Titanic: A New Musical [Cast Recording]

Editorial Reviews
Amazon.com
Unlike the boat it's named after, this show truly rose from the bottom. Despite detractors predicting doom before it had even opened, Titanic overcame hectic previews and endless technical problems to win a Tony for best musical and turn into a commercial success. Despite the fact that favorite performers like Judith Blazer or Victoria Clark disappear in the crowd and don't get solos of note, the show still manages to bring to life affecting characters. Maury Yeston's (Grand Hotel) score has the required majesty without ever being turgid, and the choral work he coaxes from his ensemble is eminently powerful. Though it requires a fair amount of attention on the listener's part, Titanic is also surprisingly emotional--its majestic finale packs more punch than 3 hours of Leonardo DiCaprio. --Elisabeth Vincentelli --This text refers to the Audio CD edition.

Titanic: A New Musical, Music, Original Broadway Cast Recording, Cast Recordings, Musicals, Original Cast Recordings, Pop, Show Tunes, Showtunes / B'way

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What!? How is this possible?

Beauty and grace, charm and wit - Maury's got it all

A perfect marriage of music and lyrics

The Maury Yeston Songbook

One of the best broadway/composer compilations ever made!

The Maury Yeston Songbook
Maury Yeston , Christine Andreas , Brent Barrett , Betty Buckley , Liz Callaway , Alice Ripley , Sutton Foster , Brian d'Arcy James , and Philip Chaffin
Manufacturer: P.S. Classics
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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The Maury Yeston Songbook

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December Songs

Grey Gardens - A New Musical (2006 Original Broadway Cast)

ASIN: B00008H2LJ
Release Date: 2003-04-08

Tracks:

Please Let's Not Even Say Hello - Alice Ripley
Only with You - Brent Barrett
I Want to Go to Hollywood - Sutton Foster
Danglin' - Johnny Rodgers
I Had a Dream About You - Betty Buckley
My True Love - Philip Chaffin
A Call from the Vatican - Alice Ripley
Now and Then - Laura Benanti
You're There Too - Christopher Fitzgerald
Is Someone Out There? - Eden Espinosa
New Words - Brent Barrett
My Grandmother's Love Letters - Christine Ebersole
By the River - Christine Andreas
I Am Longing - Philip Chaffin
Home - Laura Benanti & Robert Cuccioli
Another Day in the Modern World - Michael Holland
Simple - Liz Callaway
Unusual Way - Brian d'Arcy James
Be On Your Own - Betty Buckley
No Moon - Howard McGillin

Amazon.com

Despite racking up Tony nominations and/or box-office success with Nine, Grand Hotel, and Titanic, Maury Yeston remains a relatively unknown Broadway auteur. And yet, what a fabulous songwriter he is. Listen to "Home," for instance: This excerpt from Phantom (the other adaptation of Phantom of the Opera) has great melodic hooks, along with natural sweep and unrestrained emotion. Like every song on this CD, it also has such dramatic drive that it easily stands on its own outside of its regular narrative frame. This collection of new recordings provides an excellent overview of Yeston's talent, juxtaposing numbers from his three best-known scores (though there's only one from Titanic) with rarities and a generous selection from his 1991 song cycle December Songs. Christine Ebersole, Liz Callaway, and Betty Buckley turn in expectedly strong performances, but watch also for Laura Benanti (the star of the 2003 revival of Nine), Christine Andreas, and Foster Sutton, who completely make the material theirs. --Elisabeth Vincentelli

Description

The Tony Award-winning composer/lyricist -- who's given us the smash hit musicals Titanic, Phantom and Grand Hotel, and whose first stage show, Nine, is currently being revived in New York with Antonio Banderas -- is celebrated in song by the best stars o

Customer Reviews:

What!? How is this possible?.......2007-01-20

How could one put together a Maury Yeston Songbook cd without a track from Andrea Marcovicci? He wrote a song cycle for her. Granted there are some great singers here but a grave oversight to not include Ms Marcovicci.

Beauty and grace, charm and wit - Maury's got it all.......2006-11-14

Maury Yeston may be musical theatre's unsung genius to the public at large, but I've heard his praises sung many times. A friend convinced me to buy the original Broadway cast of "Nine", and while there were some fantastic songs and an undeniable melodic gift throughout, it left me lukewarm. The same with "Grand Hotel". And I couldn't stand "Titanic" - too big, too self-important, too reliant on booming low brass and bombastic orchestral swells.

"Phantom" was the only one of his scores that touched something other than distanced admiration in me. It was everything Sir Lloyd Webber's popera travesty could never quite aspire to - epic yet human, beautiful and touching, with songs that showed actual details and emotions. So it was with that in mind that I purchased this, figuring that maybe Maury could prove me wrong, shorn from the restrictions of a book musical format.

And by God, did he prove me right and then some.

Maybe it's the singers. Maybe it's the perfect orchestrations. Maybe it's just the absence of a plot to follow. More than likely, it's all three, but this is one of the most gorgeous, enjoyable, heartbreaking albums I've ever purchased. Yeston has assembled an impressive cast to give voice to his music - such heavy Broadway hitters as Alice Ripley, Brent Barrett, Betty Buckley, Christine Ebersole and Howard McGillin mix with up-and-comers like Eden Espinosa, Sutton Foster, and Brian d'Arcy James. But the most impressive turns are given by people I'd never heard of before - Johnny Rodgers (who?) has a voice spun from gold, and he's absolutely perfect in "Danglin'", a simple and powerful song despite some odd lyric choices by Yeston. Likewise Philip Chaffin in "My True Love" and "I Am Longing", and Michael Holland displays a warm and untrained performance of "Another Day in the Modern World". These three men, who I'd never heard of before, absolutely stole the show. It doesn't hurt that they're given some of the best songs from the album.

Of course, the rest of the ensemble uniformly turns in worthwhile performances. The professionalism of Broadway is gloriously evident here, each singer making their song uniquely theirs. Brent Barrett made me hear "Only With You" as if for the first time. Betty Buckley is surprisingly vulnerable in "I Had A Dream About You". Alice Ripley is her usual bundle of raw emotion in "Please Let's Not Even Say Hello", and turns in a rare comic performance in "Call From The Vatican" to great effect (listen to that surprise high note near the end! Wow, Alice!). Christine Ebersole is heartbroken, elated, vulnerable, and tough all in the course of "Grandmother's Love Letters"' 4 minutes.

There are some weak spots - Eden Espinosa is mostly one-note during her song, and while it's certainly a high note, it's nothing you haven't heard her do better elsewhere. Laura Benanti's "Now and Then" goes by without much notice, which is a shame for this talented actress. And Betty Buckley goes back to her usual high-volume stridence in "Be On Your Own", which despite its chilling music deserves a more nuanced performance than Buckley gives here. But these songs would be standouts on any other album, and it's only the company they keep that prevent them from being excellent.

Oh, and "Unusual Way", possibly Yeston's best-known song, is so beautifully performed here by Brian d'Arcy James and a three-piece band that I nearly cried hearing it. And that's quite a feat for a song that I swore never to listen to again after the seventeenth girl in a day auditioned with it (badly). But the gender swap works perfectly, and d'Arcy James' golden Irish tenor swings through the music effortlessly.

As for the band - there are no missteps here. Each song is given exactly what it needs, from the Romantic-with-a-capital-R string section on "Home", to the jazzy saxophone on "Letter From the Vatican", to "Be On Your Own", which is given a Herrmann-esque string section. Some particular touches stand out - that lovely acoustic guitar on "Danglin'", the simple piano line on "Modern World", and the sublime cello/piano outro in "Unusual Way" really stuck with me after the album stopped playing. And the recording is without fault - crisp, encompassing, personable and expansive as the mood requires. The whole album sounds fantastic.

There is such a wide range of style and substance here that each song would deserve purchasing individually. As a collection? It's bliss. If you're a fan of theater music, appreciate great vocals, or just need something to keep you company on long nights, this is required purchase.

A perfect marriage of music and lyrics.......2006-09-07

I think Yeston must be the most underrated talent in music theatre. And not just music theatre ... for as far as I know, "Danglin'" is not from a show - a jewel of a song ... and a disarmingly honest rendition from Johnny Rogers (what a beautiful voice! Why hasn't he made more CD's?) Some other favourites are "New Words" (not enough parent-child love songs out there ... and I can't imagine it could be sung any better than this), "You're there too" (with a charming and unexpected twist), "Simple" (Callaway is superb), "Only With You" (loveable rogue!) ... to name but a few. Inspired music theatre writing. A must for any musical buff, composer or singer seeking repertoire that will help them stand out from the crowd.

The Maury Yeston Songbook.......2006-08-30

A good album sung by good singers. I have been an admirer of Maury Yeston for a number of years . I am a great fan of "Nine"
which I consider his best work.(If possible try to listen to the
Australian Cast Recording with John Diedrich) I enjoy listening to artists like Alice Ripley, Brent Barrett, Sutton Foster,and my very favourite singer Liz Callaway. All in all a great CD to just sit back ,relax and enjoy Les Breen

One of the best broadway/composer compilations ever made!.......2006-06-29

There are so many brilliant performances on this CD that I don't even know where to begin. From start to finish, this CD sweeps you away on a rollercoaster of emotions. Now, this CD isn't perfect by any means; a few of the artists are performing songs that aren't really suited to their abilities, but the heart is there and that's really all that matters in the end.

If you love Broadway, if you love GOOD music in general, and you want to be moved by songs rather than merely entertained, you must get this CD.

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The Title Is Accurate.

Great Musicals

Manufacturer: RCA Victor Broadway
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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ASIN: B00005LN5W
Release Date: 2001-08-07

Tracks:

Candide: Overture - Orchestra
Fiddler On The Roof: Prologue - Tradition - Zero Mostel And Company
Hello, Dolly!: Dancing - Carol Channing And Company
Cabaret: If You Could See Her - Alan Cumming
Ain't Misbehavin': Honeysuckle Rose - Ken Page/Nell Carter
Guys And Dolls: Sue Me - Faith Prince/Nathan Lane
Sweeney Todd: The Worst Pies In London - Angela Lansbury
Ragtime: New Music - Mark Jacoby/Marin Mazzie/Steven Sutcliffe/Brian Stokes Mitchell/Audra McDonald/Company
Titanic: Lady's Maid - Original Cast
How To Succeed In Business Without Really Trying!: Rosemary - Matthew Broderick/Megan Mullally
Les Miserables: Bring Him Home - Colm Wilkinson
Falsettos: Unlikely Lovers - Lewis Cleale/James Sasser/Farah Alvin/Kristin Woodbury
Parade: All The Wasted Time - Brent Carver/Carolee Carmello
The Sound Of Music: Do-Re-Mi - Rebecca Luker And Company

Customer Reviews:

The Title Is Accurate........2002-02-21

I'll be honest - I mainly bought this CD for one song - the new recording of William Finn's "Unlikely Lovers" from Falsettos.

In fact, there is a sticker on the front of the Great Musicals CD which states the following - "Unlikely Lovers from Falsettos is new to CD."

This isn't really correct. This particular recording of that wonderful second act song is new, but the song itself was previously recorded and released on the original cast recording of Falsettoland many years ago. I have also read a review of another (unauthorised?) CD recording made in Michigan of Falsettoland.

Anyway, this new recording is so powerful and emotional, I'm glad I bought the CD.

Readers might be interested to know that the 2001 recording of U. Lovers was made at Joe's Pub in January - the same place where Finn's Infinite Joy was recorded.

To the best of my knowledge, U.L. wasn't performed in the live show. I believe this as in an interview, Finn stated that the only song from Falsettos they were to perform in Infinite Joy was The Baseball Game (wonderfully conveyed by Stephen DeRosa on the CD). Also, in this new recording of U.L., unlike the recordings on Infinite Joy, there isn't any audience reaction. I suspect that the cast made this recording before or after audience arrived.

Loved this new version. It's accompanied by a solo piano. Lewis Cleale has a more traditional male voice (light baritone?) than Michael Rupert's higher, head, some might say "character" sound. Both are more than pleasant on the ear.

Also, on this recording, there's an a cappella section towards the end of the song; on the lyrics "...let's pretend..." Quite affecting.

As for the rest of the album, well all the tracks are gems in one way or another. Particular favourites of mine include -

"Lady's Maid" from Titanic. With it's "up down up" three note/syllable melody structure (millionaire, constable, engineer) it is immediately catchy, and is a great example of an "I'm about to start a journey, so wish me luck as I go" type of show song.

"All The Wasted Time" from Parade. Loved the almost folk influenced sound and the soaring voices; including Carolee Carmello who is heard on Infinite Joy.

"New Music" from Ragtime. It 'builds' beautifully and is a great example of the work of a contemporary song writing team - the highly talented Flaherty and Ahrens.

I suppose the thing is, that many musical theatre buffs will already have many of these songs on CD. However, you many not have THESE recordings - e.g. - the "If You Could See Her" from Cabaret is from the 1998 version, the "Do-Re-Mi" from (what else?) The S.O.M. is the 1998 recording.

If one was being picky, the following points might be made -

For a CD celebrating RCA's 100th anniversary, this collection is somewhat 'top heavy' - 9 of the 14 tracks - almost 65% were recorded in 1992 or later.

Also -

With a number of the American based performers, even when they are portraying non-Americans, their native accent is still recognisable. This is particularly noticeable on track 14 - "Do-Re-Mi" ("...Here, I'll make it easier for you...") and, to a lesser extent; track 2 - "Prologue - Tradition" from Fiddler ("...trying to scratch out a pleasant simple tune...")

But when one is dealing with material and performances of this level, such points are minor quibbles.

Tracks:

Toreador Song
Shenandoah
Bugeilio'r Gwenith Gwyn
Pearl Fishers' Duet (Ft Andrea Bocelli)
Lord Is My Shepherd
Danny Boy
Bella Notte
Goin Home
Swing Low, Sweet Chariot
Home Sweet Home
Ave Maria (Ft Sissel)
Il Mio Cuore Va
At The River
None But The Lonely Heart
If I Can Help Somebody
Lullaby
Abide With Me
Lazybones
Impossible Dream
Plaisir D'amour
Granada
God Bless The Child
Amazing Grace
Tua Bethlehem Dref
O Come All Ye Faithful
Shenandoah (Video)

Album Details

From the Platinum Selling Album 'bryn' Comes this UK Special Edition Double Album. Tracks Include "The Impossible Dream", "Plaisir D'amour", "Granada", "God Bless the Child", "Amazing Grace (From "Songs of Praise"), "Tua Bethlehem Dref" and "o Come all Ye Faithful". Terfel is Joined by Andrea Bocelli for "The Pearl Fishers' Duet" and Sissel for Schubert's "Ave Maria".

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Titanic: A New Musical

ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD
ASIN: B000BSLXJ8

Music:

Music

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