Sunset Boulevard (1995 Toronto Cast) [Cast Recording]

Editorial Reviews
Album Details
The Canadian Cast Recording of the Popular Andrew Lloyd Webber Musical features the Talents of TV'S First Black Leading Lady Diahann Carroll in the Starring Role as Nora Desmond.

Sunset Boulevard (1995 Toronto Cast), Music, Andrew Lloyd Webber, Don Black, Christopher Hampton

Gold: The Definitive Hits Collection
Average customer rating:

Andrew LLoyd Webber - Gold Hits

The Gold By Andrew

The best of Webber

THE BEST OF LLOYD WEBBER MADE FOR THE AMERICAN AUDIENCES

Super good CD

Gold: The Definitive Hits Collection
Andrew Lloyd Webber
Manufacturer: Decca
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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The Very Best Of Andrew Lloyd Webber: The Broadway Collection

The Andrew Lloyd Webber Collection

Andrew Lloyd Webber: Now & Forever

Greatest Songs from the Musicals

Best of Andrew Lloyd Webber: Original Soundtracks

ASIN: B0000657XY
Release Date: 2002-05-07

Tracks:

Superstar - Murray Head w/ the Trinidad Singers (Jesus Christ Superstar)
As If We Never Said Goodbye - Barbra Streisand (Sunset Boulevard)
The Phantom Of The Opera - Sarah Brightman & Michael Crawford (The Phantom Of The Opera)
You Must Love Me - Madonna (Evita)
Any Dream Will Do-Donny Osmond (Joseph & The Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat)
Memory - Betty Buckley (Cats)
Pie Jesus - Charlotte Church (Requiem)
The Music Of The Night - Michael Crawford (The Phantom Of The Opera)
I Don't Know How To Love Him - Yvonne Elliman (Jesus Christ Superstar)
Don't Cry For Me Argentina -Patti Lupone (Evita)
Love Changes Everything - Michael Ball (Aspects Of Love)
All I Ask Of You - Sarah Brightman (The Phantom Of The Opera)
The Perfect Year - Glenn Close & Alan Campbell (Sunset Boulevard)
The Vaults Of Heaven - Tom Jones & Sounds Of Blackness (Whistle Down The Wind)
No Matter What - Boyzone (Whistle Down The Wind)
Oh What A Circus - Mandy Patinkin (Evita)
Whistle Down The Wind - Sarah Brightman (Whistle Down The Wind)
Amigos Para Siempre (Friends For Life) - Sarah Brightman & Jose Carrerras (1992 Olympics Theme)

Amazon.com

The critical debate over Andrew Lloyd Webber's musical legacy will no doubt rage for decades. Is he the shrewd populist composer who almost single-handedly revived the moribund stage musical--or a crass, Barnum-esque showman (who almost single-handedly revived the moribund stage musical)? This 18-track anthology chronicles the high points of Sir Andrew's enduring songcraft and the irrefutable impact it's made across a remarkably disparate swath of tastes and genres, from Broadway to Top 40 radio and even the classical repertoire.

If some have accused Lloyd Webber's songs--like "The Music of the Night" (from Phantom of the Opera) and the title tune from Whistle Down the Wind, included here--of having all the melodic and lyrical sophistication of a children's lullaby, that's likely the very element that's made them so appealing to a mass audience. If nothing else, it's a compelling argument for that old notion about it being "the singer, not the song." Indeed, there are few contemporary composers whose music could entice divas from Streisand ("As If We'd Never Said Goodbye" from Sunset Blvd.) to Madonna (Evita's "You Must Love Me") and Charlotte Church ("Pie Jesu" from Requiem) to cover it, let alone forge the very careers of artists like Sarah Brightman and Michael Crawford. And if there's any substance to that other criticism of Lloyd Webber lifting the melodic ideas of composers from Verdi to John Williams (we swear that's the theme to Jurassic Park bubbling up in Tom Jones's camped-up take on Whistle's "The Vaults of Heaven"), at least, like virtually every major composer, he's stolen--er, borrowed--from the best. --Jerry McCulley

Customer Reviews:

Andrew LLoyd Webber - Gold Hits.......2007-07-13

I sent this CD to my parents and they love it! It is nice to preview the songs on-line instead of with greasy headphones in a music store! The shipping is always speedy and makes sending gifts across the country so much easier.

The Gold By Andrew.......2007-04-23

This cd is a must have for any Webber fan. It has many great songs from his most sucsessful musicals. But something I don't like about this cd is that some of the singer how sings some of the songs arn't the onse that sings the originals. Like "The Phantom Of The Opera" and "Love Changes Everything". Witch is so sad. Couse the original songs are so much better.
But besides that this cd is very good. With manye nice and difficult songs (I've sung some of the myself in siningclass).
So if you like Andrew's music this most sertanly is a most have.

The best of Webber.......2005-09-12

Although I like Andrew Llloyd Webber and his music very much, this collection earns only 4 stars and it's not because of the quality of the music but the level of performers. If a best of collection is made it should contain the best version ever done and this time it's not true. I could write the same review for the European edition (labeled import here) because the blend of the two would be a perfect best of.

Some examples: this version contains Memory sung by Betty Buckley while the Elaine Page version is light years better. Then it contains Patti Lupone's version of Don't Cry For Me Argentina. Even though Madonna wasn't the best Evita, she definitely sung Argentina in a way no-one could before or will ever. Whistle Down The Wind is represented with 3 songs - the place of the Tom Jones song is not here (the same could be said of Tina Arena's song o the European edition). Instead of the TJ song they could have included Take That Look Off Your Face by Marti Webb - one of the best songs by Webber. Pie Jesu from the Requiem is much better sung by Sarah Brightman. These are the faults.

What about the rest? Pure joy and material worth of 6 stars. Superstar, Phantom Of The Opera, Music Of The Night, I Don't Know How To Love Him, All I Ask Of You, No Matter What, Oh What A Circus - wonderful songs and wonderful performers. My all-time favorite from Webber will always be Music Of The Night and the version included here is the mesmerizing adaptation of Michael Crawford.

I don't advise anyone not to buy this album - it's good material, however it's far from being perfect.

THE BEST OF LLOYD WEBBER MADE FOR THE AMERICAN AUDIENCES.......2005-01-31

There are numerous compilations out on the market full of Andrew Lloyd Webber's music. As most people know, Lloyd Webber is the most successful musical composer of all time and many of his songs became standards not only in the theatre history, but also as tops on the charts. Even though he's British, his influence on the shape of the modern musical theatre expanded over the West End boundaries long ago and has thus made an enormous impact on Broadway. Two of his shows ("Cats" and "The phantom of the opera") hold the record as two the longest running shows in the history of Broadway. He has also been the only composer to have three of his shows running at Broadway concurrently. This compilation captures some of the best songs he has ever written, he personally supervised it and it is the best thing to have if you can't afford his five-CD compilation called "Now and forever", which was selected and supervised by him as well. You should bear in mind, however, that there are two compilations called Gold out there: The one made for the European and the British market, and this one, made for the American buyers. Some of the songs on both of them are the same, the others are performed by different artists and some can be found only in one of the two. This one here was issued later and it is digitally remastered. Therefore you should check your favourites and buy accordingly, or, if you can, buy them both, since both of them contain interesting songs and performers.

So here are my thoughts about the tracks in this one:

1. "Superstar" and "I don't know how to love him" are both from the concept album of "Jesus Christ Superstar". They sound wonderful as ever, although the orchestrations may seem a bit dated by now.

2. "Sunset Boulevard" is marked here with two songs. Barbra Streisand's powerful voice shines all the way through in "As if we never said goodbye"; it's a shame she never played Norma Desmond on Broadway, since Patti LuPone wasn't allowed to take her Norma to New York, and Glenn Close butchered the role. Her limited vocal abilities were hardly suited for the material, as it is shown by the second Sunset song, "The perfect year", performed by Close and Alan Campbell. They both lack a decent singing voice, so this is the one song I skip regularly. The song itself sounds much better in its single version with pops orchestration, as can be heard on the European version of this compilation, where it is performed by Dina Carroll. This version here can hardly be considered a gold one.

3. "The Phantom of the Opera" is represented by three songs. Michael Crawford and Sarah Brightman performance in the song of the same title is amazing. They were both born to play their roles in this show and their voices fit together perfectly. Sarah can hit the high notes in the end like no other Christine. Cliff Richard and Sarah sing the lovely ballad "All I ask of you" with passion, and Cliff has a wonderful warmth in his voice. Finally, Michael Crawford gives his unique and mesmerising interpretation in "The music of the night".

4. The 1996 movie version of "Evita" is Madonna's best role to date and it brought an Academy Award for Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice, who wrote "You must love me" especially for the big screen. This is another wonderful ballad with the haunting cello and piano solo. It just proves that Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice were the best collaborators. They really should do another musical together.

5. "The Joseph and his amazing Technicolor dreamcoat" was Webber's first musical and the signature song "Any dream will do" is performed here by Donny Osmond, who also appeared in the video version. I find his rendition even better than London's Jason Donovan, since Donny isn't strictly bound by the notes and so sings it more casually. A wonderful pop piece.

6."Memory" from "Cats" is probably the most famous of all Webber's songs, recorded by numerous artists. This version is sung by Betty Buckley, who was Broadway's Grizabella. Although Betty's performance can't be considered bad, I prefer Elaine Paige, who sung the song first, in the London production. Elaine has a note of sorrow in her at times husky voice, which I found very intriguing. Her performance can be considered definite, as heard on "Cats" DVD or in her latest two-disc compilation, "Centre stage: The very best of Elaine Paige", issued in May 2004. Still, those who prefer Ms. Buckley or who saw her on stage in this role won't be disappointed.

7. "Pie Jesu" is the best known song from Webber's "Requiem", written in 1985 to commemorate the death of his father. I'm not too keen on the version included here, performed by Charlotte Church, because her voice isn't as pretty as Sarah Brightman's on the original recording and the tempo is somewhat faster here.

8. "Don't cry for me Argentina" is among my all-time Lloyd Webber's favourites. I like all the ladies who performed "Evita" on the stage and on the screen (Julie Covington, Elaine Paige, Patti LuPone and Madonna), but on this disc is the version I am most satisfied with, since it is sung by Patti LuPone. Ms. LuPone has a very powerful voice with an amazing range and she deserved her Tony Award for this role. She was able to sound both vulnerable and decisive while singing this, whereas the other leading ladies emphasized one or the other in their interpretation. Mandy Patinkin's "Oh what a circus" is not the best, the orchestration is a little bit weak and his voice sounds thin to me. David Essex on the London cast recording is more suitable.

9. "Aspects of love" boast here with its top song, "Love changes everything", performed wonderfully by Michael Ball. It was his #1 hit and is probably one of the most beautiful love anthems ever written.

10. Three songs come from "Whistle down the wind". The studio release of the same title is one of the reasons I bought this compilation, although I already have the European one. It is performed by Sarah Brightman with Lloyd Webber playing the piano and a symphonic orchestra who nicely takes the lead of the main melody. Sarah voice is angelic; she sings it like a little bird. Very charming. Boyzone's "No matter what" was a huge pop hit in the charts. Again, we have a song with the suitable orchestrations and vocals. And lastly, Tom Jones' deep voice in combination with the back vocals of "The Sounds of Blackness" gives a rocking rendition of the church hymn "The vaults of heaven". It can't be found on the European version and Tom's voice shows it hasn't aged. Way to go.

11. For the 1992 Barcelona Olympics, Webber wrote, together with his long-time lyricist Don Black, this last song, "Amigos para siempre or Friends for life". It's a nice duet between Sarah Brightman and Jose Carreras, their voices sore when bound together. The melody itself is neat, especially when the orchestra takes the lead.

Besides the fact that some of the performers here were not the best for my taste, there is also the fact that some of Lloyd Webber's shows are omitted in this version, most notably, "Tell me on a Sunday". Also, unlike its European counterpart, this compilation isn't aligned chronologically, so we have 1970 Superstar being the first song, 1993 Sunset Blvd comes the second, followed by The Phantom from 1986 and so on. None the less, this CD is excellent as an introduction to Lloyd Webber's music and one can continue with his cast recordings from there. It's also very handy as a single disc compilation for the American fans.

Super good CD.......2004-12-31

The songs on this CD are great. If you also play piano, the book of the same title goes perfectly with the CD. You can following along with the music and learn the songs on the piano.

Broadway - The American Musical (PBS Series)

Average customer rating:

Fabulous for any Broadway-lover
Top Shelf
TERRIFIC CD'S
Great Collection of Broadways greatest Songs
Great Compilation!

Broadway - The American Musical (PBS Series)

Manufacturer: Sony
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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The Best of Broadway - The American Musical (PBS Series)
Broadway: The American Musical
Broadway: The American Musical
Broadway - The American Musical (PBS Series)
Somewhere over the Rainbow: The Golden Age of Hollywood Musicals

ASIN: B00064ADMK
Release Date: 2004-10-19

Tracks:

Give My Regards To Broadway- Joel Grey
Swanee- Al Jolson
When The Moon Shines On The Moonshine- Bert Williams
A Pretty Girl Is Like A Melody- John Steel
My Man- Fanny Brice
Fascinating Rhythm- Fred Astaire, Adele Astaire
If You Knew Susie (Like I Know Susie)- 78rpm Version Eddie Cantor
Someone To Watch Over Me- Gertrude Lawrence
Bill- 78 rpm Version Helen Morgan
Ol' Man River- Paul Robeson
Ain't Misbehavin'- Louis Armstrong & His Orchestra
Ten Cents A Dance- Ruth Etting
Body And Soul- Libby Holman
Brother, Can You Spare A Dime- Bing Crosby
Night And Day- Fred Astaire
Heat Wave- Ethel Waters
Smoke Gets in Your Eyes- Tamara
You're The Top- Ethel Merman
Summertime- Anne Brown
September Song- Walter Huston
My Heart Belongs To Daddy- Mary Martin
It Never Entered My Mind- Shirley Ross
Bewitched, Bothered, Bewildered- Vivienne Segal
Oh, How I Hate To Get Up In The Morning- Irving Berlin
Oh, What a Beautiful Mornin'- Alfred Drake

Tracks:

New York, New York- Cris Alexander,Adolph Green,John Reardon
If I Loved You- John Raitt,Jan Clayton
Come Rain Or Come Shine- Ruby Hill,Harold Nicholas
There's No Business Like Show Business- Ensemble
How Are Things In Glocca Morra? From "Finian's Rainbow"- Ella Logan
Once In Love With Amy- Ray Bolger
Wunderbar- Alfred Drake,Patricia Morison
Some Enchanted Evening- Ezio Pinza
Lost In The Stars- Todd Duncan
Diamonds Are A Girl's Best Friend- Carol Channing
Luck Be A Lady- Robert Alda,Guys
Getting To Know You- Gertrude Lawrence
Who Cares?- Jack Carson,Betty Oakes
Stranger In Paradise- from " Kismet" Doretta Morrow,Richard Kiley
Ballad Of Mack The Knife- Gerald Price
Hey There- from "The Pajama Game" John Raitt
Whatever Lola Wants- Gwen Verdon
I Could Have Danced All Night- Julie Andrews
Standing On The Corner- from "The Most Happy Fella, 1956" Shorty Long,John Henson,Alan Gilbert
The Party's Over- Judy Holliday
Glitter And Be Gay- Barbara Cook
Tonight- Larry Kert, Carol Lawrence

Tracks:

Seventy-Six Trombones- Robert Preston
I Enjoy Being A Girl- from "Flower Drum Song, 1958" Pat Suzuki
Everything's Coming Up Roses- Ethel Merman
My Favorite Things- from "The Sound Of Music" Mary Martin
Put On A Happy Face- from "Bye Bye Birdie" Dick Van Dyke
Try To Remember- Jerry Orbach
Camelot- from "Camelot" Richard Burton
Love Makes The World Go 'Round- Anna Maria Alberghetti
I Believe In You- Robert Morse And Co.
The Sweetest Sounds- Diahann Carroll,Richard Kiley
Comedy Tonight- Zero Mostel
What Kind Of Fool Am I?- Anthony Newley
As Long As He Needs Me- Georgia Brown
Hello, Dolly!- Carol Channing,Cast
People- Barbra Streisand
Anyone Can Whistle- from "Anyone Can Whistle" Lee Remick
If I Were A Rich Man- Zero Mostel
Night Song- Sammy Davis, Jr.
The Impossible Dream- Richard Kiley
If My Friends Could See Me Now- Gwen Verdon
Open a New Window- from Mame Voice

Tracks:

Willkommen- from "Cabaret" Joel Grey
Let The Sunshine In- James Rado,Lynn Kellogg,Melba Moore,Cast
I'll Never Fall In Love Again- Jill O'Hara,Jerry Orbach
The Ladies Who Lunch- from "Company" Elaine Stritch
Tea For Two- Roger Rathburn,Susan Watson
I'm Still Here- Yvonne De Carlo
I Don't Know How To Love Him- Yvonne Elliman
We Go Together- Adrienne Barbeau,Barry Bostwick,Walter Bobbie,Cast
Corner Of The Sky- John Rubinstein
Send In The Clowns- Glynis Johns
Ease On Down The Road- Stephanie Mills,Tiger Haynes,Ted Ross,Hinton
One- from "A Chorus Line" Cast
All That Jazz- Chita Rivera,Ensemble
Tomorrow- Andrea Mcardle
Don't Cry For Me Argentina- Patti Lupone
Come Follow The Band
Lullaby Of Broadway- Jerry Orbach
And I'm Telling You I'm Not Going- Jennifer Holliday
The Bells Of St. Sebastian- Raul Julia

Tracks:

Memory- Betty Buckley
I Am What I Am- George Hearn
Move On- Bernadette Peters,Mandy Patinkin
Do You Hear The People Sing?- Michael Maguire,Cast
The Music Of The Night- Michael Crawford
You're Nothing Without Me- James Naughton,Gregg Edelman
The American Dream- Jonathan Pryce,Cast
Doctor Jazz- Gregory Hines,Company
With One Look- Glenn Close
On Broadway- Adrian Bailey,Frederick B. Owens,Ken Ard,Victor Trent Cook
Le Jazz Hot- Julie Andrews,Ensemble
Seasons Of Love-
Hakuna Matata- Max Casella,Tom Alan Robbins,Scott Irby-Ranniar,Jason Raize
I Wanna Be A Producer- Matthew Broderick,Ensemble
Dancing Queen- Louise Plowright,Jenny Galloway
Good Morning Baltimore- Marissa Jaret Winokur
Movin' Out- Michael Cavanaugh,Band
I Go To Rio- Hugh Jackman,Company
Defying Gravity- Kristin Chenoweth,Idina Menzel

Customer Reviews:

Fabulous for any Broadway-lover.......2007-01-30

Packs into 5 CD's a sampling of Broadway tunes from the 20's thru (almost) today, mostly from original cast recordings. Includes not just well-known hits, but also some lesser-known gems. Sound quality is first rate, booklet is informative too. Have given this as a gift to several friends with rave reviews.

Top Shelf.......2007-01-04

This is THE definitive collection of Broadway hits. I have other collections, and none of them measure up. A great deal of care was obviously taken in compiling and presenting this box set. It covers a lot of ground, starting with some long-forgotten but still very enjoyable hits from the days of yore, and finishing with present-day favorites. To the best of my knowledge, the recordings are by those who made them famous. You won't be disappointed.

TERRIFIC CD'S.......2006-03-23

THESE BROADWAY MUSICALS CD'S ARE A BROADWAY LOVERS DREAM. WITH EACH SONG, MEMORIES COME FLOODING BACK. BOTH THE FAMILIAR AND THE FORGOTTEN SONGS ARE A TRUE LISTENING PLEASURE. IF YOU LIKE BROADWAY, YOU'LL LOVE THIS SET.

Great Collection of Broadways greatest Songs .......2005-06-14

This Collection was perfectly made it has almost all the most famous Broadway songs on this 5 cd set. The Music is great and has Broadways greatest treasures like "Memory""People""With One Look""Give my regards Too Broadway" just to name a few of this numerous cd set with over 100 songs. This is a great buy if you like musicals or The music of Broadway

Great Compilation!.......2005-01-17

If you are a fan of the Broadway Musicals, this is a collection that you should purchase. Since I got the 5 disc set I've enjoyed listening to it. The majority of the songs are done by the original singers. The collection is priceless considering that you will have over 100 songs from popular musicals since the beginning of Broadway

Sunset Boulevard (1993 Original London Cast)

Average customer rating:

Patti LuPone barely manages to salvage this wretchedly directed and orchestrated "glorified highlights album."
Sunset Boulevard (1993 original London Cast)
The Definative Recording of Sunset
Such Silliness
This sun has set but let's remember the music. It's some of Webber's best.

Sunset Boulevard (1993 Original London Cast)
Michael Bauer , Daniel Benzali , Meredith Braun , Gerard Casey , Nicolas Colicos , Anita Louise Combe , Don Black , Christopher Hampton , Patti LuPone , and Kevin Anderson
Manufacturer: Decca Broadway
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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Sunset Boulevard (1994 Los Angeles Cast)
Whistle Down The Wind (1998 Original London Cast)
Aspects Of Love (Original 1989 London Cast)
Aspects of Love (Remastered 1989 Original London Cast)
Evita (1978 Original Broadway Cast)

ASIN: B000001E3D
Release Date: 1996-06-10

Tracks:

Act I: Prologue
Act I: Let's Have Lunch
Act I: Sheldrake's Office
Act I: On The Road/The House On Sunset
Act I: Surrender
Act I: With One Look
Act I: Salome
Act I: The Greatest Star Of All
Act I: Let's Have Lunch/Girl Meets Boy
Act I: The House On Sunset
Act I: New Ways To Dream
Act I: The Lady's Paying
Act I: The House On Sunset
Act I: The Perfect Year
Act I: Dialogue After The Perfect Year
Act I: Artie Green's Apartment
Act I: This Time Next Year
Act I: The House On Sunset

Tracks:

Sunset Boulevard
Act II: The Perfect Year
Act II: Journey To Paramount
Act II: As If We Never Said Goodbye
Act II: Surrender
Act II: Girl Meets Boy
Act II: Eternal Youth Is Worth A Little Suffering
Act II: Too Much In Love To Care
Act II: New Ways To Dream
Act II: Sunset Boulevard
Act II: The Greatest Star Of All

Amazon.com

Certain moments in Sunset Boulevard may convince you that it's Andrew Lloyd Webber's most satisfying score. The dark opening theme recalls Franz Waxman, while throughout the lush strings perfectly evoke old Hollywood, occasionally broken by wonderfully jazzy interludes. The melodies of the two big songs, "With One Look" and "As if We Never Said Goodbye," wind their way into your brain in the best Lloyd Webber way (even if the latter, Norma Desmond's ode to her fans, is a little too reminiscent of "Don't Cry for Me, Argentina"), "The Perfect Year" is a lovely, stately dance, and "Too Much in Love to Care" is a nice romantic duet between Kevin Anderson and Meredith Braun. On the other hand, the music seems repetitive even by Lloyd Webber standards, with fewer than a dozen themes recycled over the set's 96 minutes, and the lyrics by Don Black and Christopher Hampton are passable at best, predictable at worst. In the London cast of this adaptation of Billy Wilder's 1950 film, Patti LuPone gives a strong lead performance, coloring her big voice with supreme self-importance. She was under contract to fill the role in the subsequent U.S. premiere, but was dropped in favor of Glenn Close, reportedly at the insistence of the show's backers. The booklet includes photos, full lyrics, and an edited version of the dialogue. --David Horiuchi

Customer Reviews:

Patti LuPone barely manages to salvage this wretchedly directed and orchestrated "glorified highlights album.".......2007-06-22

No matter what some bitter and pretentious pseudo-intellectuals say, "Sunset Boulevard" happens to be one of Andrew Lloyd Webber's most beautiful, haunting and most accomplished works. This remarkably faithful adaptation of the timeless Billy Wilder film-noir about the evils of Hollywood and it's media hype is probably the definitive "jazz opera" with some of the most jaw droppingly innovative and groundbreaking production design. So, why the low rating on my part? Well, technically, this has nothing to do with the score and the show itself, but rather this particular album.

Where to begin? There are just so many things horribly wrong with this recording, but I think that the orchestrations themselves are a good place to start. Unlike what can be heard in the American, German, and even the lackluster Canadian recording, the music on this album is horribly disorganized and in some parts the instruments go completely out of tune. This is especially painfully obvious in "This Time Next Year" and "Eternal Youth is Worth a Little Suffering." At one point, poor Daniel Benzali actually goes completely flat due to the botched orchestration of "The Greatest Star of All." It is truly mind boggling that a production of such scope would allow for this absurd unprofessionalism.

My next big gripe comes with the afterword by Andrew Lloyd Webber, where he claims that some of the score on the recording had to be "edited for time in places." Well, that sure is putting it mildly. Over an astonishing forty minutes have been hacked off of this recording for some unknown reasons, since the album is on two discs; which means that no corner cutting was neccessary. I have strong suspicions that this happened because someone decided to save some money by using the audio cassette master for the CD release, but that is just a theory of mine. The cuts are horrible, leaving the basic plot of the musical nearly incoherent and with some jaw droppingly awful cuts, like the painful jump cut in the middle of Schwab's Drugstore scene. All of these cuts reduce this alleged "World Premiere Recording" to a pathetically glorifed highlights album.

However, what completely killed this recording for me was the horrible direction of the entire affair, which is apparent from the less-than-subpar perfomances. Everyone seems to be high on valium and bored to tears, but there are some "joyful variations." Kevin Anderson sounds whiny and raspy (in a bad way) with all the emotional range of a chair. What a waste, since Mr. Anderson has proven himself to be a fine dramatic actor. Daniel Benzali seems to be doing some sort of a lame Michael Crawford impression for "Forbidden Broadway" and the botched musical score isn't doing him any favors (see above.) However, the most butchered number in the entire recording is the group ensemble "Eternal Youth is Worth a Little Suffering." The song, already damaged by a badly out-of-tune orchestra and horrific jump cuts, seems to be sung by what only can be described as "Ritalin addicted Zombie Women of Planet Monotone." Such utter shame; since it's a wickedly comic and hilariously disturbing number that appears as a mere shadow of itself on this album.

There are however two people that rise above all this travesty. They are the wonderful Meredith Braun, who brings youthful energy and sweet innocence to character of Betty Schaefer with her lovely young soprano voice and the majestic Patti LuPone, giving a powerhouse vocal perfomance as the tragic Norma Desmond. Miss LuPone is one of very few people who did not require the complex score's key to be lowered, and boy, does it make a difference in "With One Look" and "As If We Never Said Goodbye." It's too bad her perfomance is mangled on this album with the horrific direction and numerous incomprehensible cuts made to various crucial scenes and songs. I do agree that Patti LuPone was a tad too young and "gentle" sounding for the role back in 1993, but if there's to be a revival of "Sunset Boulevard" in the near future, she would be one of my top choices to headline the show as Norma. Sadly, this will never happen, since Miss LuPone is too busy planning Andrew Lloyd Webber's untimely demise together with Faye Dunaway.

Aside from the great perfomances by Patti LuPone and Meredith Braun and the awkwardly hammy portrayal of Max by Daniel Benzali, the one other reason to get this wretched cast recording is the novelty to hear some alternate renditions of various familiar music numbers. The most interesting are a drastically different number during the Schwab's Drugstore scene (which is sadly cut to ribbons), an alternate finale to "New Ways to Dream" and a different, albeit a very abrupt, final sequence.

All in all, this has got to be one of the absolute worst "original cast recordings" ever unleashed on the unsuspecting public. The only worth of this album are the perfomances of the two leading ladies and the interesting alternate renditions of various numbers that have been drastically (and not so drastically) changed for other productions.

Sunset Boulevard (1993 original London Cast).......2007-06-12

Patti Lupone is brilliant in this recording - makes all subsequent Norma Desmonds seem very lightweight.
All the excitement and enthusiasm of an original recording is contained within.

The Definative Recording of Sunset.......2006-08-07

It's quite interesting to take a project and with time rewrite it to be sufficiently worse. Well Lord Lloyd Webber did this when he rewrote Sunset Boulevard before taking it to America.

First off, let me say I am not ALW's biggest fan. I am however a strong proponent of Evita and Sunset Boulevard. I think that both are incredibly satisfying musically and dramatically. However, I did not realize how incredibly satisfying this score was until I heard Patti LuPone, Kevin Anderson, et. all perform it. (The only voice worth listening to on the US Version is George Hearn)

Instead of the incessant screaming Glenn Close and Alan Campbell provide, LuPone & Anderson "Sing" their rolse and also provide the lyrics with justice. Now anyone who knows these lyrics knows they are far from fabulous, but they do tell the story, and you can understand the story when LuPone & Anderson tell it.

The score has far better orchestrations, and has more dialogue. My biggest problem with the US version is since almost everything is sung, it seems as though nothing needs to be sung. The orchestration provides more countermelodies, etc. Some of the most beautiful and powerful orchestrations were removed by the time the show hit the US and the orchestra here, sounds arguably, like what a Broadway rendition of a film score should sound like.

The cast is just more musical overall and the tempi are more natural. "Let's Have Lunch" finally sounds like the down and dirty sort of atmosphere we associate with the old studios. Too Much in Love to Care doesn't seem forced and rushed. With One Look brilliantly soars and doesn't have the akward key changes Glenn Close needed to sing the role.

Overall, this is "the" Sunset to get.

Such Silliness.......2006-03-22

The silliness and misinformation surrounding this unfortunate show continues to amaze and amuse.

The simple fact is, regardless of what the sadly misinformed have to say, Patti LuPone (who did NOT, as one reviewer claimed, "create" "Evita") was personally triumphant in her British run of "Sunset". However, she and Mr. Webber had major artistic differences over the concept of the total show. He felt, for better or worse, that La Patti was not "on board" with his concept of the show, which in fairness to LuPone, was in a state of flux. She was simply not engaged for the New York run. Glenn (not Glen) Close auditioned with Webber several times. He liked her dramatically, while realizing she would be unable to sing parts of the role as had been originally written. He altered the songs to fit her voice ("Just One Look" is the most obvious example). Her interpretation is more fragile, for lack of a better word, and, it seems, more in line with what Webber wanted by the time the U.S. production was ready. The financially crucial Los Angeles/Touring production was to star Faye Dunaway, but, word has it, Webber accepted her unheard on the word of others who said she could sing the Close version of the role. He learned in L.A. rehearsals that Dunaway was unable to sing ANY version of the role, and he fired her. She sued and they quickly settled out of court. Close continued in the role for a brief period and the U.S. show closed, at Webber's insistance, without a touring company and deeply in debt.

For those who want to spend the money, BOTH recordings are well worth owning. LuPone is, well, LuPone. And that is always fun. Close is the more incisive, dramatically, and the U.S. recording is much more complete.

This sun has set but let's remember the music. It's some of Webber's best........2006-01-07

The film this Andrew Lloyd Webber musical is based on is considered by many as one of the greatest film's ever made. The character of Norma Desmond is as legendary as the woman who portrayed her, Gloria Swanson. Andrew Lloyd Webber took a big chance in taking this classic material and turning it into a musical. For many, it was a colossal failure but for others, it was an astounding success.

The story centres around the tragic figure of Joseph Gillis (Kevin Anderson). A starving Hollywood writer who accidently stumbles upon Norma Desmond (Patti Lupone), a forgotten silent screen star who for years has been planning a "come-back". Norma Desmond then falls madly in love with Joe and she convinces him to help her write an epic motion-picture that she is to star in to cement her super-stardom once again. She is completely oblivious to the fact that cinema has changed and there is no room for an aging silent screen "has-been" in the Hollywood the "talkies" gave birth to.

Other colourful characters are Norma Desmond's bleak but likable Butler Max, Joe's best buddy Artie and his gal-pal Betty Schaeffer. Anyone who has ever seen the film knows that it ends tragically.

This is a great story and I think Andrew Lloyd Webber did a fantastic job musically in capturing the essence of Hollywood in the 1950's. The music is glamorous, tragic and deeply moving and it spawned 2 huge musical theatre numbers- the haunting "With One Look" and "As If We Never Said Good-bye". But these two songs are far from being the only good songs in the bunch.

The musical opens with the clumsy "Let's Have Lunch". Despite the repetitive lyrics the song features energetic performances and an infectious melody. The mood is brought down to a depressing level when Norman Desmond is introduced. Singing an emotional lullaby called "Surrender" to her dead chimp, we're immediately struck by her forceful personality and deeply moved by her vulnerability. "Surrender" is almost immediately followed by the epic "With One Look" where Lupone shows off her big voice.

Another musical highlight is the simple but intensely moving "New Ways To Dream". The song features gorgeous orchestrations and another heart-felt performance by Lupone.

There are still huge debates as to who is better, Patti Lupone or Glen Close (the U.S Norma Desmond). Dramatically speaking, I like both women because they both give strong, solid performances but vocally, I prefer Lupone. Her voice has changed a bit since she originated the role of Eva Peron in the U.S production of EVITA back in 1979 but it is still quite strong and it's still able to achieve moments of great beauty.
Glen Close's voice is an acquired taste. Her tone is rather harsh and unconventional. It's all a matter of opinion.

Kevin Anderson is also given a few moments to shine. The memorable title tune sung by Joe opens the second act and the lovely duet between Joe and Betty Schaeffer, "Too Much In Love To Care" is another gem.

Like Webber's previous works, the orchestrations in SUNSET BLVD are lush and if you're one of his many fans, they're extremely pleasing to the ear. Although SUNSET BLVD is not my personal favourite Webber score (PHANTOM OF THE OPERA and EVITA take the crown) it's still a compelling and well-executed piece. Combining a classic character with some stylish and harmonious songs, this morality tale set to music should not disappoint.

Highly recommended.

NOTE:

This 1993 version is not the complete recording of the stage play. Some changes to the score and book were made when the musical transferred to the U.S in 1994. If you would like a more complete and updated edition, then I recommend getting the American Premiere Recording with Glen Close. However, keep in mind that there are differences in the way Close and Lupone sing and act their parts. Like I mentioned earlier, I prefer Lupone's voice and interpretation.

Mulholland Drive: Original Motion Picture Score

Average customer rating:

In this dream, you are Betty Elms
Badalamenti does it again.
Take a drive through David Lynch's musical hell and deluding darkness...
dark and (often) beautiful
A dark journey through the sphere of horror.

Mulholland Drive: Original Motion Picture Score
Angelo Badalamenti , and David Lynch
Manufacturer: Milan Records
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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ASIN: B00005PJ9K
Release Date: 2001-10-09

Tracks:

Jitterbug
Mulholland Drive
Rita Walks/Sunset Boulevard/Aunt Ruth
Diner
Mr. Roque/Betty's Theme
The Beast
Bring It On Home
I've Told Every Little Star
Dwarfland/Love Theme
Silencio
Llorando (Crying)
Pretty 50s
Go Get Some
Diane And Camilla
Dinner Party Pool Music
Mountains Falling
Mulholland Drive/Love Theme

Amazon.com

Director David Lynch's affection for kitschy lounge music and emotionally overwrought mid-century pop has long since proven to be more than trend or irony; indeed, it's often the uneasy spiritual axis of his films. The soundtrack of Mulholland Dr. turns on the usual Lynchian motifs (the brooding atmosphere of Angelo Badalamenti's ominous synth-and-orchestra cues tossed with a dash of Lynch's own off-center compositions), yet manages to evoke a sense of foreboding that's distinctly its own. Badalamenti leads off with a curve, the nervous orchestra swing-romp "Jitterbug," before descending into a dark soundscape that becomes murkier and more avant-goth at every turn. Bubbling through that morass are pop nuggets variously cheesy (Dave Cavanaugh's lounge-ready "The Beast"), lugubriously bluesy (Sonny Boy Williamson's take on Willie Dixon's "Bring It On Home"), and alternately innocent ("I've Told Every Little Star") and liturgical ("Llorando"). Three tracks of the director's own (cowritten with John Neff) skulking Lounge Music from Hell ratchet up the tension even further; it's the perfect garnish for this darkly delicious film-music cocktail. --Jerry McCulley

Customer Reviews:

In this dream, you are Betty Elms.......2007-01-13

The reviews here simply don't do justice to the soundtrack. It's very hypnotizing and elevates you to this reality that you indeed have the same mental energy displayed by the first character of Betty Elms, who Diane Selwyn identifies with as herself in a dream she is having. The dark scenery conveyed by this music puts you in her place, where through darkness you hold to your innocence. The movie and music interplay in this way to the effect of putting you in that darkness where you are the same girl that Diane is seeing in her dream, the girl she knows herself to be without the hellish reality she is in as a sort of resolve to the hell she's in. This Naomi Watts specifically conveyed what I thought is a part of me that may also be a part of you, and you will notice it in the way you look at things and how your face expresses your innocence to a dark world. Then there is the music for Rita. I also reviewed the movie, which I also recommend. My favorite track is the 9th one in this respect. Secondly, which you may find suitable for your funeral, is the last song. The rest I almost prefer watching the movie and appreciating it all while viewing, but it's music you must have after you've seen it.

Badalamenti does it again........2006-11-17

If you're a fan of Angelo Badalamenti's scores for David Lynch, you'll want to add this to your collection as well. Haunting synth pieces lull you into the dreamlike world Lynch created with this film, and there are some other types of music to jazz it up a little. Particularly striking is Rebekah Del Rio's cover of Roy Orbison's "Crying."

Take a drive through David Lynch's musical hell and deluding darkness..........2006-06-26

To start of, I regard "Mulholland Dr." as David Lynch magnum opus, his most masterfully created cinema of deceit, lust and darkness. Compelling, totally deranged, original, sometimes hilarious funny, and three minutes later scary as hell.

David Lynch's movies are always heavy set on atmosphere, and this is partly caused by the director's long time musical collaborator Angelo Badalamenti. From the jazzy, loungy tunes for the t.v. series "Twin Peaks" to the dark overtones of "Blue Velvet", Badalamenti knows wich buttons to push to make an eerie composition, a few notes of estrangeness and give the audience an unsetteling feeling.

"Mulholland Dr." is filled with music. Most of it is purely on the soundrack with Badalamenti's score coming very close to high quality dark ambient acts like Lustmord, Raison d'Etre or Hazard, others are sung "live" in the movie, like Linda Scott's sweet bubblegumish "I've told every little star", two very hip tunes ("The beast" by Milt Buckner and Sonny Boy Williamson's "Bring it on home") and of course Rebekah Del Rio's acapella performance of "llorando", the Spanish version of Roy Orbison's evergreen.

But the greatest surprise to me were three tracks by David Lynch himself in collaboration with one John Neff. And these three pieces are to be find on a solo cd by David Lynch called "Blue Bob".
I never knew before seeing "Mulholland Dr." that David Lynch is also a guiter player and singer. Now I know and I must say that his song "Mountains falling" is the most brooding, creeping, swirling and erotic sounding piece of electric guitar music I have ever heard.

So play this album and hit the road, Jack. And pray that indeed you will come back...

dark and (often) beautiful.......2005-11-25

anyone who has seen mulholland drive knows that the soundtrack lent a very important hand to the overall vibe of the movie. so you would think that it would be hard to enjoy one without the other, but this soundtrack suceeds very well on its own. alot of film scores are fine and enhance the movie while yr watching it, but are trash when taken alone and this sndtrk is kind of above that. i'm not really big on any of the lynch/neff tracks, but they work fine in the movie. the other songs that weren't written by badalamenti are pretty good and are a nice change of pace. my favorite tracks are dwarfland/love theme (especially the latter half), mulholland drive/love theme, llorando, and diane and camilla. i dont believe that diane and camilla was in the movie, but its a very beautiful piece that i think sums up the diane/camilla relationship quite well. anyway, i really like this cd and anyone who enjoyed the film would do well to pick this up

A dark journey through the sphere of horror........2005-10-26

It may not be a horror movie, but the score for Mulholland Drive could be a journey through the ultimate graveyard or haunted house on a stormy Halloween night. I have never even seen the movie, though I love David Lynch's movies for the most part. This score is a dark and haunting musical journey that might work well for a score to a creepy vampire movie or something. Some of it, including the heavy jazzy and dark rock pieces, might be better suited for a suspense thriller, which it is. But the more ambient dark themes could work in any supernatural thriller much as Mark Snow's music could. Enjoy the tour! Ha! Ha! Ha!

Paramount 90th Anniversary Collection: Scores

Average customer rating:

Great Movies have Great Soundtracks!
Only Disc 1 Is Worth Anything
More of a propaganda CD
Great selection of Film Hits!
Older recordings, main themes only

Paramount 90th Anniversary Collection: Scores
Various Artists
Manufacturer: Sony
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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ASIN: B000068TN9
Release Date: 2002-07-02

Tracks:

Saving Private Ryan 'Hymn To The Fallen' - John Williams
Double Indemnity 'Prelude' - Miklos Rozsa
The Lost Weekend 'Finale' - Miklos Rozsa
The Heiress 'Departure/Morris Suggests Love/The Proposal/Finale' - Aaron Copland
Sunset Boulevard 'Prelude' - Franz Waxman
The Ten Commandments 'Prelude' - Elmer Bernstein
Breakfast At Tiffany's 'Moon River' - Henry Mancini
Hatari! 'Baby Elephant Walk' - Henry Mancini
Rosemary's Baby 'Main Title (Vocal)' - Christopher Komeda
Romeo & Juliet 'Love Theme From Romeo & Juliet' - Nino Rota
Once Upon A Time In The West 'Once Upon A Time In The West' - Ennio Morricone
Love Story 'Theme From Love Story' - Francis Lai
The Godfather 'Main Title (The Godfather Waltz)' - Nino Rota
The Godfather 'Love Theme From The Godfather' - Nino Rota
Chinatown 'Love Theme From Chinatown (Main Title) - Jerry Goldsmith
The Godfather - Part II 'End Title' - Nino Rota
Star Trek: The Motion Picture 'End Title' - Jerry Goldsmith
Raiders Of The Lost Ark 'Raiders Of The Lost Ark' - John Williams
Terms Of Endearment 'Theme From Terms Of Endearment' - Michael Gore
Flashdance 'Love Theme From Flashdance' - Giorgio Moroder
Beverly Hills Cop 'Axel F' - Harold Faltermeyer

Tracks:

Witness 'Building The Barn' - Maurice Jarre
Children Of A Lesser God 'Main Title' - Michael Convertino
The Untouchables 'The Strength Of The Righteous (Main Title)' - Ennio Morricone
Fatal Attraction 'Fatal Attraction' - Maurice Jarre
The Addams Family 'Main Title' - Marc Shaiman
Dead Again 'Winter 1948' - Patrick Doyle
Indecent Proposal 'Flashback & Photos' - John Barry
The Firm 'How Could You Lose Me?-End Title' - Dave Grusin
Clear And Present Danger 'Main Title/A Clear And Present Danger' - James Horner
Braveheart 'For The Love Of A Princess' - James Horner
Primal Fear 'Courtroom Montage' - James Newton Howard
Mission: Impossible 'Zoom B' - Danny Elfman
Star Trek: First Contact 'End Credits' - Jerry Goldsmith
Titanic 'Hard To Starboard' - James Horner
The Rugrats Movie 'Baby Shower Happenings' - Mark Mothersbaugh
The Talented Mr. Ripley 'Italia' - Gabriel Yared
Rules Of Engagement 'Semper Fidelis (Always Faithful)' - Mark Isham
Mission: Impossible 2 'The Bait' - Hans Zimmer
Lara Croft: Tomb Raider 'Main Titles' - Graeme Revell
Vanilla Sky 'To The Roof' - Nancy Wilson
The Sum Of All Fears 'The Mission' - Jerry Goldsmith
Forest Gump 'I'm Forrest...Forrest Gump' - Alan Silvestri

Amazon.com

Granddaddy of the Hollywood studios, Paramount Pictures is rightfully proud of its century of contributions to both American cinema and the art of film scoring. But the first disc of this 43-track double-CD anthology merely hints at the studio's musical peaks, blithely skipping through its first seven decades in just 17 tracks. Indeed, the package as a whole seems more interested in marketing its post-'70s catalog of hits and blockbusters than it does in paying real homage to history and roots. Even rarities like Double Indemnity and The Lost Weekend are served up via modern budget-line rerecordings, as is Ennio Morricone's epochal Once upon a Time in the West). Contemporary recordings of Aaron Copland's rare score to The Heiress and Franz Waxman's great Sunset Blvd. fare better, but soundtrack fans may miss the originals. The studio's rich pop-crossover successes in the '60s are documented via Breakfast at Tiffany's "Moon River" and excerpts from Romeo and Juliet and Love Story, while successful franchises like Star Trek and Raiders also get their due. Too often the '90s-focused second disc only underscores some uncomfortable trends in contemporary scoring--orchestral nervous tics punctuated by booming crescendos, treacly piano Muzak--and makes one wonder if the music of The Rugrats Movie and Lara Croft: Tomb Raider are really film music milestones. --Jerry McCulley

Customer Reviews:

Great Movies have Great Soundtracks!.......2007-05-10

If you love movies and movie music, you can't go wrong with this two cd Paramount Anniversary set.

Only Disc 1 Is Worth Anything.......2006-07-19

Normally I have a lot to say in my reviews, but not this time. The main problem with this collection is that all the most memorable film scores are just on one disc, with the second used mostly to play out stuff from the last ten years that, really, musically isn't very memorable and only includes three pieces anyone will recognize just because, like the movies they come from, they're based on old TV shows - The Addams Family, Star Trek, and Mission: Impossible.

And that brings up another problem. With all due respect to the late Jerry Goldsmith, who has provided some truly great classic movie scores, was it REALLY necessary to include TWO versions of the SAME Star Trek march in this collection? This seems evocative of the milk-it-for-all-its-worth attitude Paramount has had lately toward its now-tarnished crown-jewel franchise. Where's James Horner's theme music from Star Trek II and III? If they're gonna put Star Trek on here twice, they should have provided a little diversity. It wouldn't have taken much, I'm sure.

I'm sure that Paramount's had other films with far more memorable music (even Harold Faltermeyer's Top Gun Anthem could have helped on Disc 2). This just seems like a lazy attempt at something that really could have been great.

More of a propaganda CD.......2002-10-30

There are some really great songs on this 2 CD set. However, those really great songs seem to be lightly interspersed amongst a large number of forgettable songs whose main purpose seems to be to remind you of those movies you enjoy(ed) so much.

It seems a little odd to me that out of 90 years of film making the most memorable scores have been largely released within the last few years. I was pleased to find themes from the Godfather, Indiana Jones and Witness. I was perplexed with the inclusion of songs from Rugrats, both Mission Impossible movies (one would have been more than enough) and Tomb Raider (memorable???).

This is my own personal bias, but I do prefer movie soundtracks that evoke a feeling of excitement. With this collection I just couldn't get excited. I kept finding myself being let down by songs that didn't in some way complement the preceeding song.

There are certainly some great tracks here, but overall I was disappointed. My advise would be to look elsewhere.

Great selection of Film Hits!.......2002-09-25

This one was a pleasant surprise! I thought- how could any CD that had "Baby Elephant Walk" be all that good? This one is. Lots of great scores- classics and a few hidden treasures. After hearing the beautiful title score for "Children of a Lesser God", I had to buy the entire soundtrack - very soothing. There are a few that may seem too overplayed ("Love Story", "Raiders of the Lost Ark",), but most are a welcome addition to any compilation. Try NOT loving "Building the Barn" from "Witness" or the "Hymn to the Fallen" from "Saving Private Ryan". Hours of great listening.

Older recordings, main themes only.......2002-08-27

This is a great album concept, but I really wish Paramount had re-recorded these scores as they deserve to be heard. The tracks range from 1944 to the present, and the older recordings sound just like the cleaned-up older recordings that they are.

I would also personally have enjoyed more "secondary" music themes (otherwise it becomes like reading book summaries that always only quote the opening paragraph), and I could easily have done without the "pop" tunes (like Baby Elephant Walk and the Rugrats theme). In fact, it would have been very nice to listen to an album comprised of tracks chosen for their strong musical value rather than apparently for their box office and/or hit song popularity. But, to be fair, that may be precisely what draws some people to this CD set.

Tracks:

The Man from Snowy River (Bruce Rowland)
The Winds of War (Bob Cobert)
Blue Velvet (Angelo Badalamenti)
Witness (Maurice Jarre)
Raising Arizona (Carter Burwell)
Pee Wees Big Adventure (Danny Elfman)
Halloween (John Carpenter)
A Nightmare On Elm Street (Charles Bernstein)
The Fly (Howard Shore)
RoboCop (Basil Poledouris)
The Empire Strikes Back (John Williams)
The Right Stuff (Bill Conti)
The Final Conflict (Jerry Goldsmith)
The Abyss (Alan Silvestri)
Brainstorm (James Horner)
Peggy Sue Got Married (John Barry)
My Left Foot (Elmer Bernstein)
The Dead (Alex North)
Stanley & Iris (John Williams)
The Milagro Beanfield War (Dave Grusin)
Driving Miss Daisy (Hans Zimmer)

Tracks:

Steel Magnolias (Georges Delerue)
Unforgiven (Lennie Niehaus and Clint Eastwood)
Raggedy Man (Jerry Goldsmith)
The Grifters (Elmer Bernstein)
Green Card (Hans Zimmer)
City Slickers (Marc Shaiman)
Father Of The Bride (Alan Silvestri)
While You Were Sleeping (Randy Edelman)
Babe (Nigel Westlake)
The Adventures Of The Great Mouse Detective (Henry Mancini)
The Adventures of Robin Hood (Erich Wolfgang Korngold)
The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles (Laurence Rosenthal)
The Secret Garden (Zbigniew Preisner)
A Little Princess (Patrick Doyle)
Rudy (Jerry Goldsmith)
Iron Will (Joel McNeely)
Memphis Belle (George Fenton)
Eye Of The Needle (Mikl)
Total Recall (Jerry Goldsmith)
Back To The Future Part III (Alan Silvestri)

Tracks:

To Die For (Danny Elfman)
The Player (Thomas Newman)
Black Robe (Georges Delerue)
Medicine Man (Jerry Goldsmith)
2001 (Alex North)
Star Wars: Shadows Of The Empire (Joel McNeely)
The Crow (Graeme Revell)
Blade (Mark Isham)
The Omen (Jerry Goldsmith)
Vertigo (Bernard Herrmann)
Scream (Marco Beltrami)
The Sixth Sense (James Newton Howard)
Xena: Warrior Princess (Joseph LoDuca)
Air Force One (Jerry Goldsmith)
Starship Troopers (Basil Poledouris)
The Matrix (Don Davis)
The Iron Giant (Michael Kamen)
Youve Got Mail (George Fenton)
A Little Romance (Georges Delerue)
Pleasantville (Randy Newman)

Tracks:

Sunset Boulevard (Franz Waxman)
L.A. Confidential (Jerry Goldsmith)
Rounders (Christopher Young)
The Score (Howard Shore)
The Replacements (John Debney)
Gone In 60 Seconds (Trevor Rabin)
The Bourne Identity (John Powell)
Rush Hour 2 (Lalo Schifrin)
XXX (Randy Edelman)
Die Hard (Michael Kamen)
The Last of the Mohicans (Trevor Jones)
Moby Dick (Christopher Gordon)
The Mists Of Avalon (Lee Holdridge)
Cleopatra (Alex North)
Life As A House (Mark Isham)
Emma (Rachel Portman)
In The Bedroom (Thomas Newman)
Cast Away (Alan Silvestri)
One True Thing (Cliff Eidelman)
Unfaithful (Jan A.P. Kaczmarek)
Far From Heaven (Elmer Bernstein)
Ice Age (David Newman)
Shrek (Harry Gregson-Williams and John Powell)

Customer Reviews:

A good value.......2007-05-17

I wasn't expecting to have 4 discs for this price, and the music is a quality selection of film music, giving a good scope of the genre, and a very listenable transfer.

The Sound Track Since Bernard Hermann.......2006-07-25

This collection is bound to capture your heart and evoke a tin ear on successive tracks. I found much to like and some duds - easy to skip over.
Very good value.

Good mix of film music.......2006-07-02

Good mix of films!
I'm a big fan of this soundtrack music and will be looking for more CD's like this.

A mixed collection of movie music.......2006-02-23

For the price, this CD is a great bargain. The musical selections, as you might expect, are mixed in quality ranging from extraordinary to so so, the balance being worthwhile and interesting. Sonically the CD is excellent.

Uplifts your soul, takes your mind into the heavens.......2006-01-06

I have been listening to great scores for many years and this collection is truly inspirational in so far as the choice of different scores takes you on a journey of listening pleasure matched by only a few collections.The price is incredibly reasonable for hours of listening pleasure. Don't pass this one up

Sunset Boulevard (1994 Los Angeles Cast)

Average customer rating:

A few good songs, mostly uninteresting
One of my top favorites of ALW
Why Not Have Cast Fran Drescher?
Flawed but grand musical
Fantastic Recording - Far Better Than London

Sunset Boulevard (1994 Los Angeles Cast)
Andrew Lloyd Webber , Don Black , and Christopher Hampton
Manufacturer: Decca Broadway
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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ASIN: B000001E6V
Release Date: 1994-09-13

Tracks:

Overture / I Guess It Was 5 A.M.
Let's Have Lunch
Every Movie's A Circus
Car Chase
At The House On Sunset
Surrender
With One Look
Salome
The Greatest Star Of All
Every Movie's A Circus (Reprise)
Girl Meets Boy
Back At The House On Sunset
New Ways To Dream
Completion Of The Script
The Lady's Paying
New Year's Eve
The Perfect Year
This Time Next Year
New Year's Eve (Back At The House On Sunset)

Tracks:

Entr' acte
Sunset Boulevard
There's Been A Call / Journey To Paramount
As If We Never Said Goodbye
Paramount Conversations / Surrender (Reprise)
Girl Meets Boy (Reprise)
Eternal Youth Is Worth A Little Suffering
Who's Betty Schaefer?
Betty's Office At Paramount
Too Much In Love To Care
New Ways To Dream (Reprise)
The Phone Call
The Final Scene

Amazon.com

All the benefits of the London version of Sunset Boulevard are as enjoyable in the U.S. premiere version--the luscious melodies, the wonderful atmosphere, the compelling story line (adapted from the 1950 Billy Wilder film), the spectacular staircase. OK, you don't get the staircase on this CD, but you do get the later, more polished show that debuted in Los Angeles in 1994. And despite the oft-repeated themes and occasionally banal lyrics, it remains one of Andrew Lloyd Webber's more satisfying works.

The most obvious difference between the two recordings, of course, is the leading-lady role. Glenn Close doesn't have the big voice of Patti LuPone--and you will miss LuPone in a big number such as "With One Look"--but her portrayal of Norma Desmond is riveting, and LuPone is so distinctive it's almost distracting. In the supporting casts, London's Kevin Anderson is extremely laid back as Joe Gillis, while Meredith Braun is very girlish as the 22-year-old Betty Schaefer; both characterizations are appropriate, but their counterparts Alan Campbell and Judy Kuhn have stronger voices, as does L.A.'s George Hearn. Lastly, the Los Angeles production is a more complete recording, totaling 122 minutes compared to 96 for London. If you're looking to pick up one recording of Sunset Boulevard, this is the one. It's also available in a highlights version. --David Horiuchi

Customer Reviews:

A few good songs, mostly uninteresting.......2007-06-01

I tend to enjoy Lloyd Webber's work, particularly Evita and Phantom of the Opera, but I didn't find myself as swept away by the music here as by some of his other musicals. Strangely, I enjoyed a lot of the instrumental parts the most. The song "The Greatest Star at All" sounds very old Hollywood when its carried by strings in the Overture and Entr'acte, but not as satisfying as a vocal piece. Likewise, "Sunset Boulevard" works very well as underscoring for the car chase and in other places, but feels kind of goofy and forced when it's finally sung. With a few other exceptions ("As If We Never Said Goodbye", "With One Look"), most of the melodies feel uninspired and annoyingly repetitive to me. I don't normally mind lyrics that don't really follow the rules (false rhymes, bad scans, etc) but a lot of the lyrics here are cliched and uninteresting to the point of distraction for me. If you can find a way to get just a few of the highlights, I'd get that over the whole album any day.

One of my top favorites of ALW.......2006-11-12

I admit when I first got into Alw I relaly didn't expand beyond Pahntom and Joseph, but when I got the Now and Forever disc set that all changed. When I heard the selectiosn from Sunset I ahd knew right hen and there I needed to get sunset. So, i did and i'm loving it.
I love Glenn CLose as norma becuase she is waht norma Desmond is. i liek the rest of the cast too, but the one thing that sticks out is the music.
The overture to Sunset, as always with ALW, is very haunting and mystical , and gets the lsitener into the plot. After the overture, With One Look, Too Much in Love to Care, Sunset Boulevard, and New WAys to Dream really hit the spot. I think this version of sunset is so much better thatn the london cast. This is a very good buy.

Why Not Have Cast Fran Drescher?.......2006-07-28

First of all, let me say that none of the actresses portraying Norma Desmond in the musical version, can hold a candle to Gloria Swanson in the film, she WAS Norma, almost literally. It was so close to her real life that it was almost creepy. And how brave of her to make a real comeback in such a role?
Now to this version. Glenn Close? No way, she can't sing it, she overacts to the point that she inter-changes her role with Cruella DeVille. You simply couldn't care less about her.
Patty LuPone delivered the goods, she certainly sings it light years beyond Close, and her performance has some semblence of sensitivity and vulnerability..
Andrew Lloyd Weber has made mistakes before Sunset, and since (The Woman In White ??), but replacing Lupone is one of the greatest in theatrical history.
I am not a huge Weber fan, but he is incomparable writing a soaring ballad. And Sunset has two huge ones in With One Look and As If We Never Said Goodbye. Beautiful. Get the London cast for Lupones riveting interpretations, skip Close's at all costs.

Flawed but grand musical.......2006-07-03

Sunset Boulevard is very characteristic of Lloyd Webber. On the whole, it is a quality musical and it succeeds on many fronts. The orchestration is very full and lush. It features one of Lloyd Webber's most haunting overtures (a personal favorite). The songs range from grand ensemble pieces ("Every Movie's a Circus"), to humorous or whimsical ("The Lady's Paying"), to gorgeous ballads ("With One Look", "New Ways to Dream"). In familiar Lloyd Webber fashion, various themes are repeated throughout. Though some gripe about this, I find it a particularly powerful and useful device. It evokes and plays on one's emotions to great effect. As may be expected from a musical of this scope, some of the songs are not as appealing as others. Of course, this is also a matter of taste.

Where the principals are concerned, Alan Campbell does well as Joe Gillis. His voice is good. He is believable as the cynical, down-on-his-luck writer and he delivers a sympathetic portrayal. George Hearn is also affective as Max, Norma's servant. His deep voice suits the role perfectly. Judy Kuhn, as Betty Schaefer, is appropriate. She sounds sweet and innocent. Most remarkable, positively or negatively, is naturally Glenn Close as Norma Desmond.

On the whole, my opinion of Glenn's performance is negative. But she is deserving of praise as well. She does not shine vocally, but she is passable. Her voice is a little shrill and it lacks warmth, but then her character really is not intended to convey warmth. So though it is not entirely pleasing, it is appropriate. At the same time, since she solos on a few of the key numbers, it is natural that they are somewhat off-putting. Vocals aside, her performance itself is somewhat unnerving. This is really a backhanded compliment. She fully commits to the role... painfully so. Listening to her sob is terribly uncomfortable. She conveys such a broken and emotionally or mentally unstable character that it is a truly difficult listen at times. Yet she fully commits. I am reminded of her portrayal of Cruella De Vil in 101 Dalmatians. The performance is cartoonish in its way because it is so over the top. It is radical, but it does fit. She is brave to play these parts in this way. At the same time, it is not necessarily enjoyable to witness.

The other thing that detracts from the musical is the story itself. I imagine most have seen the movie version so there are no surprises. But as the plot careens toward its inevitable climax, I couldn't help but wish someone would pull the brake or switch the track. The tragedy seems so avoidable. I cannot say that Joe's choices are incomprehensible, but better choices seem readily apparent. Changing the ending is probably unthinkable, but one does wonder what the point of it all is. Without any lesson arising out of the events of the play, the ending seems to lack merit. I cannot decide if left me chilled or just plain cold. It takes you to a certain depth without supplying any reason to climb out. It is pretty depressing.

Setting aside the climax of the story and Glenn Close's performance, though, I think the musical is enjoyable. Some of the songs are simply fantastic. The portrayal of old Hollywood is solidly entertaining. The ensemble numbers are quirky and well done. There are definitely some great melodies present. Though it is not without imperfection, it largely succeeds. It certainly has a sweeping, almost epic, scale. It is grand and has extremely enjoyable moments. It is a worthwhile addition to one's musical library.

Fantastic Recording - Far Better Than London.......2005-06-29

This recording is the definitive recording of the show Sunset Boulevard. The show is far from perfect, but more than a few moments shine, and Close is brilliant.

Those who prefer Lupone I don't understand. Lupone's voice is far too perfect for the role - this is an aged star who shouldn't succeed. Lupone's Norman would succeed; Close's is the old, warbly woman she should be. It's a magnificent, over-the-top performance that really captures the essence of the larger-than-life character.

The rest of the cast is also more than adequate, with Campbell, Kuhn, and Hearn really pulling through. It's quite a good recording. I do prefer Anderson, from the London recording, to Campbell, but Campbell is still great.

This cd also has improved reorchestrations, new songs, and overall, it's a much more even musical here than the one that debuted in London.

Average customer rating:

A very fine Dame Kiri
Ahhhhhhhhhhhhh!
Listen to a real diva!
She Is the Best
Brava Kiri!

Kiri! Her Greatest Hits Live

Manufacturer: Decca
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Classical | Styles | Music

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Te Kanawa, Kiri | Divas | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

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Kiri
Kiri Te Kanawa - Greatest Hits ~ 14 Favorites of Opera, Popular & Traditional Song
Kiri Te Kanawa Classics
Kiri Te Kanawa - Ave Maria
Kiri Sings Berlin

ASIN: B00000424J
Release Date: 1994-07-19

Tracks:

Louise: Depuis le jour
Mariettas Lied
Porgi amor
Befreit
Si. Mi chiamano Mimi
O soave fanciulla
You'll Never Walk Alone
It Never Was You
Why Don't You Do Right?
Hine e hine
Tahi nei taru kino
Climb Ev'ry Mountain
With One Look
Salaambo's aria
O mio babbino caro
Somewhere
Art Is Calling
World In Union
Happy Birthday To You

Customer Reviews:

A very fine Dame Kiri .......2006-01-05

Dame Kiri Te Kanawa was never between my favourite singers but I have to admit that she is really a respectable artist and this lovely cd proves how versatile she is and how she managed to keep a fresh and mellow tone even in her fifties. She is really at her best in the extracts from Citizen Kane and the operetta The Enchanteress. It's a pity that no Verdi music is included in the program, Kiri Te Kanawa was a great Amelia (Simon Boccanegra) and a moving Desdemona. A very fine Dame Kiri indeed.

Ahhhhhhhhhhhhh!.......2005-04-15

OK. I'm going to go out on a limb here. This is, IMHO, Dame Kiri's finest recorded performance.

I know that's taking in a whole lot of territory, but there is something simply magical, and magisterial, about her singing here.

Yes, I know "perfection" is that illusive impossibility to be sought but never achieved. However, on this night I think Dame Kiri did achieve perfection.

Simply a glorious life affirming performance by one of the great singing artists of the last fifty years.

Dame Kiri, Happy Birthday, and thank you.

Listen to a real diva!.......2002-12-17

Kiri's exquisite voice and expansive repertoire make for an unbeatable combination which reaches its crescendo on this special evening. A full symphony orchestra, two choruses, a jazz trio, and even a tenor (!) help Kiri in celebrating her 50th birthday. (That's her chronological age, the voice is timeless.) The hall's accoustics are excellent and orchestra and audience support without intruding. One of the reasons why I love Kiri's singing is that I believe she sings the songs the way the composer wanted them to be sung without the sometimes annoying embellishments employed by others. Kiri includes songs sung in her ancestral Maori in a program that takes the listener from the opera house to Broadway and then to an intimate jazz club. I love live concerts because I feel most artists are at their best before a live audience and this cd is proof. I don't believe that there is another artist recording today that has covered such a wide range of song styles and done it with such beauty and skill. This disc is confirmation. If you only buy one Kiri cd, make it this one. But don't be surprised if you start buying many more!

She Is the Best.......2002-10-26

The first time I ever heard the voice of Kiri Te Kanawa was on a recording of Salaambo's aria from CITIZEN KANE for the RCA film classics series on vinyl. It was one of the most haunting and beautiful pieces of music ever composed by Bernard Herrmann. It was Kiri Te Kanawa performance of this piece that was so incredible. I had seen the film several times, but to hear a high fidelity recording of Kiri Te Kanawa on this particular piece really demonstrated not only the raw talent but also a depth of intuitive emotion that she brought to Herrmann's composition. Anyone that could interpret the inner struggle behind Herrmann's music so precisely demonstrated an uncommon ability to become one with the music. I still can't pronounce her name correctly but Kiri Te Kanawa is the epitome of a well-honed talent. She is a gift to us all. This CD is very welcome.

Brava Kiri!.......2002-08-26

What a truly breathtaking concert! Kiri is obviously one of the top three divas to surface over the past fifty years!

Her technique is spotless, her tonality marvelous, and her intonation superb! For those worried about Kiri's "maturing" sound; age has brought a "different" soprano, but one just as lovely as ever...

The selection of music was fabulous, such a variety brings about an interesting and lively effect...

Tracks:

Whistle Down The Wind: No Matter What
The Phantom Of The Opera: The Phantom Of The Opera
The Phantom Of The Opera: Music Of The Night
Cats: Memory
Evita: Don't Cry For Me Argentina
The Beautiful Game: Our Kind Of Love
Sunset Boulevard: With One Look
Jesus Christ Superstar: I Don't Know How To Love Him
Starlight Express: Starlight Express
Evita: Buenos Aires
Aspects Of Love: Love Changes Everything
Sunset Boulevard: The Perfect Year
The Phantom Of The Opera: All I Ask Of You
The Beautiful Game: God's Own Country
Song And Dance: Tell Me On A Sunday
Vars: Vars 1-4
Joseph And The Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat: Close Every Door
Jesus Christ Superstar: John
Requiem: Pie Jesu
Whistle Down The Wind: Whistle Down The Wind - Julian Lloyd Webber/Andrew Lloyd Webber

Amazon.com

Apparently, Julian and Andrew Lloyd Webber's first collaboration occurred when the latter was 9 and the former 6. It took place on the stage of a toy theater, and Julian's role was then limited to operating the collection of tiny plastic soldiers that made up the cast of Andrew's latest musical. More than 40 years have passed since then but, as this disc proves, the brothers still enjoy a remarkable familial and musical relationship. Julian first recorded a series of cello arrangements of hits from Andrew's musicals in 1990, and this disc updates the enterprise with six new tracks from Whistle Down the Wind, The Beautiful Game , and Sunset Boulevard. The orchestral arrangements are deliciously soupy (especially "All I Ask of You" from Phantom of the Opera, "Love Changes Everything" from Aspects of Love, and the Riverdance-esque "God's Own Country" from The Beautiful Game) and suit Julian's appropriately swoony and uninhibited approach to the music. Fans of the Lloyd Webbers shouldn't be disappointed. --Warwick Thompson

Customer Reviews:

Awful and Tacky!.......2005-05-11

The reason I checked out this CD from local library is because I just watched the disappointing movie version of `Phantom of the Opera' and hoped Andrew Lloyd Webber who appears suffering from `over-esteem' would redeem himself in this format of presentation. It really would have worked, considered the similar quality of cello and human voice and the already famous melodies.

But it didn't! This is a tacky and totally forgettable presentation only suitable for elevators and ... well, you know, some public facilities. It makes the critically panned 'Phantom of the Opera' movie like a masterpiece! It's not so much the music's or musician's faults. There just isn't any thought process in the music making at all. If the cello is just going to play by the numbers, what's the point then? And the music arrangements on the orchestra side are just as shameful and insulting.

Compare to 'Yo-Yo Ma Plays Ennio Morricone', it's a clear example how a good taste of music adaptation can make a difference between Heaven and Hell.

It should be a minus star!

Julian Lloyd Weber Plays Andrew Lloyd Weber.......2001-07-14

Fantastic collection for true Andrew Lloyd Weber fans. A perfect gift for you or your friends. Everyone who hears mine wants a copy.

Too much of a good thing and I prefer the originals.......2001-06-02

Certainly Andrew Lloyd Webber wrote some superb melodies and certainly his brother Julian is an accomplished, outstanding cellist. That said, while it is fine to listen to a couple of these songs at a time played in this format, the real greatness of Andrew was in his collaboration with his lyricists like Tim Rice, and the songs just work better in my opinion as Broadway/theatre, with the rich diversity of soloists who have sung them.

Lloyd Webber Plays Lloyd Webber.......2001-05-22

I got an e-mail recommending this CD....Being the Andrew Lloyd Webber fan that I was, I just decided to buy it thinking it was his greatest hits by the original casts of his Play.

Boy was I wrong...but pleassantly so. Julian Lloyd Weber does a brilliant job of his brothers work...Purely instrumentational and incredibly beautiful... definately worth buying if your are ALW fan

Absolutely excellent!.......2001-05-14

An updated and improved version of Lloyd Webber plays Lloyd Webber. The original was great; and this new one is even better. The old songs have been enhanced, and there are six new selections from Sunset Boulevard, Whistle Down the Wind (the title song featuring Andrew on piano) and the two best Andrew songs brother Julian has ever done: "Our Kind of Love" and "God's Own Country" from the Beautiful Game. Even if you aren't into the Lloyd Webber brothers, any fan of classical and/or show music would absolutely love this CD.