December 26, 2007

Backstage Stories
(Continuum - Hardcover Book)
Edited by Barbara Baker. A view behind the scenes into the jobs and personalities of people who work in the theatre - twenty-one backstage professionals are interviewed, from artistic director to wig maker, working in all kinds of theatres in Britain and the United States. Anecdotes and observations of working with people such as Alan Bennett, Judi Dench, Placido Domingo, Ian McKellen and Andrew Lloyd Webber.

Frank Loesser (Yale Broadway Masters Series)
(Yale Univ Press - Hardcover Book)
Thomas L. Riis' Concise look at Loesser's life along with an examination of the totality of his works.

The Infinite Variety of Music
(Amadeus Press - Paperback Book)
New printing of 1996 book in which Leonard Bernstein shares his love and appreciation for music in all its varied forms. Also features the reproduction of five television scripts from Bernstein on the influence of jazz, the timeless appeal of Mozart, musical romanticism, and the complexities of rhythmic innovation. Also included are Bernstein's analyses of symphonies by Dvorak, Tchaikovsky, Beethoven, and Brahms, a reproduction of a 1957 lecture on the nature of composing, and a report on the musical scene written for New York Times after his sabbatical leave from directorship of the New York Philharmonic during the 1964-65 season.

The People vs. Friar Laurence - The Man Who Killed Romeo and Juliet
(Cygnetsong - new on CD)
Original 2004 California cast recording starring David Castellani, Beth Crosby, Sarah Gee, Bruce Green, Rick Hall, Hal Lubin, Nicole Parker, Michael John Ross, Amanda Swann, Phil Swann, Norm Thoeming, Ron West and Joe Zanetti. Phil Swann/ Ron West score. 18 tracks. Available at Footlight.com.

Songs From Sweeney Todd (Karaoke)
(Stage Stars - new on 2 CDs)
16 songs; 32 tracks. Disc one contains the background tracks and guide vocals; disc two has the accompaniment tracks alone. This album is a re-recording in the original show key and show tempo. There are no on-screen lyrics or lyric booklet provided.

Tsarina - The Musical
(Djworks Music - new on CD)
2006 California cast recording of Deborah Johnson show. Deborah Johnson, Charlie Clark, Mike Anderson, Joyce Anderson, Phil Lollar, David Johnson, Lori Donato, Micah Pearsal, Melanie Smith. 20 tracks. Available at Footlight.com.

Wonderful and Surprising History of Sweeney Todd: The Life and Times of an Urban Legend
(Oxford Univ Press - Paperback Book)
By Robert L. Mack.

Young Frankenstein
(Universal Classics/Decca Broadway - new on CD)
Order at CD Universe
Original Broadway cast recording of Mel Brooks musical. Roger Bart, Shuler Hensley Sutton Foster, Andrea Martin, Christopher Fitzgerald, Fred Applegate. To be recorded November 12. Overture [written for the album], "The Happiest Town in Town," "The Brain," "Please Don't Touch Me," "Together Again," "Roll in the Hay," "Join the Family Business," "He Vas My Boyfriend," "The Law," "Life, Life" [includes the erse, cut in Seattle], "Welcome to Transylvania," "Transylvania Mania," "He's Loose," "Listen to Your Heart," "Surprise," "Please Send Me Someone," "Man About Town," "Puttin' on the Ritz" (Music and Lyrics by Irving Berlin), "Deep Love," "Frederick's Soliloquy," "Deep Love" (Reprise), "Finale Ultimo." Bonus track: "Alone," cut in Seattle but recorded by Megan Mullally for the album. iTunes exclusive: "Transylvania Mania Blues" is a download-only iTunes exclusive, sung by Mullally backed by a jazz quartet.

You're Following Me! - Baby Jane Dexter
(new on CD)
Recording of Baby Jane Dexter's current cabaret show. Intro, "Superstar," "Some Enchanted Evening," "Got To Get You Into My Life," "Ring Baby Ring," "Sneakin' Up On You," "Damn Your Eyes," "You're Following Me," "Make Believe - The Very Thought Of You," "All I Have To Do Is Dream - Dancing On The Ceiling," "Transition Dialogue," "Love Potion #9," "The Wail Of The Reefer," "Candy Man," "You Really Got A Hold On Me," "Precious Pain," "Fools Rush In," "Zing Went The Strings Of My Heart." Available at CDBaby

December 18, 2007

The Evil Dead (Ultimate Edition)
(Anchor Bay - on 3 DVDs)
Order at CD Universe
Sam Raimi's first film, and the basis for the Off-Broadway musical. Bruce Campbell, Betsy Baker, Hal Delrich, Ellen Sandweiss, Sarah York. Disc 1: widescreen version plus audio commentary - Sam Raimi, Robert Tapert; featurette - "One by One We Will Take You: The Untold Saga of The Evil Dead"; Disc 2: full frame version with audio commentary - Bruce Campbell; featurette - "The Evil Dead: Treasures From the Cutting Room Floor"; Disc 3: "Life After Death: The Ladies of the Evil Dead," The Ladies of The Evil Dead meet Bruce Campbell, "Discovering The Evil Dead," "At The Drive In," Make-Up Test, Unconventional trailer; TV spots; text/photo galleries.

Once
(Fox - new on DVD)
Order at CD Universe
2007 musical-romance story set in Ireland. Music by Hansard and Irglová. Wiltold Owski and Kate Haugh. Bonus material: audio commentary - John Carney, Glen Hansard, Marketa Irglova; featurettes -"Making a Modern Day Musical" and "More Guy, More Girl"; musical commentary - John Carney, Glen Hansard, Marketa Irglova, trailers.

Rise and Fall of the City of Mahagonny
(EMI - new on DVD)
Order at CD Universe
Los Angeles Opera's February 2007 production of Kurt Weill and Bertolt Brecht's The Rise and Fall of the City of Mahagonny featuring Audra McDonald, Patti LuPone, Anthony Dean Griffey, Robert Wörle, John Easterlin, Mel Ulrich, Donnie Ray Albert, Derek Taylor and Steven Humes. Telecast on December 17, 2007 on PBS as a "Great Performances" presentation. Directed by John Doyle.

Seascape: The Entire Appalling Business
(Overlook - Paperback Book
New printing of Edward Albee's Pulitzer Prize winning play.

Sweeney Todd (The original tale behind the legend)
(Oxford Univ Press - Paperback Book)
The first reprint of the original tale since it was serialized in The People's Periodical in 1846-47, first published under the title The String of Pearls. Introduction and explanatory notes by editor Robert Mack. Released 11/29/07.

Sweeney Todd Highlights Soundtrack
(Nonesuch - new on CD)
Order at CD Universe
Soundtrack for 2007 film, directed by Tim Burton and featuring Johnny Depp, Helena Bonham Carter,Alan Rickman, Timothy Spall, Sacha Baron Cohen, Jayne Wisener, Jamie Campbell Bower, Laura Michelle Kelly, Ed Sanders, Anthony Head, Peter Bowles. Stephen Sondheim score. "No Place Like London," "The Worst Pies in London," "Poor Thing," "My Friends," "Green Finch & Linnett Bird," "Johanna," "Pirelli's Miracle Elixir," "The Contest," "Wait," "Pretty Women," "Epiphany," "A Little Priest," "Johanna," "God, That's Good!," "By the Sea," "Not While I'm Around."

Sweeney Todd Deluxe Complete Edition Soundtrack
(Wea/Atlantic/Nonesuch - new on CD)
Order at CD Universe
Soundtrack for 2007 film, directed by Tim Burton and featuring Johnny Depp, Helena Bonham Carter,Alan Rickman, Timothy Spall, Sacha Baron Cohen, Jayne Wisener, Jamie Campbell Bower, Laura Michelle Kelly, Ed Sanders, Anthony Head, Peter Bowles. Stephen Sondheim score. Opening Title, "No Place Like London," "The Worst Pies in London," "Poor Thing," "My Friends," "Green Finch & Linnett Bird," "Alms Alms," "Johanna," "Pirelli's Miracle Elixir," "The Contest," "Wait," "Ladies in Their Sensitivities," "Pretty Women," "Epiphany," "A Little Priest," "Johanna," "God, That's Good!," "By the Sea," "Not While I'm Around," Final Scene. Complete music for the film plus hardcover 80-page bound booklet with lyrics and photographs.

That's Entertainment! - Trilogy Giftset
(Warner - on HD-DVD/Blu-Ray)
Order at CD Universe
That's Entertainment, That's Entertainment Part 2, That's Entertainment III (previously released) and a bonus fourth disc entitled That's Entertainment: Treasures from the Vault, available exclusively with the giftset featuring more than five hours of extras including three great documentaries, premiere night coverage and salutes to the great behind-the-camera talents, TV specials, making-of featurettes, plus an extensive video jukebox of rare, star-packed musical outtakes from classic films, and more.

The Thing About Men Vocal Selections
(Hal Leonard - Paperback Book)
Jimmy Roberts/Joe DiPietro score. Nine selections, including: "The Better Man Won," "Free, Easy Guy," "Make Me a Promise, Thomas," "Oh, What a Man" and more.

When Midnight Strikes
(new on CD)
UK Finborough Theatre cast recording of Charles Miller/Kevin Hammond musical. Shona White, Miles Western, Bradley Clarkson. Available at Dress Circle and CDBaby.com..

Vicious Circle: Mystery and Crime Stories by Members of the Algonquin Round Table
(Pegasus Books - Hardcover Book)
By Otto Penzler (proprietor of the Mysterious Bookshop in New York City). Anthology of mystery and crime stories by the writers of the Algonquin Round Table.

Walmartopia
(new on CD)
Original Off-Broadway cast recording of Andrew Rohn score. Cheryl Freeman, Nikki M. James, Sarah Bolt, Bradley Dean, Stephen DeRosa, John Jellison, DeMond B. Nason, Andrew Polk, Pearl Sun, Scotty Watson and Helene Yorke. Available at CD Baby.

Young Frankenstein - pre-release download
(Universal Classics/Decca Broadway - )
Original Broadway cast recording of Mel Brooks musical. iTunes only this week, CD release on December 26. Roger Bart, Shuler Hensley Sutton Foster, Andrea Martin, Christopher Fitzgerald, Fred Applegate. To be recorded November 12. Overture [written for the album], "The Happiest Town in Town," "The Brain," "Please Don't Touch Me," "Together Again," "Roll in the Hay," "Join the Family Business," "He Vas My Boyfriend," "The Law," "Life, Life" [includes the erse, cut in Seattle], "Welcome to Transylvania," "Transylvania Mania," "He's Loose," "Listen to Your Heart," "Surprise," "Please Send Me Someone," "Man About Town," "Puttin' on the Ritz" (Music and Lyrics by Irving Berlin), "Deep Love," "Frederick's Soliloquy," "Deep Love" (Reprise), "Finale Ultimo." Bonus track: "Alone," cut in Seattle but recorded by Megan Mullally for the album. iTunes exclusive: "Transylvania Mania Blues" is a download-only iTunes exclusive, sung by Mullally backed by a jazz quartet.

December 11, 2007

How to be a Working Actor, 5th Edition: The Insider's Guide to Finding Jobs in Theater, Film, & Television
(Back Stage Books - Paperback Book)
By Mari Lyn Henry and Lynne Rogers; Foreword by Joe Mantegna.

Parade
(First Night Records - new on 2 CDs/1 PAL DVD import)
Order at CD Universe
London cast recording of Jason Robert Brown score. Helen Anker, Mark Bonnar, Norman Bowman, Shaun Escoffery, Joanna Kirkland, Gary Milner, Steven Page, Malinda Parris, Matthew Price, Zoe Rainey, Celia Mei Rubin, Stephen Webb and Jayne Weisener. DVD to include interviews with book-writer Alfred Uhry and Brown with contributions from director Rob Ashford and the Donmar's artistic director Michael Grandage. Unconfirmed track list: "The Old Red Hills Of Home," "Dialogue," "The Dream Of Atlanta," "How Can I Call This Home?," "The Picture House," "What am I Waiting For?," "I Am Trying To Remember," "Dialogue," "There Is A Fountain / It`s Don`t Make Sense," "Lullaby," "Dialogue," "Something Ain`t Right," "Real Big News," "You Don`t Know The Man," "Dialogue," "Hammer Of Justice," "Twenty Miles From Marietta," "The Factory Girls / Come Up Into My Office," "Minola McKnight`s Testimony," "My Child Will Forgive Me," "That`s What He Said," "It`s Hard to Speak My Heart," "Closing Statement Cakewalk," "A Rumblin` And a Rollin`," "Do It Alone," "Pretty Work," "The Glory," "This Is Not Yet Over," "Minnie McKnight`s Reprise," "Feel The Rain Fall," "Where Will You Stand When The Flood Comes?," "All The Wasted Time," "Abduction And Hanging," "Sh`ma / The Old Red Hills Of Home." Also available at Dress Circle, Amazon UK and Footlight.com.

Regrets Only
(Dramatist's Play Service - Paperback Book)
Paul Rudnick play.

Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street
(Titan Books - Hardcover Book)
By Mark Salisbury. Lavish, full colour hardcover official companion volume to the film will include a Foreword by Tim Burton, over 200 photos, concept drawings and production designs, extracts from the screenplay and interviews with the cast and crew.

Xanadu - Early Shipping
(PS Classics - new on CD)
Original Broadway cast recording. Kerry Butler, Cheyenne Jackson, Tony Roberts, Mary Testa, Jackie Hoffman, Curtis Holbrook, Anika Larsen, Kenita Miller and Andre Ward. Produced by Jeffrey Lesser. "I'm Alive," "Magic," "Evil Woman," "Suddenly," "Whenever You re Away from Me," "Dancin'," "Strange Magic," "All Over the World," "Don t Walk Away," "Fool," "The Fall," "Suspended in Time," "Have You Never Been Mellow?," "Xanadu." To be recorded October 29. Shipping now from PSClassics.com. Street date January 8.

December 4, 2007

The Best American Short Plays 2002-2003
(Applause Books - Hardcover/Paperback Book)
Glenn Young, Editor. Plays include The Beauty Inside by Catherine Filloux; The D Train Doesn't Stop Here Anymore by Laura Shaine Cunningham; Brown by Cherie Vogelstein; and everybody else by Scott Organ; Two Monologues for One Actor and a Dog by Murray Schisgal; Reunions by Billy Aronson; Captain Abalone by Adam Kraar; Classyass by Caleen Sinnette Jennings; Changing of the Guard by Amy Staats; Hermaphrodite by Annie G.; Sada by Bruce Levy; 5:15 Greyhound by Le Wilhelm; and My Red Hand, My Black Hand by Dael Orlandersmith.

Come What May - Roslyn Kind
(new on CD)
Re-release by singer/actress. "Perfect," "Living Colors/Meadowlark," "The Man That Got Away," "Can You Read My Mind," "Somebody Loves Me," "How Do You Keep the Music Playing," "Romance Medley:Smoke Gets in Your Eyes/Where R U/You've Changed," "Come What May," "At Times Like This." Available at CDBaby.com.

Decades Collection
(Sony/BMG - released on single DVDs)
These are not new transfers and have no new extras, but some are advertised as including "collectable booklet and CD). Films include: West Side Story, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, Twelve Angry Men, Fiddler on the Roof, Carrie, Guys and Dolls and Some Like It Hot.

Ford At Fox: The Collection
(Fox - new on 21 DVDs)
Order at CD Universe
21 John Ford films made for 20th Century Fox, from the '20s through 1952. The many bonuses include a new documentary and hardcover book. Click either link above for list of films.

Late Nite Comic 20th Anniversary Recording
(Original Cast Records - new on CD)
To includes all cut songs and the performances of Brian D'Arcy James, Julia Murney, Karen Ziemba, Howard McGillin, Mary Testa, Liz Callaway, Chip Zien, Liz Larsen, Sal Viviano, Mario Cantone, Jason Graae, Paul Shaffer, Rupert Holmes, Tony Roberts, Daniel Reichard, Martin Vidnovic and Seth Rudetsky. Larry Hochman's original Broadway orchestrations.  Produced by composer/lyricist Brian Gari. Sales benefit the Actors Fund. Pre-ordering at CD Baby.

Love American Style - Season 1, Vol. 1
(Paramount - new on 3 DVDs)
Order at CD Universe
First 12 episodes. Guest should include: Penny Fuller, Michael Callan, Eddie Anderson, Flip Wilson, Jane Wyatt, E.J. Peaker, Larry Storch, Margaret O'Brien, Arte Johnson, Alice Ghostly, Dwayne Hickman, Barry Nelson, Bill Bixby, Connie Stevens, Sid Caesar, Richard Deacon, Phyllis Diller, Bob Crane, Patsy Kelly, Herb Edelman, Broderick Crawford, Red Buttons, Aldo Ray, Les Crane, Diane McBain, Judy Carne, Noel Harrison, Dennis Day, Jessica Walter, Carl Betz, Harrison Ford, Hans Conried, Norman Fell, Morey Amsterdam, Shelley Fabares, Kay Medford, Tom Smothers, Paul Winchell, Scatman Crothers, Shari Lewis, Cliff Norton, Jack Carter, Ruta Lee, Regis Philbin, Andy Devine, Peter Marshall, Lesley Warren, Jesse White, Ann Southern, Brandon de Wilde, Rosemary DeCamp.

Mary Poppins: Anything Can Happen If You Let It
(Disney - Hardcover Book)
By Brian Sibley, Michael Lassell. Reference about the show and the movie by Disney historian and friend of PL Travers. Released in UK as Practically Perfect in Every Way.

My Ideal The Definitive Collection - Margaret Whiting
(Jasmine Records - on 4 CDs)
Pre-order at CD Universe
Comprehensive overview of Margaret Whiting's recording output from 1943-1957. 113 tracks on 4 CDs. Collaborations with Johnny Mercer, Bob Hope, Peggy Lee, Benny Goodman, Dean Martin. In addition to great orchestral arrangements by Nelson Riddle, Billy May, Frank Devol and more. Track list can be viewed at the Jasmine site.

Naked Boys Singing - The Movie
(TLA - new on DVD)
Order at CD Universe
The all-singing, all-nude men perform seventeen songs, including "Gratuitous Nudity," "Perky Little Porn Star" and "The Naked Maid." To include bonus featurette "Nuts And Bolts." 95 minutes. Not rated.

New York, New York: 30th Anniversary Edition
(MGM - on 2 DVDs)
Order at CD Universe
1977 film with Robert De Niro, Liza Minnelli, Lionel Sander, Mary Kay Place, Dick Miller. Complete, uncut version. 163 min. Widescreen. Extras: commentary by director Martin Scorsese and others; deleted scenes; featurettes; interviews; photo gallery; storyboards; theatrical trailers.

Parade
(First Night Records - new on 2 CDs/1 PAL DVD)
London cast recording of Jason Robert Brown score. Helen Anker, Mark Bonnar, Norman Bowman, Shaun Escoffery, Joanna Kirkland, Gary Milner, Steven Page, Malinda Parris, Matthew Price, Zoe Rainey, Celia Mei Rubin, Stephen Webb and Jayne Weisener. DVD to include interviews with book-writer Alfred Uhry and Brown with contributions from director Rob Ashford and the Donmar's artistic director Michael Grandage. Unconfirmed track list: "The Old Red Hills Of Home," "Dialogue," "The Dream Of Atlanta," "How Can I Call This Home?," "The Picture House," "What am I Waiting For?," "I Am Trying To Remember," "Dialogue," "There Is A Fountain / It`s Don`t Make Sense," "Lullaby," "Dialogue," "Something Ain`t Right," "Real Big News," "You Don`t Know The Man," "Dialogue," "Hammer Of Justice," "Twenty Miles From Marietta," "The Factory Girls / Come Up Into My Office," "Minola McKnight`s Testimony," "My Child Will Forgive Me," "That`s What He Said," "It`s Hard to Speak My Heart," "Closing Statement Cakewalk," "A Rumblin` And a Rollin`," "Do It Alone," "Pretty Work," "The Glory," "This Is Not Yet Over," "Minnie McKnight`s Reprise," "Feel The Rain Fall," "Where Will You Stand When The Flood Comes?," "All The Wasted Time," "Abduction And Hanging," "Sh`ma / The Old Red Hills Of Home." Available at Dress Circle and Footlight.com.

Portraits and Observations: The Essays of Truman Capote
(Random House - Hardcover Book)
All of the essays published by Truman Capote. Published in October, 2007.

Rufus Does Judy At Carnegie Hall
(Geffen Records - new on 2 CDs)
Order at CD Universe
Live recording of 2006 concert. Rufus Wainwright and 36-piece orchestra re-create Judy Garland's celebrated 1961 Carnegie Hall concert song-for-song. Arrangements by Stephen Oremus. Overture: "The Trolley Song/Over The Rainbow/The Man That Got Away," "When You're Smiling (The Whole World Smiles With You)," Medley: "Almost Like Being In Love/This Can't Be Love," "Do It Again," "You Go To My Head," "Alone Together," "Who Cares? (As Long As You Care For Me)," "Puttin' On The Ritz," "How Long Has This Been Going On," "Just You, Just Me," "The Man That Got Away," "San Francisco," "That's Entertainment," "I Can't Give You Anything But Love," "Come Rain Or Come Shine," "You're Nearer," "A Foggy Day," "If Love Were All," "Zing! Went The Strings Of My Heart," "Stormy Weather (Starring Martha Wainwright)," Medley: "You Made Me Love You/For Me And My Gal/The Trolley Song," "Rock-A-Bye Your Baby With A Dixie Melody," "Over The Rainbow (featuring Kate McGarrigle)," "Swanee," "After You've Gone (featuring Lorna Luft)," "Chicago." iTunes bonus track: "Get Happy."

Rufus! Rufus! Rufus! Does Judy! Judy! Judy! Live at the London Paladium
(new on DVD)
Order at CD Universe
Live February 25th, 2007 concert recording. Arrangements by on Charles & Christopher Jahnke. 31 songs. Guest appearances: Martha Wainwright, Kate McGarrigle, Lorna Luft. Conducted by Stephen Oremus. Unconfirmed song list: Overture: "The Trolley Song/Over The Rainbow/The Man That Got Away," "When You're Smiling (The Whole World Smiles With You)," "Medley: Almost Like Being In Love/This Can't Be Love," "Do It Again," "You Go To My Head," "Alone Together," "Who Cares? (As Long As You Care For Me)," "Puttin' On The Ritz," "How Long Has This Been Going On," "Just You, Just Me," "he Man That Got Away," "San Francisco," "That's Entertainment," "I Can't Give You Anything But Love," "Come Rain Or Come Shine," "You're Nearer," "A Foggy Day," "If Love Were All," "Zing! Went The Strings Of My Heart," "Stormy Weather (starring Martha Wainwright)," "You Made Me Love You /For Me And My Gal / The Trolley Song," "Rock-A-Bye Your Baby With A Dixie Melody," "Over The Rainbow (Kate McGarrigle)," "Swanee," "After You've Gone" (Lorna Luft), "Chicago," "Get Happy," "Hello Bluebird" (starring Lorna Luft), "Someone to Watch Over Me" (starring Martha Wainwright and Kate McGarrigle), "Everytime We Say Goodbye" (Kate McGarrigle), "San Francisco" (Reprise).

Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story
(Columbia - new on CD)
Order at CD Universe
Soundtrack for upcoming John C. Reilly "mockumentary" of a rock star. "Walk Hard," "Take My Hand," "(Mama) You Got to Love Your Negro Man," "A Life Without You (Is No Life At All)," "Let's Duet" (duet with Angela Correa), "Darling," "(I Hate You) Big Daddy," "Guilty As Charged," "Dear Mr. President," "Let Me Hold You (Little Man)," "Royal Jelly," "Black Sheep," "Starman," "Beautiful Ride," "(Have You Heard the News) Dewey Cox Died." iTunes version has extra tracks.

November 27, 2007

How Does the Show Go On
(Disney Editions - Hardcover Book)
By Thomas Schumacher and Jeff Kurtti. Introduction to the world of the Theatre, from the box office to backstage, and beyond. From one side of the book, the reader enters via the front door, where the people and activities of the "front of house" can be examined. From the book's other side, the reader enters the Stage Door, where the behind-the-scenes world of the "back of house" is revealed. Includes Costume Designer's Sketchbook; authentic Playbill Program; Front of House: From the Street to the Stage Apron; Back of House: From the Stage Apron to the Stage Door; A Day in the Life of a Child Performer; Theater-Speak Glossary. 125 pages.

It's Christmas, of Course: Darlene Love
(Shout! Factory - new on CD)
Order at CD Universe
"Christmas All Over Again," "Who Took The Merry Out Of Christmas," "Christmas Wish," "Santa Claus Go Straight To The Ghetto," "Please Come Home For Christmas," "2000 Miles," "Christmas Is The Time To Say 'I Love You'," "What Christmas Means To Me," "Christmas Must Be Tonight," "Thanks For Christmas," "Happy Xmas (War Is Over)," "Night Of Peace."

Keyes To Heaven - Remember Eben Keyes
(new on CD)
Mac Award Winners tribute to lyricist Eben Keyes. Composers Michael Cook, Ronald Gold, Bob Ost, Blair Weille. Singers Lisa Asher, Bill Daugherty, Karen Mack, Heather MacRae, Sue Matsuki, Carolyn Montgomery, Sidney Myer, Georga Osborne, Julie Reyburn, Steve Ross, Craig Rubano, Marcus Simeone, Thos Shipley.

LoveMusik
(Ghostlight - new on CD)
Order at CD Universe
Broadway cast recording. Recorded on July 15. Michael Cerveris, Donna Murphy, David Pittu, John Scherer, Judith Blazer, Edwin Cahill, Herndon Lackey, Erik Liberman, Ann Morrison, Graham Rowat, Rachel Ulanet and Jessica Wright. Recording is produced by Joel Moss. Kurt Deutsch is Executive Producer. Kurt Weill music with lyrics by Maxwell Anderson, Bertolt Brecht, Howard Dietz, Roger Fernay, Ira Gershwin, Oscar Hammerstein II, Langston Hughes, Alan Jay Lerner, Maurice Magre, Ogden Nash, Elmer Rice and Kurt Weill. Orchestrations by Jonathan Tunick, additional vocal arrangements are by Milton Granger and conductor is Nicholas Archer."Speak Low" (lyrics by Ogden Nash), "Nanna's Lied" (lyrics by Bertolt Brecht), "Kiddush Song of the Rhineland" (lyrics by Ira Gershwin), "Klops Lied" (Meatball Song), "Berlin Im Licht" (lyrics by Kurt Weill), "Tango Ballad" (lyrics by Bertolt Brecht), "Alabama Song" (lyrics by Bertolt Brecht), "Girl of the Moment" (lyrics by Ira Gershwin), "Moritat" (lyrics by Bertolt Brecht), "Schickelgruber" (lyrics by Howard Dietz), "I Don't Love You" (lyrics by Maurice Magre), "Wouldn't You Like to be on Broadway?" (lyrics by Langston Hughes), "Alabama Song" Reprise, Entr'Acte, "Very, Very, Very" (lyrics by Ogden Nash), "It's Never Too Late to Mendelssohn" (lyrics by Ira Gershwin), "Surabaya Johnny" (lyrics by Bertolt Brecht), "Buddy on the Night Shift" (lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II), "That's Him" (lyrics by Ogden Nash), "Hosannah Rockefeller" (lyrics by Bertolt Brecht), "I Don't Love You" Reprise, The Illusion Wedding Show" (lyrics by Alan Jay Lerner), "It Never Was You" (lyrics by Maxwell Anderson), "A Bird of Passage" (lyrics by Maxwell Anderson), "September Song" (lyrics by Maxwell Anderson). November 27 store date. Available now at Sh-K-Boom.com.

November 20, 2007

Andrea Marcovicci Sings Rodgers & Hart
(Andreasong - new on CD)
Andrea Marcovicci album of new cabaret show. "Where or When / Jupiter Forbid," "Sing For Your Supper," "A Little Birdie Told Me So," "If I Were You," "He Was Too Good To Me," "What's The Use? / Why Can't I?," "My Heart Stood Still / I Didn't Know What Time It Was," "This Can't Be Love / Thou Swell / I Could Write A Book," "Falling in Love With / It Never Entered My Mind / Little Girl Bl," "Everything I've Got," "Bewitched (Bothered and Bewildered)," "To Keep My Love Alive," "Can't You Do A Friend A Favor ?," "My Funny Valentine." Available at CDBaby.com.

The Audience Book of Theatre Quotations
(World Audience, Inc. - Paperback Book)
By Louis Philips' book of theatre quotations.

Une Chambre en Ville
(Kritzerland - new on 2 CDs)
Complete Michel Colombier soundtrack from Jacques Demy 1982 film. Through-sung, in stereo. Limited edition of 1200 copies. Available at Footlight.com and Kritzerland.com.

Colma: The Musical
(Lions Gate - new on DVD)
Order at CD Universe
2007 film. H.P. Mendoza, Jake Moreno, L.A. Renigen, Sigrid Sutter.

Don't Cry For Me Argentina - Petula Clark
(Zone - Import CD)
Order at CD Universe
Compilation of 20 tracks from CBS sessions 1977 to 1979. Digitally remastered "Don't Cry For Me Argentina," "A Carousel," "I'm Not In Love," "Smiley," "I Really Didn't Mean To Write This Song Today," "When You're Gone," "What Am I Doing Here?," "Songbird," "You're My Destiny," "When The Going Gets Rough," "If You Leave Me Now," "Put A Little Sunbeam In Your Life," "Feel The Love Go Round," "Put It Back Together," "(Life Is) Just A Dance With Time," "Don't Stop The Music," "I Could Have Given You More," "Sheldon Bloom" (previously unreleased)," "I Couldn't Live Without You (Previously Unreleased)," "Put A Little Sunbeam In Your Life" (alternate version —previously unreleased). Deluxe packaging with 8 page booklet including rare photos and sleeve notes.

Doris Day Today
(MPI - new on DVD)
Order at CD Universe
Day's 1975 CBS-TV special. With guests John Denver, Tim Conway, Rich Little. Bonuses: Day's entire appearance on The John Denver Family Special (1974); rare 1940s musical film short of Doris with the Les Brown Orchestra; discography - Doris Day Album.

Enchanted
(Disney - new on CD)
Order at CD Universe
Soundtrack of Disney film. Idina Menzel, James Marsden, Patrick Dempsey, Amy Adams, Susan Sarandon, Timothy Spall. Original music by Alan Menken and Stephen Schwartz. "True Love's Kiss" (Amy Adams/James Marsden), "Happy Working Song" (Amy Adams), "That's How You Know" (Amy Adams), "So Close" (Jon McLaughlin), "Ever Ever After" (Carrie Underwood (Record Version)), "Andalasia," "Into the Well," "Robert Says Goodbye," "Nathaniel And Pip," "Prince Edward's Search," "Girls Go Shopping," "Narissa Arrives," "Storybook Ending," "Enchanted Suite," "That's Amore" (James Marsden).

Grease: Pro Vocal Men's Edition Volume 32
(Hal Leonard - Paperback Book with CD)
Lyrics, melody, and chord symbols for eight classic songs. The CD contains demos for listening and separate backing tracks so you can sing along. The CD is playable on any CD, but it is also enhanced for PC and Mac computer users so you can adjust the recording to any pitch without changing the tempo! Perfect for home rehearsal, parties, auditions, corporate events, and gigs without a backup band. "Alone at the Drive-In Movie," "Beauty School Dropout," "Grease," "Greased Lightnin'," "Rock 'N' Roll Party Queen," "Sandy," "Summer Nights."

Grease: Pro Vocal Women's Edition Volume 23
(Hal Leonard - Paperback with CD)
Lyrics, melody, and chord symbols for eight classic songs. The CD contains demos for listening and separate backing tracks so you can sing along. The CD is playable on any CD, but it is also enhanced for PC and Mac computer users so you can adjust the recording to any pitch without changing the tempo! Perfect for home rehearsal, parties, auditions, corporate events, and gigs without a backup band. "Alone at the Drive-In Movie," "Beauty School Dropout," "Grease," "Greased Lightnin'," "Rock 'N' Roll Party Queen," "Sandy," "Summer Nights."

Hairspray
(Warner/New Line - new on DVD)
Order at CD Universe
2007 film version of musical. John Travolta, Michelle Pfeiffer, Christopher Walken, Amanda Bynes, James Marsden, Queen Latifah, Brittany Snow, Zac Efron, Elijah Kelley, Allison Janney, Nikki Blonsky, Taylor Parks, Paul Dooley, Jerry Stiller. Also available in Blu-Ray, full screen

Hairspray 2-Disc Shake & Shimmy Edition
(Warner/New Line - new on 2 DVDs)
Order at CD Universe
2007 film version of musical. John Travolta, Michelle Pfeiffer, Christopher Walken, Amanda Bynes, James Marsden, Queen Latifah, Brittany Snow, Zac Efron, Elijah Kelley, Allison Janney, Nikki Blonsky, Taylor Parks, Paul Dooley, Jerry Stiller. Extras: 5 deleted scenes, including the never-before-seen musical number "I Can Wait"; "You Can't Stop The Beat: The Long Journey of Hairspray" documentary; Hairspray Extensions: Multiview Dance Experience; "The Roots of Hairspray" from Buddy Deane to Broadway!; audio commentary by Adam Shankman & Nikki Blonsky, and by producers Craig Zadan and Neil Meron; sing along lyric track' step-by-step dance instructions; trailer. Also available in a gift set edition, which includes mini locker with customizable stickers and exclusive tote bag.

Hairspray Soundtrack 2 Disc Deluxe Edition
(New Line Records - on 2 CDs)
Order at CD Universe
"Good Morning Baltimore" (Nikki Blonsky), "The Nicest Kids In Town" (James Marsden), "It Takes Two" (Zac Efron), "(The Legend of) Miss Baltimore Crabs" (Michelle Pfeiffer), "I Can Hear The Bells" (Blonsky), "Ladies' Choice" (Efron), "The New Girl In Town" (Brittany Snow), "Welcome to the 60's" (Blonsky and John Travolta), "Run and Tell That" (Elijah Kelley and Taylor Parks), "Big, Blonde & Beautiful" (Queen Latifah), "Big, Blonde & Beautiful Reprise" (Travolta and Pfeiffer), "(You're) Timeless To Me" (Travolta and Christopher Walken), "I Know Where I've Been" (Latifah), "Without Love" (Efron, Blonsky, Kelley and Amanda Bynes), "(It's) Hairspray" (James Marsden), "You Can't Stop The Beat" (Blonsky, Efron, Bynes, Kelley, Travolta and Latifah ), "Come So Far (Got So Far To Go)" (Latifah, Blonsky, Efron and Kelley ), "Cooties" (Aimee Allen ), "Mama, I'm a Big Girl Now" (Blonsky, Marissa Jaret Winokur & Rikki Lake). Includes extra songs ("I Can Wait" (Blonsky), "Breakout" (Chester Gregory), "Boink-Boink" (Arthur Adams), "Trouble on the Line" (Corey Reynolds), "Mr. Pinky's Theme"), alternate takes ("Mrs. Von Tussle Says" (Pattie Darcy and Marc Shaiman) "Save Your Applause 'Til The End" (Christine Ebersole) "Turn Back The Hands of Time" (Jenifer Lewis) "Timeless to Me" (Nathan Lane) "It Ain't Over Till The Fat Lady Sings" (Keala Settle) "It Doesn' t Get Better Than This" (Shaiman)), karaoke tracks ("Ladies' Choice," ""Welcome To The 60's," ""Run And Tell That," ""You Can't Stop The Beat," ""Come So Far (Got So Far To Go)"), video karaoke of the most popular songs, lyrics, video documentaries including "Zac Efron Becomes Link Larkin," collectable cards of the film's stars, commemorative sticker pack, online game, and "wallpaper."

High Fidelity Sheet Music
Songs from Amanda Green/Tom Kitt musical available at GreenPieceMusic.com.

Musicals of Boublil and Schonberg: Pro Vocal Women's Edition Volume 14
(Hal Leonard - Paperback Book with CD)
Lyrics, melody, and chord symbols for eight classic songs. CD contains demos for listening and separate backing tracks so you can sing along. The CD is playable on any CD, but is also enhanced for PC and Mac computer users so you can adjust the recording to any pitch without changing the tempo. "Castle on a Cloud," "How Many Tears?," "I Dreamed a Dream," "I'd Give My Life for You," "In My Life," "The Last Night of the World," "Now That I've Seen Her," "On My Own."

Picture Incomplete
(Onemoe Music - new on digital download)

Trent Armand Kendell (currently in The Color Purple tour). One-man musical by Michael Polese.

Swing Sessions 2
(Sony BMG/Australia - new Import on CD)
Order at CD Universe
David Campbell album. "Witchcraft," "Perhaps, Perhaps, Perhaps," "Lazy River," "Just A Gigolo / I Ain't Got Nobody," "I've Got A Crush On You," "Route 66," "Summer Wind," "Begin The Beguine," "That Old Black Magic," "There Will Never Be Another You," "That's Life," "Danke Schoen," "One For My Baby," "King Of The Road." Also available at Footlight.com and Middle Eight Music.

Vaclav Havel: The Short Plays
(Smith & Kraus - Paperback Book)
Translated by Carol Rocamora. eight short plays of Vaclav Havel: including the acclaimed trilogy "The Vanek Plays," as well as four one-acts never before been translated into English or seen anywhere in the West.

November 13, 2007

Another Side - John Barrowman
(Sony/BMG - new import on CD)
Order at CD Universe
Album full of classic songs .. all of them having had a personal meaning or connection in the singer's life and career. "All Out Of Love," "You`re So Vain," "Always A Woman," "Time After Time," "Weekend In New England," "Every Little Thing," "If You Leave Me Now," "Your Song," "Please Remember Me," "Heaven," "Being Alive," "Feeling Good," "All By Myself." Also available at Amazon UK and Dress Circle

Between 41st And 54th - Harley Jay
(new on CD)
New album by Rent actor Harley Jay. "Fortune Favors the Brave" (Aida), "Those Magic Changes," "Why, God, Why?," "Heaven On Their Mind," "Grow for Me" (Little Shop of Horrors), "Grease," "Maria," "Giants in the Sky," "Bring Him Home," "Hair." Available at officialharleyjayfanpage.com.

Bloodhounds of Broadway
(Fox - new on DVD)
Order at CD/DVD Universe
Restored version of 1952 musical comedy film with Mitzi Green, Scott Brady, Mitzi Gaynor, Marguerite Chapman, Michael O'Shea. Extras: restoration comparison; documentaries "A New York State of Mind: Written by Damon Runyon," "Mitzi Gaynor: Impressions of the Fox Years," "Sharon Baird: Dancing as Fast as She Can"; pressbook, photos, trailers, lobby card galleries.

Busker Alley
(JAY Records - new on CD)
Order at CD Universe
2006 York Theatre concert. Recorded 11/14/06. Jim Dale, Glenn Close, John Bolton, Cristy Candler, Bob Fitch, Jessica Grové, Michael Hall, Elizabeth Inghram, George S. Irving, Noah Racey, Anne Rogers, Michael Lane Trautman, Diane Wasnak and Patrick Wetzel. Score by Richard and Robert Sherman. Opening, "Blow Us A Kiss," "Hula Love Song," "Never Trust A Lady," "When Do I Get Mine?," "Strays," "Mates," "What To Do With Her?," "He Has a Way," Busker Medley: "Moonlight In Brighton/Crazy Happy Tears/Funnybone/A Million Miles From You," "He Has a Way/She Has a Way," "Busker Alley," "When Do I Get Mine?" Reprise, "How Long Have I Loved Libby?," "Baby Me," "How Ling Have I Loved Libby?" Reprise, "Ordinary Couple/I'm On The Inside," "Tin Whistle Tune," "Mates " Reprise, "The 'New Show' Audition," "Where The Hell Is Home?," "Where Are The Faces?," "Paddle Your Own Canoe," "Charlie The Busker," Epilogue, "He Had A Way" Reprise.

Clint Eastwood Presents Tony Bennett: The Music Never Ends
(Warner - new on 2 DVDs)
Order at CD Universe
Expanded version of recent 90-minute PBS special with extra material, including Tony Bennett Concert Performance at the 2005 Monterey Jazz Festival.

The Coast of Utopia: Voyage, Shipwreck, Salvage
(Grove Press - Paperback Book)
Tom Stoppard's trilogy in one volume, with an introduction by the author, and the definitive text used in the recent Lincoln Center run.

Dark Victory: The Life of Bette Davis
(Henry Holt and Co. - Hardcover Book)
Biography by Ed Sidov. 496 pages. Photos.

Free As Air
(Sepia Records - new on CD)
Original London cast recording of Julian Slade and Dorothy Reynolds score. Gillian Lewis, Gerald Harper, John Trevor, Patricia Bredin and Josephine Tewson. Since there was no overture, a piano selection of the score performed by Julian Slade is included as an introduction. Bonus tracks of other Julian Slade songs written while he was at Cambridge and as resident composer for the Bristol Old Vic Company.

Girl Next Door
(Fox - on DVD)
Order at CD Universe
Restored version of 1953 musical film. June Haver, Dan Dailey, Dennis Day, Cara Williams, Billy Gray. Extras: restoration comparison; press book, photo galleries, trailers.

Going My Way: Bing Crosby and American Culture
(Univ. of Rochester Press - Hardcover Book)
Editors by Ruth Prigozy and Walter Raubicheck. Study of the Crosby's art and of his centrality to the history of twentieth-century popular music, film, and the entertainment industry through scholarly and cultural perspectives. Contributors include Ken Barnes, Samuel L. Chell, Kathryn Crosby, Steven C. Crosby, John Mark Dempsey, Bernard F. Dick, Deborah Dolan, Michael Feinstein, Will Friedwald, Jeanne Fuchs, Gary Giddins, Peter Hammar, M. Thomas Inge, Malcolm Macfarlane, Eric Michael Mazur, Martin Mcquade, Kathryn T. Nicolson, Elaine Anderson Phillips, Ruth Prigozy, Walter Raubicheck, Linda A. Robinson, Stephen C. Shafer, David White, F.W. Wiggins.

Golden Boy
(Sony - new on DVD)
Order at CD Universe
1939 version of Odets play. William Holden, Barbara Stanwyck, Adolphe Menjou, Lee J. Cobb, Sam Levene. Extras include Ford Theatre TV episode, "Sudden Silence" from the mid-'50s; cartoon "The Kangaroo Kid"; comedy short "Pleased to Mitt You" starring Stooge Shemp Howard. B&W.

Heaven In My Eyes - Twiggy
(Sepia Records - new on CD)
Order at CD Universe
Previously unreleased album by Twiggy produced by Donna Summer and Juergen Koppers - featuring original songs by disco legends Pete Bellotte and Bruce Sudano. Recorded at Rusk Studios, Hollywood 1979. Includes four dance remixes.

In Her Own Write - Petula Clark
(Sepia Records - new on CD)
Order at CD Universe
Collection of Petula Clark compositions, encompassing her writing period between 1980 - 1995. Performed by Clark. 18 tracks on CD for the first time. Sixteen page booklet includes liner notes by Dee Shipman and Tony Hatch, and photos including previously unpublished shots. Six songs from film Pétain and two bonus tracks.

It's A Wonderful Life Collector's Set
(Paramount - on 2 DVDs)
Order at CD Universe
Classic 1946 Frank Capra film. James Stewart, Thomas Mitchell, Lionel Barrymore, Donna Reed, Ward Bond, Gloria Grahame, Henry Travers, Beulah Bondi, Frank Faylen. Colorized and black and white versions, plus extras.

Jenna Esposito - 13 Men ... and Me!
(Good Fortune Records - new on CD)
New York based singer debut CD. Standards, pop selections and a new jazz/swing number, "Remembering September in July." Available at CD Baby.

Joanna Ampil
(Jay Records - new on CD)
Order at CD Universe
Think of Me" The Phantom Of The Opera (with Niklas Andersson), "On My Own" Les Miserables, "Easy To Be Hard" Hair, "The Last Night of the World Miss Saigon (with Simon Bowman), "All I Ask of You" The Phantom Of The Opera (with Niklas Andersson), "Out Tonight Rent, "The Old Apartment" I Sing!, "I Know Him So Well" Chess (with Julia Moller), "Bird Song" The Musical of Musicals, "Neverland" Peter Pan, "I Don't Know How To Love Him" Jesus Christ Superstar, "Daddy's Girl" I Sing!, "Without You" Rent (with Koit Toome), "Sun And Moon" Miss Saigon (with Niklas Andersson), "I Dreamed A Dream" Les Miserables, "If It's Only Love / Bring On The Night" Metropolis (With Graham Bickley). Dress Circle also will be selling signed copies of this CD.

Jonathan Whitton - Live At The Laurie Beechman Theatre
(new on CD)
"Watching The Show" (B. Ross & J. Keenan), "Sweet Dreams" (J. Bucchino), "A Little Brains, A Little Talent" (R. Adler & J. Ross), "And They're Off" (W. Finn), "Lazy Afternoon" (J. Moross & J. Latouche), "Wicked Little Town" (S. Trask & J. Cameron Mitchell), "Now" (S. Alan), "Perfect Finite" (C. Miller & M. Campbell), "He Never Did That Before" (D. Barsha & M. Campbell), "It's Too Late" (C. King), "Good Thing Going/Not A Day Goes By" (S. Sondheim), "I Can Do Better Than That" (J. Robert Brown), "We Live on Borrowed Time" (D. Friedman), "Streets of Dublin" (S. Flaherty & L. Ahrens), "Let Him Fly" (P. Griffin). Tracks to include "Sweet Dreams" (Bucchino), "A Little Brains, A Little Talent" (Adler & Ross), "And They're Off" (Finn), "Lazy Afternoon" (Latouche & Moross), "Good Thing Going/Not A Day Goes By" (Sondheim), "Streets of Dublin" (Ahrens & Flaherty), as well as Brad Ross' "Watching The Show," Scott Alan's "Now", and selections from Mark Campbell's Songs From An Unmade Bed. 21 tracks. Recorded live August 31, 2007. To be released at Laurie Beechman Theatre appearance. Available at CDBaby.com.

The Letters of Noel Coward
(Knopf - Hardcover Book)
Barry Day, Editor. collection of letters (most of them previously unpublished) both from and to Noël Coward; including George Bernard Shaw, T. E. Lawrence, Virginia Woolf, the Churchills, Daphne Du Maurier, Greta Garbo, Ian Fleming, W. Somerset Maugham, Marlene Dietrich, Tallulah Bankhead, Edith Sitwell, FDR, Gertrude Lawrence, and many more. 688 pages.

Little Edie Live! A Visit to Grey Gardens
(CreateSpace - new on CD)
April 22, 1976 with college journalist Walter Newkirk and Edie Beale. 72 minutes. Released 11/1/07.

New York Theatre Walks: Seven Historical Tours from the Lower East Side to Times Square and Beyond
(Applause - Paperback Book)
Howard Kissel's series of seven self-guided walking tours not just of the theatre district but of the East and West Village, the Lower East Side, and the Upper West Side. One follows the career of Irving Berlin, "Adolph Green's Daily 'Commute,'" Includes many Broadway anecdotes, and serves as a guide to the theatrical past lying behind the sights one passes on a regular basis. Photography by Brent C. Brolin.

Once Upon a Time - Julie Andrews
(Sepia Records - new on CD)
Order at CD Universe
Early Julie Andrews recordings, beginning with "The Polonaise," possibly her first commercial recording. "Polonaise From mignon, "Je Veux Vivre," "Come To The Fair" (With Ted Andrews), "Ah! Vous Dirai - Je Mama," "The Wren," "Jack And The Beanstalk" (With Archie Andrews), "The Boy Friend," "I Could Be Happy With You" (With John Hewer), "Sad Is The Life Of A Sailor's Wife," "When You're In Love" (With Everett Sloane), "Once Upon A Long Ago," "Wouldn't It Be Loverly," "I Could Have Danced All Night"; 5 tracks from Tell It Again —Songs Of Sense & Nonsense, her 1957 album of traditional children's songs and riddles.

La Vie En Rose: The Extraordinary Life of Edit Piaf (Extended version)
(HBO - new on DVD)
Order at CD Universe
2007 film. Gerard Depardieu, Marion Cotillard, Pascal Greggory, Emmanuelle Seigner, Clotilde Courau, Catherine Allégret, Marc Barbe, Jean Paul Rouve, Sylvie Testud. Bonus featurette included.

The Rob Landes Trio Plays the Music of George Gershwin
(RLT Productions - new on CD)
Live recording of the trio's performance of Gershwin songs, some with vocals. Includes the rarely recorded "Blah, Blah, Blah." Available at CD Baby.

With a Song in My Heart
(Fox - on DVD)
Order at CD/DVD Universe
Restored 1952 biofilm of singer Jane Froman with Susan Hayward (dubbed by Froman), David Wayne, Rory Calhoun, Thelma Ritter. Extras: restoration comparison; isolated music score; press book, photos and trailers.

November 6, 2007

Actors' Yearbook 2008: The Essential Resource for Anyone Wanting to Work As an Actor
(A&C Black - Paperback Book)
Editors Andrew Piper and Simon Dunmor.4th edition of comprehensive reference guide to acting for television, film, and theater. Lists contacts and addresses for all sections of the acting world, from agents to production companies, and articles with insight to the profession.

Andréa Burns: A Deeper Shade of Red
(PS Classics - new on CD)
Order at CD Universe
Andréa Burns' debut album blends two worlds - the Broadway sound she inhabits and the female singer-songwriter sounds of her childhood - bringing a fresh take to pop hits and theatre standards (including Bernstein, Sondheim and Adler & Ross). In addition to orchestrations by Larry Hochman and Jason Robert Brown, the album also features a new song written for Andréa by "In the Heights" composer Lin-Manuel Miranda.

Barry Manilow - The First Television Specials
(Rhino - on 5 DVDs)
Order at CD Universe
Box set of television specials which originally aired from 1977 to 1988.

Dezemberlieder (December Songs)
(Anything Goes Records - new on CD)
Pia Douwes sings Maury Yeston's songs. Sung in German. Available at Footlight.com.

Elisabeth - Die Legende Einer Heiligen
(Media Mentis - new on 2 CDs)
Original 2007 German cast recording of Dennis Martin / Peter Scholz musical. Sabrina Weckerlin, Chris Murray, Kristian Vetter, Mara Dorn, Christian Schone, Jesse Garon and Armin Kahl. Sung in German. Available at Footlight.com.

Ethel Merman: A Life
(Viking Adult - Hardcover Book)
Biography by Brian Kellow.

Help!
(EMI/Capitol Video - on 2 DVD)
Remastered, remixed version of Beatles' film. Extras: 1965 U.S. Radio Spot Easter egg; "making of" documentary; restoration and memories featurettes; behind the scenes footage; missing scene. Deluxe Version includes extra extras: reproduction of Richard Lester's script; lobby cards; poster.

Historical Dictionary of the Broadway Musical
(Scarecrow press - Hardcover Book)
By William A Everett and Paul R. Laird. Desk reference with Chronology, introductory essay, bibliography, and 900 dictionary entries on Broadway shows, playwrights, directors, producers, designers, and actors.

I'll Be Home For Christmas - Laura Bell Bundy
(LAB Records, LLC - on CD)
Laura Bell Bundy, the Bluegrass Area Jazz Association and Wayne Bell perform Christmas favorites. Sales benefit Kreative Kids Foundation. Recorded in 2006.

Jonathan Sings Larson
(PS Classics - new on CD/DVD)
Order at CD Universe
Performances by the Tony Award and Pulitzer Prize-winning composer-lyricist-librettist Jonathan Larson. 16 tracks, with selections from Rent and tick, tick ... BOOM! and Superbia plus half a dozen rarer items dating back to 1984. Also included will be a special four-track DVD, with performances from Larson's Nov. 25, 1991 appearance at New York's Village Gate.

Kids' Musical Theatre Audition - Girls Edition
(Hal Leonard - Paperback Book with CD)
Songbook edited by Michael Dansicker includes "Baby Face," "Button Up Your Overcoat," "I Always Knew," "I've Got No Strings," "My Buddy," "Never Never Land," "Somebody Loves Me," "Who Do You Love I Hope," "Won't You Charleston With Me," "You're Never Fully Dressed Without a Smile."

Lauren Kennedy: Here and Now
(PS Classics - new on CD)
Order at CD Universe
Lauren Kennedy's second album takes on the newest crop of composers and lyricists shaping Broadway and popular song, in all-new arrangements. Songwriters include Andrew Lippa, David Kirshenbaum, Georgia Stitt, Matthew Sklar & Chad Begeulin, Joshua Salzman & Ryan Cunningham, and Marcy Heisler & Zina Goldrich - plus two songs (and several charts) by her frequent collaborator Jason Robert Brown.

Leading Ladies Collection - Vol. 2
(Warner - on 5 DVDs)
Order at CD/DVD Universe
A Big Hand for the Little Lady (Joanne Woodward, Henry Fonda, Jason Robards, Burgess Meredith, Paul Ford, Charles Bickford and Kevin McCarthy), I'll Cry Tomorrow (Susan Hayward with bonuses M-G-M Parade TV-series excerpts with Susan Hayward & George Murphy; vintage M-G-M newsreels covering the film's premiere; March 6, 1956 MGM Top Awards; two classic Vitaphone musical shorts starring the real Lillian Roth), Rich and Famous (based on John Van Druten's play Old Acquaintance; Jacqueline Bissett, Candice Bergen, Meg Ryan (debut) with bonus vintage featurette: On Location with Rich and Famous), Shoot the Moon (Diane Keaton and Albert Finney, with commentary by director Alan Parker and screenwriter Bo Goldman) and Up The Down Staircase (Sandy Dennis). Digitally remastered in 16x9 (preserving their original theatrical aspect ratios), also available individually.

A Maysles Scrapbook: Photographs/Cinemagraphs/Documents
(Steidl/Steven Kasher Gallery - Hardcover Book)
Maysles brothers (Grey Gardens, Gimme Shelter, Salesman) retrospective with information from original film negatives, plus hours of outtake film, numerous stills, production notes and personal and business letters. Images from both major and lesser-known films are reproduced, alongside significant writings by Albert Maysles and others (many published for the first time). Includes contributions from D.A. Pennebaker, Richard Leacock, Elliot Erwitt, Bruce Davidson and Norman Mailer, and an introduction by Martin Scorsese.

Million Grains of Sand, A - 2007 Original Cast Recording
(new on CD)
Gareth Peters score. Based on The Prince and the Pauper. Gareth Archer, Freddie Clues, Jack Coates, Daniel Corp, Lydia Costello, Siobhan Duplock, Anita Ellis, Jess Helling, Charlie Horton, Harry Horton, Amy Kirkup, Laura Kirkup, Payton Lazarus, Mathew Leask, Ylenia Mallia, Emily McNeill, Grace Meredith, Charlotte Pask, Hannah Pask, Kerry Sclater, Leah Stock, Josh Richardson, Paige Richardson, Kaileigh Waite, Ryan Watson and Alex Wheeler. Available at Dress Circle.

Rebecca
(HitSquad - new on 2 CDs)
Original 2007 Live Vienna cast recording of Sylvester Levay / Michael Kunze score. Uwe Kroger, Wietske van Tongeren, Susan Rigvava-Dumas, Carsten Lepper, Carin Filipcic, Kerstin Ibald, Andre Bauer, Norberto Bertassi, Kai Peterson and Oliver Mulich. Sung in German. Available at Footlight.com.

The Scarlet Pimpernel
(Felsenbuhne Staatz - new on CD)
Original 2007 Austrian cast recording of Frank Wildhorn/Nan Knighton score. Markus Neugebauer, Elisabeth Sikora, Werner Auer, Stefan Bischoff, Peter Kratochvil, Oliver Roitinger, Michael Konicek, Alexander Voss, Felix Rank, Marco Maurer and Elisabeth Heller. Sung in German. Available at Footlight.com.

Sitcoms: The 101 Greatest TV Comedies of All Time
(Black Dog & Leventhal - Hardcover Book)
By Ken Bloom & Frank Vlastnik (Broadway Musicals: The 101 Greatest Shows of All Time). Each chapter features photos, many rare and behind-the-scenes, along with cast lists, artists' biographies, "off-set" tidbits, critical commentary, and all of the relevant statistics. Special features cover such topics as famous unseen characters, sitcom pets, spin-offs, sitcoms made from movies, and many more.

Starfish & Coffee
(new on CD)
New Jasper Kump CD, recorded at his shows at the Laurie Beechman Theater this past winter. 12 live songs (three of Kump's original songs) and one bonus studio track. Available at CDbaby.com.

Tanz Der Vampire - Das Jubilaumskonzert (Dance of the Vampires - 10th Anniversary Concert)
(HitSquad - new on CD)
Original 2007 Vienna 10th Anniversary Concert cast recording of Jim Steinman/Michael Kunze musical. Thomas Borchert, Lukas Perman, Marjan Shaki, Gernot Kranner, Tim Reichwein, Thomas Bayer and Suzan Carey. Sung in German. Available at Footlight.com.

The Tony Awards Songbook
(Hal Leonard - Paperback Book)
60 songs representing the "Best Musical" winners form 1949-2007. "All I Ask Of You," "Applause," "Baubles, Bangles And Beads," "Being Alive," "Believe In Yourself (If You Believe)," "The Best Of Times," "Cabaret," "Circle Of Life," "Comedy Tonight," "December 1963 (Oh, What A Night)," "Don't Cry For Me Argentina," "Forget About The Boy," "Hallelujah, Baby," "Heart," "Hello, Dolly!," "Hello, Young Lovers," "Hey There," "I Believe In You," "I Dreamed A Dream," "I've Grown Accustomed To Her Face If I Were A Bell," "The Impossible Dream (The Quest)," "The Joint Is Jumpin'," "Kiss Of The Spider Woman," "A Little Bit In Love," "Look Who's In Love," "Loving You," "Lullaby Of Broadway," "Mama, I'm A Big Girl Now," "Mama, Look Sharp," "Mama Who Bore Me," "Measure The Valleys," "Memory," "Moonfall," "Mr. Monotony," "Never Met A Man I Didn't Like   ," "No Moon," "Not While I'm Around," "Purpose," "Put On A Happy Face," "Razzle Dazzle," "River In The Rain," "Seasons Of Love," "Send In The Clowns," "So In Love," "Some Enchanted Evening," "Someone To Watch Over Me," "The Song That Goes Like This    ," "The Sound Of Music," "Sunrise, Sunset," "'Til Him," "Till There Was You," "Tomorrow," "Unusual Way (In A Very Unusual Way)," "What I Did For Love," "When Did I Fall In Love," "Who Is Silvia?," "With Every Breath I Take," "With One Look," "You're Nobody 'til Somebody Loves You."

Victoria Clark: Fifteen Seconds of Grace
(PS Classics - new on CD)
Order at CD Universe
Victoria Clark's debut album, a blend of Broadway standards (including Harold Arlen, Irving Berlin and Jerry Herman), contemporary fare and art songs, all fully orchestrated. Music direction by Ted Sperling; charts by Sperling, Jeff Blumenkrantz, Alex Rybeck, Jeff Klitz and David Loud.

Zagatsurvey 2008 New York City Pack
(Zagat Survey - Paperback Book)
Includes the 2007 New York City Shopping Guide, 2007 New York City Restaurant Guide, 2007/8 New York City Nightlife Guide and 2008 New York City Gourmet Shopping & Entertaining GUide, featuring over 1,750 top food and entertaining resources.

October 30, 2007

Bare
(new on 2 CDs and 1 DVD)
Studio recording of Jon Hartmere & Damon Intrabartolo musical. Keili Lefkovitz, Jason Ryterband, Joel Echols, Matt Doyle, James Snyder, Jenna Leigh Green, Judith Hill, Christopher Johnson, Kara Maguire, Nils Montan, Carmel Echols, Anna Rose. Produced by Deborah Lurie and Casey Stone. Vocal director is Eric Anderson. Orchestrations and arrangements by Deborah Lurie. Reflects changes since the 2004 Off-Broadway production. DVD: "Navigate This Maze" documentary of the making of the bare album, including interviews with performers and producers, and footage from the studio recording sessions; footage from 2000 to present day, including interviews with creators, producers, and performers from the LA and NYC productions. A portion of the proceeds be donated to the Trevor Project. Available at barethealbum.com.

Brass Diva: The Life and Legends of Ethel Merman
(Univ. of California Press - Hardcover Book)
By Caryl Flinn. "Mining official and unofficial sources, including interviews with Merman's family and her personal scrapbooks .. unearths new details of Merman's life ..."

Dangerous Christmas of Red Riding Hood (or Oh Wolf, Poor Wolf)
(Jef Films - new on DVD)
Order at CD/DVD Universe
1965 ABC television special (presented by GE) with Cyril Ritchard as Lone T. Wolf, Liza Minnelli in the title role, Vic Damone as the Woodsman, Eric Burdon and The Animals as the Wolf Pack. Original score by Jule Styne and Bob Merrill. Script by Robert Emmett.

Kids' Musical Theatre Audition - Boys Edition
(Hal Leonard - Paperback Book with CD)
Songbook edited by Michael Dansicker includes "Button Up Your Overcoat," "Half the Battle," "High Hopes," "I've Got No Strings," "Join the Circus," "My Baby Just Cares for Me," "My Best Girl," "Proud of Your Boy," "Real Live Girl," "Who Do You Love I Hope."

Merry From Lena
(DRG Records - on CD)
Order at CD Universe
Reissue of Lena Horne holiday album, previously on United Artists. Jingle All the Way," "Christmas Song," "Winter Wonderland," "White Christmas," "Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow!," "Little Drummer Boy," "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer," "What Are You Doing New Year's Eve?," "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas," "Silent Night," "Santa Claus Is Coming to Town."

Thinking Shakespeare
(Spark - Paperback Book)
By Barry Edelstein. Practical advice about how to make Shakespeare's words feel spontaneous, passionate, and real. Based on Edelstein's twenty-year career directing Shakespeare's plays. Released April 2007.

Vernon and Irene Castle's Ragtime Revolution
(Univ Press of Kentucky - Hardcover Book)
The story of the most famous and influential dance team in the world. By Eve Golden.

October 23, 2007

Past Reviews Sound Advice Schedule of New & Upcoming CD, DVD & Book Releases

At Last
(Miranda Music - new on CD)
Marcus Simeone debut CD. Ballads, pop songs and American classics. Musical director Barry Levitt and his quartet. Live recording from The Encore.

Baby Loves Broadway
(Varese Sarabande/Fuel 2000 - on CD)
Order at CD Universe
Some tracks are instrumental and some are sung by (unknown) studio singers.

Back to Bacharach - Michael Ball
(Universal - new on CD)
UK release. "The Look of Love," "Make It Easy on Yourself," "Alfie," "Arthur`s Theme (The Best That You Can Do)," "One Less Bell to Answer," "(They Long to Be) Close to You," "Anyone Who Had a Heart," "This House Is Empty Now," "This Guy`s in Love with You," "You`ll Never Get to Heaven," "Reach Out for Me," "What The World Needs Now." Available for Order at Amazon UK and Dress Circle.

Broadway Gold
(Univ Classics/Decca Bwy - on CD)
Order at CD Universe
Compilation of newly remastered tracks from the label's cast albums: "The Song That Goes Like This," "Touch Me," "Mamma Mia!," "Defying Gravity," "Everything Old Is New Again," "High Flying, Adored," "Diamonds Are a Girl's Best Friend," "Adelaide's Lament," "Bali Ha'i," "Green Eggs and Ham." Eleventh track, demo recording of "The Lorax," is available with the album download only at iTunes [still looking for iTunes link].

Broadway's Greatest Gifts: Carols For a Cure Vol. 9
(new on 2 CDs)
Annual holiday CD with songs performed by Broadway/Off Broadway cast members. Benefits BC/EFA. Putnam County Spelling Bee "'Twas the Night Before the Spelling Bee," Altar Boyz "The Innkeeper's Lament," Avenue Q "At the North Pole Global Warming Surfin' Party," The Broadway Boys "Hark the Herald Angels Sing," Chicago Mozart's "Alleluia," A Chorus Line "Broadway Holiday," The Color Purple "Angels We have Heard on High," Curtains "Monotone Angel," Dr. Suess' The Grinch TBA, The Drowsy Chaperone "Drowsy on Christmas," Grease "Up on the Housetop"/"Jolly Old St. Nicholas," Hairspray "Christmas in Baltimore," Jersey Boys "Dominick the Donkey," Legally Blonde "Christmas Makes the Whole World Warmer," The Lion King "The First Noel," The Little Mermaid "Joy to the World," Les Miserables "12 Days of Christ-Miz," Mamma Mia "My Gift," Mary Poppins "Two English Carols," Monty Python's Spamalot "It was Simple Then," Naked Boys Singing "Coventry Carol, God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen," Phantom "Following a Star," Rent "Go Tell It on the Mountain," The Ritz TBA, Rosie's Broadway Kids "This Little Light of Mine," Spring Awakening "What Child is This?," Wicked "Jingle Bells," Wicked (1st National Tour) "Mary's Lullaby," Xanadu "Away in a Manger," Julia Murney & Max Von Essen "O Holy Night." Available now at BCEFA.org

Feeling Good/Lena In Hollywood
(DRG Records - on CD)
Order at CD Universe
Lena Horne twofer; albums previously on United Artists.

Frank London: A Night in the Old Marketplace
(Soundbrush - new on CD)
Frank London lyricist Glen Berger's twenty-one unique songs for Alexandra Aron's theatrical adaptation of the legendary 1907 Yiddish play by I.L. Peretz. Mixes Jewish music, jazz, classical, rock, and world beats with a dose of Kurt Weill and Tom Waits. Susan McKeown, Manu Narayan, Lorin Sklamberg, They Might Be Giants, Craig Wedren, Jane Kelly Williams and more. Released April, 2007. [see our review of the current Philadelphia production.]

Inside Inside
(Dutton - Hardcover Book)
By James Lipton. "Backstage" look at Inside the Actors Studio and the life of James Lipton.

Not Quite an Ingenue - Neva Small
(Original Cast Records - new on CD)
2007 album from Neva Small "A Cockeyed Optimist (South Pacific), "The Girl With Too Much Heart (The Prince of Grand Street), "Wait Till We're 65 (On A Clear Day You Can See Forever), "My Funny Valentine (Babes in Arms), "Short John (Doctor Blues), "Tea For Two (No, "No, "Nanette), "Half Of April, "Most Of May," "Riverboat Shuffle," "Portrait," "By The Lake In Central Park," "Job Application," "Peach Ice Cream (FJasmine Adams), "Fiddler On The Roof Medley," "Not Quite An Ingenue (duet with puppet), "In My Daughter's Eyes," "I Go On (Mass). Available at Footlight.com.

Philadelphia - The Musical
(new on CD)
2007 UK Studio Cast Recording of musical about a café in London. Score by Manchester based composer James Eccleshare. Sean Hargreaves, Vicki Forrester, Sophie Elliot, Daniel Whitehead, Nicole Thomason, Tom Kirk, Arran Kent, Craig Nixon, James Barber, Emily Cookson and Jonny Pryor. Available at Dress Circle.

Songs My Mother Taught Me
(First Night - new Import CD)
Import at CD Universe 
Lorna Luft album from her one woman show at the Savoy Theatre, London. "Lorna/Minstrel Girl," "I Feel A Song Comin' On," "Rock-A-Bye Your Baby (With A Dixie Melody)," "Mother Daughter Medley," "Chicago," "The Man That Got Away," "Come Rain Or Come Shine," "Born In A Trunk (medley)," "Shining Star/Over The Rainbow," "Carnegie Hall Overture," "Hello Bluebird." Also available at Amazon UK and Dress Circle (they also offer signed copies).

Soul
(DRG Records - new on CD)
Order at CD Universe
Lena Horne album which includes previously unreleased singles from United Artists.

October 16, 2007

Absolutely Fabulous: White Box DVD
(Warner - new on DVD)
Order at CD/DVD Universe
Last of the show to be released in the U.S. Includes 2004 Christmas Special with Nathan Lane, Miranda Richardson, Laurie Metcalf and Sir Terence Conran. Also, extras: ""How to Be Absolutely Fabulous" (28 minutes), "Ab Fab Moments" (78 minutes) and "French & Saunders: Modern Mother and Daughter" (8 minutes). Also included in Absolutely Fabulous - Absolutely Everything Complete Collection 9 disc set.

Asylum: The Strange Case of Mary Lincoln
(Original Cast Records - new on CD)
Original York Theatre Cast Recording starring Carolann Page, Bertilla Baker, Edwin Cahill, Ken Krugman, Joy Lynn Matthews and Daiel Spiotta. Carmel Owen score.

Betty Buckley 1967
(Playbill Records/Sony BMG Masterworks - new on CD)
Order at CD Universe 
Never before released recording made in Ft. Worth when the singer was 19 years old. Produced by Betty Lynn Buckley. Executive producers are Philip S. Birsh and Richard Jay-Alexander. "One Boy," ""C'est Magnifique," ""Quando Calienta El Sol" ("Love Me With All of Your Heart"), "They Can't Take That Away From Me," ""They Were You," ""Call Me," ""I Wanna Be Free," ""Where Is Love?," ""Who Can I Turn To?," ""My Funny Valentine," ""When I Fall in Love."

British Musicals of 1957 Highlights
(Must Close Saturday Records - new on CD)
Selections from the film version of The Good Companions, excerpts from the London cast Harmony Close, four songs by Joan Heal from Grab Me a Gondola cast album and selections from Free As Air by the Peter Knight Singers.

Broadway's Best At Pops
(WGHB - new on DVD)
Order at CD Universe
Compilation from PBS's long-running Evening At Pops with complete performances by Ethel Merman, Ray Bolger, Kristin Chenoweth, Pearl Baily, Bonnie and John Raitt, Bernadette Peters, Tommy Tune, Carol Channing, Gregory Hines, and others that weren't on the PBS broadcast, plus interviews with John Williams, Michael Feinstein, Barbara Cook, and more. 76 minutes.

Florence Foster Jenkins: A World of Her Own
(VAI - new on DVD)
Order at CD Universe
Documentary written, produced and narrated by Donald Collup of socialite-singer Florence Foster Jenkins, on whom the play Souvenir is based. Includes rare archival images (most of which haven't been seen for 60 years), reminiscences from people who knew her and interacted with her and audio interviews with Marge Champion, Alfred Hubay and Daniel Pinkham (who attended her infamous 1944 Carnegie Hall concert). Released August, 2007.

Free Again! - Megan Mullally & Supreme Music Program
(Hep-Ur-Sef, Inc. - new on CD)

"Up a Lazy River," "Down By the River," "St. James Infirmary," "Wind and Rain," "I Cannot Justify," "Shakedown on 9th St.," "Talk to Me," "Awaiting You," "For the Good Times," "You Took Advantage of Me," "Ave Maria." Band includes Greg Kuehn, Stuart Mathis, Joe Berardi, Doug Livingston, Piotr Jandula, Larry Williams and Nick Offerman. Available at CDBaby.com.

Free As Air
(Must Close Saturday Records - new on CD)
London cast recording. Julian Slade and Dorothy Reynolds score. Gillian Lewis, Patricia Bredin, Gerald Harper, John Trevor Tracks. Includes orchestral dance music from the show by Tommy Kinsman and His Band, and Slade's own piano selection. Sound restoration by Alan Bunting.

The Jazz Singer 80th Anniversary
(Warner - on 3 DVDs)
Order at CD/DVD Universe
1927 Al Jolson film. Restored and remastered from earliest surviving nitrate film elements and original Vitaphone sound-on-disc recordings. Extras: commentary by film historians Ron Hutchinson and Vince Giordano; collection of rare cartoons and shorts: "I Love to Sing-a" classic 1936 WB parody cartoon directed by Tex Avery, "Hollywood Handicap" classic M-G-M short with Al Jolson appearance, "A Day at Santa Anita" classic Technicolor Warner Bros. short with Al Jolson & Ruby Keeler cameo appearance, "Al Jolson in 'A Plantation Act' "1926 Vitaphone short made a year prior to The Jazz Singer, "An Intimate Dinner in Celebration of Warner Bros. Silver Jubilee" 1947 Lux Radio Theater Broadcast starring Al Jolson (audio only) Al Jolson Trailer Gallery; all-new feature-length documentary "The Dawn of Sound: How Movies Learned to Talk," two rarely-seen Technicolor excerpts from Gold Diggers of Broadway (1929 WB film, most of which is considered lost); studio shorts celebrating the early sound era: "Finding His Voice" (1929 Western Electric animated promotional short, produced by Max Fleischer), "The Voice That Thrilled The World" Warner Bros. short about sound, "Okay for Sound" 1946 WB short celebrating the 20th anniversary of Vitaphone, "When Talkies Were Young" 1955 WB short looking back at the early talkies, "The Voice from the Screen" 1926 WB 'demonstration' film explores the Vitaphone technology and, looks at the making of a Vitaphone short; over 3 1/2 hours worth of rare, historic Vitaphone comedy and music shorts; rarely seen behind-the-scenes; photo cards; lobby card reproductions; original release Souvenir Program book reproduction; booklet with vintage document reproductions and DVD features guide; reproduction of post-premiere telegram from Al Jolson to Jack L. Warner.

Julian Slade
(Must Close Saturday Records - new on CD)
Tracks from The Music of Julian Slade from early Julian Slade works, sung by Eleanor Drew, James Cairncross, Harry Dawson, John Neville and Jane Wenham; selections from the score for The Duenna; and the first issue of the Cambridge cast album of Lady May

Frank Sinatra: The Family Album
(Little, Brown and Company - Hardcover Book)
By Charles Pignone. Chronicles Sinatra's private life in color and black and white photos. Accompanied by unique firsthand recollections and stories from Nancy Sinatra and other family and close friends. Packaging is designed in the form of a family album. Well over 100 other images, many of them taken by Sinatra himself.

Jersey Boys: The Story of Frankie Valli & the Four Season
(Broadway - Hardcover Book)
By David Cote (Time Out New York). Full-color companion book to the Broadway musical. All-new interviews with the band members; the show's unabridged libretto; interviews with the show's cast, writers, and director; over 200 photos from the band members' personal collections and rarely seen memorabilia.

Raquel Welch Collection
(Fox - on 5 DVDs)
Order at CD Universe
Raquel Welch films: One Million Years B.C., Bandolero!, Myra Breckinridge, Mother, Jugs & Speed and Fathom. Extras.

Rob Roy The Musical
(new on CD)
Cast recording of show with book, music, and lyrics are by David Warrack that premiered at the 2006 Edinburgh Fringe Festival. George Masswohl, Susan Gilmour, David Dunbar. Available on CDBaby.com.

Show Business: The Road to Broadway
(Genius Productions - new on DVD)
Pre-order at CD/DVD Universe
2005 Documentary that follows several Broadway musicals (Taboo, Avenue Q, Caroline, or Change and Wicked) in the 2003-2004 season from initial rehearsals to the nerve wracking opening night.

The Sound of Music Companion
(Fireside - Hardcover Book)
By Laurence Maslon; Foreword by Andrew Lloyd Webber. Includes the entire libretto and 150 color photos and stills from the original film, the original Broadway and upcoming West End productions, and the now world-famous Sing-a-long-a Sound of Musics. Also, images from the U.K. reality TV series, How Do You Solve a Problem Like Maria, whose winner will be Maria in the first casting of the new London production. US release of 2006 UK publication.

October 9, 2007

American Movie Musicals Collection - Vol. 2
(MGM - on 3 DVDs)
Order at CD/DVD Universe
A Chorus Line, De-Lovely (Kevin Kline, Ashley Judd) and Hair (widescreen & full frame).

August Wilson Century Cycle
(Theatre Communications Group - Hardcover)
Series introduction by John Lahr; individual volumes introduced by Laurence Fishburne, Tony Kushner, Romulus Linney, Marion McClinton, Toni Morrison, Suzan-Lori Parks, Phylicia Rashad, Ishmael Reed, and Frank Rich.

Broadway Nights
(Alyson Books - Paperback Book)
Novel by Seth Rudetsky. "Welcome to life beneath the wicked stage! Stephen Sheerin was born to play on Broadway-or, at least, under it. He's a musician and conductor, and his dream is to music direct a big Broadway musical. After years of toiling in the pit of some of the most loved (and loathed) hits on the Great White Way, he's just been given his big break. Can life really be going that well? Of course not-his family is driving him crazy and his boyfriend can't seem to get rid of his other boyfriend. Then there's Stephen himself-neurotic and bitchy-who realizes that maybe total happiness is overrated."

Dreaming Wide Awake: The Music of Scott Alan
(new on CD-R)  
With Shoshana Bean, Stephanie J. Block, Liz Callaway, Danny Calvert, Eden Espinosa, Jonathan Groff, Jackie Hoffman, Cheyenne Jackson, Carly Jibson, Adriane Lenox, Shayna Steele, Josh Strickland, Tracie Thoms, Katie Thompson and Jill Zadeh. Expected to include "Never Neverland (Fly Away)," "Home," "Say Goodbye," "If I Own Today" and more. Arranged and musically directed by Jesse Vargas and produced by Scott Alan and Jesse Vargas. Recorded September 12th and 13th at Track 9 studios. Available at CDBaby.com and iTunes.

Superman on Film, Television, Radio and Broadway
(McFarland and Co. - Hardcover Book)
By Bruce Scivally. Complete history of Superman's appearances in film and television, from the 1941 introduction of the first Superman cartoon to the 2006 live-action film Superman Returns. Includes several rarely seen photos of the actors who have brought Superman to life for over seven decades. Multiple appendices of Superman-related books, websites, list of the cast and characters.

October 2, 2007

Across the Universe: Creating an Original Movie Musical
(Newmarket - Hardcover Book)
By Julie Taymor. Companion book for Taymor's newest film, a love story using Beatles songs as its score and inspiration. 140 color photographs.

The American Play
(Yale University Press - Hardcover Book)
By Marc Robinson.

Funny Face (50th Anniversary Edition)
(Paramount - on DVD)
Order at CD/DVD Universe
New transfer of 1957 film starring Audrey Hepburn and Fred Astaire. Extras: featurettes "The Fashion Designer and His Muse," "Parisian Dreams," "Paramount in the 50's; trailers and photo gallery.

Grease
(Sony Masterworks - new on CD)
Order at CD Universe 
2007 Broadway revival cast recording. Laura Osnes, Max Crumm, Ryan Patrick Binder, Susan Blommaert, Jeb Brown, Stephen R. Buntrock, Allison Fischer, Jenny Powers, Matthew Saldivar, Kirsten Wyatt. Track list: Prologue, "Grease," "Summer Nights," "Those Magic Changes," "Freddy, My Love," "Greased Lightnin'," "Rydell Fight Song," "Mooning," "Look At Me, I'm Sandra Dee," "We Go Together," "Shaking At the High School Hop," "It's Raining on Prom Night," "Born to Hand-Jive," "Hopelessly Devoted to You," "Beauty School Dropout," "Sandy," "Rock 'n' Roll Party Queen," "There Are Worse Things I Could Do," "Look At Me, I'm Sandra Dee" (reprise), "You're the One That I Want," "Bows."

Jonathan Livingston Seagull
(Paramount - new on DVD)
Order at CD Universe
1973 film based on the best-seller by Richard Bach. Features the voices of James Franciscus, Juliet Mills, Dorothy McGuire, Richard Crenna, and Hal Holbrook, with a score by Neil Diamond.

The Jungle Book 40th Anniversary Platinum Edition
(Buena Vista - on 2 DVDs)
Order at CD Universe
1967 animated film with Sherman Brothers score. Voices Sebastian Cabot, George Sanders, Phil Harris, Louis Prima. First time seen in original aspect ratio. Restored original theatrical soundtrack. All-new restoration with enhanced picture and sound. Extras include: 7 deleted songs; featurettes "Meet The Lost Character: Rocky Rhino" and "Disney's Kipling: Walt's Magic Touch on a Literary Classic"; making of music video - "All I Want To Be"; interactive features; text/photo galleries; DisneyPedia: JungleMania!

Paul Lynde Halloween Special
(Image Entertainment - new on DVD)
Order at CD Universe
1976 television special featuring Lynde and guests Donny and Marie Osmond, Tim Conway, KISS, Margaret Hamilton (in Oz costume) and Billy Barty. 50 minutes. Full frame.

Priscilla Queen of the Desert The Musical
(Universal - new on CD)
Featuring Tony Sheldon as Bernadette, Jeremy Stanford as Tick (Mitzi), Daniel Scott as Adam (Felicia), Michael Caton as Bob, Genevieve Lemon as Shirley, Marney McQueen as Marion and Lena Cruz as Cynthia. Available at Middle Eight Music.

The Rodgers and Hammerstein Musical Scene Study Guide
(Applause Books - Paperback Book)
Compiled and Edited by Tom Briggs. Scenes and songs from ten Rodgers & Hammerstein musicals: Carousel, Oklahoma!, The King and I, The Sound of Music, South Pacific, Allegro, Me and Juliet, Cinderella, Flower Drum Song, State Fair.

Serious Playground - The Songs of Laura Nyro
(Ghostlight Records/Razor & Tie - new on CD)
Order at CD Universe 
Judy Kuhn, based on her Lincoln Center American Songbook Series concert tribute to the pioneering singer-songwriter of the 1960s and 70s. "Blackpath," "Sweet Blindness," "Stoney End," "To A Child," "California Shoeshine Boys," "Stoned Soul Picnic," "Lonely Women," "Been On A Train," "Mother's Spiritual," "Luckie," "Captain St. Lucifer," "Upstairs By A Chinese Lamp," "Buy And Sell," "Save The Country." Produced by Music Director Jeffrey Klitz and Joel Moss, with Klitz leading an eight-piece band. Kurt Deutsch and Ms. Kuhn are executive producers.

September 25, 2007

All American
(Harbinger - new on CD)
Backers audition recording with Strouse and Adams telling the story and performing the songs. Includes cut songs "Animal Attraction," "Back to School Again," I've Never Seen Anything Like It," "I Can Teach Them," "Pripoz Diva Se" and song added after opening, "Which Way." Remastered with 16-page booklet, lots of rare B&W and color photos, and liner notes by David Schmittou. At Footlight.com.

As You Like It
(Warner - new on DVD)
Order at CD/DVD Universe
Kenneth Branagh's 2006 HBO adaptation of Shakespeare's play set in 19th century Japan. Bryce Dallas Howard, Kevin Kline, Alfred Molina, Brian Blessed, Jimmy Yuill, Adrian Lester.

Bernie Bierman: Discoveries
(Raydo Music - new on CD)
Joe Bachana, Marieanne Meringolo, Michelle Pirret, and Steve Ross perform some of the 99-year-old songwriter's songs from the musical worlds of blues, jazz, standard American pop, and cabaret. Available at CDBaby.com.

Inside The Actors Studio: Leading Men
(Sony - new on 3 DVDs)
Order at CD/DVD Universe
Interviews with four of Hollywood's most influential leading men: Robert DeNiro, Al Pacino, Sean Penn, and Russell Crowe: their entire interviews, including "Great Moments That Didn't Make The Cut" and new intros by host James Lipton.

Leanne Masterton - Before The Parade Passes By The Jerry Herman Songbook
(Dress Circle - new on CD)
Film and West End performer Leanne Masterton's tribute to Jerry Herman. "Almost Young" (Mrs Santa Claus), "Where In The World Is My Prince" (Miss Spectacular), "Before The Parade Passes By" (Hello Dolly), "It`s Today" (Mame), "Tomorrow Morning / I Was Beautiful" (Dear World), "I Won`t Send Roses" (Mack & Mabel), "Time Heals Everything" ( Mack & Mabel), "The Girls Who Sat & Wait" (Madam Aphrodite), "If He Walked Into My Life" (Mame), "Loving You" ( Mame The Film), "Hello Dolly" (Hello Dolly). Available at Dress Circle.

Lucy at the Movies: The Complete Films of Lucille Ball
(Running Press - Hardcover Book)
By Cindy De La Hoz. Behind-the-scenes stories, essential information, rare photos, from Ball's days as a showgirl through blonde, brunette, and "Tango Red" incarnations, from black-and-white through glorious Technicolor.

Mickey Rooney & Judy Garland Collection
(Warner - new on 5 DVDs)
Order at CD/DVD Universe
Four films (Babes In Arms, Babes On Broadway, Girl Crazy, Strike Up The Band) plus bonus disc of special features: private screenings with Mickey Rooney, an in-depth, deeply personal interview hosted by TCM's Robert Osborne; and The Judy Garland Songbook, an unprecedented collection of 21 Garland movie musical numbers, both famous and rare, with all songs presented in complete form; extensive Mickey Rooney/Judy Garland trailer gallery. Each film includes a newly-filmed, exclusive introduction by Mickey Rooney as well as vintage comedy shorts, cartoons and radio promos. Portfolio of 20 collectible rare behind-the-scenes photos and a collectible guide to the set, featuring vintage memorabilia, promotional advertisements, and other rarities, along with production notes written by noted film historian John Fricke. Fricke also provides commentary on two of the films.

Priscilla Queen of the Desert The Musical
(Universal - new on CD)
Featuring Tony Sheldon as Bernadette, Jeremy Stanford as Tick (Mitzi), Daniel Scott as Adam (Felicia), Michael Caton as Bob, Genevieve Lemon as Shirley, Marney McQueen as Marion and Lena Cruz as Cynthia. Available at Middle Eight Music.

Trav'lin' Light - Queen Latifah
(Verve - new on CD)
Order at CD Universe  
Mostly jazz and R&B influenced, with "I Know Where I've Been" from Hairspray.

West Side Story
(Decca Broadway - new on CD)
Order at CD Universe
U.S. release of UK studio recording featuring Vittorio Grigolo and Haley Westenra with Connie (Sound of Music)

September 18, 2007

Across the Universe
(Interscope Records - new on CD)
Order at CD Universe  
Soundtrack from the new motion picture directed by Julie Taymor, which features songs by The Beatles. "All My Loving" - Jim Sturgess, "I Want to Hold Your Hand" - TV Carpio, "It Won't Be Long" - Evan Rachel Wood, "I've Just Seen a Face" - Jim Sturgess, "Let It Be" - Carol Woods, Timothy T. Mitchum, "Come Together" - Joe Cocker, Martin Luther, "Something" - Jim Sturgess, "I Am the Walrus" - Bono, "Oh! Darling" - Dana Fuchs, Martin Luther, "Across the Universe" - performers not identified, "Helter Skelter" - Dana Fuchs, "Strawberry Fields Forever" - Jim Sturgess, Joe Anderson, "Happiness Is a Warm Gun" - Joe Anderson, "Blackbird" - Evan Rachel Wood, "Hey Jude" - Joe Anderson, "Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds (end title)" - Bono. Package art will incorporate stills from pivotal scenes from the movie and a 16-page folder foldout poster with a strawberry image.

Bernstein: West Side Story
(Universal Classics - CD/DVD (PAL))
Order at CD Universe
Import. In celebration of the 50th Anniversary of the premiere of West Side Story. Deluxe limited edition of Deutsche Grammophon 1984 recording of the musical under the baton of Bernstein himself, with Kiri Te Kanawa and Jose Carreras, together with the DVD (Pal) of "the Making of West Side Story". First time both these discs have been released as a set. See CDUniverse.com link for track list. U.S. release unknown.

British Pantomime Performance
(Intellect Ltd - Paperback Book)
Reevaluation of pantomime's importance as a dramatic art form.

Guys On Ice
(Original Cast - new on CD)
Original 1999 American Folklore Theatre cast recording from Wisconsin. Score by James Kaplan and Fred Alley. Fred Alley, Doug Mancheski and James Valcq. Available at Footlight.com.

The Leslie Bricusse Songbook
(Cherry Lane - Hardcover Book)
Souvenir collection of 66 tunes from the British composer for stage and film. Includes dozens of color and black and white photos, a biography, a foreword and autobiographical notes by Bricusse himself, and extensive notes about each of the shows. Includes PVG arrangements of: "Can You Read My Mind?," "The Candy Man," "Goldfinger," "Gonna Build a Mountain," "If I Ruled the World," "Le Jazz Hot," "Once in a Lifetime," "Pure Imagination," "A Shot in the Dark," "Somewhere in My Memory," "Talk to the Animals," "Thank You Very Much," "This Is the Moment," "What Kind of Fool Am I?," "When I Look in Your Eyes," "Who Can I Turn To (When Nobody Needs Me)?," "A Wonderful Day like Today," "You Only Live Twice" and more. Spiral-binding within a hardcover spine.

The North Arcade
(new on CD)
Original cast album of Robinski Jones (music) /Donna Rae Davidson (lyrics) musical inspired by Seattle's Pike Place Market. Available at CDBaby.com.

Pittsburgh
(Starz/Acorn - new on DVD)
Order at CD/DVD Universe
Jeff Goldblum's mockumentary/documentary on his performance as Harold Hill in Pittsburgh CLO's Music Man in 2004. Extras: deleted scenes.

Red Lips, The Musical
(Original Cast Records - new on CD)
2001 Canadian cast recording of Chris Wynters, Jeff Smook musical based on The Lady of Pleasure by James Shirley. Cathy Derkach, Chris Wynters, Sheldon Elter and Dana Wylie.. Available at Footlight.com.

Threepenny Opera
(Criterion Collection - new on 2 DVDs)
Order at CD/DVD Universe
1931 German film directed by G.W. Pabst, music by Kurt Weill, starring Lotte Lenya. German and French versions included. Extras: audio commentary by David Bathrick, Eric Rentschler; interview with Charles O'Brien; introduction by Fritz Rasp and Ernst Busch; short film "L'Opera de quat'sous"; new documentary on Threepenny's controversial journey from stage to screen; interview with Rasp; text/photo galleries; essays by Tony Rayns; production sketches. English subtitles. B&W, full frame.

September 11, 2007

An American Songbird in Paris - Jane Morgan
(Sepia Records - new on CD)
Order at CD Universe
Born in Boston enrolled at the Julliard School of Music in New York, it was in Paris where Jane Morgan's career took off. "C'est Tout " (with Bernard Hilda), "Jaurais Bien Donne Dix Ans De Ma Vie" (with Bernard Hilda), "April In Portugal," "If I Were A Bell" (Guys and Dolls), "Say You're Mine Again," "The Kissing Tree," "Eyes Of Blue" (Shane), "The Heart You Break," "Let's Go Steady," "It Might As Well Be Spring," "I'll Be Seeing You," "Better Luck Next Time," "J'Attendrai," "It's Easy To Remember," "Thanks For The Memory," "If I Loved You," "When The World Was Young," "A Woman Needs To Be Told," "I Can Dream, Can't I," "Insensiblement," "I Didn't Know What Time It Was," "Midnight Blues," "La Ronde," "Two Different Worlds" (With Roger Williams), "From The First Hello To The Last Goodbye," "Fascination."

Bobby Darin Sings Doctor Dolittle/Born Robert Walden Cassotto
(Edsel - new on CD)
Order at CD Universe
Remastered Darin albums. "Sings Doctor Dolittle: covers of all the Leslie Bricusse numbers from the motion picture; Darin's last album for Atlantic, originally issued in 1967 and produced by label founder Ahmet Ertegun. Track list: "At The Crossroads," "When I Look In Your Eyes," "I Think I Like You," "Where Are The Words," "Something In Your Smile," "Fabulous Places," "My Friend The Doctor," "Beautiful Things," "After Today," "Talk To The Animals," "She Knows." "Born Walden Robert Cassotto" was the first of his two folk-protest albums, recorded for his own label Direction in 1968. Packaging includes rare photos from the era.

The Color Purple: Piano/Vocal Selections
(Hal Leonard - Paperback Book)
Features 13 songs from the Oprah Winfrey-produced Broadway adaptation of the powerful Alice Walker novel.

Don't Touch That Dial
(Delta Music - new on CD)
Order at CD Universe
Import. 23 classic songs used in television commercials. "Cocktails For Two" - Spike Jones (Schweppes), "When You're Smiling (The Whole World Smiles With You)" - Frank Sinatra (Wrigleys), "Flower Duet (Va Vie…Scuoti Quella Fronda)" - Maria Callas (British Airways), "Good Morning" - Debbie Reynolds, Gene Kelly and Donald O'Conner with The MGM Orchestra conducted by Lennie Hayton (Dreams Superstore), "Falling In Love Again (In English)" - Marlene Dietrich (Marks And Spencer), "Banana Boat Song (Day-O)" - Harry Belafonte with Tony Scott and His Orchestra (Fruit'n'Fibre), "Papa Loves Mambo" - Perry Como (Nike), "On The Street Where You Live" - Vic Damone with Percy Faith and His Orchestra (Quality Street), "Kiss" - Dean Martin with Dick Stabile and His Orchestra (Sanex), "Mambo No.5" - Perez Prado (Felix), "Zip A Dee Doo Dah" - Johnny Mercer with Paul Weston and His Orchestra featuring The Pied Pipers (Homebase), "Tico Tico" - Andrews Sisters with Vic Shoen's Orchestra (Sainsbury's), "Get Happy" - Judy Garland (Homebase), "Stormy Weather" - Billie Holiday (Waitrose), "Mad About The Boy" - Dinah Washington (Levi's), "Boum!!" - Charles Trenet with Wal-berg's Orchestra (Axa PPP Healthcare), "It Takes Two To Tango" - Louis Armstrong (Social Care Careers), "Minnie The Moocher" - Cab Calloway and His Orchestra (Halifax), "Unforgettable" - Nat King Cole with Nelson Riddle and His Orchestra (Heineken), "Move It On Over" - Hank Williams and The Drifting Cowboys (Gap), "Memories Are Made Of This" - Dean Martin with Dick Stabile and His Orchestra and The Easy Riders (Kodak), "Let Me Call You Sweetheart" - Laurel & Hardy (Orange), "The Laughing Policeman" - Charles Penrose (Cuprinol).

Grab Me a Gondola (and Selections From Pal Joey and Wonderful Town)
(Sepia Records - new on CD)
Order at CD Universe
James Gilbert and Julian More's 1965 London Grab Me a Gondola was inspired by publicity hunting actress Diana Dors appearing in a mink bikini at the Venice Film Festival and being thrown into a canal. Score by Joan Heal, Denis Quilley, Jane Wenham, Joyce Blair, Una Stubbs. Plus songs from UK's 1954 Pal Joey with Carol Bruce, Jean Brampton and Sally Bazely; and 1955 Wonderful Town with Pat Kirkwood, Denis Bowen and Shani Wallis. Also included, two bonus pop recordings by Shani Wallis. "Grab Me A Gondola," "That's My Biography," "Plain In Love," "Motor Car Is Treacherous, The," "Cravin' For The Avon," "Bid Him A Fond Goodbye," "Star Quality," "Man, Not A Mouse," "Lonely In A Crowd," "Jimmy's Bar," "Chianti," "What Are The Facts?," "Rig O The Day," "When I Find That Girl," "Rockin' At The Cannon Ball," "Heart Of My Heart" (Shani Wallis), "Bell Bottom Blues" (Shani Wallis). In stereo.

The Graduate 40th Anniversary Collectors Edition
(Fox - on 2 DVDs)
Order at CD/DVD Universe
1967 film plus extras: audio commentaries by Dustin Hoffman, Katherine Ross, Mike Nichols, Steven Soderbergh; behind the scenes screen tests with video introductions; "Coming of Age: The Making of The Graduate" documentary; featurette "Would You Like Me to Seduce You?: The Seduction Scene Revisited"; interview "One on One with Dustin Hoffman"; trailers.

Introducing Roberta Sherwood
(Sepia Records - new on CD)
Prder at CD Universe
Roberta's first two albums: Introducing Roberta Sherwood and Show Stoppers plus three bonus tracks taken from her single releases. "I Got Lost In His Arms," "I Hadn't Anyone Til You," "I Miss You Most Of All," "Gee But I Hate To Go Home Alone," "In A Strange Pair Of Arms," "Cry Me A River," "Lazy River," "All Alone/Always," "Take Your Shoes Off Baby," "Glory Of Love, The," "I Used To Love You," "This Train," "You Don't Have To Be A Baby To Cry," "You're Nobody 'til Somebody Loves You," "Tears Don't Care Who Cries Them," "Under A Blanket Of Blue," "I Remember You," "Marianina," "A Woman Ages Quicker Than A Man," "I Cried For You," "I Know Now," "Autumn Leaves," "I'm Sorry I Made You Cry," "After You've Gone," "My Heart Is A Chapel," "Should I Try Again," "Mary Lou."

By Jupiter
(DRG/Koch - new on CD)
Order at CD Universe
1967 off-Broadway cast recording of Rodgers and Hart show, previously on LP only. Robert Kaye, Jacqueline Alloway, Emory Bass, Irene Byatt, Bob Dishy, Charles Rydell, Ronnie Cunningham, Norma Doggett, Rosemarie Heyer, Richard Marshall, Sheila Sullivan.

The Girl I Left Home For
(DRG - new on CD)
Order at CD Universe
1956 RCA Victor Gwen Verdon album.

Michael DiGioia: Another Look
(new on CD)
Singer-actor's debut album of show tunes and standards. "Let Me Sing And I'm Happy," "Once In A Lifetime," "East Of The Sun," "Movies Were Movies," "I Won't Send Roses," "Until The Real Thing Comes Along," "The Music Of The Night," "Sunday," "And The Money Kept Rolling In," "That Old Feeling," "If I Had You," "Use What You Got," "Mama A Rainbow," "The Sunshine Of Love," "What Would I Do," "This Is The Moment." Available at CDBaby.com.

The Mikado
(DRG - new on CD)
Order at CD Universe
1960 Columbia album from TV special. Groucho Marx, Stanley Holloway, Dennis King, Robert Rounseville, Helen Traubel.

Noel Coward Collection
(Warner - on 7 DVDs)
Order at CD/DVD Universe
The Vortex (1969, Margaret Leighton, Alan Melville, Patrick Barr, Jennifer Daniel), Hay Fever (1968, Celia Johnson, Jane Merrow, Dennis Price, Ian McKellen, Anna Massey, Private Lives (1976, Alec McCowen, Penelope Keith, Polly James, Donald Pickering), Design for Living (1979, Rula Lenska, Clive Arrindell, John Steiner, John Bluthal), Mrs. Capper's Birthday (1985, Avis Bunnage, Patricia Hayes, Hugh Laurie), What Mad Pursuit (1985, Carroll Baker, Neil Cunningham, Paul Daneman), Tonight at 8:30 (complete info unknown), Red Peppers (1991, Joan Collins, Anthony Newley), Present Laughter (1964, Peter Wyngarde, Ursula Howells, Joan Benham, Barbara Murray, James Bolam) Star Quality (1985, Sussanah York, Ian Richardson, Peter Chelsom), Me and the Girls (1985, Tom Courtenay, Robert Glenister, Nichola McAuliffe, Tessa Pritchard), Bon Voyage (1985, Michael Aldridge, Gay Baynes, Ed Devereaux, Nigel Havers), Mr. and Mrs. Edgehill (1985, Judi Dench, Ian Holm, Robert Blythe, Amanda Pays), Suite in Two Keys: A Song at Twilight (1982, Deborah Kerr, Bruce Lidington, Paul Scofield, June Tobin), Come into the Garden, Maude (1982, Paul Scofield, Bruce Lidington, Geraldine McEwan, Toby Robins). Extras: "Omnibus: Noel Coward," interview on his 70th birthday; "Noel Coward on Acting," 1969 Coward interview; "The Songwriters: Noel Coward," featuring performances of some of Coward's most popular songs; audio recording of Noel Coward's 1941 opening night speech for Blithe Spirit in Manchester; radio plays: Hay Fever, Private Lives, Post-Mortem, Design for Living, Blithe Spirit, South Sea Bubble.

Patti Page Sings You Go To My Head & Songs From Manhattan Tower
(Sepia Records - new on CD)
Order at CD Universe
For her 60th anniversary as an international recording star, remastered versions of her You Go To My Head and Manhattan Tower albums with bonus tracks. "While A Cigarette Was Burning," "You Go To My Head," "I Let A Song Go Out Of My Heart," "Deep In A Dream," "I Hadn't Anyone Till You," "Spring Is Here," "I Thought About You," "Darn That Dream," "I Didn't Know What Time It Was," "What's New," "I'll Never Smile Again," "You Walk By," "I've Got It Bad & That Ain't Good," "Don't Get Around Much Anymore," "Do Nothin Til You Hear From Me," "Under A Blanket Of Blue," "New York's My Home," "Once Upon A Dream," "Learnin' My Latin," "Happiness Cocktail," "March Marches On," "Never Leave Me," "Married I Can Always Get," "Repeat After Me," "Indian Giver," "This Close To The Dawn," "The Party."

September 4, 2007

30 Rock - The Complete First Season
(Universal Studios - new on 3 DVDs)
Order at CD Universe
2006-2007 season of half-hour TV show conceived and produced by Tina Fey. Cast includes Tina Fey, Alec Baldwin, Tracy Morgan, Jane Krakowski. Guests for this season include Elaine Stritch, Isabella Rossellini, Rip Torn, Brian Murray and Nathan Lane. Extras: commentaries by Tracy Morgan ("Tracy Does Conan"), Tina Fey ("Black Tie"), Lorne and Henry Michaels ("Hard Ball"), Jack McBrayer ("Fireworks"), Alec Baldwin ("Hiatus"); 10 minutes of deleted scenes; "The Wrap Party" (13-minute collection of scenes and bloopers shown at the show's wrap party); six "Evening with Kenneth" segments; three behind the scenes featurettes include a 31-second "Makin' it Happen" collection of three episodes from the micro-series that's mentioned on the series.

Be Yourself
(Kino - new on DVD)
Order at CD/DVD Universe
1930 Fanny Brice film. Includes songs "When a Woman Loves a Man" and "Cooking Breakfast for the One You Love." Black and white.

But the Giraffe, A Curtain Raiser and Brundibar, A Libretto
(Theatre Communications Group - Paperback Book)
Tony Kushner's new English libretto for Brundibar, produced Off-Broadway with design by Maurice Sendak, and Kushner's short play But the Giraffe.

Collected Translations and Adaptations of Thornton Wilder
(Theatre Communications Group - Hardcover Book)
Six adaptations and translations of plays by other authors - four of them previously unpublished. Included are Wilder's translations of Ibsen's A Doll's House, Sartre's The Victors, Lucrece by Andre Obey, The Bride of Torozko by Otto Indig, The Beaux' Stratagem by George Farquhar, and The Matchmaker by Johann Nestroy

Drunk Enough to Say I Love You?
(Theatre Communications Group - Paperback Book)
Play by Caryl Churchill (will have its U.S. debut at the Public Theatre this season).

Emily Saxe: Keeping You in Mind
(PS Classics - new on CD)
Order at CD Universe
Versatile new stylist capable of crossing over from jazz to alternative, folk to blues and country to pop, Saxe sets out to reinterpret the American Songbook through alluring arrangements that place familiar pieces in arresting new context —from Tom Waits to Cy Coleman, from Rodgers & Hart to Mary Chapin Carpenter to Burt Bacharach. Mixed by Grammy Award-winning engineer Jay Newland (Norah Jones's Come Away With Me). "Keeping You In Mind," "With Every Breath I Take," "Invitation To a Dance," "He Was Too Good To Me," "Last Day Of Summer," "Rainbow Sleeves," "Get Happy," "Walk On By," "Taking a Chance On Love," "Goodbye Again," "Azure," "You Wake Me Up."

Fiddler on the Roof - 2007 London Cast Recording
(new on CD)
2007 London cast. Henry Goodman, Beverley Klein, Frances Thorburn, Gareth Kennerley, Alexandra Silber, Julie Legrand, Vincent Pirillo, Damian Humbley. Signed copy also available at Dress Circle.

From Broadway to Cleveland: A History of the Hanna Theatre
(Kent State Univ. Press - Paperback Book)
By John Vacha.

Hats!
(Sibling Music - new on CD)
2006 Denver cast recording of the show "inspired by the experiences and philosophies of The Red Hat Society." Songs by Doug Besterman, Susan Birkenhead, Michel Brourman, Pat Bunch, Gretchen Cryer, Anthony Dodge, Marcia Milgrom Dodge, Beth Falcone, David Friedman, Kathie Lee Gifford, David Goldsmith, Carol Hall, Henry Krieger (Dreamgirls), Stephanie Lawrence, Melissa Manchester, Amanda McBroom, Pam Tillis and Sharon Vaughn. Cast: Leslie Alexander, Miche Braden, Joy Franz, Nora Mae Lyng, Pamela Myers, Teri Ralston and Cheryl Stern. Available at Footlight.com.

The Lottery Bride
(Kino - new on DVD)
Order at CD/DVD Universe
1930 Jeanette McDonald film with songs by Rudolf Friml and J. Kiren Brennan. Black and white.

Magic Tree House: The Musical
(PS Classics - new on CD)
Order at CD/DVD Universe
Studio cast album for musical based on best-selling series of children's books, Mary Pope Osborne's "Magic Tree House." Book and lyrics by Will Osborne; Randy Courts' music and lyrics. Stage production will premiere at the Warner Theatre in Torrington, CT, in September, with plans for a national tour in the fall of 2008. Cast: Cass Morgan, Donna Bullock, Howard Sherman Paul Wyatt and Katie Brunetto. Track list: "How Far Can You See?," "Banquet in Camelot," "Tick Tock," "Banquet in Camelot" (reprise), "The Curse," "Not the Man He Was," "Who Will Go?," "Four Gifts," "Fly!," "What's So Great About Magic?," "The Dance," "What Would I Do Without You?," "Remember and Imagine," "I Remember," "Banquet in Camelot" (reprise)/"Finale." Available now at PSClassics.com.

Marilyn Monroe Paper Dolls
(Paper Studio Press - Paperback)
Jenny Taliadoros and Marilyn Henry. All movie clothing book, with clothes from her early films including Ladies of the Chorus, All About Eve and Monkey Business to her starring roles in Some Like it Hot, Gentlemen Prefer Blondes, Seven Year Itch, How to Marry a Millionaire and many more. Includes star biography by David Wolfe. Two dolls and eight clothing pages.

A Place For Us - A Tribute To 50 Years Of West Side Story
(Sony Classical - on CD)
Order at CD Universe
Collection of West Side Story songs by various artists. "Maria" (Johnny Mathis), "Somewhere" (Dave Brubeck), "Tonight" (Andy Williams), "Something's Coming" (Brian Stokes Mitchell), "I Have A Love / One Hand, One Heart" (Barbra Streisand/Johnny Mathis), "I Feel Pretty" (Julie Andrews), "Gee, Officer Krupke" (Andre Previn), "America" (Canadian Brass), "One Hand, One Heart" (Neil Diamond), "I Have A Love" (Art Garfunkel), "Maria" (Joshua Bell), "Tonight" (Kristin Chenoweth/Hugh Panaro), "Cool" (Eldar).

Radio Golf
(Theatre Communications Group - Hardcover/Paperback Book)
August Wilson's final play, set in 1990 Pittsburgh.

The Seafarer
(Theatre Communications Group - Paperback Book)
Play by Conor McPherson.

Spring Awakening: A Play
(Faber & Faber - Paperback Book)
New translation of Frank Wedekind's play, by Jonathan Franzen. 112 pages.

August 28, 2007

Boston Pops Orchestra: Oscar & Tony
(Boston Symphony Orchestra Inc - new on CD)
Main Title (My Fair Lady), Overture (Lawrence of Arabia), "All That Jazz" (Chicago), Overture (Around the World in 80 Days), "Immolation" (Schindler's List), Main Theme, Fountain Theme and "Chez Maxim Waltz" (Gigi), Overture (The Producers), "My Heart Will Go On" (Titanic), Prelude (Ben-Hur), Overture (The Phantom of the Opera), "A Storm is Coming" (Return of The Lord of the Rings), "Chim-Chim-Cheree" (Mary Poppins), Overture (How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying), Main Title (The Sound of Music), "Love Theme" (Out of Africa), "42nd Street" (42nd Street). Available at CDBaby.com.

Eddie Cantor - Lost Performances Volume 1
(Original Cast - new on DVD)
Collection of lost Eddie Cantor performances. Available at Footlight.com.

Eddie Cantor - Lost Performances Volume 2
(Original Cast - new on DVD)
More Cantor performances. Available at Footlight.com.

A Jesuit Off-Broadway: Center Stage with Jesus, Judas, and Life's Big Questions
(Loyola Press - Hardcover Book)
By James Martin. Recounts Fr. Martin's six months with the LAByringth Theater Company, as it created and performed The Last Days of Judas Iscariot.

Marc Eliot - One of the Good Guys
(ETB Productions - new on CD)
"Starting Here, Starting Now / Come Back to Me / After Today," "You Raise Me Up," "Bicoastal / I Go to Rio," "Let Me Sing & I'm Happy," "One of the Good Guys (For Dad)," "Fabulous Places," "A Nightingale Sang in Berkeley Square," "I Could Have Been a Sailor," "New York Medley," "You and I," "Easy Come, Easy Go / How Sweet It Is," "Mama, A Rainbow / A Piece of Sky," "My Own Song." Available at CDBaby.com.

On Broadway! Theater Posters 2008 Calendar
(Pomegranate - Wall Calendar)
2008 wall calendar with art from classic plays that have graced the New York stage (Witness for the Prosecution, Auntie Mame, The Night of the Iguana, and many more). A dozen reproductions of posters from Library of Congress archives. Each is accompanied by notes, and trivia on Broadway people, places, and events appears throughout.

Ratatouille Songbook
(Hal Leonard - Paperback Book)
Piano solo arrangements of all 13 songs from Disney/Pixar's inspirational and heartwarming tale of French gourmand rat Remy.

Sessions
(Original Cast Records - new on CD)
2007 Original Off-Broadway cast recording of Albert Tapper show. Bertilla Baker, Amy Bodnar, Al Budonis, David Patrick Ford, Scott Richard Foster, Jim Madden, Kelli Maguire, Trisha Rapier, Matthew Shepard and Ed Reynolds Young. Available at Footlight.com.

The Winter's Tale Project
(Original Cast Records - new on CD)
Chris Wynters rock score for a new adaptation of The Winter's Tale. Jeremy Baumung, Christian Goutsis, Pamela Gordon, Christian Mena and Jocelyn Ahlf. Available at Footlight.com.

August 21, 2007

Beauty of the Father
(Dramatist's Play Service - Paperback Book)
Play by Nilo Cruz.

The Best Plays Theater Yearbook 2005-2006
(Limelight - Hardcover Book)
Jeffrey Eric Jenkins, Editor. Essays and reference on the 2005-2006 year in theatre; season reviewed by Jenkins and John Istel; Broadway, Off-Broadway, Off-Off-Broadway programs and statistics; casts and credits on new regional productions, photographs of the year's highlights. Grey Gardens, The History Boys, In the Continuum, The Intelligent Design of Jenny Chow, The Lieutenant of Inishmore, Rabbit Hole, Red Light Winter, Shining City, Stuff Happens, Third.

Broadway Pop/Rock Songbook
(Hal Leonard - Paperback Book)
Over 50 popular hits as performed on Broadway. "All Shook Up," "Almost Paradise," "Big Girls Don't Cry," "Blue Suede Shoes," "Born to Hand Jive," "Can You Feel the Love Tonight," "Circle of Life," "Dancing Queen," "Day by Day," "December 1963 (Oh, What a Night)," "Don't Cry Out Loud (We Don't Cry Out Loud)," "Dreamgirls," "Elaborate Lives," "Footloose," "Good Vibrations," "Greased Lightnin'," "Holding Out for a Hero," "Hound Dog," "How Deep Is Your Love," "I Can Hear the Bells," "I Don't Know How to Love Him," "I Go to Rio," "If I Can't Have You," "Jailhouse Rock," "Just the Way You Are," "Kiss the Girl," "Knowing Me, Knowing You," "The Last Night of the World," "Let's Hang On," "Let's Hear It for the Boy," "The Longest Time," "Mama, I'm a Big Girl Now," "Mamma Mia," "Movin' Out (Anthony's Song)," "On Broadway," "One Night Only," "One Song Glory," "Seasons of Love," "Son of Man," "Song of the King," "Stand by Me," "Stayin' Alive," "Strangers like Me," "Summer Nights," "Superstar," "Take a Chance on Me," "Uptown Girl," "We Go Together," "Working My Way Back to You," "Wouldn't It Be Nice," "Written in the Stars," "You'll Be in My Heart."

Doris Day Paper Dolls
(Paper Studio Press - Paperback)
David Wolfe and Jenny Taliadoros. 1952 paper doll reproduction has a travel-trunk design with a pretty photo of Doris on the cover. Inside pages reflect 1950s fashions including day dresses, evening gowns, sleepwear, coats and accessories (35 pieces in all). Two dolls and eight pages of clothes.

Grey Gardens: The Complete Book And Lyrics Of The Broadway Musical
(Applause Books - Paperback Book)
Doug Wright, Scott Frankel, Michael Korie musical.

Judy Garland Greatest Hits Live
(Savoy Jazz - new on CD)
Order at CD/DVD Universe
Tracks from Garland's TV series: Overture, "I Feel a Song Comin' On," "Just in Time," "Judy's Olio: You Made Me Love You/For Me and My Gal/The Trolley Song," "Smile," "Be a Clown," "The Boy Next Door," "Carolina in the Morning," "On the Atchison, Topeka, and the Santa Fe," "What'll I Do?," "Get Happy," "Swanee," "Happiness is a Thing Called Joe," "A Pretty Girl Milking Her Cow," "After You've Gone," "Judy at the Palace: Shine On, Harvest Moon/Some of These Days/My Man/I," "Don't Care," "Chicago," "The Man That Got Away," "Rock-a-Bye Your Baby with a Dixie Melody," "Liza," "I'm Nobody's Baby," "San Francisco," "A Couple of Swells," "Over the Rainbow."

Mark Mahar - Careless Moon
(new on CD)
Boston club singer with his own original songs, a collection of live concert cuts and bookended with great renditions of some familiar favorites. With his band Boston Swing (Mark Rasmussen, Trent Austin, Mike Lavoie & Steve Silverstein). Available at CDBaby.com.

Mirrors Remembered
(AuthorHouse - Paperback Book)
Play by Cary Wong. Commissioned by Manhattan Theatre Club and produced by New York Stage and Film in 1995. Released 7/07.

The Playbill Broadway Yearbook: June 1, 2006 - May 31, 2007, Third Annual Edition
(Playbill Books - Hardcover Book)
Robert Viagas, Editor. Third edition packed with photos and memorabilia from the 2006-2007 Broadway season. Chapters on all 67 Broadway shows that ran during the season, headshots of all the actors who appeared in Playbill, photos of producers, writers, designers, stage managers, stagehands, musicians - even ushers. Reports on inside information: opening-night gifts, who got the Gypsy Robe, daily rituals, celebrity visits, memorable ad-libs, and more. Correspondents range from dressers and stage doormen to stage managers, dancers, featured players, and even stars of the shows.

August 14, 2007

Anna Karenina: The Broadway Musical
(LML Music - new on CD)
Order at CD Universe
Studio recording of Dan Levine, Peter Kellogg score. Jayne Houdyshell, Michele McConnell, Duane McDevitt, Brian Charles Rooney, Tracy Schaal, Lee Zarrett, Marc Kudisch, Gregg Edelman, Jeff McCarthy, Kerry Butler, Ann Harvey, Brian D'Arcy James. With New orchestrations by the composer. Forty-eight-piece orchestra including strings from the New York Philharmonic. Was sold in Japan.

Another Fine Mess
(new on CD)
Order at CD Universe
Remastered albums of dialogue and music sequences from Laurel & Hardy films. "The Trail Of The Lonesome Pine," "Another Fine Mess," "Dance Of The Cuckoos (Theme)," "The Annual Convention," "Let Me Call You Sweetheart," "Hard Boiled Eggs & Nuts," "Fresh Fish," "Food For Thought," "The Card Salesman," "Victims Of The Depression," "What Flavours Have You?," "Furniture Payment," "There's A Dollar," "Where Were You Born?," "When The Cat's Away," "The New Recruits/The Cuckoo Song," "Shine On Harvest Moon," "Honolulu Baby," "The Cricket Song," "Way Down South/I Want To Be In Dixie," "We're Going Now," "Goodbye."

A Don't Hug Me Christmas Carol
(new on CD)
Cast album of musical comedy spoof of A Christmas Carol. Phil and Paul Olson (Don't Hug Me). Available at CDBaby.com.

Elvis: The Miniseries
(Anchor Bay - new on DVD)
Order at CD/DVD Universe
2005 TV mini-series with Jonathan Rhys-Meyers, Camryn Manheim, Rose McGowan, Danny Nelson, Jack Noseworthy, and Randy Quaid.

Everything's F**ked
(new on 2 CDs)
2007 Original Australian Cast recording. New Australian rock musical with music and lyrics by Sean Peter. Abbie Cardwell, Andre Eikmeier, Alexander Jenkins and Lisa Sontag. Available from Middle Eight Music.

William Shakespeare's Hamlet Special Edition
(Warner - new on 2 DVDs)
Order at CD/DVD Universe
1996 film with Kenneth Branagh, Kate Winslet, Derek Jacobi, Julie Christie, Robin Williams, Jack Lemmon, Billy Crystal and Charlton Heston. Extras: introduction by director/star Kenneth Branagh; commentary by Kenneth Branagh and Shakespeare scholar Russell Jackson; featurette "To Be on Camera: A History with Hamlet"; 1996 Cannes Film Festival promo; Shakespeare movies trailer gallery: 1996 Hamlet, 1953 Julius Caesar, 1965 Othello, 1995 Othello, 1937 Romeo and Juliet, 1935 A Midsummer Night's Dream, 1990 Hamlet.

Leslie Uggams - On My Way To You: Songs of Alan and Marilyn Bergman
(LML Music - new on CD)
Order at CD Universe
Re-released of 2003 Varese-Sarabande issue. "The Island," "Moonlight," "The Summer Knows," "Love Like Ours," "So Many Stars," "The Windmills of Your Mind," "On My Way to You," "What Are You Doing the Rest of Your Life?," "Summer Me, Winter Me," "Where Do You Start?," "How Do You Keep the Music Playing?," "You Must Believe in Spring."

A Midsummer Night's Dream
(Warner - on DVD)
Order at CD/DVD Universe
Director Max Reinhardt's 1935 film. James Cagney, Olivia de Havilland (screen debut), Dick Powell, Joe E. Brown, Mickey Rooney. Felix Mendelssohn score adapted by Erich Wolfgang Korngold. Fully restored back to its original "roadshow" length version (including overture and exit music), digitally remastered. Extras: commentary by film historian Scott MacQueen; Olivia de Havilland screen test; vintage featurette "A Dream Comes True"; gallery of 6 teaser trailers showcasing cast members; Warner Bros. "Studio Café" teaser trailer; musical short "Shake Mr. Shakespeare."

Othello
(Warner - on DVD)
Order at CD/DVD Universe
1965 film. Laurence Olivier, Maggie Smith, Joyce Redman, Frank Finlay. Extras: vintage featurette "Olivier Talks About Othello."

Romeo and Juliet
(Warner - on DVD)
Order at CD/DVD Universe
1936 George Cukor-directed film. Leslie Howard, Norma Shearer, Basil Rathbone, Andy Devine, Reginald Denny, C. Aubrey Smith, John Barrymore, Edna May Oliver, Ralph Forbes. Extras: vintage short "Master Will Shakespeare"; classic M-G-M cartoon "Little Cheeser."

Shakespeare Collection
(Warner - on 5 DVDs)
Order at CD/DVD Universe
Set of four remastered Shakespeare films: DVD debut of Kenneth's Branagh's Hamlet; Max Reinhardt's legendary production of A Midsummer Night's Dream, with virtually the entire Warner Bros. stable of stars circa 1935; Sir Laurence Olivier's Othello; and the lavish M-G-M version of Romeo and Juliet starring Leslie Howard and Norma Shearer. See individual listings for extras.

August 7, 2007

Actors at Work
(Faber & Faber - Paperback Book)
By Rosemarie Tichler, Barry Jay Kaplan. Foreword by Mike Nichols. Series of interviews with a dozen artists (including Philip Seymour Hoffman, Patti LuPone, Billy Crudup, and Alec Baldwin) looks at the way some of our most respected stage and film actors today approach their calling.

Blackbeard: A New Musical (2007 concept album)
(new on CD)
New musical by Rob Gardner (composer of The Price of Freedom and Twelve Princesses). Workshop cast. Available at CDBaby.com.

Careers in Technical Theater
(Allworth Press - Paperback Book)
By Mike Lawler. Explains more than twenty different careers from the perspective of successful theater artists - specialties that have been around for decades, as well as those still emerging in the field. Concise information is provided on job duties, estimated earnings, recommended training, examples of career paths, and the insights are given of working pros in management, scenery, audio/visual, costumes, video and projection, engineering, and theatrical systems. Appendix for on-the-job training as an intern, apprentice, or paid worker.

Elvis - The Hollywood Collection
(Warner - on 6 DVDs)
Order at CD/DVD Universe
Kissin' Cousins (1964), Girl Happy (1965), Tickle Me (1965), Live a Little, Love a Little (1968), Stay Away, Joe (1968), and Charro! (1969). Extras: two-disc Special Edition of the documentary Elvis: That's The Way It Is, and deluxe editions of the remastered Jailhouse Rock and Viva Las Vegas. Titles also available separately.

High School Musical 2: What Time Is It?
(Hal Leonard - Paperback Book)
Songbook for sequel. Ten songs include "All for One," "Bet on It," "Everyday," "Fabulous," "Gotta Go My Own Way," "Humu Humu Nuku Nuku Apuaa," "I Don't Dance," "What Time Is It," "Work This Out," "You Are the Music in Me."

The History Boys (Audiobook)
(BBC Audiobooks - new on 2 CDs)
Order at CD/DVD Universe
Alan Bennett's play, as heard on BBC Radio 3 with the National Theatre cast, including Richard Griffiths, Clive Merrison and Frances de la Tour.

I Could Have Sung All Night: My Story - Marni Nixon
(Billboard Books - Paperback Book)
Paperback version of Marni Nixon (Cabaret, My Fair Lady, Opal, Taking My Turn, and James Joyce's The Dead) autobiography co-authored by Stephen Cole. Behind-the-scenes celebrity stories from six decades of performing. Foreword by Marilyn Horne. [Our review of the hardcover edition here.]

Inside The Actors Studio: Barbra Streisand
(Sony - new on DVD)
Order at CD/DVD Universe
95 minutes.

Josh Powell: I've Got a Little Story
(new on CD)
California and New York performer. "If I Loved You," "They Call the Wind Mariah," "Harlekin's Aria," "Stars," "Billy Budd's Final Aria," "If I Can't Love Her," "Dandini's Aria," "The Highest Judge of All," "Where is the Life That Late I Led," "Onegin's Arioso," "Drawn to You/Simple," "Bob's Aria," "Being Alive," "One for My Baby." Available at CDBaby.com.

Just Before Sunrise - Nathan Gunn
(Sony Classical - new on CD)
Order at CD Universe
Opera baritone Gunn sings romantic songs. Includes a duet with Kristin Chenoweth on John Bucchino's "Feels Like Home." "Just Before Sunrise," "Briar And the Rose, The," "Polka Dots And Moonbeams," "In the Dark Pine-Wood," "It Feels Like Home," "Say Anything," "Time," "Dance Of Love, The," "And So It Goes," "Innocent When You Dream," "Secret Marriage, The," "When You Are Old And Gray," "Jam Tart," "Heart That Flutters, The," "I Have Loved Hours At Sea."

Lights! Camera! Elvis! Collection
(Paramount - on 8 DVDs)
Order at CD/DVD Universe
Blue Hawaii, Easy Come, Easy Go, Fun In Acapulco, G.I. Blues, Girls! Girls! Girls!, King Creole, Roustabout, And Paradise Hawaiian Style.

Melba Moore Live in Concert
(Soul Concerts - new on DVD)
Order at CD/DVD Universe
Tony Award-winning soul Melba Moore performs her hit songs in this live concert release, including "You Stepped Into My Life," "Falling," "A Little Bit More," and the classic "Lean on Me." Joining her onstage at New York City's Lincoln Center is a special guest, singer Freddie Jackson. May be backordered until 8/14/07.

Muppet Show - Season Two
(Disney - on 4 DVDs)
Order at CD/DVD Universe
1977-1978 season. Guests include Don Knotts , Zero Mostel, Milton Berle, Rich Little , Judy Collins, Nancy Walker, Edgar Bergen, Steve Martin, Madeline Kahn, George Burns , Dom DeLuise, Bernadette Peters, Rudolf Nureyev, Elton John, Lou Rawls, Cleo Laine, Julie Andrews, Jaye P. Morgan, Peter Sellers, Petula Clark, Bob Hope, Teresa Brewer, John Cleese, Cloris Leachman.

Roy Bailey: Christmas In New York (Swingin' Holiday Standards)
(new on CD)
Nightclub and theatre performer Roy Bailey (Walk Down My Street, Jesus Christ Superstar, The Me Nobody Knows and Mowgli). Co-produced with Howard Post who also appears on guitar. Includes original song "Christmas in New York." Available at CDBaby.com.

Singing in Musical Theater: The Training of Singers and Actors
(Allworth Press - Paperback Book)
By Joan Melton. Foreword by Angela Punch McGregor.

July 31, 2007

The BBC Acting Series: The Complete Set
(Working Arts Library - on 6 DVDs)
Each program is targeted toward a particular realm of acting, with an abundance of general wisdom offered in each, which easily applies to a diversity of acting challenges. All six titles in this stimulating landmark series: Michael Caine's Acting in Film; Simon Callow's Acting in Restoration Comedy; Janet Suzman's Acting in Shakespearean Comedy; Brian Cox's Acting in Tragedy; Jonathan Miller's Acting in Opera; and Maria Aitken's Acting in High Comedy. 6 hours total running time.

The Betty Hutton Show Volume 1
(Alpha Video - new on DVD)
Order at CD/DVD Universe
Four episodes of Hutton's 1959 sitcom series in which she plays a manicurist who inherits a fortune and three kids. With Gigi Perreau, Dennis Olivieri, Peter Miles & Tom Conway. Directed by Robert Sidney. 1 hour 42 minutes.

The Easy Show Tunes Fake Book: 100 Songs in the Key of C
(Hal Leonard - Paperback Book)
Songbook includes 100 songs: "All at Once You Love Her," "And All That Jazz," "Another Suitcase in Another Hall," "As If We Never Said Goodbye," "Baubles, Bangles and Beads," "The Best Things in Life Are Free," "Big D," "Big Spender," "A Bushel and a Peck," "Button up Your Overcoat," "Castle on a Cloud," "Chim Chim Cher-ee," "Close As Pages in a Book," "Dancing on the Ceiling," "Do I Hear a Waltz?," "Don't Cry Out Loud (We Don't Cry Out Loud)," "Everybody's Got a Home but Me," "Fiddler on the Roof," "Find Your Grail," "From This Moment On," "The Girl That I Marry," "Glad to Be Unhappy," "Gonna Build a Mountain," "Have You Met Miss Jones?," "Hey, Look Me Over," "I Believe My Heart," "I Cain't Say No," "I Don't Know How to Love Him," "I Go to Rio," "I Love Paris," "I Will Never Leave You," "I'll Never Fall in Love Again," "I'm Gonna Wash That Man Right Outa My Hair," "I've Got Your Number," "If I Were a Bell," "If I Were a Rich Man," "If My Friends Could See Me Now," "It Don't Mean a Thing (If It Ain't Got That Swing)," "It Only Takes a Moment," "It's a Grand Night for Singing," "It's a Lovely Day Today," "It's All Right with Me," "It's De-Lovely," "Joey, Joey, Joey," "Lida Rose," "A Little Fall of Rain," "Little Girl Blue," "Look for the Silver Lining," "Lost in the Stars," "Love Changes Everything," "Love, Look Away," "Make Believe," "Mama, I'm a Big Girl Now," "Mamma Mia," "Master of the House," "More I Cannot Wish You," "The Most Beautiful Girl in the World," "My Darling, My Darling," "My Ship," "Ol' Man River," "On My Own," "Once in a Lifetime," "Once in Love with Amy," "The Other Side of the Tracks," "The Party's Over," "The Phantom of the Opera," "Popular," "A Pretty Girl Is like a Melody," "Put on a Happy Face," "Real Live Girl," "Shall We Dance?," "She Loves Me," "A Sleepin' Bee," "Small World," "So in Love," "Someone Nice like You," "Something Wonderful," "The Song Is You," "Speak Low," "Standing on the Corner," "Stranger in Paradise," "Sunrise, Sunset," "The Sweetest Sounds," "Tell Me on a Sunday," "Thank Heaven for Little Girls," "This Nearly Was Mine," "'Til Tomorrow," "Tomorrow," "Too Close for Comfort," "Wait Till You See Her," "What'll I Do?," "When I'm Not Near the Girl I Love," "Who?," "Why Do I Love You?," "Willkommen," "With One Look," "A Wonderful Day like Today," "Written in the Stars," "You Are Beautiful," "You're the Cream in My Coffee."

England, My England
(Kultur Video - new on DVD)
1995 bio-pic featuring Michael Ball as classical composer Henry Purcell; with Simon Callow, Rebecca Front, Lucy Speed, Letitia Dean, and Colin Redgrave. Directed by Tony Palmer. (There are two different covers shown online.

The Film Noir Classics Collection Volume 4
(Warner - on 5 DVDs)
Order at CD/DVD Universe
Ten classic noir films: Crime Wave (1954, Sterling Hayden, Gene Nelson, Phyllis Kirk, Ted de Corsia, Charles Bronson), Decoy (1946, Jean Gillie, Edward Norris, Robert Armstrong, Herbert Rudley, Sheldon Leonard); Illegal (1956, Edward G. Robinson, Nina Foch, Hugh Marlowe, Robert Ellenstein, DeForest Kelley, The Big Steal (1949 Robert Mitchum, Jane Greer, William Bendix, Patric Knowles, Ramon Novarro); They Live By Night (1949, Cathy O'Donnell, Farley Granger, Howard Da Silva, Jay C. Flippen, Helen Craig), Side Street (1950, Farley Granger, Cathy O'Donnell, James Craig, Paul Kelly, Jean Hagen), Act of Violence (1948, Van Heflin, Robert Ryan, Janet Leigh, Mary Astor, Phyllis Thaxter), Mystery Street (1950, Ricardo Montalban, Sally Forrest, Bruce Bennett, Elsa Lanchester, Marshall Thompson), Where Danger Lives (1950, Robert Mitchum, Faith Domergue, Claude Rains, Maureen O'Sullivan, Charles Kemper), Tension (1950, Richard Basehart, Audrey Totter, Cyd Charisse, Barry Sullivan, Lloyd Gough). Also available in twofers.

Five Course Love
(Dramatist's Play Service - Paperback Book)
Libretto for Greg Coffin musical, which played in 2005 at Minetta Lane Theatre.

Gay Friendly 2
(Bill Solly Music - new on CD)
Sequel to Gay Friendly by Bill Solly. Available at CDBaby.com.

The House That George Built: With a Little Help from Irving, Cole, and a Crew of about Fifty
(Random House - Hardcover Book)
Wilfrid Sheed's celebration of America's most prominent and dazzling songwriters during the Golden Age of popular music. Each story is told from a personal viewpoint, producing an in-depth look. Published July 2007.

Journeys in the Night: Creating a New American Theatre with Circle in the Square
(Applause Books - Hardcover Book/DVD)
Theodore Mann's account of his own and Circle on the Square's history. Includes includes a DVD of the 1977 CBS-TV Camera Three program "Twenty Five Years of Circle in the Square," featuring Dustin Hoffman, George C. Scott, Vanessa Redgrave, Colleen Dewhurst, James Earl Jones, and Mann.

Taking a Chance on Love: Milla Ilieva Live on Valentine's Day
(Kritzerland Records - new on CD)
Live recording of Milla Ilieva cabaret show. "What A Night This Is Going To Be/Night Of Nights," "A Cockeyed Optimist," "When Does The Ravishing Begin," "Where's That Rainbow," "I Found Him/I Could Have Danced All Night," " Do What You Do/Do It Again," "Tess's Torch Song," "Time Heals Everything," "Sara Lee," "Everybody's Girl," "The Only Game In Town," "I'd Rather Wake Up By Myself," "Taking A Chance On Love," "and Half A Moment. Also available at Kritzerland.com and CDBaby.com.

West Side Story
(UCJ - new on CD)
Featuring Vittorio Grigolo and Haley Westenra with Connie (Sound of Music) Fisher. U.S. release is September 25. Available at Amazon UK and pre-ordering as an import at Amazon.com and CDUniverse.

July 24, 2007

Classic Musicals from the Dream Factory Vol. 2
(Warner - 5 DVDs)
Order at CD/DVD Universe
Seven newly remastered MGM musicals: The Pirate, That's Dancing, Words and Music, That Midnight Kiss, The Toast of New Orleans, Royal Wedding and The Belle of New York. See individual listings for extras.

Hairspray: The Movie Musical
(Insight Editions - Hardcover Book)
By Diana Landau. Companion book for the new musical film. Features about the cast, locations, sets, and costumes; profiles of the actors (including John Travolta, Queen Latifah, Michelle Pfeiffer, Christopher Walken, Nikki Blonsky, Zac Efron). More than 200 production photographs and first-person contributions by Waters, director Adam Shankman, and producers Craig Zadan and Neil Meron. Film poster and postcards; booklets that highlight various behind-the-scenes production details; Character profiles including a tip-in "45 RPM single"; key facts and Hairspray trivia printed on the facsimile record's sleeve. Released 7/2/2007.

Hairspray: The Movie Photobook
(Price Stern - Paperback Book)
Scrapbook with a two-sided poster from the movie. Fans can learn to shake it with Tracy and get the skinny on their favorite stars—like High School Musical heartthrob Zac Efron, Nickelodeon's Amanda Bynes, and newcomer Nikki Blonsky as Tracy Turnblad. Movie quotes, fun facts, and full-color photos from the movie on every page. 48 pages. Released June 2007.

Hairspray: The Novel
(Price Stern Sloan - Paperback Book)
Novelization of the musical film by Tracey West. Released June 2007.

Henrik Ibsen Collection
(Warner - on 6 DVDs)
Order at CD/DVD Universe
Ten BBC productions of Ibsen's most famous plays, including Ingrid Bergman and Michael Redgrave in Hedda Gabler, Judi Dench and Michael Gambon in Ghosts, Anthony Hopkins and Diana Rigg in Little Eyolf, Denholm Elliot in The Wild Duck, Sir Donald Wolfitt and Leo McKern respectively in two extraordinary productions of The Master Builder, Extras: radio plays: The Pretenders (2004) and Peer Gynt (1986); Emperor and Galilean (1990); The Pillars of Society (1989); Rosmersholm (1990); A Meeting in Rome (1991); John Gabriel Borkman (1974); When We Dead Awaken (1991); documentary "Henrik Ibsen: Certainties and Doubts," 1979.

High School Musical 2: What Time Is It?
(Disney - new on CD)
Order at CD Universe
Soundtrack for The High School Musical sequel, which premieres on the Disney Channel on August 17.

Longing For a Place Already Gone
(The LAB Records LLC - new on CD)
Laura Bell Bundy (Legally Blonde) solo album of indie country music. "Fool Moon," "Texas," "Between Me and You," "Just Me," "Fallin'," "Designated Drunk," "Lovin' and Lyin'," "I'll Make The Money," "The C Word," "Long Blonde Hair," "Good Genes," "Bad Boys," "Just Pretend That You Love Me," "Dancing With Myself," and two bonus tracks. Available at LABRecordsMusic.com.

Let's Put on a Musical: How to Choose the Right Show for Your Theater, Revised & Expanded Edition
(Back Stage Books - Paperback Book)
Updated edition of Peter Filichia's popular book.

The Pirate
(Warner - new on DVD)
Order at CD/DVD Universe
1948 musical film with Judy Garland, Gene Kelly. Directed by Vincente Minnelli. Extras: commentary by historian John Fricke; new featurette "The Pirate: A Musical Treasure Chest"; Oscar®-nominated Pete Smith Specialty 1948 MGM comedy short "You Can't Win"; 1947 MGM classic cartoon "Cat Fishin'"; Mack the Black stereo remix version; audio-outtakes: "Love of My Life" and "Mack the Black"; Roger Edens' guide tracks of "Be a Clown," "Manuela," "Nina," "Voodoo" and "You Can Do No Wrong"; promotional radio interviews with Gene Kelly for On the Town and Judy Garland for The Pirate

Roberta Duchak: Intersections
(new on CD)
Broadway songs with jazz arranegments. Roberta Duchak (Ragtime; Spelling Bee tour). Produced by Phil Swann. "Let Me Sing," "Takin' A Chance On Love," "Seasons Of Love," "Whoever You Are I Love You," "Raise The Roof," "Nothing Is Too Wonderful," "Almost Like Being In Love," "So In Love," "Cant Help Lovin' That Man," "What You Don't Know About Women," "So Many People." Available at CDBaby.com.

Royal Wedding and The Belle of New York
(Warner - on 2 DVDs)
Order at CD/DVD Universe
Two Fred Astaire musical films. Extras for Royal Wedding: "Private Screenings with Stanley Donen" [2006 TCM special]; new featurette "Royal Wedding: June, Judy and Jane"; MGM cartoons "Car of Tomorrow" and "Droopy's Double Trouble"; "Ev'ry Night at Seven" outtake with Peter Lawford and Jane Powell; MGM Promotional Radio Interview with Fred Astaire and Jane Powell (audio only). Extras for The Belle of New York: 1952 MGM Pete Smith short "Musiquiz"; 1952 MGM Tex Avery cartoon "Magical Maestro"; unused alternate take of "I Wanna Be a Dancin' Man."

Spring Awakening
(Theatre Communications Group - Paperback Book)
Musical libretto. Steven Sater, Duncan Sheik.

That Midnight Kiss and The Toast of New Orleans
(Warner - on 2 DVDs)
Order at CD/DVD Universe
Two Maria Lanza/Katherine Grayson musical films. Extras for That Midnight Kiss: Pete Smith Specialty 1949 MGM comedy short "Sports Oddities"; 1949 MGM classic cartoon "Senor Droopy"; "One Love of Mine" outtake sequence with Lanza and Grayson. Extras for The Toast of New Orleans: 2006 BBC documentary Mario "Lanza: Singing to the Gods"; vintage Fitzpatrick Traveltalk 1940 MGM shorts "MOrdern New Orleans" and "Old New Orleans."

That's Dancing!
(Warner - new on DVD)
Order at CD/DVD Universe
Cinema anthology of eight decades of dance with Gene Kelly, Baryshnikov, Fred and Ginger, Shirley Temple, Bojangles, Busby Berkeley spectaculars, Michael Jackson music videos. Written, produced, and directed by Jack Haley Jr., Kelly hosts with co-hosts Ray Bolger, Sammy Davis Jr., Mikhail Baryshnikov and Liza Minnelli. Clips from M-G-M musicals and landmark moments of dance on film from virtually every studio in the industry. Extras: introduction by Gene Kelly and Jack Haley, Jr.; "Invitation to Dance"; "The Search"; "The Cameras Roll"; "The Gathering."

Words and Music
(Warner - new on DVD)
Order at CD/DVD Universe
1948 musical film with Mickey (as Lorenz Hart), Tom Drake (as Richard Rodgers), Judy Garland, Lena Horne, Gene Kelly, Vera-Ellen. 22 songs/specialties and many major stars are featured. Extras: commentary by historian Richard Barrios; new featurette "A Life in Words and Music"; OscarÒ-nominated "Theatre of Life"; 1948 MGM short "Going to Blazes!"; 1948 MGM classic cartoon "The Cat That Hated People"; "Lover and You're Nearer" Outtakes featuring Perry Como. Audio-only bonuses: outtakes of "Falling in Love with Love," " I Feel at Home with You," "Manhattan" (alternate version), "My Funny Valentine," "My Heart Stood Still," "On Your Toes" (alternate version) and "Way Out West on West End Avenue."

July 17, 2007

AniMelodies: Birds on Broadway
(new on CD)
"The Avian Chorale performs whimsical renditions of your favorite show tunes accompanied by the professional orchestrations of the FowlHarmonic Orchestra." Available at CDBaby.com.

The Beautiful Game - Original London Cast (Remastered)
(on CD)
Remastered 2002 London cast recording with David Shannon, Hannah Waddington And Josie Walker. Andrew Lloyd Webber and Ben Elton score. Available at DressCircle.co.uk.

Legally Blonde
(Sh-K-Boom/Ghostlight - new on CD)
Order at CD Universe
2007 Broadway cast recording. Laurence O'Keefe and Nell Benjamin score. Laura Bell Bundy, Christian Borle, Orfeh, Richard H. Blake, Kate Shindle, Nikki Snelson, Michael Rupert. Track list: "Omigod, You Guys," "Serious," "What You Want," "The Harvard Variations," "Blood in the Water," "Positive," "Ireland," "Ireland (reprise)," "Serious (reprise)," "Chip on My Shoulder," "So Much Better," "Whipped into Shape," "Take It Like a Man," "Bend and Snap," "There! Right There!," "Legally Blonde," "Legally Blonde Remix," "Find My Way/Finale."

The Legend of Sleepy Hollow
(new on 2 CDs)
New recording of Robert Stempin/James Crowley musical. New York cast. Available at www.sleepyhollowthemusical.com.

Mary Poppins Vocal Selections
(Hal Leonard - Paperback Book)
To feature songs from the Broadway version of the stage musical by Richard M. Sherman, Robert B. Sherman, George Stiles, Anthony Drewe.

Song And Dance - 1984 London Cast Recording
(new on 2 CDs)
Andrew Lloyd Webber and Don Black score. 1984 London cast, starring Sarah Brightman and Wayne Sleep. First time on CD. Available for at DressCircle.co.uk.

Starlight Express - London Cast (Remastered)
(on CD)
Remastered 1992 London cast recording of Andrew Lloyd Webber/Richard Stilgoe score with new songs. Overture, "Entry Of National Trains," "Rolling Stock," "He'll Whistle At Me," "Freight," "AC/DC," "Pumping Iron," "Coda Of Freight," "Crazy," "Make Up My Heart," "Race One," "Poppa's Blues," "Race Two," "Starlight Express," "The Rap," "U.N.C.O.U.P.L.E.D.," "Race Three," "Right Place, Right Time," "Starlight Sequence," "Race Four," "Next Time You Fall In Love," "One Rock 'N' Roll Too Many," "Light At The End Of The Tunnel," "Starlight Express Megamix." Available for at Dresscircle.co.uk.

Sunset Boulevard - Original London Cast (Remastered)
(on 2 CDs)
Original London cast recording, remastered, with Patti Lupone and Kevin Anderson. Lloyd Webber, Don Black and Christopher Hampton score. Disc one: "The House On Sunset (Prologue)," "Let`s Have Lunch," "Sheldrake`s Office," "On The Road," "Surrender," "With One Look," "Salome," "The Greatest Star Of All," "Let`s Have Lunch (Reprise)/Girl Meets Boy," "The House On Sunset," "New Ways To Dream," "The Lady`s Paying," "The House On Sunset," "The Perfect Year," "Dialogue After The Perfect Year," "Artie Green`s Apartment," "This Time Next Year," "The House On Sunset." Disc two: Sunset Boulevard," "The Perfect Year (Reprise)," "Journey To Paramount," "As If We Never Said Goodbye," "Surrender (Reprise)," "Girl Meets Boy (Reprise)," "Eternal Youth Is Worth A Little Suffering," "Too Much In Love To Care," "New Ways To Dream (Reprise)," "Sunset Boulevard (Reprise)," "The Greatest Star Of All (Reprise)." Available for at DressCircle.co.uk.

The Voodoo That They Did So Well: The Wizards Who Invented the New York Stage
(Ivan R. Dee - Hardcover Book)
Writer Stefan Kanfer "writes about Irving Berlin, George and Ira Gershwin, Cole Porter, Richard Rodgers, and Stephen Sondheim, and considers the shining stars of New York's vibrant Yiddish theater, the colorful personalities who starred in two-a-day vaudeville, and the astonishing life of Lorenzo Da Ponte."

Transmitter Man - A Rock Radio Play
(new on CD)
Concept album with score by George Griggs (lead singer/songwriter for "Shobiz"). Available at Footlight.com.

Frankie and Annette Collection
(Fox - on 4 Dual Sided DVDs)
Order at CD/DVD Universe
1960s films featuring Annette Funicello and/or Frankie Avalon. Co-stars include Beverly Adams, Morey Amsterdam, John Ashley, Warren Berlinger, James Brown, Yvonne Craig, Robert Cummings, Brian Donlevy, Fabian, Leslie Gore, Buddy Hackett, Dwayne Hickman, Martha Hyer, Harvey Lembeck, Robert Q. Lewis, Dorothy Malone, Diane McBain, Jan Murray, Luciana Paluzzi, Don Rickles, Deborah Walley, Keenan Wynn, Chill Wills. Disc 1/Side A: Beach Blanket Bingo, Disc 1/Side B: How To Stuff A Wild Bikini, Disc 2/Side A: Beach Party, Disc 2/Side B: Bikini Beach, Disc 3/Side A: Fireball 500, Disc 3/Side B: Thunder Alley, Disc 4/Side A: Muscle Beach Alley, Disc 4/Side B: Ski Party. Also available individually.

July 10, 2007

Grey Gardens Songbook
(Hal Leonard - Paperback Book)
A dozen songs and artwork from the Broadway musical with Scott Frankel/Michael Korie score. Includes: "Another Winter in a Summer Town," "Around the World," "The Cake I Had," "Choose to Be Happy," "Daddy's Girl," "Drift Away," "Entering Grey Gardens," "The Girl Who Has Everything," "Jerry Likes My Corn," "Peas in a Pod," "The Revolutionary Costume For Today," "Will You?"

Hairspray - Soundtrack
(New Line Records - new on Enhanced CD)
Order at CD/DVD Universe
Soundtrack for 2007 film based on the musical. "Good Morning Baltimore" (Nikki Blonsky), "The Nicest Kids In Town" (James Marsden), "It Takes Two" (Zac Efron), "(The Legend Of) Miss Baltimore Crabs" (Michelle Pfeiffer), "I Can Hear The Bells" (Nikki Blonsky), "Ladies' Choice" (Zac Efron), "The New Girl In Town" (Brittany Snow), "Welcome To The 60's" (Nikki Blonsky & John Travolta), "Run And Tell That" (Elijah Kelley), "Big, Blonde & Beautiful" (Queen Latifah), "Big, Blonde & Beautiful Reprise" (John Travolta & Michelle Pfeiffer), "(You're) Timeless To Me" (John Travolta & Christopher Walken), "I Know Where I've Been" (Queen Latifah), "Without Love" (Zac Efron, Nikki Blonsky, Elijah Kelley & Amanda Bynes), "(It's) Hairspray" (James Marsden), "You Can't Stop The Beat" (Nikki Blonsky, Zac Efron, Amanda Bynes,), "Come So Far (Got So Far To Go)" (Queen Latifah, Nikki Blonsky, Zac), "Cooties" (Aimee Allen).

The Joan Collins Superstar Collection
(Fox - on 5 DVDs)
Order at CD/DVD Universe
The Girl In The Red Velvet Swing with Ray Milland, Farley Granger, Luther Adler, Cornelia Otis Skinner, Glenda Farrell; The Sea Wife, with Richard Burton, Basil Sydney, Cy Grant, Ronald Squire, Joan Hickson; Stopover Tokyo, with Robert Wagner, Edmond O'Brien, Ken Scott, Reiko Oyama; Rally 'Round The Flag, Boys!, with Paul Newman, Joanne Woodward, Jack Carson, Tuesday Weld, Dwayne Hickman, Gale Gordon; Seven Thieves, with Edward G. Robinson, Rod Steiger, Eli Wallach. Also available individually. Some extras.

The Swan Down Gloves - The Royal Shakespeare Company in Panto
(JAY Records - digital download)

Original 1981 London Cast recording starring Judy Buxton, Michael Fitzgerald, Jonathan Hyde, Bille Brown, Terry Wood, Julia Tobin and Allan Henrick. Nigel Hess, Bille Brown score. CD-R version is pre-ordering at Footlight.com.

Wrecks: And Other Plays
(Faber & Faber - Paperback Book)
Includes Neil LaBute's Wrecks, his rarely staged short plays Liars' Club and Coax, and the never-before-seen Falling in Like.

July 3, 2007

Broadway Babylon: Glamour, Glitz and Gossip on the Great White Way
(Back Stage Books - Paperback Book)
By Boze Hadleigh.

Evening - Music From and Inspired by the Motion Picture
(Verve - new on CD)
Order at CD/DVD Universe
Soundtrack music by Jan A.P. Kaczmarek plus an eclectic mix of jazz and pop, including selections from Michael Buble, Ash, Ella Fitzgerald, and Peggy Lee. Opening Titles, "Time After Time" - Ella Fitzgerald, "Anne Arrives," "Pretend - Steve Ash, "I've Got the World on a String" - Michael Buble, "Gee Baby, Ain't I Good to You" - Peggy Lee, "Before the Wedding," "Anne and Harris in Love," "You're My Thrill" - Peggy Lee, "Memories of the Evening," "The Dream Continues," "Stairway to the Stars" - Sarah Vaughan, "Remembering Buddy," "Stella By Starlight" - Anita O'Day, "Evening."

Face the Music
(DRG - new on CD)
Order at CD/DVD Universe
2007 Encores series concert cast recording of Irving Berlin-Moss hart musical. To include "Two Cheers Instead of Three," "If You Believe," "The Police of New York" and "Lunching at the Automat," "Soft Lights and Sweet Music," "Let's Have Another Cup of Coffee," "Manhattan Madness," "I Say It's Spinach (And the Hell With It)," "Torch Song," "I Don't Wanna Be Married," "How Can I Change My Luck," "Well, of All the Rotten Shows," "Reisman's Doing a Show," "You Must Be Born With It," "Castles in Spain (on a Roof in Manhattan)," "Crinoline Days," "My Beautiful Rhinestone Girl," "A Toast to Prohibition," "The Nudist Colony" and "The Investigation." Walter Bobbie, Judy Kaye, Lee Wilkof, Meredith Patterson, Jeffry Denman, Eddie Korbich, Mylinda Hull, Timothy Shew, Felicia Finley and Chris Hoch.

The Pirate Queen Highlights
(Sony Classics - new on CD)
Order at CD/DVD Universe
Broadway cast recording. Alain Boublil and Claude-Michel Schönberg score. Stephanie J. Block, Hadley Fraser, Linda Balgord, Marcus Chait, Jeff McCarthy, William Youmans. "Prologue," "The Pirate Queen," "Woman," "My Grace," "Here on this Night," "The Waking of the Queen," "Rah-Rah, Tip-Top," "The Choice is Mine," "Boys'll Be Boys," "The Wedding," "I'll Be There," "A Day Beyond Belclare," "Sail to the Stars ," "Entr'Acte," "Enemy at Port Side," "I Dismiss You," "If I Said I Love You," "The Role of the Queen," "The Christening," "Let a Father Stand by his Son," "Surrender," "She Who Has All," "The Sea of Life," "Woman to Woman," "Finale." iTunes version has three bonus tracks: "The Storm," "My Queen" and "Son of the Irish Seas."

The Pirate Queen Songbook
(Hal Leonard - Paperback Book)
11 selections from the Boublil/Schönberg score: "A Day Beyond Belclare," "Boys'll Be Boys," "Here on This Night," "I Dismiss You," "I'll Be There," "If I Said I Love You," "Sail to the Stars," "The Role of the Queen," "The Sea of Life," "The Wedding," "Woman."

The Rodgers and Hammerstein Encyclopedia
(Greenwood Press - Hardcover Book)
By Thomas S. Hischak. The first encyclopedia to look specifically at the careers and works of Rodgers and Hammerstein, covering all their musicals together for stage, screen and television, but also everything they wrote with others. The encyclopedia is (1) comprehensive, describing the works, the people involved in those works, and many of their famous songs; (2) up-to-date, including the most recent revivals of their works and new recordings of their scores; and (3) easy to use, being alphabetically arranged with cross-reference listings, chronological lists, lists of awards and recordings, and bibliographic information for further reading.

Slings & Arrows - Season 3
(Acorn Media - on 2 DVDs)
Canadian TV series. "In the fictional town of New Burbage, legendary theatrical madman Geoffrey Tennant returns to the New Burbage Theatre Festival, the site of his greatest triumph and most humiliating failure, to assume the artistic directorship after the sudden death of his mentor, Oliver Welles. When Geoffrey arrives he finds that Oliver is still there, in spirit anyway, and with his guidance (and often in spite of it) Geoffrey attempts to reconcile with his past while wrestling the festival back from the marketing department. Despite a bitter leading lady, a clueless leading man, and a scheming general manager, he manages to stage a remarkable production of Hamlet -- the play that drove him mad."

June 26, 2007

The Broadway Musicals Of 1945
(Bayview Records - new on CD)
Live Town Hall concert performances. Marc Kudisch, Karen Mason, Kerry Butler, Christiane Noll, Eddie Korbich, Scott Ailing, Ross Patterson and his Little Big Band, and Scott Siegel. "Wait for Tomorrow" (Polonaise), "Here I Go Again" (Are You With It?), "Bad Timing" (Billion Dollar Baby), "It Doesn't Cost You Anything to Dream" (Up In Central Park), "A Rhyme for Angela" (The Firebrand Of Florence), "From Morning Till Night"* (The Girl From Nantucket), "Mister Snow" (Carousel), "Slightly Perfect"* (Are You With It?), "Turn on the Charm"* (Marinka), "Sleep Baby, Don't Cry"** (Carib Song), "The Highest Judge of All"** (Carousel), "What's the Use of Wond'rin'" (Carousel), "Sing Me Not a Ballad" (The Firebrand Of Florence), "You Haven't Changed At All" (The Day Before Spring), "My Love Is a Married Man" (The Day Before Spring), "Sigh by Night"** (Marinka), "Close As Pages in a Book"** (Up In Central Park), "Soliloquy" (Carousel), "You'll Never Walk Alone" (Carousel). * = Premiere Recording. ** = Unplugged Performance. Available (until July 4) at Footlight.com.

High School Musical: The Concert
(Disney - new on DVD)
Order at CD/DVD Universe
Full concert plus additional footage. Drew Seeley, Vanessa Anne Hudgens, Ashley Tisdale, Lucas Grabeel, Corbin Bleu and Monique Coleman.

Nunsensations! - The Nunsense Vegas Revue
(Kultur Films - new on DVD)
Order at CD/DVD Universe
Dan Goggin show. Starring the World Premiere New York Cast - Deborah Del Mastro, Bambi Jones, Carrie Keskinen, Bonnie Lee, Jeanne Tinker and Georgia Engel. 102 minutes.

June 19, 2007

Best Foot Forward
(Warner - on DVD)
Order at CD/DVD Universe
Had been an Amazon.com exclusive. 1943 film with Lucille Ball and (reprising their Broadway roles) June Allyson, Nancy Walker and Tommy Dix. Extras: 1938 musical short "The Knight is Young,: with June Allyson, 1943 cartoon "One Ham's Family."

Big Street
(Warner - on DVD)
Order at CD/DVD Universe
1942 film (from a Damon Runyon story) with Lucille Ball and Henry Fonda. Extras: 1942 musical short "Calling All Girls," 1942 cartoon "The Hep Cat."

Critic's Choice
(Warner - on DVD)
Order at CD/DVD Universe
1963 film (by Ira Levin) with Lucille Ball, Bob Hope, Rip Torn, Jim Backus and Marilyn Maxwell. Extras: 935 comedy short "Calling All Tars" with Bob Hope; 1963 Oscar-nominated cartoon "Now Hear This."

Dance Girl Dance
(Warner - on DVD)
Order at CD/DVD Universe
1940 film (directed by Dorothy Arzner) with Lucille Ball, Maureen O'Hara, Ralph Bellamy. Extras: 940 comedy short "Just a Cute Kid," 1940 cartoon "Malibu Beach Party."

Dogs the Musical
(new on CD)
Conceived and written by Paddy Mahoney Bell. Libretto and Lyrics by Paddy Mahoney Bell. Musical Arranger/Composer - Dick Goodwin. Available at CDBaby.com.

Du Barry Was A Lady
(Warner - on DVD)
Order at CD/DVD Universe
1943 film with Lucille Ball, Gene Kelly, Red Skelton, Tommy Dorsey, Zero Mostel. Three Cole Porter songs from the original Broadway show ("Friendship," "Katie Went to Haiti" and "Do I Love You?"). Extras: 1943 Pete Smith specialty short "Seeing Hands," 1943 cartoon "Bah Wilderness."

Keating the Musical !
(new on CD)
2007 Australian cast recording of Casey Bennetto musical. Overture, "My Right-Hand Man," "Do It In Style," "I Remember Kirribilli," "It's Time," "Ruler Of The Land," "The Beginning Is The End," "On The Floor," "I Wanna Do You Slowly," "Sweet," "The Arse End Of The Earth," "Freaky," "Heavens, Mister Evans," "Redfern," "Ma(m)bo," "Power," "The Mateship," "Choose Me," "The Light On The Hill," "Historical Revisionism." Available from Middle Eight Music.

Longford
(Warner - new on DVD)
Order at CD/DVD Universe
HBO Films drama Jim Broadbent, Samantha Morton, Andy Serkis, Lindsay Duncan about the strange friendship convicted child murderer Myra Hindley struck up with a British Lord, Frank Aungier Pakenham (the seventh Earl of Longford), after she was incarcerated. Extras: audio commentary by writer Peter Morgan; featurette - Firsthand Accounts of "The Moors Murders."

Lucille Ball Film Collection
(Warner - on 5 DVDs)
Order at CD/DVD Universe
Extras include Oscar-nominated shorts and trailers. Critic's Choice (with 1935 comedy short "Calling All Tars" with Bob Hope; 1963 Oscar-nominated cartoon "Now Hear This"), Dance Girl Dance (with 1940 comedy short "Just a Cute Kid," 1940 cartoon "Malibu Beach Party"), Du Barry Was a Lady (with 1943 Pete Smith specialty short "Seeing Hands," 1943 cartoon "Bah Wilderness"), The Big Street (with 1942 musical short "Calling All Girls," 1942 cartoon "The Hep Cat") and Mame (with featurette "Lucky Mame"). Also available individually.

Mame
(Warner - on DVD)
Order at CD/DVD Universe
1974 film version of classic Broadway musical with Lucille Ball, Bea Arthur, Rober Preston (sings "Loving You," written specially for the film), Bruce Davison, Joyce Van Patten, Jane Connell. Jerry Herman score. Extra: featurette "Lucky Mame." Director: Gene Saks

Sigmund Romberg (Yale Broadway Masters Series)
(Yale University Press - Hardcover Book)
By William A. Everett.

June 12, 2007

Charley's Aunt
(Fox - new on DVD)
Order at CD/DVD Universe
1941 film with Jack Benny.

Coast of Utopia Music from the Lincoln Center Production
(Ghostlight Records - new on CD)
Order at CD/DVD Universe
Mark Bennett's music for the Stoppard trilogy. Track List: "Trilogy Prologue-500 Souls," "Michael Come Home," "March Here, March There," "Spring At Premukhino," "Nothing But Self," "Greater Man Than Michael, A," "Serfs At Sunset," "Bonfire, The," "Liubov's Procession," "Twelve Days To Catch Up," "Moscow," "After The Soiree," "Telescope, The," "Telescope II, The," "Belinsky At Work," "Riverboat Farewell," "GInger Cat Waltz," "Voyage Finale," "Birch Trees," "Sokolovo To Salzbrunn," "Paris," "Revolution "La Marseillaise", The," "Failed Uprising "La Marseillaise II", The," "Michael Captured," "Dejeuner Sur L'Herbe," "Nice: "Lu Ciuccio De Cola"," "Bella Nice, Che D' Amore"," "I Lamenti Di Una Bella Fanciulla"," "Return To Sokolovo," "Shipwreck Finale," "Olga Asleep," "Herzen In England," "Like A Dream," "Blackgang Chine And Beach Visitors," "Farewell To England," "Geneva," "Trilogy Finale, The Ninth Wave," "Curtain Call."

I Believe In My Heart - Broadway Duets with All My Leading Men
(Jay Records - new on CD)
Order at CD/DVD Universe |
Laurie Gayle Stephenson sings Broadway duets with Steve Amerson, Nat Chandler, Max Von Essen, Davis Gaines, Doug LaBrecque, Brad Little, Gary Mauer, Howard McGillin, J. Mark McVey, Ron Raines and Charan Sheehan. Accompanied by the National Symphony Orchestra. "I Believe My Heart (The Woman In White, with Max Von Essen, "Make Believe" (Show Boat, with Ron Raines, "The Prayer" (Quest For Camelot, with Steve Amerson, "It's De-Lovely" (Anything Goes, with Charan Sheehan, "All I Ask Of You" (The Phantom Of The Opera, with Gary Mauer, "You're Just In Love" (Call Me Madam, with J. Mark McVey, "Tonight" (West Side Story, with Doug LaBrecque, "I Have Dreamed" (The King And I, with Steve Amerson, "Seeing Is Believing" (Aspects Of Love, with Brad Little, "Till There Was You" (The Music Man, with Ron Raines, "Stranger In Paradise" (Kismet, with J. Mark McVey, "Almost Like Being In Love" (Brigadoon, with Nat Chandler, "How Could I Ever Know" (The Secret Garden, with Howard McGillin, "Phantom Of The Opera" (The Phantom Of The Opera, with Davis Gaines). At Footlight.com now.

In a Dark Dark House: A Play
(Faber & Faber - Paperback Book)
Latest work from Neil LaBute. Takes a funny and shattering look at the things we cling to in life — family, security, love — and examines how far we'll go to hang on to what we've got.

The Jeeves Collection
(20th Century Fox - on DVD)
Order at CD/DVD Universe
Two 1930s films loosely based on P.G. Wodehouse character (played by Arthur Treacher): Thank You, Jeeves (David Niven, Virginia Field) and Step Lively, Jeeves (Patricia Ellis, Robert Kent, George Givot, Franklin Pangborn). Extras: restoration comparison; "The World of Wodehouse" featurette.

Little Shop of Horrors
(First Night - on CD)
Reissue of 1994 UK cast recording. Su Pollard, Marc Joseph, Billy Miller and Morgan Deare. Available at Footlight.com.

Magic Tree House: The Musical
(PS Classics - new on CD)
Studio cast album for musical based on best-selling series of children's books, Mary Pope Osborne's "Magic Tree House." Book and lyrics by Will Osborne; Randy Courts' music and lyrics. Stage production will premiere at the Warner Theatre in Torrington, CT, in September, with plans for a national tour in the fall of 2008. Cast: Cass Morgan, Donna Bullock, Howard Sherman Paul Wyatt and Katie Brunetto. Track list: "How Far Can You See?," "Banquet in Camelot," "Tick Tock," "Banquet in Camelot" (reprise), "The Curse," "Not the Man He Was," "Who Will Go?," "Four Gifts," "Fly!," "What's So Great About Magic?," "The Dance," "What Would I Do Without You?," "Remember and Imagine," "I Remember," "Banquet in Camelot" (reprise)/"Finale." Available now at PSClassics.com. Store date is September 4.

The Three Musketeers
(Fox - new on DVD)
Order at CD/DVD Universe
1939 musical film with Don Ameche, Binnie Barnes, Gloria Stuart, The Ritz Brothers, John Carradine, Joseph Schildkraut, Pauline Moore. Extras expected.

Toad Hall
(WavePoint Productions - new on CD)
Chris A. Bowman and Cathleen McIsaac score for musical based on Kenneth Grahamne's The Wind in the Willows. Available at CDBaby.com

Will & Me: How Shakespeare Took Over My Life
(Pegasus Books - Paperback Book)
By Globe Theatre Artistic Director Dominic Dromgoole.

June 5, 2007

110 in the Shade
(PS Classics - new on CD)
Order at CD/DVD Universe
2007 Broadway revival cast. Audra McDonald, John Cullum, Steve Kazee, Chris Butler, Carla Duren, Christopher Innvar and Bobby Steggert. Orchestrations are by Jonathan Tunick. Track list: "Another Hot Day," "Lizzie's Comin' Home," "Love, Don't Turn Away," "Poker Polka," "The Hungry Men," "The Rain Song," "You're Not Fooling Me," "Cinderella," "Raunchy," "A Man and a Woman," ""She walked out on me..."," "Old Maid," "Evenin' Star," "Everything Beautiful," ""Stay and talk..."," "Melisande," "Simple Little Things," "Little Red Hat," "Is It Really Me?," "Wonderful Music," "The Rain Song" (reprise). Available now at PSClassics.com

The Adventures of Priscilla Queen of the Desert (Extra Frills Edition)
(MGM - on DVD)
Order at CD/DVD Universe
1994 film featuring Hugo Weaving, Terence Stamp, Guy Pearce, Reb Russell. Extras: four deleted scenes; audio commentary by director Stephan Elliot; Behind the Scenes - Tidbits from the Set; featurette - "Birth of a Queen"; blooper reel - "The Bus from Blooperville"; trailers, photo galleries.

Curtains
(Broadway Angel/Manhattan Records - new on CD)
Order at CD/DVD Universe
2007 Broadway cast album. Music by John Kander, lyrics by Fred Ebb and additional lyrics by Kander and Rupert Holmes. Cast includes Debra Monk, David Hyde Pierce, Jason Danieley, Edward Hibbert, Noah Racey, Ernie Sabella, Karen Ziemba. Bill Rosenfield executive producer. Recorded March 26.

Everything Bad and Beautiful
(Breaking Records - new on CD)
Order at CD Universe
- 2006 Sandra Bernhard Off-Broadway show. Track list: Beautiful, De La Guarda/Broadway, L.A., Kerry/Laura Bush/Lynn Cheney, Condolezza Rice And Rosa Parks, Motherhood, Flame, The, Thanksgiving, Flint, Michigan, Bob Dylan, Like a Rolling Stone, Shabbat, Mariah Carey & Britney Spears, Sara, Hugh Hefner, I Hate Golf/Mock the Poor, Pill/Kiss Me Deadly, Perfection .

"Ladies Choice" Single from Hairspray soundtrack

Zac Effon single.

A Little Night Music
(Hen's Tooth Video - new on DVD)
Order at CD/DVD Universe
1978 film based on Sondheim/Hugh Wheeler musical which was based on Ingmar Bergman film Smiles of a Summer Night. Filmed in Vienna. Elizabeth Taylor, Diana Rigg, Len Cariou, Lesley-Anne Down, Hermione Gingold, Laurence Guittard, Christopher Guard, Lesley Dunlop, Chloe Franks, Jonathan Tunick. Color, 120 minutes, widescreen format. No extras, no trailer.

Rock 'n' Roll
(Grove Press - Paperback Book)
Tom Stoppard play.

A Small Blue Thing
(Two Maples Music - new on CD)
New album from Jack Donahue, with Randy Ingram (piano), Keith Ganz (guitar), Joe Locke (vibraphone), Matt Penman (bass), Dan Reiser (drums), Stephanie Winters (cello), and Jeremy Udden (sax). Songs will include Suzanne Vega's "A Small Blue Thing," Cole Porter's "Get Out of Town," Abbey Lincoln's "Throw it Away," Alec Wilder's "I'll Be Around," and an original tune Jack wrote with Peter Eldridge called "Busy Being Blue." Available at CDBaby.com

May 29, 2007

John Barrowman Aspects of Lloyd Webber
(JAY Records - new on CD)

Order at CD/DVD Universe
Special 9-track CD released in UK and on iTunes. "Sunset Boulevard," "All I Ask Of You," "Seeing Is Believing," "Whistle Down The Wind," "Any Dream Will Do," "High Flying Adored," "Think Of Me," "Too Much In Love To Care," "Love Changes Everything." US CD release date.

Katharine Hepburn Collection
(Warner - on 6 DVDs)
Order at CD/DVD Universe
Morning Glory, Sylvia Scarlett, The Corn Is Green, Without Love, Dragon Seed, Undercurrent.

Pittsburgh in Stages: Two Hundred Years of Theater
(Univ. of Pittsburgh Press - Hardcover Book)
By Lynne Conner. Comprehensive history of theater in Pittsburgh, placing it within the context of cultural development in the city and the history of theater nationally.

May 22, 2007

As Long As They're Happy / An Alligator Named Daisy
(Sepia Records - new on CD)
Order at CD/DVD Universe
Soundtracks, with Jeannie Carson, Diana Dors, Jerry Wayne and Jack Buchanan. Tracks (by Jeannie Carson, unless noted): "Main Title" (Orchestra), "You Started Something" (Jerry Wayne), "I Don't Know Whether To Laugh Or To Cry Over You" (Jerry Wayne ), "Quiet Little Rendezvous", "Be My Guest" (Jerry Wayne), "My Crazy Little Mixed Up Heart", "Hokey-Pokey Polka" (Diana Dors & Jack Buchanan), "Cry" (Jack Buchanan), "Liza's Eyes" (Jerry Wayne), "I Don't Know Whether To Laugh Or To Cry Over You (Reprise)" (Jack Buchanan), "My Crazy Little Mixed Up Heart", "I Don't Know Whether To Laugh Or To Cry Over You", "In Love For The Very First Time", "Your First Love Was Your Last" (Ronnie Stevens), "Midnight Madness", "The Crocodile Crawl" (Ken Mackintosh), "A Kiss And A Cuddle" (Diana Dors), "I Feel So Mmm" (Diana Dors), "A Shoulder To Weep On", "Close Your Eyes", "Unchained Melody", "Evermore", "The Star You Wished Upon Last Night", "If'n", "Greener Pastures", "Oudt Comes Oom-Pa-Pa", "I'm In Love With Me" (Robert Clary), "Lassoo" (Jerry Wayne), "What More Can I Do- Jerry Wayne), "My Crazy Li'l Mixed Up Heart" (Georgia Brown).

Bing Crosby: Good And Rare - Volume 2
(Sepia Records - new on CD)
Order at CD/DVD Universe
Songs recorded between 1949 and 1955. "The Big Movie Show in the Sky," "Stay Well," "The Little Grey House," "This Could Be Forever (With Louanne Hogan)," "The Iowa Indian Song," "When the Sun Goes Down," "The Friendly Islands," "A Perfect Day," "Once More the Blue and White," "Wouldn't It Be Funny?," "You Gotta Show Me," "More I Cannot Wish You," "Copacabana," "Maria Bonita," "Let Me Look at You," "Old Soldiers Never Die," "Bonne Nuit," "Fatherly Advice (With Gary Crosby)," "Mademoiselle de Paris," "La Seine," "If There's Anybody Here (With Donald O'connor)," "Back In the Old Routine" (With Donald O'Connor), "Cornbelt Symphony" (With Gary Crosby), "The Call of the South" (With Gary Crosby), "Liza," "The Next Time It Happens."

Can-Can
(Fox - new on DVD)
Order at CD/DVD Universe
1960 film based on Cole Porter/Abe Burrows musical. Directed by Walter Lang. Starring Frank Sinatra, Shirley MacLaine, Maurice Chevalier, Louis Jourdan, Juliet Prowse. Extras: Behind the Scenes "A Leg Up: The Making of Can-Can"; Restoration Comparison; featurettes - "The Classic Cole Porter" and "The Steve Allen Plymouth Show"; isolated audio track - score and FX track; trailers; stills/photos.

Drowsy Chaperone Songbook
(Hal Leonard - Paperback Book)
Ten songs from the Greg Morrison/Lisa Lambert Broadway musical: "Accident Waiting to Happen," "As We Stumble Along," "Bride's Lament," "Cold Feets," "I Am Aldolpho," "I Do, I Do in the Sky," "I Remember Love," "Love Is Always Lovely in the End," "Show Off," "Toledo Surprise." Available at MusicDispatch.com.

Duncan Sheik - On Stage at World Cafe Live
(Universal - new on DVD)
Order at CD/DVD Universe
Songs from composer/singer performs at Philadelphia's World Cafe Live. "Nothing Fades," "Good Morning," "For You," "The Dawn's Request," "Fantastic Toys," "White Limousine," "Genius," "Wishful Thinking," "I Don't Believe In Ghosts," "Memento," "The Lover From Hell," "Fake Plastic Trees." 57 minutes. Interview.

Glorifying the American Girl
(Alpha Home Entertainment - new on DVD)
Order at CD/DVD Universe
1929. Mary Eaton, Dan Healey, with appearances by Rudy Vallee, Eddie Cantor, Helen Morgan, Billie Burke, Irving Berlin, Florenz Ziegfeld Jr. and others. B&W. Released 2/27/07.

Katie Eagleson: Once Upon A Time
(WalkingPath Records - new on CD)
Philadelphia singer performs songs by Stephen Sondheim, the Bergmans, Michel Legrand, Johnny Mandel, Dave Frishberg, and others. "Once Upon a Time," "No One Is Alone," "What You Don't Know About Women," "You Are There," "Losing My Mind," "The End of a Love Affair," "Where Do You Start," "A Little Taste," "You Must Believe in Spring," "So Many Stars," "My Foolish Heart," "I'm All Smiles," "How Do You Keep the Music Playing," "Why Did I Choose You," "I Like You, You're Nice," "My Buddy."

Live at the Village Vanguard - Bill Charlap Trio
(Blue Note - new on CD)
Order at CD/DVD Universe
Bill Charlap (piano); Peter Washington (bass instrument); Kenny Washington (drums). "Rocker," "Autumn In New York," "Godchild," "The Lady Is A Tramp," "It's Only A Paper Moon," "My Shining Hour," "All Across The City," "While We're Young," "Last Night When We Were Young."

No One is Alone
(DRG - new on CD)
Order at CD/DVD Universe
New Barbara Cook CD with songs from her Carnegie Hall concert. Eric Stern on piano. "Something's Coming," ""Never Never Land," "Surrey With a Fringe On Top," "Long Before I Knew You"/"I Fall in Love Too Easily," "Nobody Else But Me," "Some Other Time," "No One Is Alone," "You're What I Need," "One More Kiss"/"Goodbye for Now," "I Wish I Could Forget You," "Lover Come Back to Me," "No More."

On Stage And The In The Movies
(Collector's Choice - on CD)
Order at CD/DVD Universe
Remastered Dionne Warwick album. "Summertime," "You'll Never Walk Alone," "My Favorite Things," "Something Wonderful," "One Hand, One Heart With These Hands," "Way You Look Tonight, The," "He (She) Loves Me," "I Believe In You," "Baubles, Bangles & Beads," "Anything You Can Do," "My Ship."

On the Riviera
(Fox - new on DVD)
Order at CD/DVD Universe
1951 musical film with Danny Kaye and Gene Tierney (Gwen Verdon is a Speciality Dancer, credited as Gwyneth Verdon). Directed by Walter Lang. Extras: Restoration Comparison; documentaries - "A Portrait of Danny Kaye" and "The Jack of Clubs: Choreographer Jack Cole"; featurette - "The Rivera Story: A Remarkable Impersonation"; isolated audio track - score and FX track; trailers; stills/photos.

Pigskin Parade
(Fox - new on DVD)
Order at CD/DVD Universe
1936 film featuring Judy Garland (her first film), Patsy Kelly, Jack Haley, Betty Grable, Stu Erwin, Tony Martin. Will include featurettes, trailers and isolated music score tracks. Extras: Restoration Comparison; documentaries - "Meet the Coach: Darryl F. Zanuck," "Remembering Judy: Lorna Luft On Judy Garland" and "Making the Team: The Talent of Pigskin Parade"; stills/Photos: advertising, studio shots, "On the Field", "Campus Capers."

Someone Like You
(Sepia Records - new on CD)
Order at CD/DVD Universe
New studio recording of songs from the Petula Clark / Dee Shipman musical. Andrew Derbyshire, Debi Doss and Lewis Rae. David (Dzal) Martin on guitar, keyboards and piano by Kenny Clayton, drums and percussion by Eric Young. New arrangements by Kenny Clayton. "Home Is Where The Heart Is" (Debi Doss & Ensemble), "Here We Are" (Lewis Rae), "Empty Spaces" (Debi Doss), "Someone Like You" (Andrew Derbyshire), "All Through The Years" (Debi Doss & Ensemble), "Green Hill, West Virginia" (Lewis Rae), "What You Got!" (Andrew Derbyshire), "Getting The Right Thing Wrong" (Debi Doss), "I Am What You Need" (Lewis Rae), "Young ‘un" (Debi Doss), "Losing You" (Debi Doss), "Amen" (Andrew Derbyshire & Ensemble). Bonus tracks to be announced. 16 page booklet.

Victor/Victoria Mexican Cast
(new on CD)
2006 Original Mexican Teatro de Los Insurgentes cast recording. Mauricio Herrera, Daniela Romo and Lisardo. Includes a new song by Frank Wildhorn, "You Don't Choose Love (No Eliges Tu)," and a new opening number featuring "Gay Paree" from the film version. Footlight exclusive.

La Vie en Rose: La Mome
(EMI Classics - new on CD)
Soundtrack for the film La Vie En Rose, about French chanteuse Edith Piaf, starring Marion Cotillard and Gerard Depardieu. 27 tracks featuring 11 of Piaf's most popular songs remastered including "La Vie En Rose", "Hymne A L'amour" "Milord" and "Non, Je Ne Regrette Rien", plus the original score by Christopher Gunning.

May 15, 2007

Becket
(MPI - on DVD)
Order at CD Universe
1964 Oscar-winning film. Peter O'Toole, Richard Burton and star John Gielgud (al Oscar-nominated). Includes commentary by Peter O'Toole.

High Fidelity
(Sh-K-Boom - new on CD)
Order at CD Universe |
Broadway cast recording. Score by Tom Kitt and Amanda Green. Will Chase, Jenn Colella, Jon Patrick Walker, Justin Brill, Andrew C. Call, Matt Caplan (Rent), Paul Castree, George Merrick, Tom Plotkin and J.B. Wing. Orchestrations by Tom Kitt and Alex Lacamoire. "The Last Real Record Store," "Desert Island Top Five Break-Ups," "It's No Problem," "She Goes," "Ian's Here," "Number Five With a Bullet," "Ready to Settle," "Nine Percent Chance," "I Slept with Someone (Who Slept with Lyle Lovett)," "I Slept With Someone (Who Handled Kurt Cobain's Intervention)," "I Slept With Someone (Reprise)," "Exit Sign," "Cryin' in the Rain," "Conflict Resolution I," "Conflict Resolution II," "Conflict Resolution III," "Goodbye and Goodluck," "It's No Problem (Reprise)," "Laura, Laura," "Turn the World Off (and Turn You On)," "Too Tired (bonus track).

How Sondheim Found His Sound
(Univ. of Michigan Press - Paperback Book)
Paperback version of September 2005 book, reviewed here. Taking Sondheim's own comments and music as a starting point, author Steve Swayne (Assoc. Professor of Music, Dartmouth College) offers a biography of the artist's style, following his many influences (including classical music from 1850 to 1950; the songs of Tin Pan Alley, Broadway, and Hollywood; the theatrical innovations of Oscar Hammerstein II and his collaborators; the cinematic elements found in certain film schools; and the melodramatic style of particular plays and films).

Julie Atherton: A Girl Of Few Words
(Making Records - on CD)
The West End's Kate Monster (Avenue Q), also appeared in Mamma Mia! and Fame. 12 tracks of the work of British musical theatre composer Charles Miller, with lyricists Kevin Hammonds and Adam Bard. "A Girl Of Few Words," "If You Were Mine," "Let Me Inside," "He Wasn't You," "Be Careful," "Not Afraid Anymore," "Somebody's Falling," "Someone Fine Me," "Clockwork," "Heaven Knows," "Home," "You Know How To Love Me."

Terese Genecco: Drunk With Love
(Mulligan Productions - new on CD)
Terese Genecco's tribute to Frances Faye. From live performances at The Metropolitan Room in October 2006. "The Man I Love," "My Ex-Husband," "Tonight You Belong To Me," "I Ain't Got Nobody," "I Wish I Could Shimmy Like My Sister Kate," "Should I Strip," "Beatles Medley," "Night And Day," "Drunk With Love," "Unchain My Heart," "Mister Rogers," "St James Infirmary," "Purple Wine," "Sophie Tucker," "There Will Never Be Another You," "Kansas City," "Finale" (Frances & Her Friends).

When The Lights Go On Again Original Cast Recording
(Thoroughbred Records - new on CD)
Original cast recording. Bill Daugherty, Paul Kropfl, Christina Morrell and Connie Pachl. "Show Your Linen, Miss Richardson," "Don't Wake Up My Heart," "Humpty Dumpty Heart," "Moonlight Serenade," "It's Make Believe Ballroom Time," "When The Lights Go On Again," "You're A Lucky Fellow, Mr. Smith," "No Love, No Nothin'," "It's A Lovely Day Tomorrow," "I Left My Heart At The Stage Door Canteen," "They're Either Too Young Or Too Old," "The Flat Foot Floogie," "He's 1-A In The Army," "The Starlit Hour," "We Mustn't Say Goodbye," "Any Bonds Today?," "Nancy," "My Sister And I," "G.I. Jive," "Don't Sit Under The Apple Tree," "(There'll Be A) Hot Time In The Town Of Berlin," "The White Cliffs Of Dover." Available at Footlight.com and CDBaby.com.

May 8, 2007

The Actor's Organizer
(Smith & Kraus - new on Book/CD)
Book and software package that contains the revolutionary ActOrganizer™ database program — one disk with four easy-to-use files that let you manage the details of your busy career by keeping track of all the contacts, auditions, expenses, and mailings information you need to make sure your lucky breaks happen right on schedule. Available for Macintosh® and PC Windows® users, ActOrganizer™ combines a variety of vital business functions into one integrated program easily adapted to your individual needs: address book, graphic design, financial record keeping, instant tax calculation, labeling, merge letters, and printing

Barbra Streisand Live in Concert
(Sony - new on 2 CDs)
Order at CD Universe
From latest farewell tour. Some selections ("Carefully Taught," "Unusual Way," "A Cockeyed Optimist," and "My Shining Hour" plus duet versions of "Evergreen," "The Music of the Night" and "Somewhere" with Il Divo) appearing for the for the first time on any Streisand recording. Track list: "Funny Girl Broadway Overture," "Starting Here, Starting Now," "Opening Remarks," "Down With Love," "The Way We Were," "Songwriting (dialogue)," "Ma Premiere Chanson," "Evergreen (with Il Divo)," "Come Rain Or Come Shine," "Funny Girl (dialogue)," "Funny Girl," "The Music That Makes Me Dance," "My Man," "People (dialogue)," "People," "Entr'acte," "The Music Of The Night (with Il Divo)," "Jason's Theme," "Carefully Taught/Children Will Listen," "Unusual Way," "What Are You Doing The Rest Of Your Life," "Happy Days Are Here Again," "(Have I Stayed) Too Long At The Fair?," "William Saroyan (dialogue)," "The Time Of Your Life," "A Cockeyed Optimist," "Somewhere (dialogue)," "Somewhere (with Il Divo)," "My Shining Hour," "Don't Rain On My Parade (reprise)," "Smile." Produced by Barbra Streisand & Jay Landers. Arranged & Conducted by William Ross. Recorded & Mixed by: David Reitzas. Barnes & Noble is selling a set with the exclusive bonus track "When the Sun Comes Out" and apparently Target is selling one with "Don't Rain On My Parade" and "Stoney End".

Big - Director's Cut/Extended Edition
(Fox - on 2 DVDs)
Order at CD Universe
1988 film, basis for musical. Tom Hanks, Robert Loggia, John Heard, Elizabeth Perkins. Disc 1: Big - Extended Version; "Big Brainstorming" - audio documentary by Gary Ross and Anne Spielberg using archival audio material of the original creation of the script; theatrical branches. Disc 2: 10 deleted scenes with optional intro by Penny Marshall; "Backstory: Big" featurette; carnival party newswrap; 2 trailers; TV spots; Zoltar Easter Egg.

The Caine Mutiny (Collector's Edition)
(Sony - on DVD)
Order at CD Universe
1954 film based on Herman Wouk's novel. Humphrey Bogart, Jose Ferrer, Van Johnson, Lee Marvin, E.G. Marshall, Fred MacMurray. Directed by Edward Dmytryk. Extras: commentary by Richard Pena, Ken Bowser; Behind "The Caine Mutiny" Part I; Behind "The Caine Mutiny" Part II.

Dance Anecdotes: Stories from the Worlds of Ballet, Broadway, the Ballroom, and Modern Dance
(Oxford Univ. Press - Paperback Book)
Mindy Aloff, Editor. Paperback version of May 2006 issue. Stories and anecdotes from the world of dance: Petipa, Pavlova, Balanchine, Nureyev, Graham, Astaire ... Shakespeare, Tchaikovsky, Dickens, Colette and Dave Barry.

Defying Gravity (Dance Mix)

Idina Menzel.

Diet! The Musical
(new on CD)
North Valley Playhouse cast recording. Score by Kenneth LaFave. Available at CDBaby.com.

Dirty Dancing Anniversary Edition
(Lion's Gate - on 2 DVDs or Blu-Ray)
Order at CD Universe
1987 film with Patrick Swayze, Jennifer Grey, Wayne Knight, Jerry Orbach, Jack Weston, Kelly Bishop, Miranda Garrison, Cynthia Rhodes, Neal Jones, Lonny Price, Garry Goodrow, Max Cantor. Choreography by Kenny Ortega. Extras: audio commentary by Eleanor Bergstein (Writer & Co-Producer); multivoice commentary by Kenny Ortega, Miranda Garrison, Jeff Jur, Hilary Rosenfeld, David Chapman; bonus footage: original screen tests, The Classic Story On Stage; deleted scenes; extended scenes; interviews with Jennifer Grey, Eleanor Bergstein, Kenny Ortega; "Dirty Dancing with patrick Swayze" featurette; Jerry Orbach Tribute; Emile Ardolino Tribute; music videos: "Hungry Eyes," "She's Like The Wind," "I've Had The Time Of My Life"; outtakes; interactive features: Dirty Dancing 20th Anniversary Pop-up Trivia Track; multiangle Dance Sequences.

Jessica Molaskey: Sitting In Limbo
(PS Classics - new on CD)
Order at CD Universe
The singer-actress's fourth solo disc, drawn in part from her Algonquin Hotel concerts. Produced by John Pizzarelli. Covers by Sting, Jimmy Cliff, Billy Joel, and Joni Mitchell, plus several standards from the Great American Songbook (and a few Molaskey-Pizzarelli originals).

Linda Eder Greatest Hits
(Barnes & Noble - On CD)
Barnes & Noble exclusive. "Don't Rain On My Parade," "I Want More," "Unusual Way," "Man Of La Mancha," "What Kind Of Fool Am I," "Some People," "Bring On The Men," "Anthem," "Over The Rainbow," "Havana," "A New Life," "Vienna," "Someone Like You," "I Am What I Am," "Something To Believe In" (Fitch Radio Edit).

Lyrically - Alan Bergman
(Verve - new on CD)
Order at CD Universe |
Alan Bergman, with Frank Chastenier (piano), Randy Waldman (piano), Christian McBride (bass), Jeff Hamilton (drums), and Till Bronner (trumpet). Lyrics by Alan & Marilyn Bergman (except "That Face" - lyrics by Alan Bergman and Lew Spence); music by composers including Michel Legrand, Dave Grusin, Neil Diamond, and Marvin Hamlisch. "The Windmills Of Your Mind," "Nice 'N' Easy," "The Summer Knows," "It Might Be You," "What Are You Doing The Rest Of Your Life," "That Face," "Love Like Ours," "You Don't Bring Me Flowers," "Where Do You Start," "How Do You Keep The Music Playing," "And I'll Be There," "The Way We Were," "What Matters Most."

Polly Bergen: The Early Years
(Sepia Records - new on CD)
Order at CD Universe
Almost every side Bergen cut before 1957. "Honky Tonkin'," "Mount'n Boys Have Fun with Mount'n Girls," "Oh, Them Dudes," "I Got Tookin'," "Just the Way You Are," "I Put My Head in the Lion's Mouth," "Tonda Wanda Hoy," "Out of Sight Out of Mind," "Apple on a Pear Tree," "Don't Let Our Love Die on the Vine," "No One Else Will Ever Know," "Let's Make Love," "Someone to Watch Over Me," "Autumn Leaves," "Happiness Is a Thing Called Joe," "Little Girl Blue," "The Way You Look Tonight," "A Woman Likes To Be Told," "I Thought of You Last Night," "When the World Was Young," "The Wayward Wind," "How Little We Know," "Too Close For Comfort," "It's All Yours," "Darling, I Belong To You," "One Little Mistake."

May 1, 2007

Best of the Tony Awards: The Plays
(Acorn Media - on DVD)
Order at CD Universe
Previously available only in the Lost Treasures boxed set. Hosted by Harvey Fierstein, 65-minute program of excerpts from plays: The Great White Hope (James Earl Jones, Jane Alexander,The Great White Hope (James Earl Jones, Jane Alexander, Cast), One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest (Gary Sinise, Tim Sampson, Cast), Lettice And Lovage (Maggie Smith, Margaret Tyzack), M. Butterfly (John Lithgow, B.D. Wong), A Walk In The Woods (Robert Prosky, Sam Waterston), Coastal Disturbances (Annette Bening, Timothy Daly), The Sisters Rosensweig (Robert Klein, Jane Alexander, Madeline Kahn), Lovers (Art Carney, Anna Manahan), The Heidi Chronicles (Joan Allen, Peter Friedman, The Tale Of The Allergist's Wife (Michele Lee, Linda Lavin, Tony Roberts), Speed-The-Plow (Joe Mantegna, Ron Silver), Lend Me A Tenor (Philip Bosco, Victor Garber), The Piano Lesson (Charles S. Dutton, Rocky Carroll, Carl Gordon, S. Epatha Merkerson), Fences (James Earl Jones, Courtney B. Vance), King Hedley Ii (Viola Davis, Brian Stokes Mitchell), Joe Turner's Come And Gone (Ed Hall, Delroy Lindo, Mel Winkler), Hamlet (Kevin Kline), Long Day's Journey Into Night (Len Cariou), As You Like It (Morgan Freeman).

Betcha Bottom Dollar
(Verve - new on CD)
UK-based vocal trio who sings in three-part harmony. "Sisters," "Mr Sandman," "Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy (of Company B)," "Java Jive," "Bei Mir Bist Du Schön," "Wuthering Heights," "Jeepers Creepers," "I Will Survive," "Tu Vo Fa L'Americano," "Heart Of Glass," "Sway," "Panic," "Heebie Jeebies," "In The Mood."

Camelot
(Acorn Media - new on DVD)
Order at CD Universe
1982 HBO Theatre presentation of Lerner & Loewe musical with Richard Harris, Meg Bussert, Richard Muenz, William Parry.

Charlotte Greenwood: The Life and Career of the Comic Star of Vaudeville, Radio and Film
(McFarland & Co - Paperback Book)
Grant Hayter-Menzies's biography based on Greenwood's unpublished memoirs. Foreword by Brian Kellow. Covers Greenwood's 50-year career from vaudeville to the stage and to films. Roles including work in The Passing Show of 1912, So Long Letty (both stage and film), and I Remember Mama with special emphasis on her career-defining (and best-known) role as Aunt Eller in the 1955 film adaptation of Oklahoma! Greenwood's performance history, a list of her known recordings, and a filmography for her husband Martin Broones are also included. Photographs and illustrations, appendix, notes, bibliography, index.

Dreamgirls Widescreen Edition
(Paramount - new on DVD)
Order at CD Universe
2006 Bill Condon-directed film with Jennifer Hudson, Beyonce, Anika Noni Rose, Eddie Murphy, Danny Glover, Jamie Foxx. To include 12 extended musical numbers and alternate scenes, a never-before-seen performance by Jennifer Hudson of "Effie Sing My Song," Beyonce's "Listen" video.

Dreamgirls Showstopper Edition
(Paramount - new on 2 DVDs)
Order at CD Universe
2006 Bill Condon-directed film with Jennifer Hudson, Beyonce, Anika Noni Rose, Eddie Murphy, Danny Glover, Jamie Foxx. Disc 1: extended and alternate scenes: "Effie, Sing My Song" never-before-seen performance by Jennifer Hudson, "I'm Looking For Something," "Goin' Down," "Takin' The Long Way Home," "Fake Your Way To The Top," "Steppin' To The Bad Side," "Heavy," "I'm Somebody," "I Am Changing," "Perfect World," "One Night Only," "One Night Only" disco version, music video "Listen" by Beyonce Knowles. Disc 2: "Building The Dream" feature-length documentary in nine chapters (On Broadway, The Dream Is Alive, I'm Lookin' For Something, Feel So Real, You Better Move, Move..., The Sound Of Tomorrow, Gonna Take A Mean Ride: A Side, Gonna Take A Mean Ride: B Side, One Night Only; - "Dream Logic: Film Editing," "Dressing The Dreams: Costume Design," "Center Stage: Theatrical Lighting," auditions and screen tests: Beyonce Knowles screen test, "Ain't No Party" Anika Noni Rose audition, "Steppin' To The Bad Side" - Fatima Robinson, choreography audition; Previsualization Sequences: The Talent Show, Fake Your Way To The Top, Cadillac Car, Steppin' To The Bad Side, I Want You Baby, Heavy, Hard To Say Goodbye; image gallery with over 1,100 images: Storyboards, costume designs, production designs, art department archive.

Eugene O'Neill's America: Desire Under Democracy
(Univ. of Chicago Press - Hardcover Book)
By John Patrick Diggins. Biography.

The George Gershwin Reader (Readers on American Musicians)
(Oxford University Press - Paperback Book)
Robert Wyatt and John Andrew Johnson, Editors. More than eighty-piece collection of writings by Gershwin, as well as those about Gershwin, including the critical debate over Gershwin's concert pieces, especially "Rhapsody in Blue" and "An American in Paris." There is a complete section devoted to the controversies over "Porgy and Bess," including correspondence between Gershwin and DuBose Hayward, plus interviews with the original Porgy and Bess: Todd Duncan and Anne Brown. Included are excerpts from Gershwin's own letters, a detailed chronology of the composer's life, and the informative introductions to each entry.

The Great American Mousical
(HarperChildrensAudio - Audiobook on 2 CDs)
Order at CD Universe
Julie Andrews and Emma Walton Hamilton's book and songs, read by Andrews and a full cast. 2 hours.

High School Musical: The Concert
(Disney - new on CD/DVD)
Order at CD Universe
"Start Something New," "Stick to the Status Quo," "I Can't Take My Eyes Off of You," "When There Was Me and You," "Get'cha Head in the Game," "What I've Been Looking For," "What I've Been Looking For (reprise)," "Bop to the Top," "Breaking Free," "We're All in This Together," "Push It to the Limit," "Say OK," "Dance with Me," "We'll Be Together." DVD includes with five music performances and cast interviews.

I Love Lucy - Lucy's Really Lost Moments
(Genius Productions - on DVD)
Order at CD Universe
71 minutes.

Like a Woman - Helen Schneider
(new on CD)
Actress/singer sings pop classics. "(You Make Me Feel Like) a Natural Woman," "I Caught the Blues From Someone Else," "Born In Time," "Slow Down," "Just Like a Woman," "Bang the Drum Slowly," "House Where Nobody Lives," "Essence," "By the Rivers Dark," "If Loving You Is Wrong," "Such a Night," "Through the Dark." Available at SoundofMusic.de.

Little Children
(Warner - new on DVD)
Order at CD Universe
2006 film with Kate Winslett, Patrick Wilson, Jackie Earle Haley, Jennifer Connelly.

Mahogany
(Paramount - new on DVD)
Order at CD Universe
1975 film starring Diana Ross; directed by Barry Gordy. Billy Dee Williams, Anthony Perkins, Jean-Pierre Aumont, Nina Foch, and Beah Richards. Photo gallery.

Romance Collection
(Warner - on 3 DVDs)
Order at CD Universe
Box set of three films: The Lake House, You've Got Mail and the Phantom Of The Opera musical.

Shirley Valentine
(Paramount - new on DVD)
Order at CD Universe
1989 film based on play by Willy Russell. Directed by Lewis Gilbert. Pauline Collins, Tom Conti, Julia McKenzie, Joanna Lumley, Sylvia Syms.

What Would Barbra Do? (How Musicals Can Save Your Life)
(HarperCollins - Hardcover Book)
Emma Brockes musical memoir. "Analyzing her Golden Age favorites, she writes with wit and verve about everything from musical-haters, the flops of Rodgers and Hammerstein and the "secret language" of Mary Poppins to Esther Williams ("a sort of Bette Davis of the high diving board") and Funny Face ("a man woos a woman by undermining her theories of French existentialism with the rival philosophy 'think pink' "). Includes a chapter on the five musicals "that stand the best chance of converting a hostile male audience to the charms of the genre."

April 24, 2007

Anna Karenina
(Fox - on DVD)
Order at CD Universe
1948 film with Vivien Leigh, Ralph Richardson, Kieron Moore, Hugh Dempster plus bonus 1915 version with Betty Nansen, Edward José, Richard "Tolstoy: The Man Behind Anna" and "The Tolstoy Legacy Featurette" featurettes.

Dezemberlieder Pia Douwes (December Songs)
(new on CD)
German version of Maury Yeston's December Songs. 10 songs in German by Dutch born Pia Douwes with a foreword by Maury Yeston. Available at SoundofMusic-Shop.de.

Daddy Cool the Musical
(new on CD)
2006 London cast recording of show based on the music of Boney M. Cast: Javine and Michelle Collins. "Hooray Hooray! It`s A Holi - Holiday," "Mary`s Boy Child - Oh My Lord," "Sunny - Lullaby Version," "Girl You Know It`s True," "Take The Heat Off Me," "Ma Baker" duet, "Be My Lover," "Baby Don`t Forget My Number," "Brown Girl In The Ring," "Sunny," "Baby Do You Wanna Bump," "One Way Ticket," "Rasputin," "MC Battle The Blade Squad - Gotta Go," "MC Battle The Subsonics 1 - Painter Man," "Brown Girl In The Ring," "MC Battle The Subsonics 2 - Rasputin," "Girl I`m Gonna Miss You," "I Can`t Stand Rain," "Where Do You Go," "Got A Man On My Mind," "Blame It On The Rain," "When I Die," "Calendar Song," "Ma Baker: Reprise, "Let It All Be Music," "When I Die" reprise, "The Sun God Karu," "Hooray Hooray! It`s A Holi - Holiday," "Daddy Cool," "Rivers Of Babylon," "Brown Girl In The Ring." Available at DressCircle.com.

Essential Classics - Musicals
(Warner - on 3 DVDs)
Order at CD Universe
Disc 1: My Fair Lady (Rex Harrison, Audrey Hepburn); commentary by art director Gene Allen, singer Marni Nixon and restorers Robert A. Harris and James C. Katz. Disc 2: Singin' in the Rain (Gene Kelly, Donald O'Connor, Debbie Reynolds); commentary by Debbie Reynolds, Donald O'Connor, Cyd Charisse, Kathleen Freeman, co-director Stanley Donen, screenwriters Betty Comden and Adolph Green, filmmaker Baz Luhrmann and historian Rudy Behlmer; trailer. Disc 3: Gigi (Leslie Caron, Maurice Chevalier, Louis Jourdan, Hermione Gingold, Eva Gabor); trailer.

Evil Dead The Musical
(Time-Life - new on CD)
Order at CD Universe |
Off Broadway cast recording. Book and lyrics by George Reinblatt, music by Frank Cipolla, Christopher Bond, Melissa Morris and George Reinblatt. Recorded December 17, 2006. Jennifer Byrne, Jenna Coker, Renée Klapmeyer, Tom Walker, Ryan Ward, Brandon Wardell, Ryan Williams and Darryl Winslow. "Look for the Dead," "Cabin in the Woods," "Stupid Bitch," "Housewares Employee," "Evil Trees," "It Won't Let Us Leave," "Look Who's Evil Now," "What the Fuckk Was That?," "Join Us," "Good Old Reliable Jake (Intro)," "Good Old Reliable Jake," "Housewares Employee (Reprise)," "Death is a Bitch," "I'm Not a Killer," "Evil Puns," "Bit Part Demon," "Good..Bad..I'm the Guy with the Gun," "All the Men in My Life Keep Getting Killed," "Ode to an Accidental Stabbing," "Boomstick," "Do the Necronomicon," "It's Time," "We Will Never Die," "S-Mart," "Blew the Bitch Away," "Groovy."

Fran Broadway Till Duvemala (From Broadway To Duvemala)
(JAY Records - )
Previously available in Sweden. "Karleken Forandrar Allt" ("Love Changes Everything" - Aspects Of Love) - Niklas Andersson; "Sommarnatt" ("Summer Nights" - Grease) - Therese Andersson, Martin Kagemark and Ensemble; "Du Maste Finnas" (Kristina Fran Duvemala) - Viktoria Krantz; "Allt Vad Jag Begar" ("All I Ask Of You" - The Phantom Of The Opera) - Viktoria Krantz and Michael Jansson; "Amerika" ("America" - West Side Story) - Anette Friberg, Michael Jansson and Company; "Vad Gor Jag Med Min Karlek" ("I Don't Know How To Love Him" - Jesus Christ Superstar) - Anna Ahlborg; "Full Av Live" ("I Got Life" - Hair) - Niklas Andersson; "Minnet" ("Memory" - Cats) - May Schjorlien; "En Varid Av Toner" ("The Sound Of Music" - The Sound Of Music) - May Schjorlien; "Grat Inte Mer Argentina" ("Don't Cry For Me Argentina" - Evita) - Viktoria Krantz; "For Mig Sjalv" ("On My Own" - Les Miserables) - Evelyn Jons; "I Natt" ("Tonight/Quintet" - West Side Story) - Anette Friberg, Niklas Andersson, Therese Andersson and Company; "Cabaret" ("Cabaret" - Cabaret) - Evelyn Jons; "An En Dag" ("One Day More" - Les Miserables) - Company.

James Cagney Signature Collection
(Warner - on 5 DVDs)
Order at CD Universe
West Point Story, with Doris Day, Gordon MacRae, Gene Nelson, and Virginia Mayo, and songs by Jule Styne and Sammy Cahn; The Bride Came C.O.D. with Bette Davis; Captain Of The Clouds; The Fighting 69th; Torrid Zone, with Ann Sheridan.

Jane Eyre
(Fox - on DVD)
Order at CD Universe
1944 film with Orson Welles, Joan Fontaine, Margaret O'Brien, Peggy Ann Garner, John Sutton, Elizabeth Taylor.

Kurt Weill in America
(Andreasong - new on CD)
Based on the 92nd Street Y's "Lyrics & Lyricists" series concert (conceived, written and directed by Andrea Marcovicci). Andrea Marcovicci, Anna Bergman, Barbara Brussell, Mark Coffin, Chuck Cooper, Jeff Harnar and Maude Maggart. Songs written by Kurt Weill with Oscar Hammerstein, Langston Hughes, Alan Jay Lerner, Ogden Nash, Paul Green and Ann Ronell. 48-page booklet with complete lyrics, color photos and in-depth liner notes. Frank Skillern executive producer. "Green-Up Time" (Love Life), "Life, Love and Laughter" (Firebrand of Florence), "Jenny's Song" (Johnny Johnson), "Oh! The Rio Grande" (The Cowboy Song)" (Johnny Johnson), "Buddy on the Nightshift" (The Lunchtime Follies) Street Scene Suite: Wouldn't You Like to Be on Broadway?/What Good Would the Moon Be?/We'll Go Away Together/Lonely House/We'll Go Away, "Together" (reprise), "Love Song" (Love Life), "Here I'll Stay" (Love Life), "Sing Me Not a Ballad" (Firebrand of Florence), "The River Is So Blue" (Blockade), "Westwind/It Never Was You" (One Touch of Venus/Knickerbocker Holiday), "Thousands of Miles" (Lost In The Stars), "Lost In The Stars" (Lost In The Stars), "I'm a Stranger Here Myself" (One Touch of Venus), "That's Him" (One Touch of Venus), "Foolish Heart" (One Touch of Venus), "Speak Low" (One Touch of Venus), "There's Nowhere to Go But Up" (KNICKERBOCKER HOLIDAY), "This Is New" (Lady In The Dark), "My Ship" (Lady In The Dark), "September Song" (Lady In The Dark), "This Time Next Year" (Huckleberry Finn), "Come in Mornin'" (Huckleberry Finn) Available at www.marcoviccicollection.com/Kurt_Weill.html.

Les Miserables
(Fox - on 2 DVDs)Order at CD Universe
1935 and 1952 versions. Fredric March, Charles Laughton, Cedric Hardwicke, Rochelle Hudson, Florence Eldridge/Michael Rennie, Debra Paget, Robert Newton, Edmund Gwenn, Sylvia Sidney. Extra: restoration comparisons and Vidoq featurette "The Fugitive and the Pursuer."

Let's Put On a Show!: Theatre Production for Novices
(Heinemann Drama - Paperback Book)
By theatre producer Stewart F. Lane. For novice and first-time theatre producers at all levels. How-tos on the fundamentals selecting a show, finding a theatre space, putting together your creative team, holding auditions and making casting decisions, scheduling rehearsals, promoting the show, etc.

The Light in the Piazza
(Theatre Communications Group - Paperback Book)
Libretto for Craig Lucas/Adam Guettel musical, 2005 Broadway production.

The Long, Long Trailer/Forever, Darling
(Film Score Monthly - new on CD)
Desi Arnaz/Lucille Ball twofer. Premiere release of both soundtracks. Bonuses for stereo The Long, Long Trailer (score by Adolph Deutsch): "Breezin' Along With the Breeze" (Haven Gillespie, Seymour Simons and Richard A. Whiting) in an unused orchestration and Desi's vocals for a comedy sequence. Bonuses for monaural Forever, Darling (score by Bronislau Kaper with lyrics by Sammy Cahn): outtakes plus 45rpm single Arnaz recorded with his orchestra of "Forever, Darling" (backed by "The Straw Hat Song") released on MGM Records. Available at Film ScoreMonthly.com and Footlight.com.

Love Songs of the 70s - Donny Osmond
(Decca - new on CD)
Order at CD Universe |
"I Can See Clearly Now," "Sometimes When We Touch," "Let's Stay Together," "Laughter In The Rain," "When I Need You," "How Long," "Mandy," "You Are So Beautiful," "Will It Go Round In Circles," "How Deep Is Your Love," "Alone Again Naturally," "If."

Marieann Meringolo: Here's To The Ladies! A Salute To Great Ladies In Song
(CD/DVD)
Salute to singers recorded at the Metropolitan Room. "Luck Be A Lady/Oh Lady Be Good/The Lady Is A Tramp," "I'm A Woman," "Fever," "Dionne Medley," "Hey There," "Italian Menu," "La Vie En Rose," "Where Is It Written/I'm The Greatest Star," "Little Luncheonette," "Listen To My Heart," "I'm Always Chasing Rainbows/Over The Rainbow," "Get Happy," "I Am Blessed." Available at CDBaby.com.

Notes on a Scandal
(Fox - new on DVD)
Order at CD Universe
2006 film with Judi Dench, Cate Blanchett, Bill Nighy. Extras: audio commentaries by director Richard Eyre; behind the scenes documentary "In Character with Cate Blanchett"; "Webisodes (4); Notes on a Scandal: The Story of Two Obsessions" featurette; interview "A Conversation with Cate Blanchett and Bill Nighy." Released 4/17/07

The Odd Couple - The First Season
(Paramount - on 5 DVDs)
Order at CD Universe
Classic TV series based on Neil Simon play. Jack Klugman, Tony Randall, Jerry Paris, Garry Marshall star. First season (1970-71), 24 episodes. Guest stars include Carole Shelley, Monica Evans, Barney Martin, George Furth, John Astin, Ellen Corby, E.J. Peaker.

The Queen
(Miramax - new on DVD)
Order at CD Universe
2006 film with Helen Mirren, Michael Sheen, James Cromwell, Sylvia Syms, Alex Jennings. Directed by Stephen Frears. Extras: commentary by Stephen Frears, writer Peter Morgan, British historian and royal expert Robert Lacey, author of Majesty;" The making of The Queen" featurette.

Tarzan - Original Netherlands Cast
(new on CD)
Dutch cast recording of Phil Collins' score. Ron Link, Chantal Janzen, Jeroen Phaff, Chaira Borderslee, Clayton Peroti, Hans Ligtvoet, Arie Rustenburg. Available at SoundofMusic.de.

West Point Story
(Warner - new on DVD)
Order at CD Universe
1950 musical film. James Cagney, Doris Day, Gordon MacRae, Gene Nelson, and Virginia Mayo. Songs by Jule Styne and Sammy Cahn.

April 17, 2007

Ella Fitzgerald: The Legendary First Lady Of Song
(Image Entertainment - new on DVD)
Order at CD Universe
PBS biography/documentary. 79 minutes.

Frost/Nixon: A Play
(Faber & Faber - Paperback Book)
New play by Peter Morgan (The Queen). Starts a run on Broadway on March 31.

The Hired Man "In Concert"
(JAY Records - )
1992 recording, previously 2-CD release on TER label. Howard Goodall score. Clare Burt, Paul Clarkson, Gerard Doyle, Billy Hartman, Julia Hills, Caroline Mander, Philip Schofield, Richard Walsh, Christopher Wild. iTunes only.

The History Boys
(Fox - new on DVD)
Order at CD Universe
Film version of Alan Bennett's play directed by Nicholas Hytner. Richard Griffiths, Frances De La Tour, Clive Merrison, Stephen Campbell Moore, Samuel Barnett, Dominic Cooper, James Corden, and Russell Tovey. Extras: audio commentary with director Nicholas Hytner and writer Alan Bennett; History Boys around the World: Tour Diaries; Pass it On: The History Boys on Screen.

April 10, 2007

Berlin
(Redstone - new on CD)
2006 studio cast album of Tim J. Spencer score (premiered in 2006 in UK). Sarah Tuson, Mark Randall, Nick Goodwin and Kevin Wing. "Overture," "Hammer and Sickle," "The State and I," "Take a Dream," "Always through Always," "The West in the East," "When the Dream is Gone," "Chant of the Wall," "Berlin belongs to me," "Judgement Day," "Joshua," "Just your son," "Trio," "Freedom 1," "Hold me, love me," "Freedom 2." Available at Footlight.com.

Best of Lucy & Friends
(Mill Creek - on 4 DVDs)
Order at CD Universe

Doris Day Collection Vol. 2
(Warner - on 6 DVDs)
Order at CD Universe
Six films: By The Light of the Silvery Moon, I'll See You In My Dreams, Lucky Me, My Dream Is Yours, On Moonlight Bay, and Romance On The High Seas.

The Drowsy Chaperone
(Ghostlight - new on vinyl)
Second pressing now available. Cast album of the Man in the Chair's favorite musical, with added scene dialogue, vintage cover artwork, Broadway production photographs, lyrics, liner notes and an included bonus CD of the vinyl record's content. Cast listed as their character names. Side One: Overture (Orchestra), "Fancy Dress" (Company), "Cold Feets" (Percy Hyman, Cyril Devlin), "Show Off" (Jane Roberts, Company), "As We Stumble Along" (Beatrice Stockwell); Side Two: "I Am Aldolpho" (Roman Bartelli, Beatrice Stockwell), "Accident Waiting To Happen" (Robert Martin, Jane Roberts), "Toledo Surprise" (The Tall Brothers, Jack Adler, Sadie Adler, Company), "Bride's Lament" —Jane Roberts), "Love Is Always Lovely In the End" (Ukelele Lil, Noel Fitzpatrick), "I Do, I Do In the Sky" (Gwendoline Hall, Company). Available at GhostlightRecords.com Portion of the proceeds will benefit The Actors' Fund of America.

Lari White - My First Affair
(Skinny WhiteGirl Records - new on CD)
New album of songs from Lari White's (Ring of Fire) Oak Room show. "Please Be Kind / Gotta Have Me Go With You," "There's a Terrific Band," "Doatsy Mae," "Minor Changes," "Museums," "Forgiveness' Embrace," "Love Me or Leave Me," "Falling in Love With Love / a Cockeyed Optimist," "Over and Over," "It Ain't My Business," "Where Is It Written/ No Wonder / a Piece of Sky," "It's a New World." Available at CDBaby.com

Laugh Lines: Short Comic Plays
(Vintage - Paperback Book)
Editors Eric Lane and Nina Shengold. Thirty-six comic short plays by major American playwrights and emerging new voices. Includes Steve Martin's The Zig-Zag Woman, Steven Dietz's The Spot, Christopher Durang's Wanda's Visit, Shel Silverstein's The Best Daddy, Mark O'Donnell's There Shall Be No Bottom (a bad play for worse actors), Elaine May's The Way of All Fish, Alan Ball's Your Mother's Butt. Plays for casts of all sizes, from monologues to large ensembles, with diverse and challenging roles for actors of every age and type.

A Little Midsummer Night's Music
(PS Classics - new on CD)
Order at CD Universe
Songs and instrumental musical from Groovelily's production of A Midsummer Night's Dream seen at Paper Mill and McCarter Theatre in 2006. Songs from the show and shorter passages that the group has developed and shaped into suites for this new recording: "When I Dream," "Overture," "Titania Suite," "Fairy Suite," "Malevolent Oberon Suite," "While You Were Sleeping," "Lysander Wakes: And Run Through Fire," "Demetrius Wakes: Oh, Helen," "Benevolent Oberon Suite," "Slings Of Eros / Bergomask Dance / Bows," "All Shall Be Well." Written and performed by Valerie Vigoda, Brendan Milburn, and Gene Lewin. Store released date. Available on PS Classics website now.

The Making of The Sound of Music
(Routledge - Paperback Book)
Max Wilk's eyewitness view of the full story of the making of the show, from the first rough ideas through the tryouts, fine tuning, and eventual triumph.

Martin Short: Fame Becomes Me
(Ghostlight - new on CD)  
Order at CD Universe
Original Broadway cast recording. Martin Short, Marc Shaiman, Brooks Ashmanskas, Mary Birdsong, Capathia Jenkins, Nicole Parker. Recorded November 30. "Another Curtain Goes Up," "All I Ask (Is You Love Me)," "Three Gorgeous Kids," "Bib Titties," "The Salesman That Got Away," "Sittin' on the Fence," "The Jackie Rogers Jr. Show," "Ba Ba Ba Ba Broadway," "The Hello Boy," "The Strumpet of Samaria," "Step, Brother, to Jesus," "Backstage Courtship," "Married to Marty," "Sniff Sniff," "A Dry Martin - Straight Up with a Twist," "Twelve Step Pappy," "More, More, More," "Would You Like to Star in Our Show," "I Came Just As Soon As I Heard," "A Wicked Memorial," "Michael's Song," "Heaven, Heaven," "Up Here in Heaven," "A Big Black Lady Stops the Show," "Finale," "Lessons Learned," "Glass Half Full," "Frieda May's Lament."

My First Five Husbands ... And the Ones Who Got Away
(Broadway - Hardcover Book)
By Rue McClanahan.

Praying with Prophets - Richard Crafton
(new on CD)
Songs from play Sticks and Stones. Available at CDBaby.com.

Simply Barbra: The Duets Album
(LML Music - new on CD)
Order at CD Universe
Steven Brinberg sings "If I Ever Loved Him" (with Betsy Joslyn), "When In Rome" (with Kaye Ballard), "At The Ballet" (with Alix Korey), "If We Were In Love" (with Hugh Panaro), "I Wish I Were In Love Again" (with Heather MacRae), "The Other Woman" (with Karen Mason), "Only With You" (with Mark Sendroff), "My Own Best Friend" (with KT Sullivan), "One Less Bell To Answer/A House Is Not A Home" (with Debbie Gravitte), "Why Can't I Walk Away" (with Mimi Hines), "Someone At Last/Funny Girl" (with Claiborne Cary). .

Sweeney Todd - The Director's Cut
(Acorn Media - new on DVD)
Order at CD Universe
2006 BBC (non-musical) production featuring Ray Winstone, Essie Davis, Ben Walker. Includes footage not seen in the BBC broadcast; Sweeney Todd background essay; cast filmographies.

This Ordinary Thursday: The Songs of Georgia Stitt
(PS Classics - new on CD)
Order at CD Universe
Debut album of Georgia Stitt songs, featuring Andrea Burns, Matthew Morrison, Jenn Colella, Lauren Kennedy, Cheyenne Jackson, Tituss Burgess, Carolee Carmello, Keith Byron Kirk, Faith Prince, Sara Ramirez, Will Chase, Kelli O'Hara and Susan Egan. Produced by Jeffrey Lesser. "The Holy Secret," "One Day More," "Big Wings," "I Lay My Armor Down," "She," "Life Is Not A Camera," "These Two," "It Almost Felt Like Love," "I Get To Show You The Ocean," "Air," "Perfect Summer," "This Ordinary Thursday."

April 3, 2007

All That Glittered: The Golden Age of Drama on Broadway, 1919-1959
(St. Martin's Press - Hardcover Book)
By Ethan Mordden.

All That Jazz: Music Edition
(Fox - on DVD)
Order at CD Universe
New release of Bob Fosse's 1979 semi-autobiographical film. Roy Scheider, Cliff Gorman, Jessica Lange, John Lithgow, Leland Palmer, Ann Reinking, Ben Vereen. Bonuses: audio commentary with Film Editor Alam Heim; "Portrait Of A Choreographer"; "Perverting The Standards"; making of the song "On Broadway"; Movie-ole "Take Off With Us"; Music Machine (access musical numbers through scene selection); production snapshots gallery.

Andrew Lloyd Webber - Divas
(Hal Leonard - Paperback Book)
Collection of ALW ballads for females. Includes 18 songs: "All I Ask of You," "Another Suitcase in Another Hall," "As If We Never Said Goodbye," "Buenos Aires," "Don't Cry for Me Argentina," "I Don't Know How to Love Him," "Learn to Be Lonely," "Love Changes Everything," "Memory," "The Music of the Night," "The Perfect Year," "Rainbow High," "Surrender," "Take That Look off Your Face," "Tell Me on a Sunday," "Tire Tracks and Broken Hearts," "Whistle down the Wind," "With One Look."

John Barrowman Aspects of Lloyd Webber
(JAY Records - new on CD)

9 track special CD released in UK and on iTunes. US release in June.

Broadway Scene Stealers: The Men
(Sony Masterworks - compilation on CD)
Order at CD Universe  
"Giants In The Sky," (Ben Wright), "All I Need Is the Girl" (Paul Wallace), "Dream Drummin'/Soft Music" (John Travolta), "The Viper's Drag" (Andre DeShields), "Franklin Shepard, Inc." (Lonny Price), "The Lees of Old Virginia" (Ron Holgate), "Bigger Isn't Better" (Leonard John Crofoot), "Miracle of Miracles" (Austin Pendleton), "I've Got Your Number" (Swen Swenson), "Joey, Joey, Joey" (Art Lund), "Captain Hook's Waltz" (Cyril Ritchard), "Mr. Cellophane" (Barney Martin).

Broadway Scene Stealers: The Women
(Sony Masterworks - compilation on CD
Order at CD Universe  
"Ooh! My Feet" (Susan Johnson), "Cash for Your Trash" (Nell Carter), "Deep In The Night (Linda Hopkins from Inner City, new to CD)," "He Plays the Violin" (Betty Buckley), "The Miller's Son" (D'Jamin Bartlett), "Gooch's Song" (Jane Connell), "Miss Marmelstein" (Barbra Streisand), "Little Girls" (Dorothy Loudon), "Everybody's Girl (from "Steel Pier")" (Debra Monk), "Mr. Monotony" (Debbie Shapiro-Gravitte ), "When You're Good To Mama" (Mary McCarty), "You Can Always Count on Me" (Randi Graff).

The Bubbly Black Girl Sheds Her Chameleon Skin
(Ghostlight - new on CD)
Order at CD Universe  
World Premiere studio recording of Kirsten Childs score. LaChanze, Felicia Finley, Jerry Dixon, Cheryl Alexander, Natalie Venetia Belcon , Angel Desai and Shayna Steele, Jonathan Dokuchitz, Darius de Haas. "Welcome to L.A.," "Sweet Chitty Chatty," "Smile, Smile," "Dance Class," "The Skate," "Sticks & Stones," "Pass the Flame," "War Is Not Good," "Brave New World," "Give It Up," "Belle of the Ball," "Beautiful Bright Blue Sky," "Legacy," "Who's That Bubbly Black Girl?," "Secretarial Pool," "Pretty," "Director Bob," "Come With Me," "Granny's Advice," "Listen!," "There Was a Girl."

David Shire At The Movies
(Kritzerland - on CD)
Originally released in 1992. Collection of David Shire's playing his own film music. Maureen McGovern and Carol Neblett. Limited release of 1200 copies. Bonus: Mr. Shire's "Sonata for Cocktail Piano." Remastered with new notes by David Shire. Produced by Bruce Kimmel and Nick Redman. 77+ minutes. "Max Dugan Returns" (Dominic Fera, clarinet), "It Goes Like It Goes" from Norma Rae (Sung by Maureen McGovern, Lyric by Norman Gimbel), "Farewell, My Lovely", "Old Boyfriends" (Pamela Goldsmith, viola), "Only When I Laugh" (Sung by Maureen McGovern, Lyric by Richard Maltby, Jr.), "The Conversation", "Bed and Breakfast (Suite)" (Stuart Canin, violin), "‘Night Mother" (Tommy Tedesco, guitar), "I'll Never Say Goodbye" from The Promise (Sung by Maureen McGovern, Lyric by Marilyn and Alan Bergman), "With You I'm Born Again" from Fast Break, "The Hindenburg" (Carol Neblett, soprano; Malcolm McNab, trumpet), "Something For Joey", "Halfway Home" from The Earthling (Sung by Maureen McGovern, Lyric by Carol Connors and David Shire), "Return To Oz (Suite)" (Stuart Canin, violin; Ron Leonard, cello; Dominic Fera, clarinet; Malcolm McNab, trumpet and cornet), "Sonata for Cocktail Piano." Available at Kritzerland.com.

Ethel Waters: Stormy Weather
(Scarecrow Press - Paperback Book)
Stephen Bourne documents the career of this monumental figure in American popular culture, offering new insights into the work of this forgotten legend. Supplemented by fourteen photographs.

Grey Gardens - the Original Broadway Cast Recording
(PS Classics - new on CD)
New CD of Scott Frankel-Michael Korie score with 2006 Broadway cast. New songs to be combined with tracks from original Off-Broadway cast recording. New material includes "The Girl Who Has Everything," "Goin' Places," "Marry Well," the final moments of the musical, and the songs in which cast newcomer Erin Davie sings. There is no official street date," as stores will simply begin stocking the new CD once supplies of the old CD run out (after which, the Off-Broadway cast recording will be going out of print with this release). All-new 32-page color booklet, with all-new photos. Available at PSClassics.com.

Grey Gardens - the original Off-Broadway cast
(PS Classics - on CD)
2006 Off Broadway cast recording. Music by Scott Frankel; Lyrics by Michael Korie. Matt Cavenaugh, Christine Ebersole, Sara Gettelfinger, Sarah Hyland, John McMartin, Michael Potts, Bob Stillman, Audrey Twitchell, Mary Louise Wilson. Selling for $4.95 at PSClassics.com while supplies last.

Leonard Bernstein - Art Songs and Arias: High Voice
(Boosey and Hawkes - Paperback Book)
The collection features new transcriptions, previously unpublished material, and some selections never before published separately from complete vocal scores. 29 selections: "Thank You" from Mass, "Afterthought, "A Big Indian and a Little Indian" from I Hate Music!, "Civet a Toute Vitesse (Rabbit at Top Speed)" from La Bonne Cuisine, "Extinguish My Eyes" from TWO LOVE SONGS, "Glitter and Be Gay" from Candide, "Greeting" from Arias and Barcarolles, "Hurry" from Mass, "I Hate Music!" from I Hate Music!, "I'm a Person Too" from I Hate Music!, "I've Been Afraid" from A Quiet Place, "A Julia de Burgos" from Songfest, "Jupiter Has Seven Moons" from I Hate Music!, "Little Smary" from Arias and Barcarolles, "Mommy, Are You Here (Dede's Aria)" from A Quiet Place, "Music I Heard with You" from Songfest, "My Name Is Barbara" from I Hate Music!, "My Twelve-Tone Melody," "Our Father... I Go on" from Mass, "Piccola Serenata," "Plum Pudding" from La Bonne Cuisine, "Queues de Boeuf (Ox-Tails)" from La Bonne Cuisine, "Silhouette" (Galilee), "A Simple Song" from Mass, "Tavouk Gueunksis" from La Bonne Cuisine, "When My Soul Touches Yours" from Two Love Songs, "The Word of the Lord" from Mass, "World Without End" from Mass, "Zizi's Lament" from Songfest. 152 pages.

Leonard Bernstein - Art Songs and Arias: Medium/Low Voice
(Boosey and Hawkes - Paperback Book)
The collection features new transcriptions, previously unpublished material, and some selections never before published separately from complete vocal scores. 35 selections: "Afterthought," "A Big Indian and a Little Indian" from I Hate Music!, "Civet a Toute Vitesse (Rabbit at Top Speed)" from La Bonne Cuisine, "Extinguish My Eyes" from Two Love Songs, "Greeting" from Arias and Barcarolles, "Hey, Big Daddy (Junior's Aria)" from A Quiet Place, "Hurry" from Mass, "I Hate Music!" from I Hate Music!, "I'm a Person Too" from I Hate Music!, "A Julia de Burgos" from Songfest, "Jupiter Has Seven Moons" from I Hate Music!, "Lamentation" from Symphony No1 Jeremiah, "Little Smary" from Arias and Barcarolles, "Music I Heard with You" from Songfest, "My Name Is Barbara" from I Hate Music!, "My Twelve-Tone Melody, "Our Father... I Go on" from Mass, "The Pennycandystore Beyond the El" from Songfest, "Piccola Serenata, "Plum Pudding" from La Bonne Cuisine, "Queues de Boeuf (Ox-Tails)" from La Bonne Cuisine, "Silhouette (Galilee), "A Simple Song" from Mass, "Tavouk Gueunksis" from La Bonne Cuisine, "Thank You" from Mass, "There Is a Garden" from Trouble in Tahiti, "There's a Law" from Trouble in Tahiti, "To What You Said" from Songfest, "What a Movie!" from Trouble in Tahiti, "What Lips My Lips Have Kissed" from Songfest, "When My Soul Touches Yours" from Two Love Songs, "The Word of the Lord" from Mass, "World Without End" from Mass, "You're Late (Sam's Aria)" from A Quiet Place, "Zizi's Lament" from Songfest.   192 pages.

The Leslie Bricusse Songbook
(Cherry Lane Music - Paperback Book/Hardcover Book)
Collection of 66 tunes from the British composer who penned hit songs for stage and film, including Stop the World —I Want to Get Off, The Roar of the Greasepaint —The Smell of the Crowd, Willy Wonka & The Chocolate Factory, Dr. Doolittle, Victor/Victoria, and many others. Includes dozens of color and black & white photos, a biography, a foreword and autobiographical notes by Bricusse, and extensive notes about each of the shows. Includes PVG arrangements of: "Can You Read My Mind?," "The Candy Man," "Goldfinger," "Gonna Build a Mountain," "If I Ruled the World," "Le Jazz Hot," "Once in a Lifetime," "Pure Imagination," "A Shot in the Dark," "Somewhere in My Memory," "Talk to the Animals," "Thank You Very Much," "This Is the Moment," "What Kind of Fool Am I?," "When I Look in Your Eyes," "Who Can I Turn To (When Nobody Needs Me)?," "A Wonderful Day like Today," "You Only Live Twice" and more.

Martha Raye Swings
(Sepia - new on CD)
Order at CD Universe
"My Little Cousin," "Oh The Pity Of It All," "Pig Foot Pete," "Three Little Sisters," "Together," "Ol' Man River," "(If You Can't Sing It) You'll Have To Swing It," "Body And Soul," "Peter, Peter Pumpkin Eater," "I Got It Bad And That Ain't Good," "I Cover The Waterfront," "As Long As I Live," "Sweet Lorraine," "Nobody Knows The Trouble I've Seen," "The Boy Next Door," "After You've Gone," "Lotus Land," "Miss Otis Regrets," "Life's Only Joy," "Ooh, Dr. Kinsey!," "Blues In The Night," "Wolf Boy," "Close To Me," "That Old Black Magic."

Mayflower Madam
(Echo Bridge - new on DVD)
Order at CD Universe
1987 TV movie based on the life and career of Sydney Biddle Barrows. Candace Bergen, Chris Sarandon, and Chita Rivera.

Nunsensations! The Nunsense Vegas Revue
(Nunsense, Inc - new on DVD)
Dan Goggin musical. Starring the World Premiere New York Cast - Deborah Del Mastro, Bambi Jones, Carrie Keskinen, Bonnie Lee, Jeanne Tinker and Georgia Engel. 102 minutes.

Pull Both Ends
(JAY/TER - new Digital download)

1972 Original London Cast recording. Judy Bowen, Michael Cotterill, Miles Greenwood, Christine Holmes, John Hughes, Gerry Marsden, Keith Smith, Susan Todgood, The Young Generation. Anthony King, John Schroeder score. Previously on LP; CD issue not expected.

Royal Flash
(Fox - new on DVD)
Order at CD Universe
1975 film with Richard Lester, Alan Bates, Alastair Sim, Britt Ekland, Oliver Reed, Florinda Bolkan, Malcolm McDowell, Michael Hordern. Extras: commentary by Malcolm McDowell; "Inside 'Royal Flash'"; "Meet Harry Flashman" featurette.

Stanley Donen's Bedazzled
(Fox - new on DVD)
Order at CD Universe
1967 film. Peter Cook, Dudley Moore (his music scoring debut), Michael Bates, Eleanor Bron, Barry Humphries, Robert Russell, Raquel Welch. Additional Footage: "The Paul Ryan Show"; featurettes: "A Bedazzled Conversation with Harold Ramis"; interviews: Dudley Moore, Peter Cook; trailers.

March 27, 2007

Broadway Musicals of 1929
(Bayview Records - new on CD)
March 7, 2005 Town Hall concert. Nancy Anderson, Emily Skinner, Bryan Batt, Noah Racey, Jeffry Denman, Leslie Anderson, Christine Andreas, Mary Bond Davis, Ron Bohmer. Four songs sung "unplugged." "I Can't Remember The Words" (Murray Anderson's Almanac), "Liza" (Show Girl) "You Don"t Know Paree" (Fifty Million Frenchmen), "My Husband's First Wife" Sweet Adeline, "Why Cant I?" (Spring Is Here), "I Guess I'll Have To Change My Plan" (The Little Show), "Find Me A Primitive Man" (Fifty Million Frenchmen), "It's You I Love" (Sons O' Guns), "Moanin' Low" (The Little Show), "Without A Song" (Great Day), "If Love Were All" (Bitter Sweet), "I May be Wrong But I Think You're Wonderful" (Murray Anderson's Almanac), "Can't We Be Friends" (The Little Show), "A Ship Without a Sail" (Heads Up), "More Than You Know" (Great Day), "I Want To Be Bad" (Follow Thru), "I'm A Gigolo" (Wake Up and Dream), "What Is This Thing Called Love?" (Wake Up and Dream), "You Got That Thing" (Fifty Million Frenchmen), "With A Song In My Heart" (Spring Is Here), "Button Up Your Overcoat" (Follow Thru). Available at Footlight.com.

The Cherry Orchard
(BBC Warner - on DVD)
Order at CD Universe
1981 (Judi Dench and Anna Massey) and 1962 (Judi Dench, Peggy Ashcroft and John Gielgud) versions. BBC productions.

The Complete Manhattan Tower
(Sepia - new on CD)
Order at CD Universe
Gordon Jenkins with Beverly Mahr & Elliott Lewis. Remastered 1940s tribute to Manhattan composed and conducted by Jenkins. The original suite of this musical narrative which served as a love story between the narrator Steven and Julie, and the parallel romance between Steven and Manhattan (comprised of "The Magical City," "The Party," "New York's My Home," and "Love In A Tower") was first released in 1946 on two 78 rpm platters where it became a best seller. By 1956, it was expanded with the addition of side trips to a bar, a dance floor, Central Park and Greenwich Village. The suite is complemented on this new release by other Gordon Jenkins recordings. 24 tracks.

Dog Sees God: Confessions of a Teenage Blockhead
(Dramatist's Play Service - Paperback Book)
Play by Bert V. Royal.

John Barrowman Aspects of Lloyd Webber
(JAY Records - new on CD)

9 track special CD released in UK and on iTunes. US release in June.

The Judi Dench Collection
(BBC Warner - on 8 DVDs)
Order at CD Universe
With television appearances: "The Cherry Orchard" (1962), "Talking to a Stranger, Parts One and Two" (1966), "Talking to a Stranger, Parts Three and Four" (1966), "Keep an Eye on Amelie" (1978)/"Make and Break" (1987), "Langrishe, Go Down" (1978)/"Absolute Hell" (1991), "The Cherry Orchard" (1981), Ghosts (1987), and "Can You Hear Me Thinking?" (1990)/"Going Gently" (1981). Bonuses: "Judi Dench: My Favorite Things" (1985, 30 min); "Judi Dench talks to Richard Eyre" (2002, 59 min), audio-only radio plays "With Great Pleasure" (1991, 44 min), "Are You Still Awake?" (1994, 15 min) and "Amy's View" (2000, 123 min); 12-minute bit in which Dench sings "Send in the Clowns" and discusses her 1996 Olivier-winning performance in A Little Night Music.

A Little Princess
(Original Cast Records - new on CD)
Studio cast recording of Mel Atkey score. 19 tracks. Kelly Quinn, Anthony Hold, Patty Montano, Brian Breen. Available at Footlight.com.

Measure for Pleasure
(Dramatist's Play Service - Paperback Book)
Play by David, Dr. Grimm. Produced in March 2006 at Public Theatre.

Nancy Walker: My Square Laddie And Other Songs
(Sepia - new on CD)
Order at CD Universe
Spoof recording or My Fair Lady, with Reginald Gardiner and ZaSu Pitts. 16 Walker bonus tracks include "I Can Cook Too."

Partners In Music: Petula Clark & Joe "Mr. Piano" Henderson
(Sepia - new on CD)
Order at CD Universe
Collection of restored songs, featuring Petula's earliest known BBC broadcast from 1942, film songs from her early career and other rare radio broadcasts; and Joe's first recordings plus two of his British chart entries, Sing It With Joe and Sing It Again With Joe - a sing-along medley of popular standards featuring amongst others the voices of Petula and Alma Cogan. The final track, "Golden Guinea," was Petula's first published composition performed here by Joe. 28 tracks.

Sideshow Alley
(new on CD)
Original Australian cast album. Paul Keelan (music) and Gary Young (lyrics) score. Guy Simpson orchestrations. Available at www.broadwayatbedtime.com and Middle Eight Music.

March 20, 2007

Acting Teachers of America: A Vital Tradition
(Allworth Press - Paperback Book)
By Ronald Rand and Luigi Scorcia. Foreword by J. Michael Miller. Insights from interviews with 50 of the most distinguished acting teachers in America, also actors and directors: Michael Howard, Lloyd Richards, Olympia Dukakis, John Strasberg, Larry Moss, Anne Bogard, Zelda Fichandler, William Esper, Eric Morris, Terry Schreiber, Anne Jackson, Milton Katselas, Andre De Shields, Michael Kahn, and Marian Seldes. Published in January.

AFI's Top 100 Movie Songs
(Hal Leonard - Paperback Book)
The American Film Institute celebrates the first 100 years of American filmmaking with this collection amassing the 100 most memorable movie songs from the last century. The songs were chosen by a jury of 1,500 leaders from the creative industry and were decided on the basis of the song, cultural impact, and legacy. Includes: "Over the Rainbow," "As Time Goes By," "Singin' in the Rain," "Moon River" and more.

Essential Self-Defense: A Play
(Faber & Faber - Paperback Book)
Play by Adam Rapp.

The Girl Who Walked Home Alone: Bette Davis, A Personal Biography
(Applause Books - Paperback Book)
Drawing on extensive conversations with Bette Davis during the last decade of her life, Charlotte Chandler gives us a biography in which the great actress speaks for herself. (It was she who suggested that Chandler write this book.) Chandler also spoke with directors, actors, and others who knew and worked with Davis. Hardcover version released 3/06.

Heart and Soul: The Life and Music of Frank Loesser
(PBS - new on DVD)
New documentary that will be airing on PBS stations around the country during December's pledge drive. 90-minute program and bonuses including: The Making of the Soundtrack - 50th Anniversary of Guys & Dolls; Senor Discretion First Day of Rehearsal; audio commentary featuring Director Walter Gottlieb, Editor Michael Gehman, and Joseph Weiss, Manager of Frank Loesser Enterprises

Into the Woods
(Sony/BMG - on CD)
Order at CD Universe
Remastered original cast album. Bernadette Peters, Tom Aldredge, Kim Crosby, Ben Wright, Chip Zien, Joanna Gleason, Robert Westenberg, Barbara Bryne, Joy Franz, Kay McClelland, Lauren Mitchell, Danielle Ferland, Pamela Winslow, Chuck Wagner, Philip Hoffman, Edmund Lyndeck, Merle Louise. Recorded at RCA Studio A, New York, New York on November 9-10, 1987. Masterworks series. Bonuses: "Giants In The Sky," John Cameron Mitchell; "Back To The Palace," Kim Crosby; "Boom Crunch," Maureen Moore (all three selections from the soundtrack of an unreleased 1991 "making of..." documentary). New liner notes by director Richard Jay-Alexander

Maude - The Complete First Season
(Sony - on 3 DVDs)
Order at CD Universe
Bea Arthur, Bill Macy, Brian Morrison, Conrad Bain. Includes every episode of the first season (22 episodes), featuring guest stars such as Rue McClanahan, John Amos, and Tom Bosley.

Merrily We Roll Along
(Sony/BMG - on CD)
Order at CD Universe
Remastered original cast album. Jim Walton, Ann Morrison, Lonny Price, Sally Klein, Jason Alexander, Terry Finn, Liz Callaway, Daisy Prince, Tonya Pinkins. Additional personnel includes: Paul Gemignani, conductor. Masterworks series. Bonuses: "Not a Day Goes By," Bernadette Peters (from Sondheim: A Celebration at Carnegie Hall); "It's a Hit!," Stephen Sondheim (from Sondheim's archive). New liner notes by director Richard Jay-Alexander

The Musical World of Boublil and Schonberg
(Applause Books - Paperback Book)
by Margaret Vermette; foreword by Colm Wilkinson. Comprehensive look behind the closed doors of these intensely private musical theatre giants. Boublil and Schonberg talk openly about their methods and the creative processes involved in writing the book, the music, and the lyrics. Additional interviews from collaborators such as their co-writers Herbert Kretzmer, Richard Maltby, Stephen Clark, and John Dempsey; their directors Trevor Nunn, John Caird, Nicholas Hytner, Conall Morrison, and Frank Galati; the choreographer of The Pirate Queen, Mark Dendy; and their long-time producer Cameron Mackintosh. Full-color production photographs. 400 pages.

Oklahoma!: The Making of an American Musical
(Yale University Press - Hardcover Book)
By Tim Carter. "Drawing on research from rare theater archives, manuscripts, journalism, and other sources, Carter records every step in the development of Oklahoma! The book is filled with rich and fascinating details about how Rodgers and Hammerstein first came together, the casting process, how Agnes de Mille became the show's choreographer, and the drafts and revisions that ultimately gave the musical its final shape. Carter also shows the lofty aspirations of both the creators and producers and the myth making that surrounded Oklahoma! from its very inception, and demonstrates just what made it part of its times."

Petula
(Varese Vintage - new on DVD)
Order at CD Universe
Aka "Petula Clark Spectacular." 1968 Petula Clark TV special, with Harry Belafonte. Complete with vintage commercials, and extras including new and old interviews with Clark, Belafonte and producer Steve Binder.

Summer of '42
(JAY Records - new on 2 CDs)
Order at CD Universe |
Recorded May 24 2005, after a benefit concert at the York Theater. Rachel York, Ryan Driscoll, Celia Keenan-Bolger, Megan Valerie Walker, Danielle Ferland, Brett Tabisel, Joe Gallagher, Ayal Miodovnik and Bill Buell. Score by David Kirshenbaum; book by Hunter Foster. Also available at Footlight.com.

Sunday in the Park With George
(Sony/BMG - on CD)
Order at CD Universe
Remastered original cast album. Masterworks series. Bonuses: "Putting It Together," Stephen Collins, Rachel York, Michael Rupert, Julie Andrews, Christopher Durang, Scott Frankel (from the cast album of Putting It Together); "Sunday," Bernadette Peters (from Sondheim: A Celebration at Carnegie Hall). New liner notes by director Richard Jay-Alexander

Sweeney Todd
(Sony/BMG - on 2 CDs)
Order at CD Universe
Remastered original cast album, complete. Masterworks series. Bonuses: "Symphonic Sondheim: Sweeney Todd," The American Theatre Orchestra, conducted by Paul Gemignani and "Green Finch And Linnet Bird," Harolyn Blackwell (both from Sondheim: A Celebration at Carnegie Hall); hidden track "Sweet Polly Plunkett" (Julie Andrews, from Putting It Together). New liner notes by director Richard Jay-Alexander

Topsy Turvy Loves
(Original Cast - new on CD)
The new Gilbert & Sullivan Musical based on W.S.Gilbert's play "Engaged." Premiere 2 disc cast recording - 2 hours of songs and dialogue. Adaptation by Robert Sickinger. Available at Footlight.com.

Twenty 10-Minute Plays For Teens Volume 3
(Smith & Kraus - Paperback Book)
Debbie Lamedman, editor. New plays written by the teenaged playwright.

March 13, 2007

3 Men and a Baby ... Grand! Salute the Rat Pack
(LML Music - new on CD)
Order at CD Universe |
Tour concert recording featuring Lee Lessack, Johnny Rodgers and Brian Lane Green. Early 2007 release. Also available at concert venues. Recorded live at Founders Hall at Orange County Performing Arts Center.

David Burnham
(LML Music - new on CD)
Order at CD Universe |
Singer/Actor currently in the Light in the Piazza tour. "Moon River," "Someone To Fall Back On," "As Long As You're Mine (Wicked) - with Eden Espinoza," "Gypsy In My Soul," "Muddy Water (Big River) - with Destan Owen," "Flight," "Love To Me (The Light In The Piazza)," "Maria (West Side Story)," "I Wish I Were In Love Again," "When You Wish Upon A Star / A Dream Is A Wish Your Heart Makes," "Close Every Door (Joseph)" new arrangement by John Bozwell, "The Prayer" - with Piazza co-star Elena Shaddow, "Smile."

Dreamgirls: Music from the Motion Picture Soundtrack
(Hal Leonard - Paperback Book)
"And I Am Telling You I'm Not Going," "Cadillac Car," "Dreamgirls," "Fake Your Way to the Top," "Family," "Hard to Say Goodbye, My Love," "I Am Changing," "I Want You, Baby," "Listen," "Love You I Do," "Move (You're Stepping on My Heart)," "One Night Only," "Patience," "Perfect World," "Steppin' to the Bad Side," "When I First Saw You."

Duets - Petula Clark
(Varese Vintage - on CD)
Order at CD Universe
Collection taken from the soundtracks of TV appearances between 1967-2006. Corner of the Sky" (with Dusty Springfield), "When You Get Right Down to It" (Michael McDonald), "Baby, It's Cold Outside" (Rod McKuen), "On the Path to Glory" (Harry Belafonte), "All I Have to Do Is Dream" (Bobby Darin), "The Windmills of Your Mind" (Michel Legrand), "Can't Get You to Love Me" (Gilbert O'Sullivan), "When I Fall in Love/Let There Be Love" (Oscar Peterson), "I'm in Love Again/If This Isn't Love/Love, Love, Love" (Dean Martin), "The Games People Play" (the Everly Brothers), "I'm a Woman/Wedding Bell Blues" (Peggy Lee), "Fancy Meeting You Here" (Matt Monro), "The People Tree" (Anthony Newley), "Lead Me On" (Sacha Distel), "Together" (Andy Williams).

Equus - Poster (Folio Size)
From current production with Richard Griffiths, Daniel Radcliffe. At DressCircle.co.uk.

The Fabulous Pink Flamingos: Songs from the Lu'au Lounge
(PlanetMonk, Inc. - new on CD)
Lee Cavellier, Ron DeStefano and Jaron Vesely. Based on their 2006 Back Stage Bistro Award Winning evening of Hawaiian-inspired Hularity, coming to The Metropolitan Room in April. Available at CDBaby.com.

I Love Lucy - The Complete Seasons 7-9
(Paramount - on 4 DVDs)
Order at CD Universe
13 digitally remastered one-hour "specials" broadcast from 1957-60 as Desi tried something new; uncut version of "Lucy Takes a Cruise to Havana" (not seen since original broadcast); deleted scenes; flubs; original cast commercials; color footage from the set from 1951; original series openings and closings. Guests include Ann Sothern, Rudy Vallee, June Haver and Fred MacMurray, Tallulah Bankhead, Betty Grable and Harry James, Milton Berle, Red Skelton, Fernando Lamas, Maurice Chevalier, Danny Thomas, Ida Lupino and Howard Duff, and Ernie Kovacs and Edie Adams.

Inspired - Lea Salonga
(Sony/BMG - new on CD)
Order at CD Universe
New studio album of singer's personal favorites. "Who Are You," "To Hear You Say You Love Me," "Two Words," "Sing," "Waiting For Love," "My Foolish Heart," "Do You Hear It," "Brian's Song," "When The Winter's Gone," "When October Goes," "Land Of The Loving," "Promise Me."

The Letter
(DRG - new on CD)
order at CD Universe
Judy Garland/Gordon Jenkins 1959 Capitol LP song cycle plus four additional tracks (two with "alternate vocals") previously released as an a extended 45 promotional record. With Charles LaVere and John Ireland.

Theatre World: Volume 61 2004-2005
(Applause Books - Hardcover/Paperback Book)
John Willis, Ben Hodges. Annual volume covers the 2004-2005 theatre season. Doubt, Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?, Spamalot, The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, The Light in the Piazza, Billy Crystal's 700 Sundays, etc. Color section of highlights; listing of all the major theatrical works; * The longest running shows; on and Off-Broadway listings; biographical data, obituaries, and a comprehensive index.

Warm Brandy - Dolores Gray the Capitol Years
(DRG - new on CD)
Order at CD Universe
Original track list: "Shangri-La," "Penthouse Serenade (When We're Alone)," "You're Getting To Be A Habit With Me," "Kiss Me," "How Long Has This Been Going On?," "Close Your Eyes," "You Go To My Head," "Do-Do-Do," "Speak Low," "Don't Blame Me," "Isn't It Romantic?," "You're My Thrill."

Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?
(Koch/DRG - new on CD)
Order at CD Universe
Remastered soundtrack originally released by Warner Bros. Records. Music composed and conducted by Alex North.

March 6, 2007

Angels in the American Theater: Patrons, Patronage, and Philanthropy
(Southern Illinois Univ. Press - Paperback Book)
By Robert A. Schanke. Sixteen essays about theater patrons —individuals, foundations, and corporations —explore biographical and contextual information about donors —how they became angels, their motivations, the policies and restrictions they created, the kinds of projects they have supported, and their successes and failures.

The Best Stage Scenes 2006 (Best Stage Scenes)
(Smith & Kraus - Paperback Book)
D. L. Lepidus, Editor. Selections from playwrights including Keith Reddin, Pearl Cleage, Don Nigro, Ron Fitzgerald, Eisa Davis, Michael Golamco, John Cariani, and Kenny Finkle.

Carnegie Hall at 100: A Place of Dreams
(Kultur - on DVD)
Order at CD Universe
1991 special. Featuring Leonard Bernstein, Ray Charles, Wynton Marsalis, Julie Andrews, Liza Minnelli and many more. Chapters include: The Orchestral Conductors; The Pianists; Jazz; Comedy; Opera; Pop Music; The American Academy of Dramatic Arts; The Carnegie Studios; Youth Programs; The Violinists; American Folk Music; A Spoken Word Forum; Committee To Save Carnegie Hall.

The Full Monty - Fully Exposed Edition
(Fox - on 2 DVDs)
Order at CD Universe
1997 film featuring Robert Carlyle, Mark Addy and Tom Wilkinson. New extras included. Disc 1: feature film; audio commentaries by Director Peter Cattaneo, Mark Addy; scene specific commentaries; alternate/deleted scenes with commentary; featurettes; trailers and spots; interactive features Music Machine. Disc 2: Behind the Scenes - Developing the Script, Finding the Director, Focus on Sheffield, Anatomy of a Score, Stocksbridge Brass Band Blues, Song & Dance, Editing, Translating English to English The Success and Its Aftermath; documentary - "A Bigger Picture - A Look at the British Film Industry in the '90s."

The Gondoliers
(Albany - Ohio Light Opera)
2006 recording of Gilbert & Sullivan operetta. Ted Christopher, Sandra Ross, Gary Moss, Nicholas Hartley, Jack Beetle, Kemper LeCroy Florin, Sahara Glasener-Boles, Anne Marie Frohnmayer and Adam Lloyd. At Footlight.com.

Heroes
(Grove Press - Paperback Book)
Tom Stoppard's translation of Gérald Sibleyras' Heroes.

Include Me Out: My Life from Goldwyn to Broadway
(St. Martin's Press - Hardcover Book)
By Farley Granger.

Josephine Baker in Art And Life: The Icon And the Image
(Univ. of Illinois Press - Hardcover and Paperback Book)
By Bennetta Jules-Rosette, Njami Simon. Critical cultural study of the life and art of the Franco-American performer whose appearances as the savage dancer Fatou shocked the world.

Scenes from My Life
(Orion - Paperback Book)
Paperback version of March 2006 issue by Judi Dench (edited and introduced by John Miller). Photos from private albums, with reminiscences and captions from Dench's life and career.

Summer of '42
(JAY Records - new on 2 CDs)

Recorded May 24 2005, after a benefit concert at the York Theater. Rachel York, Ryan Driscoll, Celia Keenan-Bolger, Megan Valerie Walker, Danielle Ferland, Brett Tabisel, Joe Gallagher, Ayal Miodovnik and Bill Buell. Score by David Kirshenbaum; book by Hunter Foster. Available now at Footlight.com.

Tarzan: The Staging of a Broadway Spectacular
(Disney Editions - Hardcover Book)
By Michael Lassell.

The Theatre of Martin McDonagh: A World of Savage Stories
(Carysfort Press - Paperback Book)
Edited by Lilian Chambers and Eamonn Jordan. Critics and commentators from around the world offer a diverse range of often provocative approaches to McDonagh's work.

Twenty-eight Artists and Two Saints
(Pantheon - Hardcover Book)
Joan Acocella's (The Newyorker) collection of thirty-one essays on some of the most influential artists of our time —writers, dancers, choreographers, sculptors —and two saints of all time, Joan of Arc and Mary Magdalene. Among the people discussed: Italo Svevo, Stefan Zweig, Simone de Beauvoir, Marguerite Yourcenar, Joseph Roth, Vaslav Nijinsky, Lincoln Kirstein, Jerome Robbins, Martha Graham, Bob Fosse, H. L. Mencken, Dorothy Parker, Susan Sontag, and Philip Roth.

February 27, 2007

Altar Boyz: Piano/Vocal Selections
(Hal Leonard - Paperback Book)
Twelve songs include: "Body Mind and Soul," "The Calling," "Epiphany," "I Believe," "La Vida Eternal," "Something About You," "We Are the Altar Boyz."

The Best Stage Scenes 2006 (Best Stage Scenes)
(Smith & Kraus - Paperback Book)
By D. L. Lepidus.

The Brain From Planet X
(Kritzerland - new on CD)
Order at CDBaby.com
Los Angeles cast recording of Bruce Kimmel score. Cast includes Kevin Spirtas, Alet Taylor, Lauren Rubin, Cason Murphy, Merrill Grant, Benjamin Clark, Egbert Bernard. Musical direction by Richard Berent and orchestrations by Larry Moore. Available now at Kritzerland.com and Footlight.com.

Cabaret - 2006 London Cast
(new on CD)
2006 Lyric Theatre London cast CD of, recorded by the show's producer and sold at the venue, with Anna Maxwell Martin, James Dreyfus, Sheila Hancock, Michael Hayden, and Geoffery Hutching. Available at Dress Circle (UK).

Essential Tennessee Williams CD: Excerpts from The Glass Menagerie and poems
(Caedmon - new on CD)
Order at CD Universe

Joan Ryan
(Kritzerland - on CD)
Re-release of Joan Ryan's debut album. "Trust The Wind," "I'm Flying," "I Won't Last A Day Without You," "Shall We Dance?," "Feels Like Home," "Moon & The Stars, The," "Good Thing He Can't Read My Mind," "Strangers Once Again," "Once There Was A Love / Bachianas Brasileiras," "West End Avenue," "My Brother Lived In San Francisco," "I'm Coming Home Again," "Follow Me / On A Clear Day You Can See Forever." Produced by Bruce Kimmel, with musical arrangements by Scott Harlan, Michael Orland, Ron Abel, and John Boswell. Orders placed at Kritzerland.com will ship two weeks before street date.

Maude Maggart Live
(SMAX Productions - new on CD)
Maude Maggart's live show loosley based upon the love story of her maternal grandparents (girl singer and big band reed player). Lanny Meyer provided arrangements and is on piano. "Deep Purple," "I Can't Get Started," "Let's Begin," "I'm In The Mood For Love," "The Song Is You," "All The Things You Are," "You Go To My Head," "Prelude To A Kiss," "Coffee In The Morning," "I Hadn't Anyone 'Til You," "Deep In A Dream," "I Had The Craziest Dream," "I've Heard That Song Before," "My Funny Valentine," "Skylark," "The River Is so Blue." Recorded mostly at The Oak Room of The Algonquin Hotel.

Paul Robeson - Speak of Me As I Am: The Rise and Fall of an American Icon
(Kultur Video - on DVD)
Order at CD Universe
1998 documentary narrated by Pam Grier. 58 minutes.

The Sound of Music - new London Cast
(Universal/Decca Broadway - new on CD)
Order at CD Universe
Connie Fisher, Alexander Hanson, Lesley Garrett, Lauren Ward, Ian Gelder, Sophie Bould, Neil McDermott. Includes re-recording of "Something Good" with corrected lyrics. US release. May be postponed one week.

February 20, 2007

The Alice Faye Collection
(Fox - on 4 DVDs)
Order at CD Universe
On The Avenue, Lillian Russell, That Night In Rio and The Gang's All Here.

Bobby Belfry Live: In The Heart of the Universe
(DVD/CD)
New recording with songs written and performed by award winning singer/songwriter Bobby Belfry. The DVD is a filmed document of the live performance recording of the CD, enhanced with photo stills on several of the clips. See our interview with Bobby Belfry.

Company
(Nonesuch/PS Classics - new on CD)
Order at CD Universe |
New Broadway revival of Stephen Sondheim score. Keith Buterbaugh, Matt Castle, Robert Cunningham, Angel Desai, Raúl Esparza, Kelly Jeanne Grant, Kristin Huffman, Amy Justman, Heather Laws, Jane Pfitsch, Leenya Rideout, Fred Rose, Bruce Sabath, Elizabeth Stanley, Renée Bang Allen, Brandon Ellis, David Garry, Jason Ostrowski, Barbara Walsh, Jessica Wright, Katrina Yaukey. Opening, "Company," "The Little Things You Do Together," "Sorry-Grateful," "You Could Drive a Person Crazy," "Have I Got a Girl for You?," "Someone Is Waiting," "Another Hundred People," "Getting Married Today," 'What did I just do?",' "Marry Me a Little," "Side by Side by Side," "What Would We Do Without You?," "Poor Baby," "Barcelona," "The Ladies Who Lunch," 'You have a good third husband, Joanne.,' "Being Alive."

The Drowsy Chaperone
(Ghostlight - new on vinyl)
Limited edition of 1,000. Cast album of the Man in the Chair's favorite musical, with added scene dialogue, vintage cover artwork, Broadway production photographs, lyrics, liner notes and an included bonus CD of the vinyl record's content. Cast listed as their character names. Side One: Overture (Orchestra), "Fancy Dress" (Company), "Cold Feets" (Percy Hyman, Cyril Devlin), "Show Off" (Jane Roberts, Company), "As We Stumble Along" (Beatrice Stockwell); Side Two: "I Am Aldolpho" (Roman Bartelli, Beatrice Stockwell), "Accident Waiting To Happen" (Robert Martin, Jane Roberts), "Toledo Surprise" (The Tall Brothers, Jack Adler, Sadie Adler, Company), "Bride's Lament" —Jane Roberts), "Love Is Always Lovely In the End" (Ukelele Lil, Noel Fitzpatrick), "I Do, I Do In the Sky" (Gwendoline Hall, Company). Available for $50 in the lobby of the Marquis Theatre and at GhostlightRecords.com Portion of the proceeds will benefit The Actors' Fund of America.

I Feel a Song Coming On
Order at CD Universe
(Jasmine - on 2 CDs)
Second volume of songs from the soundtracks of Alice Faye's films (remastered).

It's Good to Be the King: The Seriously Funny Life of Mel Brooks
(Wiley - Hardcover Book)
By James Robert Parish. Chronicles Brooks's rise, television (where he worked with Neil Simon and, later, Woody Allen) and his classic "2,000 Year Old Man" shtick to groundbreaking films, TV's iconic Get Smart, and Broadway's The Producers. Also explores Brooks's long and happy marriage to Anne Bancroft and sheds light on some lesser-known aspects of his career, such as his role in producing The Elephant Man.

A Man For All Seasons (Special Edition)
(Sony - on DVD)
Order at CD Universe
1966 film version of Robert Bolt's play, directed by Fred Zinneman with Paul Scofield, Robert Shaw, John Hurt, Leo McKern, Nigel Davenport, Orson Welles, Susannah York, Vanessa Redgrave, and Wendy Hiller, this disc with a documentary about the film's subject, Sir Thomas Moore. Includes "The Life of Sir Thomas More" short featurette.

Second City: First Family of Comedy
Order at CD Universe
(Acorn Media - new on DVD)
Nostalgic look back at the famous improvisational theater group which began in Chicago in the 1950s. Behind-the-scenes documentary features reminiscences by Dan Aykroyd, Eugene Levy, Catherine O'Hara, Paul Shaffer, and Martin Short, rare archival clips, and more. Shown on PBS. 128 minutes.

Song of Australia
(Armstrong - 2 import CDs)
Order at CD Universe
An educational song-o-rama crafted by Barry Humphries and Carl Davis. Featuring Dame Edna Everage and Sir Les Patterson 'Peter and the Shark', The Australian Philharmonic Orchestra with the Ashton Smith Singers conducted by Carl Davis.

February 13, 2007

Chevalier on Broadway - an American Tribute
(Vive la Nostalgie - new on 2 CDs)
Don Sheppard portrays Maurice Chevalier. Act One is a simulated performance at the Henry Miller's Theater in 1947. Act Two is a simulated performance at Lincoln Center in 1967 - a stop on his international "Farewell Tour." Musical director Khris Dodge.

Evening With Belafonte/Mouskouri
(DRG - on CD)
Order at CD Universe
Harry Belafonte and Nana Mouskouri. "My Moon" (Fenagari Moo) (Harry Belafonte), "Dream" (Nana Mouskouri), "If You Are Thirsty" (Kean tha Depsasees) (Harry Belafonte, Nana Mouskouri), "Train" (Nana Mouskouri), "In the Small Boat" (Harry Belafonte), "Town Crier" (Nana Mouskouri), "Walking on the Moon" (Harry Belafonte), "Baby Snake" (Nana Mouskouri), "Wide Sea" (Harry Belafonte), "Irene" (Harry Belafonte, Nana Mouskouri).

It All Belongs to You - Unsung Cole Porter
(LML Music - new on CD)
Order at CD Universe
Justin Hayford sings lesser known Porter songs, and two standards with alternate lyrics. "You Irritate Me So," "Come Along With Me," "Dream Dancing," "They All Fall In Love," "How Could We Be Wrong," "Hasta Luego," "At Long Last Love" (with alternate lyric), "Easy To Love" (with alternate lyric), "Why Don't We Try Staying At Home," "It Must Be Fun To Be You," "It's Just Yours," "It All Belongs To You."

A Jolly Theatrical Season
(Koch/DRG - new on CD)
Order at CD Universe
Capitol's recording of Charles Nelson Reilly Robert Morse revue. "A Jolly Theatrical Season," "Siberia," "Everybody Ought to Have a Maid," "The Game," "You're the Top," "Lolita" (from The Girls Against The Boys), "Just an Honest Mistake" (from Let It Ride!), "Brush Up Your Shakespeare," "Anything You Can Do," "Little Tin Box."

Little Mary Sunshine
(DRG - on CD)
Order at CD Universe
1959 Capitol recording of Off Broadway cast album. Rick Besoyan score. John Aniston, Eileen Brennan, Robert Chambers, William Graham, Ray James, John McMartin, Elizabeth Parrish, Mario Siletti, Elmarie Wendel. Overture, "The Forest Rangers," "Little Mary Sunshine," "Look For A Sky Of Blue," "You're The Fairest Flower," "In Izzenschnooken On The Lovely Essenzook Zee," "Playing Croquet," "Swinging / How Do You Do?," "Tell A Handsome Stranger," "Once In A Blue Moon," "Every Little Nothing," "Colorado Love Call," "Such A Merry Party," "Naughty, Naughty Nancy," "Mata Hari," "Do You Ever Dream Of Vienna?," "Coo Coo," Finale.

No Reservations - Frances Faye
(DRG - new on CD)
Order at CD Universe
1950s Capitol album.

Paul Robeson: Portraits of the Artist
(Image - on 4 DVDs)
Order at CD Universe
Disc One: The Emperor Jones (1933), Portrait of an Artist (1979); audio commentary by Jeffrey C. Stewart; featurettes "His Artistry and Legacy" (interviews with Ruby Dee, James Earl Jones, William Greaves, and others) and "Robeson on Robeson" -(interview with Paul Robeson, Jr.). Disc Two: Sanders of the River (1935), Jericho (1938); featurettes "True Pioneer: The British Films of Paul Robeson" - interviews with Paul Robeson, Jr., Stephen Bourne, and Ian Christie & Film Clips from Song Of Freedom (1936), King Solomon's Mines (1937), And Big Fella (1938). Disc Three: Body and Soul (1925), Borderline (1930); audio commentary by Oscar Micheaux; Pearl Bowser. Disc Four: The Proud Valley (1940), Native Land (1942); featurettes "The Story of Native Land" (interview with Tom Hurwitz), interviews with Paul Robeson - 1958, Pacifica Radio.

The Phantom of the Opera Companion
(Anova Books - Paperback Book)
New edition of book by Martin Knowlden about the musical. Three parts: introduction to Gaston Leroux's classic story; insight into the acclaimed theater production, with backstage photos and commentary from the director, designers, and crew; looks at the making of Joel Schumacher's film (includes the screenplay), cast and with exclusive photos and interviews. More than 150 color images from both the film and theater productions worldwide. Now in a smaller-format edition.

Small Tragedy
(Theatre Communications Group - Paperback Book)
Craig Lucas play. [see our review of the 2004 Playwrights' Horizons production]

February 6, 2007

Blume in Love
(Warner - on DVD)
Order at CD Universe
1973 film directed by Paul Mazursky, with George Segal, Kris Kristofferson, Marsha Mason, Shelley Winters, Susan Anspach.

The Clock
(Warner - on DVD)
Order at CD Universe
Long awaited DVD version of Judy Garland's only dramatic role at MGM. 1945 film, directed by Vincente Minnelli, starring Garland and Robert Walker. Bonus: radio adaptation with Judy and John Hodiak (Angela Lansbury's mother has a cameo as a disgruntled diner patron).

Company
(Nonesuch/PS Classics - new on CD)
New Broadway revival of Stephen Sondheim score. Keith Buterbaugh, Matt Castle, Robert Cunningham, Angel Desai, Raúl Esparza, Kelly Jeanne Grant, Kristin Huffman, Amy Justman, Heather Laws, Jane Pfitsch, Leenya Rideout, Fred Rose, Bruce Sabath, Elizabeth Stanley, Renée Bang Allen, Brandon Ellis, David Garry, Jason Ostrowski, Barbara Walsh, Jessica Wright, Katrina Yaukey. Opening, "Company," "The Little Things You Do Together," "Sorry-Grateful," "You Could Drive a Person Crazy," "Have I Got a Girl for You?," "Someone Is Waiting," "Another Hundred People," "Getting Married Today," 'What did I just do?",' "Marry Me a Little," "Side by Side by Side," "What Would We Do Without You?," "Poor Baby," "Barcelona," "The Ladies Who Lunch," 'You have a good third husband, Joanne.,' "Being Alive." A limited number of CDs available for shipping now (at $14.95) from PSClassics.com. Street date is February 20.

Conversation Piece
(Must Close Saturday - new on CD)
1934 Noel Coward-adapted operetta, featuring the waltz " "I'll Follow My Secret Heart." Recording produced by Goddard Lieberson, with new Coward material. Noel Coward, Lily Pons, Richard Burton, Cathleen Nesbitt, Ethel ("Only for Americans") Griffies, Rex Evans, and others. Available at Footlight.com.

Crossing Delancey
(Warner - on DVD)
Order at CD Universe
1988 film directed by Joan Micklin Silver, with Amy Irving, Amy Wright, David Hyde Pierce, Peter Riegert, Rosemary Harris, Sylvia Miles.

A Date With John Waters
(New Line - new on CD)
Order at CD Universe
Compilation of the filmmaker's picks for creating the perfect sensual ambiance. "Tonight You Belong To Me" (Patience & Prudence), "Jet Boy Jet Girl" (Elton Motello), "Ain't Got No Home" (Clarence "Frogman" Henry), "I'd Love To Take Orders From You" (Mildred Bailey), "Inspite Of Ourselves" (John Prine/Iris DeMent), "All I Can Do Is Cry" (Ike & Tina Turner), "Big Girls Don't Cry" (Edith Massey), "Imitation Of Life" (Earl Grant), "Sometimes I Wish I Had A Gun" (Mink Stole), "Johnny Are You Queer" (Josie Cotton), "Right Time), The" (Ray Charles), "Hit The Road To Dreamland" (Dean Martin), "If I Knew You Were Comin' Id've Baked A Cake" (Eileen Barton), "Bewilder" (Shirley & Lee).

Happy End
(Ghostlight - new on CD)
Order at CD Universe
San Francisco's American Conservatory Theatre cast recording from their 2006 production of the Bertolt Brecht/Kurt Weill musical comedy. Michael Feingold translation. Premiere English language recording. Peter Macon, Charlotte Cohn, Linda Mugleston, Sab Shimono. "Prologue," 'The Bilbao Song," "Lieutenants Of The Lord," "March Ahead," "Time In A Shot Glass," "The Sailor's Tango," "Entr'Acte," "The Sailor's Tango (Reprise)," "Brother, Give Yourself A Shove," "1 Song Of The Big Shot," "Don't Be Afraid," "In Our Childhood's Bright Endeavor," "The Liquor Dealer's Dream," "The Mandalay Song," "Goddam It," "Surabaya Johnny," "Song Of The Big Shot (Reprise)," "In Our Childhood's Bright Endeavor," "Epilogue," "The Bilbao Song."

The Heiress
(Warner - on DVD)
Order at CD Universe
1949 film based on Augustus and Ruth Goetz play. Directed by William Wyler. Starring Olivia de Havilland (Oscar win), Montgomery Clift, Ralph Richardson, Miriam Hopkins.

A Little Midsummer Night's Music
(PS Classics - new on CD)
Songs and instrumental musical from Groovelily's production of A Midsummer Night's Dream seen at Paper Mill and McCarter Theatre in 2006. To include songs from the show (including "Slings of Eros," "While You Were Sleeping," "When I Dream") and shorter passages that the group has developed and shaped into suites for this new recording. Written and performed by Valerie Vigoda, Brendan Milburn, and Gene Lewin. Available on this date from PSClassics.com (store date is April 10).

Miracle in the Rain
(Warner - on DVD)
Order at CD Universe
1956 film directed by Rudolph Mate, with Van Johnson, Peggie Castle, Eileen Heckart, Josephine Hutchinson. Includes two vintage "Behind the Cameras" segments from the Warner Bros. Presents TV series and trailer.

On the Other Side
(Telarc - new on CD)
Order at CD Universe |
Tierney Sutton album. "Get Happy" - (Version 1), "Happy Days Are Here Again" - (Version 1), "You Are My Sunshine," "Glad To Be Unhappy," "Sometimes I'm Happy," "Happy Talk," "Haunted Heart," "I Want To Be Happy," "Make Someone Happy," "Great Day," "Happy Days Are Here Again" - (version 2), "Get Happy" - (Version 2), "Smile."

A Summer Place
(Warner - on DVD)
Order at CD Universe
1959 film directed by Delmer Daves, with Richard Egan, Dorothy McGuire, Sandra Dee, Troy Donahue, Arthur Kennedy, Beulah Bondi, Constance Ford.

Tarzan Songbook
(Hal Leonard - Paperback Book)
Broadway musical with score by Phil Collins. 14 songs from and an eight-page section of full-color photos from the production.

January 30, 2007

Band of Angels
(Warner - on DVD)
Order at CD Universe
1956 film with Clark Gable, Yvonne De Carlo, Sidney Poitier.

Dreamgirls: The Movie Musical
(Newmarket - Paperback Book)
Official companion book featuring essays exploring the production of the film, Michael Bennett's legendary Broadway musical, and the historic Motown revolution that inspired both. Illustrated with more than 200 color stills, concept paintings, costume designs, album art, and archival photographs. David James, photographer. 192 pages.

Finding Nemo the Musical

19 track recording of Robert Lopez and Kristen Anderson-Lopez musical, based on the animated film and currently a stage show at Disneyworld. Prologue, "In the Big Blue World," "The Drop Off," "Dory's Ditty," "Sharks," "Fish Are Friends Not Food," "Where's My Dad?," "The Tank Gang," "We Swim Together," "Dory and Marlin," "Just Keep Swimming," "Not My Dad (Reprise)," "Go With the Flow," "Gossip," "That's My Dad (Reprise)," "Darla!," "Sewage Treatment Plant," "We Swim Together (Reprise)," Finale - "The Big Blue World (Reprise)."

Guys and Dolls Off The Record
(Kultur Video - new to DVD)
Order at CD Universe
1992 documentary about the making of the revival cast recording. Complete takes of some songs plus behind the scenes footage in the studio with cast, director Jerry Zaks and musical director Edward Strauss. Commentary by Peter Gallagher, Josie de Guzman, Nathan Lane, and Faith Prince. Available now at Footlight.com.

Infertility, The Musical That's Hard To Conceive
(new on CD)
Off-Broadway premiere cast. Chris Neuner score. Erin Davie, Jenni Frost, Seri Johnson, Cadden Jones, Larry Picard and Kurt Robbins.

John Osborne: The Many Lives of the Angry Young Man
(Knopf - Hardcover Book)
Biography by John Heilpern.

The Last Supper
(150 Music - new on CD)
Order at CD Universe
Musical story of Leonardo da Vinci's struggle to complete his famous mural. Score by Gary William Friedman and Lyricist Thomas Mitz. Features Stevie Holland.

Notebooks - Tennessee Williams
(Yale University Press - Hardcover Book)
Edited and annotated by Margaret Thornton, Tennessee Williams' personal notebooks follow his growth as a writer from his undergraduate days to the publication and production of his most famous plays, from his drug addiction and drunkenness to the heights of his literary accomplishments. Whimsical, movingly lyrical, self-reflective, and completely uninhibited record of the life of this monumental American genius from 1936 to 1981, the year of his death. Williams wrote out his most private thoughts as well as sketches of plays, poems, and accounts of his social, professional, and sexual encounters. 167 color and 240 b/w images.

Producerek
(Metro - new on CD)
Original Hungarian cast recording of Mel Brook's The Producers. Peter Haumann, Sandor Nagy, Tomasz Galbenisz, Nikolett Gallusz, Attila Barat and Laszlo Lippai. 21 tracks sung in Hungarian. Available at Footlight.com.

January 23, 2007

Bobby Short Is Mad About Noel Coward
(Collectables - on CD)
Order at CD Universe
Reissue of 1972 Atlantic Records recording. "The Younger Generation," "Medley: You Were There/Then," "Matelot," "A Room With a View," "Nina," "Any Little Fish," "World Weary," "We Were Dancing," "Never Again," "Josephine," "If Love Were All," "Let's Fly Away," "Something to Do With Spring," "Someday I'll Find You," "Imagine the Duchess's Feelings," "Poor Little Rich Girl," "Medley: Where Are the Songs We Sung?/Dear Little Cafe/Hearts and ...," "Wait a Bit, Joe," "Travel Alone," "I'll See You Again."

Dreamgirls Collector's Program
(Newmarket - Paperback book/pamphlet)
Souvenir guide to the Dreamgirls motion picture experience. Includes cast portraits, illustrated musical numbers, and cast and crew credits. 48 pages.

Fiddler on the Roof
(MGM - on 2 DVDs)
Order at CD Universe
1971 film version of Jerry Bock/Joseph Stein/Sheldon Harnick musical, directed by Norman Jewison. Topol, Norma Crane, Molly Picon. Extras: feature commentary by Norman Jewison and Topol; deleted Scenes: deleted song - "Any Day Now"; documentary - Norman Jewison; Easter egg - "The Tale of the Beggar"; interview with John Williams: Creating a Musical Tradition; interview with Tevye's Daughters (with cast members); photo galleries; trailer; featurettes: historical background with photographs by Ann Weiss, Norman Jewison Looks Back, Set In Reality, Tevye's Dream in Full Colour, The Songs of Fiddler on the Roof, The Songs of Sholam Aleichem.

John Osborne: The Many Lives of the Angry Young Man
(Knopf - Hardcover Book)
Biography by John Heilpern.

John Pinette: I'm Starvin'
(Image Entertainment - new on DVD)
Order at CD Universe
Pinette (Hairspray) comedy show, filmed at the Montreal Comedy Festival.

Last First Kiss
(Telarc - new on CD)
Order at CD Universe | Download at iTunes
New album from Tony DeSare, with Bucky Pizzarelli, Harry Allen, Glenn Drewes, Keith O'Quinn, Tedd Firth, Mike Lee, Brian Czach. "Kiss," "Gee Baby Ain't I Good To You," "You'd Be So Nice To Come Home To," "Let's Just Say It," "Some On Strong," "I'll Never Have Enough Of You," "Oh Look At Me Now," "How Deep Is The Ocean," "Last First Kiss," "They Can't Take That Away From Me," "I Feel The Earth Move," "There Will Never Be Another You," "Lover's Lullabye."

Loving Repeating
(JAY - new on CD)
Order at CD Universe
Frank Galati and Stephen Flaherty musical. Chicago cast. Full show to be recorded.

Orpheus and Euridice
(Ghostlight - new on CD)
Order at CD Universe
Ricky Ian Gordon song cycle, based on the classic Greek myth. Produced, recorded, mixed and edited by Joel Moss. Features soprano Elizabeth Futral, clarinetist Todd Palmer and pianist Melvin Chen, all from the 2005 Lincoln Center production. Track list: "Prologue," "Orpheus," "Euridice," "Bliss," "Home," "They Dance," "Song," "Interlude," "Illness," "Death," "The Underworld," "The Journey Back," "Song Two," "Conclusion," "Epilogue."

Scrubs Musical Episode
(new Digital Download)
Season 6 musical episode is titled "My Musical." Regular cast members Zach Braff, Sarah Chalke, Donald Faison, Neil Flynn, Ken Jenkins, John C. McGinley, Judy Reyes. Guests Stephanie D'Abruzzo, Karen Ziemba. Written by "Debra Fordham, with songs by Robert Lopez and Jeff Marx, Fordham, Jan Stevens and Paul Perry.

January 16, 2007

Defiance
(Dramatist's Play Service - Paperback Book)
Play by John Patrick Shanley, produced in 2006 at Manhattan Theatre Club.

The Great American Songbook
(Hal Leonard - Paperback Book)
Standards from the greatest American composers along with photos and bios of these masters of song. Songs include: "Ain't Misbehavin'," "All the Way," "Blue Skies," "Cheek to Cheek," "Come Fly with Me," "Don't Get Around Much Anymore," "A Fine Romance," "Georgia on My Mind," "Honeysuckle Rose," "I've Got You Under My Skin," "It Could Happen to You," "Mona Lisa," "Mood Indigo," "Moon River," "My Funny Valentine," "Satin Doll," "Stella by Starlight," "Take the "A" Train," "Time After Time," "You'd Be So Nice to Come Home To," and more. 320 pages.

I Love You
(EMI - new on CD & CD/DVD)
Diana Ross album (released in UK in October 2006). Includes "What About Love" from The Color Purple and David/Bacharach's "The Look of Love." DVD includes DVD photo gallery and 9:18 behind-the-scenes look at the making of the album.

In Memory of All That: The Life of George Gershwin
(Hal Leonard - Paperback Book)
New edition of Joan Peyser's 1993 biography. The author's introduction includes some new information.

January 9, 2007

Cranks
(Sepia Records - new on CD)
Order at CD Universe
Original London/Broadway Cast recording. Written and devised by John Cranko. Anthony Newley, Gilbert Vernon, Hugh Bryant and Annie Ross. Digitally remastered. Bonus tracks: ten songs performed by Annie Ross, mainly recorded in the mid-1950s around the time she was in Cranks, most on CD for the first time.

Music in the Air - Jane Pickens
(Sepia - new on CD)
Order at CD Universe
Solo and group singer (The Pickens Sisters), Broadway performer (The Ziegfeld Follies, Boys and Girls Together, Regina, Music in the Air. Instead of a cast album for Music in the Air, this album of ten songs from the show was released, featuring Jane accompanied by Al Goodman and his Orchestra and Chorus. Seventeen bonus tracks include "Why Can't You Behave" and "Wunderbar" with Alfred Drake.

Summer Song
(Sepia Records - new on CD)
Order at CD Universe
Original London Cast recording. Bernard Grun adapted the music from the melodies of Anton Dvorak and Eric Maschwitz provided lyrics for the score of this show about Dvorak. Laurence Naismith, Sally Ann Howes, David Hughes, Bonita Primrose, Van Atkins and Edric Connor. Bonus tracks include "Summer Song Selections" by The Melachrino Orchestra and songs by Edric Connor and David Hughes.

January 2, 2007

The Commercial Theater Institute Guide to Producing Plays and Musicals
(Applause - Paperback Book)
By Frederic B. Vogel, Ben Hodges. Now in its 25th year, the Commercial Theater Institute sponsors an annual intensive program in New York for individuals interested in producing or investing in the theatre that attracts people from all over the world. The top working theatre professionals offer hard, factual information to those interested in producing for Broadway, Off-Broadway, Off-Off-Broadway, anywhere in North America, as well as in the United Kingdom. This book collects for the first time advice from the noted theatre professionals who participate in the program, in their own words. Interviews, contributions, and a resource directory are included from 30 theatre professionals who have won a total of 45 Tony Awards. Agents, directors, production designers, general managers, fundraisers, marketing directors, producers, and theatrical attorneys all offer invaluable advice in a book that will be the definitive resource in its field.

Company - Karaoke
(Stage Stars - new on 2 CDs)
Pre-order at CD Universe
Accompaniment tracks and complete tracks with guide vocals, recorded in the original key and tempo. Not CD+G. Overture, "Company," "The Little Things You Do Together," "Sorry-Grateful," "You Could Drive a Person Crazy," "Have I Got a Girl for You," "Someone Is Waiting," "Another Hundred People," "Getting Married Today," "Marry Me a Little," "Side by Side by Side," "Poor Baby," "Barcelona," "The Ladies Who Lunch," "Being Alive."

Lord of the Dance : My Story
(Touchstone - Paperback Book)
Paperback version of 2006 autobiography by Michael Flatley with Douglas Thompson. "No-holds-barred autobiography that reveals the person, the passion, and the drama behind Michael Flatley's astounding rise from the streets of Chicago to the heights of fame, wealth, and artistry."

Routledge Guide To Broadway
(Routledge - Hardcover/Paperback)
Revised edition by Ken Bloom. Introduction to the Broadway theater, focusing on key performers, writers, directors, plays, and musicals, along with the theaters themselves, key awards, and the folklore of Broadway. Comprehensive look at the key figures and productions of the last two centuries.

Sparkle
(Warner - new on 2 discs)
Order at CD Universe
1976 musical film about three sisters with a dream to be pop singers. Irene Cara (Fame), Lonette McKee, Dwan Smith, Phillip Michael Thomas. Music by Curtis Mayfield. Special bonus soundtrack features the voice of Aretha Franklin.

Supporting Player: My Life Upon The Wicked Stage
(Xlibris - Paperback Book)
Richard Seff's (writer, Paris Is Out!, Shine!, stage/film/TV actor Darkness At Noon, Angels Fall, agent memoir of the golden age of Broadway.

-- Sound Advice Staff

Additional information provided by
Max O. Preeo