CD/DVD 'BLITZ' REVIEWS PART 2: THE SINGERS...AND MORE
By: Naomi Plume Jun. 17, 2008
It's finally here! The jam-packed end-of-season roundup of CDs from our very own Naomi Plume (so big, it had to be put into two parts)...The good, the bad, the ugly...or to quote from the ad for the upcoming musical A TALE OF A TWO CITIES... "it was the best of times, it was the worst of times." We're so glad that we got to use that line first!
So enjoy this very special two-parter - happy reading, happy listening, happy buying (or not) and good luck to everyone at the TONY Awards on Sunday night from all of us at BroadwayWorld.com.
Kerry Butler
Faith, Trust & Pixie Dust
PS CLASSICS
5 discs (out of 5)
Kerry Butler is one smart girl! She didn't go off on some crazy tangent to try to prove anything to anyone. She just took a rock-solid "concept" and nailed it. The current star of XANADU and HAIRSPRAY alumnus is in "pitch-perfect" form here – musically and otherwise. As she says, it's a "dose of Disney." For the listener, it's that – with no excess (or traditional) sugar. My personal favorite, and worth the price of the album, is the closing cut - DISNEYLAND, from the Hamlisch/Ashman musical SMILE. You'll also be charmed by selections, with great arrangements, from PINOCCHIO, POCAHONTAS, DUMBO, THE JUNGLE BOOK and some real "finds" from previously unrecorded or unreleased Disney projects. First-Class BUTLER!
FIRST HARVEST
Elizabeth Ward Land
LML Music
5 discs (out of 5)
Well, here's another smart girl. First album … and nails it! No showing off … just great songs, with excellent arrangements, really intelligent choices and terrific vocals. Elizabeth Ward Land isn't a big star and you may not even know who she is … I didn't know much about her either … so I read up on her. She's done solid work in many shows and recently was part of the musical, SISTER ACT, on the West Coast, as well as a stand-in for Barbra Streisand, when the U.S. Tour was first gearing up with special guests, Il Divo. This is a most enjoyable recording, which includes some highlights like "A Change In Me", "Why Haven't I Heard From You?" and Mary Chapin Carpenter's "It Don't Bring You." My personal fave is "When The Sun Comes Out", for which she credits Peter Matz and Streisand for the inspiration. Really good stuff!
Idina Menzel
I Stand
Warner Brothers
3 discs (out of 5)
I know … I know … we ALL love IDINA, but there is tremendous pressure on this girl to "cross over" into a pop artist – and the odds are against this – in an industry (the recording industry) so in flux. Plain and simple. We all fell in love with this girl via RENT or THE WILD PARTY (the good one by Andrew Lippa) or WICKED … and where's a girl to go? Then there's her beauty and her amazing partner in life (also a solid singer/actor) Taye Diggs. Trying to judge this album is so difficult … but fans will buy it and, most importantly, Idina is coming to Town Hall on June 25th to sing material from this latest album (and more, I hope!). We'll be there for ya, Idina!
Karen Akers
Simply Styne
DRG
0 discs (out of 5)
This recording is one grim affair. Maybe it's better in a cabaret, as there's a Stephen Holden (The New York Times) review in the folio, which is quite effusive. This was tough to listen to. The voice is pinched, "pitchy" and strained and it's not Don Rebic at his best either. But I guess I'll turn to the "Conceived and Directed by Eric Michael Gillett" credit to blame for all of this. Jule Styne shows had huge personalities behind his songs – Barbra Streisand, Judy Holiday, Phil Silvers, etc. You get where I'm headed here. Karen does not "bubble" or "gush" in any way. All the alternate lyric changes are "hair-raising" and the "acting" laughable. Sorry, Karen. Also … the song is called THE MUSIC THAT MAKES ME DANCE, not MUSIC THAT MAKES ME DANCE. Judy Kuhn recorded an all Jule Styne CD a while back and, although that one wasn't what her fans were waiting for, it's so much better than this one!
KELLI O'HARA
Wonder In The World
Ghostlight Records
3 discs (out of 5)
I really wish I liked this recording more and I listened to it three times! Nevertheless … it just might be a "timing issue." This album was recorded two years ago and the music is arranged and conducted by Harry Connick, Jr., featuring three original tunes he penned for her including a duet they recorded together, hence the title of the album, "Wonder In The World." This was obviously around the time of THE PAJAMA GAME and didn't find its way into release until now. That said, O'Hara is enjoying a career "high" right now (one of many) and is a TONY nominee on Sunday night. The material on the CD is all over the place and lacks focus, but we still love her.
SUNDAY IN NEW YORK
Christine Ebersole
Billy Stritch
Ghostlight Records
2 discs (out of 5)
This recording is absolutely "mystifying" to me. Whose record is it? Billy's? Christine's? ... Both? I couldn't tell you. There's no question that we love Christine Ebersole and Billy Stritch, but better alone than together, I think. This CD came as a result of a gig they did at New York's Metropolitan Room ... but they are NO Steve & Eydie. This recording is all over the place and credits the "arrangements" to Ebersole and Stritch (in that order). Billy plays well and sings O.K. on this ... her singing is oddly wan and I couldn't figure out why. Also, all the songs sound recorded differently - quite disconcerting. I don't even have a favorite cut to recommend ... but I respect them both just the same. If you're a fan and you are in the New York area, they will be doing a 30-minute performance and CD signing as part of LIVE at LINCOLN @ BARNES & NOBLE Booksellers, Tuesday, June 17th, 7 PM, 1972 Broadway at 66th Street.
JACKPOT
The Best Bette
BETTE MIDER
Rhino
4 discs (out of 5)
Bette Midler and her new stage extravaganza, THE SHOWGIRL MUST GO ON, are sharing the next two calendar years with CHER and Elton John, at the The Colosseum at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas. Currently only available in the gift shop, at the venue, is this new compilation, with art from the advertising campaign and some nice liner notes by Jay Landers. I have only ONE complaint (and the reason for a one-disc demerit) …. Why didn't they just wait and record this show … or KISS MY BRASS!, one of the best tour concerts she ever gave? We want NEW Bette … not just more "vintage" Bette. In some cases … she sings some of the songs she's known for – even better today…..LIVE! Okay, enough about that. With a generous 19 cuts, the stuff that's here is all good – particularly happy about "The Glory of Love" and the previously unreleased "Something Your Heart Has Been." However … in a compilation of HITS … I doubt that anyone was clamoring for "This Ole House" or that she's performing it in the show in Vegas (from the Rosemary Clooney tribute album). We LOVE Bette Midler! Can we have a new LIVE album, please ???? Just asking. JACKPOT (The Best Bette) will be available at online music outlets and in stores on August 26th.
Neil Diamond
Home Before Dark
SONY
5 discs (out of 5)
O.K. Why Neil Diamond you ask? Well … technically, he played on Broadway, in Concert (October 5-21, 1972, at the Winter Garden Theatre) … and I think he's great and only gotten better with age … like Streisand. This new album is just fantastic, and has been highly anticipated – after the success of his last studio album, 12 SONGS. Produced by his musical guru, Rick Rubin, the songs here, all written by Diamond, are extraordinary. His approach to writing and his wizened performances as a singer are like a Master Class in interpretation, simplicity and truth. It's such a pleasure to not listen to someone "belting." It's hard to believe that Diamond has enjoyed a 40 year career and that this is his first No. 1 album. If you go for it … the way to go, for a few dollars more, is the Deluxe Edition, which includes a great DVD. Neil Diamond is currently on a World Tour and the Brooklyn Boy is coming home, right here to New York City, at Madison Square Garden (August 12, 14, 15). A sure thing!
Maureen McGovern
A Long and Winding Road
PS Classics
2 discs (out of 5)
This recording exhausted me … too much up and down …. too many styles … and trying to be too clever. Just sing the songs! We all know Maureen McGovern has one of the most reliable voices around…. And she stopped the show COLD in Act Two of LITTLE WOMEN on Broadway, with a thrilling "no-frills" delivery of a song called DAYS OF PLENTY (check it out on the Original Broadway Cast Recording on Ghostlight Records) … but HERE …. she's so schoolteacher-ish. I was excited to hear this album because the songs are from an era she actually participated in. But, no such luck. There's scat singing and gospel and unnecessary belting … and every time I thought the album would find it's "groove" … it just didn't. I was yearning, as listening, for more introspection. There is ONE great cut – THE COMING OF THE ROADS by Billy Edd Wheeler, but other attempts with great songs like IMAGINE, LET IT BE, FIRE AND RAIN and THE TIMES THEY ARE A CHANGIN' are enormous mis-fires.
Melissa Errico
Lullabies & Wildflowers
Velour Recordings
2 discs (out of 5)
I don't know … this is Melissa's 2nd solo effort and I'm not sure if she knows who her fans are. A&R please … or Management of some sort! There is NO QUESTION this girl is talented , but she's everywhere and nowhere – all at once. It's frustrating for the fans and people who adore her. It's harsh to say this is not a good recording, as she's a mom now and the record has purpose, but after the first album, which was a mis-fire … one would think someone would have guided a more solid choice. What's next ? …. SONGS FOR YOGA? Disappointing … and sort of sweet … sort of. I wish I could recommend it.
Josh Groban
AWAKE LIVE
Reprise / Warner Bros.
CD 2 discs (out of 5)
DVD 5 discs (out of 5)
I've never really thought of myself as a Josh Groban fan and this live recording didn't help the case, as I wouldn't know a Groban hit if it punched me. That said, the reason more theatre people have been keeping their eyes on this young man is because we all know he loves musical theatre and Cirque du Soleil, all of which were part of his early attraction to music. It's also an interesting fact that Groban's vocal "guru" is David Romano, who portrayed the original Ubaldo Piangi in the Broadway production of THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA. Josh just finished doing 2 nights of CHESS IN CONCERT at Royal Albert Hall, in London (which you can look for on PBS sometime soon), and impressed enough that people think he should do more theatre. I'll vote for that. Josh Groban has also been making some shrewd career decisions with fun appearances on shows like JIMMY KIMMEL LIVE and making impromptu appearances in other people's concerts, such as Michael Buble. He is wisely "building and expanding" his audience. The live DVD is directed beautifully by Hamish Hamilton and is a handsomely staged concert that makes Groban look like a rock star. Looks good - sounds great! Also, watching him perform makes the material seem less eclectic .... he even takes over at the piano and the drums and has guests. Definitely worth watching.
Capathia Jenkins
Louis Rosen
One Ounce Of Truth
The Nikki Giovanni Songs
PS Classics
2 1/2 discs (out of 5)
You are going to have to be a bit of an adventurer on this one. Capathia Jenkins has stopped shows cold on Broadway and is a kick-ass singer. Given. This recording is a total departure for her, but nobly pairs her with Louis Rosen, a wonderful composer. That said … what is being put to music here is the work of poet/writer (commentator, activist and educator, too) Nikki Giovanni. It's a tough assignment. It is stylish and has a "groove" but it lands very non-traditional on the ear. Worthy … but an adventure for sure.
HALLWAYS
The Songs of Carol Hall
LML Music
3 1/2 discs (out of 5)
Will it ever get better than "Hard Candy Christmas" from THE BEST LITTLE WHOREHOUSE IN TEXAS? Probably not. Carol Hall is a really excellent songwriter and her songs have been recorded by many top artists. Here, the writer gets some fine help from Sally Mayes,Johnny Rodgers,Amanda McBroom, Carol Woods, Lesley Gore and more on a pleasant journey through the Carol Hall Songbook. Nice.
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