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Music : Of Thee I Sing / 1952 O.C.R.
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Of Thee I Sing / 1952 O.C.R. from: Drg |
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Binding: Audio CD EAN: 0021471902426 Format: Cast Recording, Original recording reissued Label: Drg Manufacturer: Drg Number Of Discs: 1 Publisher: Drg Release Date: May 07, 2002 Studio: Drg Sales Rank: 107784 Disc 1:
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Customer Reviews
Average Rating:
 Rating:  - Definitely dated, but still enjoyableFirst, compare 1931, when "Of Thee I Sing" was orginally produced, with 1952, the date of this revival. Then, compare 2008 with 1952. The form of the musical is clearly 1931, as is the style of the voices (hear Mary Turner's broad vibrato!). Still, the satire remains virtually timeless. Update a few of the lyrics, and we can see the backroom politics that have characterized the twenty-first century. I recommend this recording, first, for its place in Broadway musical lore, and, second, simply as an entertaining listen. Rating: - politicsI would love to get this play on DVD. This is a wonderful politial satire. You miss some of the jokes by only having the soundtrack. However since it is not out on DVD, the CD is great to have. The gershwin music and lyrics are great. Rating:  - Hilarious, lively, and full of character!Ethan Mordden sited this recording as the finest of all Gershwin show recordings, and I would be hard-pressed to disagree with him. Even though this was first recorded (and flopped) in 1952, when I put this CD on it still has the ability to crack me up in 2004. There is so much fun and character throughout the all the performance (including the orchestra) that it becomes so easy to forgive all of the musical... well... musical "weaknesses," let's call them. Everything from the "one, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine supreme court judges" to the number about taxation is hilarious. The chorus is insane and inspired. And Leonore Lonergan as beauty contest winner Diana Devereaux is really the star of this ... Read More: Rating: - Vividly theatrical recording of classic Gerswhin scoreOF THEE I SING was the first musical ever to win a Pulitzer Prize in 1931. There were no original cast recordings made at that time and no movie version was ever produced. In 1952 Broadway revived the piece but the revival was not a success. It did run long enough to get a cast recording. Long out-of-print it is finally back in circulation. It's a mixed blessing. The Gershwin songs are great and the lyrics are very funny. The cast is ... well lets say the voices are loaded with "character." Jack Carson does indeed sound like a president. It is not the most musical voice, but then most of the score is sung by the chorus and here the recording has a good one. The score has been given many tiny cuts and trims but these only serve to ... Read More: Rating:  - Avoid, avoid, AVOID!It pains me to say this, but I have absolutely NOTHING positive to say about this CD of the poorly casted, weakly orchestrated, unsuccessful 1952 revival of the Gershwin Brothers' masterpiece "Of Thee I Sing". The score is severely truncated and the tempo seems to be rushed in order to fit as many songs as possible on the original LP. References to 1950s politics were added to the text to contemporize the book, but now seem hopelessly outdated. The singing is remarkably unspectacular all around, but one singer in particular, Lenore Lonergan as Diana Devereaux (who only got the part because she was married to one of the producers), is absolutely awful! (One critic perfectly described her singing sounding "like Bernadette Peters with her finger stuck ... Read More: |
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