BWW CD Reviews: Andrea McArdle's 70'S AND SUNNY - LIVE AT 54 BELOW is a Fabulous Throwback to the 70s

Andrea McArdle, best known for originating the role of Annie in the 1977 Broadway production of ANNIE, premiered her solo cabaret show 70'S AND SUNNY to sold-out houses at 54 Below in late July 2012. She triumphantly retuned to the venue with an equally successful engagement in January. The album, compiled from live recordings of her January 17-19 run, 70S AND SUNNY - LIVE AT 54 BELOW pristinely captures her enthusiastically nostalgic and fascinating performances. As a voice that helped shape and define a decade, she humbly tributes other influential artists of the 70s by presenting audiences with music from the likes of Peter Alan, Stephen Schwartz, Billy Joel, Jerry Herman, and Marvin Hamlisch.

Ironically, Andrea McArdle opens her album with the 1977 disco hit "Native New Yorker." As a native of Philadelphia, there is no denying that the fantastically talented Andrea McArdle quickly found her way to New York City. The song serves as a great prelude of the quintessentially 70s sound and lighthearted tone that she fills her affectionately sentimental album with. She thrills listeners with her evocative and stirring renditions of pop standards like Kenny Loggins' "I Believe in Love," the iconic "Rainy Days And Mondays," and Billy Joel's "Angry Young Man." Likewise, her celebrated, powerful, and beautiful vocals make songs like "Fallin'" from Marvin Hamlisch's THEY'RE PLAYING OUR SONG, "Being Alive" from Stephen Sondheim's COMPANY, "Tomorrow" from ANNIE, and "Over the Rainbow" from THE WIZARD OF OZ feel completely fresh. Every song on the disc effervesces with vibrant energy and tangible emotionality. Andrea McArdle skillfully preserves the best of the 70s while making each of these familiar tunes new all over again.

Just like the other entries in Broadway Records' Live at 54 BELOW series, Andrea McArdle's spoken vignettes on the album sublimely let us come to know her as a person. Her most humorous tale has to be her story about being scolded by Carol Channing when, as an adolescent, she derided the song "Tomorrow" from ANNIE while talking to a dancer backstage at JERRY'S GIRLS.

The band behind Andrea McArdle shows incredible talent and impressive charisma across the tracks. Steve Marzullo on Piano, Simon Kafka on Guitar, Mary Ann McSweeney on Bass, and Ray Marchica on Drums & Percussion craft a stunning tapestry that resplendently compliments Andrea McArdle's captivating voice. Additionally, the Music Direction and Music Arrangements by Steve Marzullo are simply phenomenal. Each piece truly showcases Andrea McArdle's brilliant vocal instrument while moving and enchanting listeners with unencumbered musicianship.

Recorded live at 54 BELOW, Andrea McArdle's 70'S AND SUNNY - LIVE AT 54 BELOW was wonderfully Mixed at Aerial View Studio by Aaron Ankrum and flawlessly Mastered by Greg Reierson from Rare Form Mastering. The end result is an album that makes listeners feel like they are sitting front and center at the intimate venue listening to the gifted Andrea McArdle and her magnanimous band perform right in front of them.

Andrea McArdle's 70'S AND SUNNY - LIVE AT 54 BELOW is a fabulous throwback album of Broadway and pop standards from the 70s. Her set list easily excites listeners with its familiarity and her skill to make each of these songs feel surprisingly novel once more.

Andrea McArdle's 70'S AND SUNNY - LIVE AT 54 BELOW was released digitally on April 5, 2013. Physical copies of the album hit brick-and-mortar store shelves on April 9, 2013. It can be purchased from iTunes and Amazon.

Image courtesy of Broadway Records.

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