Worst cast albums

[BrodyFosse123]

Posted: 11/25/17 at 8:33pm

The Original Broadway Cast recording of ON YOUR FEET!

It’s a live recording and it is simply horrendous. Dialogue sections sound far away as if the audio was picked up from some floor mic. An iPhone bootleg would have captured the audio better. I mean, there are hundreds of live concert recordings dating back to the 1950s that have dialogue captured crystal clear yet the Estefans, who are part of the music recording industry couldn’t get top notch sound engineers to capture this show perfectly?

Even the cast members of the show were shocked how horrible their cast recording turned out.

[denali.fire]

Posted: 11/26/17 at 10:37am

A real disappointing cast recording was this new recording of Hello Dolly. It seems flat. No real depth. Could have added a lot more in reprises and finale music.

I've tried to warm up to it but I just can't.

[youwillbefound2]

Posted: 11/26/17 at 10:51am

The Legally Blonde cast recording sounds like it was recorded with a tin can

[TheatreRocks]

Posted: 11/26/17 at 11:13am

The Book of Mormon cast album sounds like everybody is singing behind a piece of glass and all the microphones, recording devices are on the other side.

[Itonlytakesajourney]

Posted: 11/26/17 at 3:16pm

Second the Mormon recording, it’s horrendous.

Next to Normal and the Chorus Line revival both sound like they were recorded in a stuffy shoe box in the middle of winter with the microphones underground.

[Dollypop]

Posted: 11/26/17 at 4:58pm

No recording is worse than the OBC of COCO..
Not only do you get to hear Hepburn croaking her way through a pretty decent score but the whole thing sounds like it was recorded in a tin can.

[ggersten]

Posted: 11/26/17 at 5:18pm

Dreamgirls OBC.  Truncated songs - fade outs - I kept hoping with advent of CDs that they had actually recorded full versions of the songs and those would be on a CD someday.  

 

[GeorgeandDot]

Posted: 11/26/17 at 6:12pm

Next to Normal has the most lifeless cast album that I have ever heard.

[quizking101]

Posted: 11/26/17 at 7:36pm

BrodyFosse123 said: "The Original Broadway Cast recording of ON YOUR FEET!

It’s a live recording and it is simply horrendous. Dialogue sections sound far away as if the audio was picked up from some floor mic. An iPhone bootleg would have captured the audio better. I mean, there are hundreds of live concert recordings dating back to the 1950s that have dialogue captured crystal clear yet the Estefans, who are part of the music recording industry couldn’t get top notch sound engineers to capture this show perfectly?

Even the cast members of the show were shocked how horrible their cast recording turned out.
"

I’m glad this was the first one roasted. It was crap. I enjoyed the song selection even though the show was ho-hum, but this just stomped all over it

[Sorry-Grateful]

Posted: 11/26/17 at 7:47pm

LaChiusa's Little Fish. Alice Ripley at her most uninteresting. The slow, monotone slog of the score is hampered by Ripley's rasp-singing. 

[thedrybandit]

Posted: 11/26/17 at 7:59pm

Gentlemen's Guide to Love and Murder has the worst mixing I've heard on a recent cast album. I swear there are a couple parts where you can hear people talking in the background, like they forgot to mute a background track. I know it was done on a relative budget, but it's just bad.

 

Also, It Shoulda Been You had a pretty bad album. It sounded like they used the cheapest mics they could, and all the voices just sound slightly off. Again, I know it was done on a budget because it wasn't exactly pulling in tons of money, but they could have at least made sure the vocals were clear.

[CATSNYrevival]

Posted: 11/26/17 at 8:52pm

The Wiz. The performances will never be beat, but similar to Dreamgirls it was recorded as a pop album with truncated songs, fade outs, whole songs unrecorded and to this day we still don't have a recording of the complete original score and orchestrations.

[Bronxfan]

Posted: 11/26/17 at 9:56pm

The 1991 revival of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat with Jason Donovan and Linzi Hatley. It really manages to ruin every single note of the score. Maybe because it is so inferior to the 1982 version with Bill Hutton and Laurie Beechman.

[EvanstonDad]

Posted: 11/27/17 at 9:27am

Not sure if it counts as a cast recording, but there was a two-disc studio recording of Sweet Charity that included the entire score, incidental music as well as the actual numbers. All of the tempos are taken at a glacial pace, and though the idea of the complete score might sound appealing, when actually listening to it, the large amount of incidental music grinds the recording to a halt. I didn't even know it was possible to make the experience of listening to Sweet Charity similar to sitting through a funeral.

[StageStruckLad]

Posted: 11/27/17 at 9:09pm

Surprised no one has mentioned the Tyne Daly Gypsy recording. I could only listen to it once.

Updated On: 11/27/17 at 09:09 PM

[poisonivy2]

Posted: 11/27/17 at 9:43pm

The latest Hello Dolly! album. I really thought it would be a deluxe package album maybe with some bonus tracks of the Ethel Merman additions and the whole nine yards. Instead it's a cheap shoddy product with only one photo and it doesn't even include the finale. 

[Jarethan]

Posted: 11/27/17 at 10:14pm

Dollypop said: "No recording is worse than the OBC of COCO..
Not only do you get to hear Hepburn croaking her way through a pretty decent score but the whole thing sounds like it was recorded in a tin can."

A matter of taste.  I loved it and still play it regularly.  I have to admit that I deleted 3 or 4 songs from the playlist, none off which is a Hepburn song.  The three key reasons I really like it: (1) I think Lerner's lyrics are terrific, particularly in 'The Money Rolls in Like Freedom' (close enough) and 'Always Mademoiselle'; (2) I thought Hebpurn was terrific.  She can't sing, but she stayed on key, and acted the hell out of the songs.  (I would point out that Carol Channing could never really sing, but her HD recording is significantly better than Bette Midler's.  Bette sings better, but -- despite what I have read about her perfectionism -- sounded like she was saving it up for her next live performance); and (3) it reminds me of the original production, which I enjoyed a lot more than the critics at the timer said I should.

IMO, and a cliche I admit, the original Follies recording really was terrible, although I played it constantly until better ones came along.  The new Hello Dolly is lifeless, which is criminal.  They did as much as they could to take the life out of it.  

I also thought the GHD recording was terrible -- tried to listed to it 6 different times, and could never get to the finale; but I suspect that is more about my view of the score, not the cast recording quality.

[chewy5000]

Posted: 11/28/17 at 4:53am

The performances on the COCO album aren't the issue. It's the constant hiss, the inconsistent volume levels and the inexplicable train sound effect.

Although I'm not a fan of the way Ms. Hepburn sings "who the devil caaAARES..."

[bwayphreak234]

Posted: 11/28/17 at 8:01am

While I love the new cast recording of The King and I, I HATE that they cut the reprise of "Hello, Young Lovers". I also hate the truncated finale on the recording. I wish they would have done a complete two disc recording like they did for South Pacific. 

I also have to agree about the new Hello, Dolly! cast album. It lacks all the warmth, energy, and joy that is up on the stage at the Shubert. 

[Lot666]

Posted: 11/28/17 at 12:27pm

Sunset Boulevard is one of my favorite musicals, and after owning the American Premiere Recording with Glenn Close for some time, I bought a used CD of the World Premiere Recording with Patti LuPone. Let's just say it was disappointing.

[HiredMan]

Posted: 11/28/17 at 3:53pm

The Flowers for Algernon cast album has horrible sound quality and either bad playing or bad orchestrations. It's a weird score/show to begin with and on the whole you can tell there's something attractive in there, but lord, it just sounds dated and the band sounds real tired.

also the Little Fish album is disappointing. The entire cast loses their pitches en masse in the opening number (2:00-2:33) and just sound exhausted. It's a very interesting score but you wouldn't know it by that recording. 

Updated On: 11/28/17 at 03:53 PM

[Mister Matt]

Posted: 11/28/17 at 4:43pm

Sunset Boulevard is one of my favorite musicals, and after owning the American Premiere Recording with Glenn Close for some time, I bought a used CD of the World Premiere Recording with Patti LuPone. Let's just say it was disappointing.

I'm the opposite.  Judy Kuhn and the addition of Every Movie's a Circus are the only reasons I'll listen to the American recording at all.  Otherwise, I much prefer the voices and content of the London recording.  I just wish the quality of the recording itself were better.

[Lot666]

Posted: 11/29/17 at 9:53am

Mister Matt said: "Sunset Boulevardis one of my favorite musicals, and after owning the American Premiere Recording with Glenn Close for some time, I bought a used CD of theWorld Premiere Recording with Patti LuPone. Let's just say it was disappointing.

I'm the opposite. Judy Kuhn and the addition of Every Movie's a Circusarethe only reasons I'll listen to the American recording at all. Otherwise, I much prefer the voices and content of the London recording. I just wish the quality of the recording itself were better."

I just don't care for the way Ms. LuPone sings these songs. She's undeniably a vocal powerhouse, but her approach doesn't suit the material to my ears. Also, Kevin Anderson comes across as a lackluster Joe and his phrasing and cadence of the lyrics feels "off" to me. It doesn't help that the sound quality of the recording is not the best.

[Mister Matt]

Posted: 11/29/17 at 10:17am

And for me, I can't take Close's break.  The leaps across her head and chest voices drive me nuts (as well as her hysterical sobbing).  And I really like Kevin Anderson's take on Joe, which sounds much more natural and in character to me.  I find Alan Campbell's weird open vowels and affectation of accenting every syllable grating (but I did enjoy seeing Bryan Batt's take on it in Forbidden Broadway).

[Lot666]

Posted: 11/29/17 at 10:30am

Mister Matt said: "I find Alan Campbell's weird open vowels and affectation of accenting every syllable grating"

Admittedly, Mr. Campbell has some odd emphasis, i.e., "We're not helping her, feeding her LIES, more LIES".