a complete recording of the score, marred by some hyper-self-indulgent performances
5) London - changes to the score aren't particularly strong
6) NY Phil - the orchestra is too dang big, heavy,and slow; the key changes for Barbara Cook change the feel of Sally's songs completely, Mandy Patinkin is just embarrassing, not a full version of the score

[binau]

Posted: 2/10/12 at 5:12pm

I don't think you can consider the Papermill recording more 'complete'. Besides the recording of Bolero d'Amore, which was cut from the 2011 production anyway. The 2011 recording has so much important dialogue that change the tone of listening to the show on CD completely (e.g. Buddy's Eyes; transition into Loveland etc.) . The 2011 recording is closest to what FOLLIES is on stage. The appendix of the Papermill recording is nice but not necessary in comparison to the dialogue. Plus the 2011 recording is better quality (listen to the washed out Brass in the first 10 seconds of the Papermill prologue compared to the revival).

[ComingUpRoses2]

Posted: 2/10/12 at 5:59pm

To get the best feel of the show, the 2011 recording can't be topped. It feels just like a radio version of the whole production or something. A lot of the performances are great, some are strange, and some will just leave you scratching your head (Bernadette sometimes delivers her lines in a William Shatner-esque fashion. Ex: "I. Don't! Want To. Fight. With. You. Phyll!"

The orchestrations are gorgeous, though.

Papermill is mostly complete musically and has some terrific cut songs, but not all the performances are all that memorable.

The OBC is horribly recorded and the songs are all cut to hell, but the performances are great, as are the orchestrations. It's just a shame that the whole thing sounds so muddled, almost like you're listening to it from the other end of a telephone.

The Philharmonic is badly recorded. You have to crank up the volume to hear anything at all. Barbara Cook hits it out of the park, Lee Remick is a lot of fun, etc. but I think Elaine Stritch and Carol Burnett steal the show with Broadway Baby and I'm Still Here. Carol's version is still my favorite.

I actually really enjoy the London cast a lot. Diana Rigg is sassy as Phyllis, Who's That Woman packs a nice punch, and Julia McKenzie's Losing My Mind is stunning. In fact, I think her version is definitive. The new songs, with the exceptions of Ah, But Underneath are odd and out of place. Country House is terrific on its own, but it sounds like it belongs in Company instead of Follies.

There's good parts of each recording, but I'd start with the 2011 recording to get an idea of what the show's all about and then, feel free to explore and pick your favorite bits from each.

[sally1112]

Posted: 2/10/12 at 6:41pm

This is not a show I know well. I found the OBC on CD at a thrift store for a buck, about two months ago, and have been very happy. Now that I have read this thread I want the 2011 version! ugh, I'm never satisfied.

[BroadwayFan12]

Posted: 2/10/12 at 7:25pm

MisterSnow, may I ask why you don't like Terri White? I know Bernadette and Elaine's performances weren't everyone's cup of tea, but I hadn't heard complaints about Terri's until now.

[MTVMANN]

Posted: 2/10/12 at 7:42pm

I have them all...but I would say the 2011 Revival and the 1985 Concert are the TWO you should buy!!!

I just want choose between the two!


About the London Recording...Having listened to "Side by Side by Sondheim" for awhile I fell in love with Julia McKenzie's "Losing My Mind" but...9 years later her voice had thinned out a little (or something). Still beautiful though.

[Gaveston2]

Posted: 2/10/12 at 7:59pm

Mary McCarty had no more devoted fan than I, BroadwayFan. I saw her twice in FOLLIES and many times in CHICAGO (not to mention film and TV). She will always epitomize the "Mirror" song for me.

But I think Terry White is terrific on the 2011 album. I share your surprise that anyone objects and I do hope White comes west with the show in May!

[AwesomeDanny]

Posted: 2/10/12 at 8:43pm

A year or two ago, I asked this same question, and the best response I got was from Pal Joey, who said to buy them all. If you are not familiar with the show, I would start with the 2011 recording, but if you have seen the show, I would go with start with the Papermill or OBC. The thing about this show is that while there are many recordings, none of them are perfect. I rotate out tracks from the different ones on a playlist.

[justoldbill]

Posted: 2/10/12 at 9:07pm

The Original Broadway Cast recording, come what may. So what if Stephen Sondheim thinks it's dreadful? He's equally wrong about the film of WEST SIDE STORY. They're both wonderful.

[EricMontreal22]

Posted: 2/11/12 at 1:06am

Keep far far away from the Concert recording. Perhaps the most overated Sondheim based recording in history. It captures absolutely zero of the feel of the actual show, the songs are sometimes brilliantly sung (I love Carol's I'm Still Here and Barbara Cook of course sounds great) but have zero context or personality--they're simply the stars singing the score. The sound is poor, the audience sounds annoying, some performanceds verge on camp--and they didn't even record the full score (which was one of the purposes of the recording in the first place). Atrocious.

[AADA81]

Posted: 2/11/12 at 2:49am

My two cents:

1. The 2011 Revival: Everyone can carp about individual performance preferences but this is a crisp, vibrant recording that captures the grandeur of the score and is in many ways as memorable as the OBC.

2. 1971 Original Cast: You know the drill....poorly recorded, truncated songs, etc,....but this cast of actors is timeless in such a profound way that these are quibbles that stop mattering. A must have.

3. 1998 Papermill Cast: Some lackluster performances (Donna MaKechnie has been better elsewhere) slightly mar this very thorough recording, but it's still quite good and is special because it has lots of "extra" recordings of songs from other versions.

4. 1985 Concert Performance: Elaine Stritch, Barbara Cook and Carol Burnett acquit themselves nicely here. But this overrated recording has problems. It's poorly recorded, Mandy Patinkin is his usually insufferable self, and many of the performers try too hard and yet miss by a mile. Skip it.

5. 1988 London Cast: Dolores Gray hits a home run with "I'm Still Here" and is the only person to truly rival Yvonne DeCarlo's definitive version. But Sondheim's dickering with the score has its usual result: deflation and flat out misfires. And no one else comes close to Gray's larger-than-life finesse. A curio but not necessary.

[theeatah]

Posted: 2/11/12 at 4:04am

Not sure if it's been mentioned, but the OLC uses a smaller orchestra.

I'd recommend the 2011 recording to begin with. I'd also agree that there's no "perfect" recording of the score.

Speaking of the soundboard, I've never heard it sound so good as here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mgvoAr0_gt4

Kudos to whoever did the audio clean-up. I wish I could buy that version.

[MTVMANN]

Posted: 2/11/12 at 10:11am

"Keep far far away from the Concert recording. Perhaps the most overated Sondheim based recording in history. It captures absolutely zero of the feel of the actual show, the songs are sometimes brilliantly sung (I love Carol's I'm Still Here and Barbara Cook of course sounds great) but have zero context or personality--they're simply the stars singing the score. The sound is poor, the audience sounds annoying, some performanceds verge on camp--and they didn't even record the full score (which was one of the purposes of the recording in the first place). Atrocious."




I remember reading that Barbara Cook said that they didn't have any time to develop he characters. She said that while "In Buddy's Eyes" is probably filled with subtext, she was going to sing it as if she meant every word...which I think works very well too.

[husk_charmer]

Posted: 2/11/12 at 10:52am

Papermill. Easily the best and most likeable of all the casts, and Donna McKechnie is flawless as Sally. The OBC is my second pick only because of how truncated it is.

[RainbowJude]

Posted: 2/12/12 at 12:02pm

Totally agreed with Eric about the concert recording.

[goldenboy]

Posted: 2/12/12 at 7:21pm

Papermill is my favorite.
Followed by London
followed by the original Broadway cast.

[chewy5000]

Posted: 2/12/12 at 7:54pm

The only answer to this question is all of them.