Robert Creighton released “Ain’t We Got Fun!”, his debut CD today. Creighton, a veteran of six Broadway shows, is currently appearing as the Purser in the Tony Award winning revival of Anything Goes at The Stephen Sondheim Theatre.
The repertoire of “Ain’t We Got Fun!” is largely from the early decades of the 20th Century, music Creighton discovered while researching his successful, award-winning new musical CAGNEY! “Ain’t We Got Fun!” features two Creighton originals from the show. Musical director and orchestrator, Georgia Stitt, known for her work on Broadway (Avenue Q, Sweet Smell of Success, The Music Man, Titanic, Annie) and television (America’s Got Talent), produced and arranged the tracks and gave the sound an authentic and vintage feel. The CD features auspicious guest artists; JOEL GREY (currently appearing as Moonface Martin in Anything Goes) sings “Give My Regards to Broadway” and KATE BALDWIN, HEIDI BLICKENSTAFF and TITUSS BURGESS make distinguished appearances.
In March 2009, CAGNEY! had its World Premiere at Florida Stage. CAGNEY!, co-authored with Peter Colley and Christopher McGovern, went on to win the prestigious Carbonell Award for Best New Work. The show has had several successful runs, and Creighton hopes to bring it to New York. (www.Cagneythemusical.com)
Creighton, who hails from tiny Walkerton, Ontario, Canada, began singing as a child in the St. Michael’s Boys Choir and performing in musicals with the Grey-Wellington Theatre Guild while in high school. After receiving a degree in vocal performance from Wilfrid Laurier University he made his way to New York’s American Academy of Dramatic Arts, and immediately after graduation was cast in S.N. Behrman’s End of Summer with the Phoenix Theatre Co. Many roles at Goodspeed, Paper Mill Playhouse, Cincinnati Playhouse and other regional theaters followed, as well as several national tours. He performed two seasons with the New York City Opera including as Njegus in the Live From Lincoln Center production of The Merry Widow. Broadway welcomed him in 2003 when he was cast in Jackie Mason’s Laughing Room Only ; he has since made a non-stop string of appearances on the Great White Way in Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, The Little Mermaid (Chef Louis), Lion King (Timon), and Chicago (Amos).
CD: AIN’T WE GOT FUN!
ARTIST: ROBERT CREIGHTON
GUEST VOCALISTS: JOEL GREY, KATE BALDWIN, HEIDI BLICKENSTAFF, TITUSS BURGESS
LABEL: LML MUSIC
CATALOG #: LML-CD-262
RELEASE DATE: FEBRUARY 14th, 2011
(DAD’S MEDLEY) FIVE FOOT TWO/AIN’T SHE SWEET - “Has Anybody Seen My Gal” music: Ray Henderson; lyrics: Sam M. Lewis & Joseph Widow Young (1925) • “Ain’t She Sweet” music: Milton Ager; lyrics: Jack Yellen (1927) • introduction words/music: Robert Creighton • arrangement, orchestration, piano: Georgia Stitt • bass: Mary Ann McSweeney • ukelele: Eric B. Davis • drums: Larry Lelli • Kazoo: Robert Creighton • recorded January 2011, Avatar Studios, NYC • engineer: Jeffrey Lesser
AIN’T WE GOT FUN - music: Richard Whiting, lyrics: Gus Kahn & Raymond B. Egan (1921) • arrangement: Georgia Stitt • guitar: Eric B. Davis • bass: Randy Landau • body percussion: Robert Creighton • recorded May 2011, Lofish Studios, NYC • engineer: Alex Nizich
CRAZY ‘BOUT YOU - words, music: Robert Creighton (1993) • from the musical “CAGNEY!” • arrangement, orchestration, piano: Georgia Stitt • bass: Mary Ann McSweeney • guitar: Eric B. Davis • drums: Larry Lelli • recorded January 2011, Avatar Studios, NYC • engineer: Jeffrey Lesser
MY BUDDY - music: Walter Donaldson; lyric: Gus Kahn (1922) • arrangement: Georgia Stitt • guitar: Eric B. Davis • recorded May 2011, Lofish Studios, NYC • engineer: Alex Nizich
ACCENTUATE THE POSITIVE/LOOK FOR THE SILVER LINING - guest vocalist: Tituss Burgess • “Accentuate The Positive” music: Harold Arlen; lyrics: Johnny Mercer (1944) • “Look For The Silver Lining” music: Jerome Kern; lyrics: B. G. DeSylva (1920) • arrangement, piano: Georgia Stitt • orchestration: Larry Blank • bass: Randy Landau • guitar: Eric B. Davis • drums: Larry Lelli • trumpet: Joe Burgstaller • tenor sax: Ralph Olsen • trombone: Larry Farrell • recorded May 2011, Lofish Studios and John Kilgore Studios, NYC • engineers: Alex Nizich and John Kilgore
