Simply Musicals

Louise Gold starred on Volume 2 Track 9 as Reno Sweeney from Anything Goes

Catalogue number: SIMPLYCD004

 

Cast

Mark Adams (as Frank Butler from Annie Get Your Gun)

John Barrowman (as Danny from Grease, and Joseph from Joseph And The Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat)

Aidan Bell (as Riff-Raff from The Rocky Horror Show)

Graham Bickley (as Lieutenant Cable from South Pacific, The Phantom from The Phantom Of The Opera and others)

Christopher Biggins (as King Herod from Jesus Christ Superstar)

Simon Bowman (as Caractacus Potts from Chitty Chitty Bang Bang)

Clare Burt

Dean Collinson

Kim Criswell (as Norma Desmond from Sunset Boulevard)

Carman Cusack

Muriel Dickinson

Gregg Edelman (as Sky Masterson from Guys And Dolls)

The A Funny Thing Happened On The Way To The Forum Company

Louise Gold (as Reno Sweeney from Anything Goes)

James Graeme (as Bert from Mary Poppins, The Phantom from The Phantom Of The Opera and others)

Debbie Gravitte (as Calamity Jane from Calamity Jane)

Michael Gruber (as Don Lockwood from Singin’ In The Rain)

Andrew Halliday (as The Phantom from The Phantom Of The Opera and others)

Teri Hansen (as Magnolia Hawks Ravenal from Showboat)

Mike Holoway (as Littlechap from Stop The World I Want To Get Off)

Jan Hovarth (as Velma Kelly from Chicago)

Paulette Ivory

Vanessa A. Jones

Doug LaBrecque (as Gaylord Ravenal from Showboat)

Jerry Lanning (as Teryve from Fiddler On The Roof)

The Les Miserables Company

Shona Lindsay (as Sandy from Grease)

Emily Losser (as Sergeant Sarah Brown from Guys And Dolls)

Michael Maguire (as Don Quixote from Man Of La Mancha)

Paul Manuel (as Tony from West Side Story)

Gary Mauer (as Freddie from My Fair Lady)

Sean McDermott

Robert Meadmore (as Sir Lancelot from Camelot)

Max Milner (as Jeremy Potts from Chitty Chitty Bang Bang)

Claire Moore (as Christine from The Phantom Of The Opera)

Katrina Murphy (as Christine from The Phantom Of The Opera and others)

The Company from The Music Man

Deborah Myers (as Mary Poppins from Mary Poppins)

Caroline O’Connor (as Annie Oakley from Annie Get Your Gun, Donna Sheridan from Mamma Mia, Anita from West Side Story and others)

The Oklahoma! Company

Tinuke Olafimihan (as Maria from West Side Story)

Catherine Porter

Grania Renihan (as Eva Peron from Evita and others)

Randy Rogel (as Cosmo from Singin’ In The Rain)

Christina Saffran (as Kathy Seldon from Singin’ In The Rain)

Jacqui Scott (as Demeter or Bombalurina from Cats, and, Norma Desmond from Sunset Boulevard)

David Shannon

Sally Ann Triplett (as Truly Scrumptious from Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, Nancy from Oliver, Sally Bowles from Cabaret and others)

Hayley Wareham (as Jemima Potts from Chitty Chitty Bang Bang)

Jacinta Whyte (as Grizalbella from Cats)

 

Production Team

Conductors - Gerry Anderson, Craig Barna, Julian Kelly, John Owen Edwards. Patrick Vaccariello, Martin Yates

Produced by - John Yap

 

Track Listing

Broadway SIMPLYCD004-1

1. Comedy Tonight (from A Funny Thing Happened On The Way To The Forum) - The A Funny Thing Happened On The Way To The Forum Company with the NSO conducted by Martin Yates

2. The Circle Of Life (from The Lion King) - Carman Cusack, David Shannon and Company with the NSO conducted by Martin Yates

3. Elaborate Lives (from Aida) - Sean McDermott and Vanessa A. Jones with the NSO Ensemble conducted by Patrick Vaccariello

4. All That Jazz (from Chicago) - Jan Hovath and the Company with the NSO conducted by Julian Kelly

5. If I Were A Rich Man (from Fiddler On The Roof) - Jerry Lanning with the NSO conducted by John Owen Edwards

6. On The Street Where You Live (from My Fair Lady) - Gary Mauer with the NSO conducted by John Owen Edwards

7. Luck Be A Lady (from Guys And Dolls) - Gregg Edelman and Men with the NSO conducted by John Owen Edwards

8. Younger Than Springtime (from South Pacific) - Graham Bickley with the NSO conducted by John Owen Edwards

9. What I Did For Love (from A Chorus Line) - Catherine Porter and Chorus with the NSO conducted by Martin Yates

10. Anything You Can Do (from Annie Get Your Gun) - Caroline O’Connor and Mark Adams with the NSO conducted by John Owen Edwards

11. The Impossible Dream (from Man Of La Mancha) - Michael Maguire with the NSO conducted by John Owen Edwards

12. Try To Remember (from The Fantasticks) - Graham Bickley and Chorus with the NSO Ensemble conducted by Martin Yates

13. Oklahoma! (from Oklahoma!) - The Company with the NSO conducted by John Owen Edwards

 

London SIMPLYCD004-2

1. Chitty Chitty Bang Bang (from Chitty Chitty Bang Bang) - Simon Bowman, Sally Ann Triplett, Max Milner, and, Hayley Wareham with the NSO conducted by Martin Yates

2. What Kind Of Fool (from Saturday Night Fever) - Caroline O’Connor with the NSO Ensemble conducted by Julian Kelly

3. Memory (from Cats) - Jacinta Whyte with the NSO conducted by John Owen Edwards

4. Anthem (from Chess) - Andrew Halliday with the NSO conducted by Martin Yates

5. The Phantom Of The Opera (from The Phantom Of The Opera) - Graham Bickley and Claire Moore with the NSO conducted by Martin Yates

6. What Kind Of Fool Am I? (from Stop The World I Want To Get Off) - Mike Holoway with the NSO conducted by Martin Yates

7. Dancing Queen (from Mamma Mia) - Caroline O’Connor with the NSO Ensemble conducted by Julian Kelly

8. Sun And Moon (from Miss Saigon) - Katrina Murphy and Graham Bickley with the NSO conducted by Martin Yates

9. Anything Goes (from Anything Goes) - Louise Gold and Company with the NSO conducted by John Owen Edwards

10. As Long As He Needs Me (from Oliver!) - Sally Ann Triplett with the NSO conducted by John Owen Edwards

11. The People’s Song (from Les Miserables) - The Company with the NSO conducted by Martin Yates

12. The Time Warp (from The Rocky Horror Show) - Aidan Bell and Company with the NSO Ensemble conducted by Martin Yates

13. We Are The Champions (from We Will Rock You) - Dean Collinson, James Graeme, Paulette Ivory, Sally Ann Triplett and Chorus with the Estonian National Symphony Orchestra conducted by Martin Yates

 

Hollywood SIMPLYCD004-3

1. Tonight (Quintet) (from West Side Story) - Paul Manuel, Tinuke Olafimihan, Caroline O’Connor and Company with the NSO conducted by John Owen Edwards

2. Good Mornin’ (from Singin’ In The Rain) - Michael Gruber, Christina Saffran, and, Randy Rogel with the NSO conducted by Craig Barna

3. Summer Nights (from Grease) - John Barrowman, Shona Lindsay and Company with the NSO Ensemble conducted by Martin Yates

4. Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious (from Mary Poppins) - Deborah Myers and James Graeme with the NSO conducted by Martin Yates

5. Make Believe (from Showboat) - Doug LaBrecque and Teri Hansen with the NSO conducted by John Owen Edwards

6. You’ll Never Walk Alone (from Carousel) - Muriel Dickinson with the NSO conducted by John Owen Edwards

7. A Woman In Love (from Guys And Dolls) - Gregg Edelman, and, Emily Losser with the NSO conducted by John Owen Edwards

8. The Deadwood Stage (from Calamity Jane) - Debbie Gravitte and Company with the NSO conducted by John Owen Edwards

9. Maybe This Time (from Cabaret) - Sally Ann Triplett with the NSO conducted by Martin Yates

10. New York New York (from New York New York) - Sean McDermott with the NSO conducted by Craig Barna

11. If Ever I Would Leave You (from Camelot) - Robert Meadmore with an orchestra conducted by Gerry Anderson

12. Nowadays (from Chicago) - Caroline O’Connor with the NSO conducted by Julian Kelly

13. 76 Trombones (from The Music Man) - The Company with the NSO conducted by Martin Yates

 

Andrew Lloyd Webber SIMPLY004-4

1. Macavity (from Cats) - Jacqui Scott with the NSO conducted by Martin Yates

2. With One Look (from Sunset Boulevard) - Kim Criswell with the NSO conducted by Martin Yates

3. Whistle Down The Wind (from Whistle Down The Wind) - James Graeme with the NSO Ensemble conducted by Martin Yates

4. All I Ask Of You (from The Phantom Of The Opera) - Andrew Halliday and Katrina Murphy with the NSO conducted by Martin Yates

5. Only You (from Starlight Express) - Grania Renihan with the NSO Ensemble conducted by John Owen Edwards

6. Another Suitcase In Another Hall (from Evita) - Grania Renihan with the NSO conducted by John Owen Edwards

7. King Herod’s Song (from Jesus Christ Superstar) - Christopher Biggins with the NSO conducted by Martin Yates

8. Music Of The Night (from The Phantom Of The Opera) - James Graeme with the NSO conducted by John Owen Edwards

9. Buenos Aires (from Evita) - Caroline O’Connor with the NSO conducted by Julian Kelly

10. As If We Never Said Goodbye (from Sunset Boulevard) - Jacqui Scott with the NSO conducted by Martin Yates

11. Unexpected Song (from Song And Dance) - Clare Burt with the NSO conducted by Martin Yates

12. Close Every Door (from Joseph And The Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat) - John Barrowman with the NSO conducted by John Owen Edwards

13. Our Kind Of Love (from The Beautiful Game) - Sally Ann Triplett with the NSO conducted by Martin Yates

 

Louise Gold’s performance comes from JAY/TER’s of Anything Goes (recording) – Website Recommended Album, which Gregg Edelman, Paul Manuel, and, Katrina Murphy also appear on, and which also features the National Symphony Orchestra conducted by John Owen Edwards. In addition Louise Gold also sang that song in the West End in Anything Goes (Stage Production), and has parodied it as Anyone’s Nose on Sesame Street.

Mike Holoway’s performance comes from JAY/TER’s recording of Stop The World I Want To Get Off, which Katrina Murphy also appears on, which also features the National Symphony Orchestra conducted by Martin Yates.

Besides Anything Goes (Recording), Louise Gold has appeared at one time or another in productions (including concerts) or on recordings of quite a number of the musicals featured on this album, namely: Joseph And The Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat (Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat (York Production), Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat (Touring Production) &  Joseph And The Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat (Norwich Production)), My Fair Lady, Anything Goes (Stage production), Chicago (Chicago & Company), Calamity Jane, Stop The World I Want To Get Off, Man Of La Mancha, Mamma Mia, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, and, Mary Poppins.

Mark Adams (sometimes incorrectly billed as Mark Adam), John Barrowman, Kim Criswell (as narrator), Michael Gruber, Mike Holoway, Jerry :Lanning, Paul Manuel, Caroline O’Connor, Tinuke Olafimihan, Catherine Porter, and, Grania Renihan can be heard on The History Of The Musical, which also features the National Symphony Orchestra conducted by Craig Barna, John Owen Edwards, and, Martin Yates (who was uncredited on the sleeve note). That album also contains brief excerpts of the same recordings that can be heard on this album of: If I Were A Rich Man, What I Did For Love, Anything You Can Do, The Phantom Of The Opera (song), What Kind Of Fool Am I?, The People Song, and, Another Suitcase In Another Hall.

John Barrowman has appeared on stage in the musical Anything Goes (Stage production) in two productions (one with Louise Gold and one with Sally-Ann Triplett as Reno).

John Barrowman, and, James Graeme (as Jim Graeme) had appeared in Chicago & Company.

Graham Bickley, and, Mike Holoway had previously appeared on stage in The Pirates Of Penzance (Stage production).

Graham Bickley had also appeared with The Pirates Of Penzance company in The Pirates Of Penzance (Gala Performance), The Pirates Of Penzance (Gala Preview), The Pirates Of Penzance (Benefit Preview), The Royal Variety Performance (1982)

Graham Bickley, and, Michael Gruber can also be heard on The Best Of Broadway Musicals, which also features the National Symphony Orchestra conducted by Craig Barna, John Owen Edwards, and, Martin Yates. That album contains the same recordings of: Younger Than Springtime Are You, and, Try To Remember.

Graham Bickley, Clare Burt, Kim Criswell, James Graeme, Michael Gruber, Claire Moore, Katrina Murphy, and, Tinuke Olafimihan can also be heard on Encore The Very Best From The Musicals, which also features the National Symphony Orchestra conducted by Craig Barna, John Owen Edwards, and, Martin Yates. It is possible that album may contain the same recording of Seventy Six Trombones.

Graham Bickley, Gregg Edelman, Emily Losser, Paul Manuel, Katrina Murphy, Catherine Porter and, Tinuke Olafimihan can also be heard on Great Duets From The Musicals, which also features the National Symphony Orchestra conducted by John Owen Edwards, and, Martin Yates. That album also contains the same recordings of Sun And Moon, and, A Woman In Love.

Graham Bickley, Clare Burt, Gregg Edelman, and, Katrina Murphy can also be heard on Cole Porter - Night And Day, which also features the National Symphony Orchestra conducted by John Owen Edwards, and, Martin Yates. That album also contains the same recording of Anything Goes (sung by Louise Gold).

Christopher Biggins, and, Robert Meadmore had previously appeared on stage in The Soap Opera, for which Martin Yates wrote the score.

Christopher Biggins, Robert Meadmore, Claire Moore had previously appeared on stage in Kids At Heart.

Christopher Biggins appeared on stage in the Regents Park 70th Anniversary Gala. He may have appeared in Dear Ralph.

Clare Burt, Gregg Edelman, Claire Moore, and, Caroline O’Connor can also be heard on Cabaret, which also features the National Symphony Orchestra conducted by John Owen Edwards.

Kim Criswell had previously appeared on the radio in Let ‘Em Eat Cake, and on stage in Gentlemen Prefer Blondes.

Kim Criswell, Gregg Edelman, Katrina Murphy, and, Tinuke Olafimihan can also be heard on On The Town, which also features the National Symphony Orchestra conducted by John Owen Edwards.

James Graeme had appeared (as Jim Graeme) in Broadway To Brighton.

James Graeme (as Jim Graeme), and, Claire Moore, had appeared in A Time To Start Living.

Robert Meadmore and Sally Ann Triplett had previously appeared on stage in the Metropolitan Mikado, where the orchestra was also conducted by John Owen Edwards.

Robert Meadmore had also appeared in a concert of highlights from the Ratepayers’ Iolanthe & Metropolitan Mikado, where the orchestra was also conducted by John Owen Edwards. 

Robert Meadmore had previously appeared on television in Julia And Company, and, on stage in Side By Side By Sondheim. He also took part in Hubert Gregg’s Memorial Service, and Shopping With The Stars 2008.

Robert Meadmore and Sally Ann Triplett had appeared on stage in the Side By Side By Sondheim 25th Anniversary Gala.

Claire Moore, and, Robert Meadmore may have appeared in Will Aid.

Claire Moore may have appeared in Comedy Tonight.

Grania Renihan appeared at Dress Circle Grand Reopening.

Julian Kelly has conducted the orchestra for many Leicester Haymarket productions (in Leicester and in London): including: Merrily We Roll Along (Stage Production), Calamity Jane, and, Follies, his work can be heard on Merrily We Roll Along (Recording).

Christopher Biggins’s has appeared (along with Louise Gold) in Chitty Chitty Bang Bang.

Clare Burt, Kim Criswell, Michael Maguire, and, Tinuke Olafimihan along with the National Symphony Orchestra conducted by John Owen Edwards and Martin Yates can also be heard on The Greatest Musicals of the 20th Century.

Sally Ann Triplett has appeared in Happily Ever After. Her television credits include Rita Rudner.

Robert Meadmore, Sally Ann Triplett, and, Christopher Biggins have appeared in Side By Side By Sondheim 30th Anniversary Gala.

Clare Burt, Robert Meadmore, and, Sally Ann Triplett have gone on to appear in A Love Letter To Dan.

Graham Bickley, Kim Criswell, Louise Gold, James Graeme, Claire Moore, Deborah Myers, Caroline O’Connor, and, Tinuke Olafimihan, along with The National Symphony Orchestra can be heard on The Great Musicals - Wonderful Tales, for which Julian Kelly, John Owen Edwards, and, Martin Yates also conducted. The album also includes the same versions of Anything Goes, and, Nowadays.

Graham Bickley, Kim Criswell, Michael Gruber, Vanessa A. Jones, Sean McDermott, and, Katrina Murphy’s recording credits include The Great Musicals – Glamour And Majesty, This also involved the NSO, with maestros Craig Barna, John Owen Edwards, Patrick Vaccariello, and, Martin Yates. It also includes the same version of Elaborate Lives.

John Barrowman, Clare Burt, Shona Lindsay, Caroline O’Connor, and, Tinuke Olafimihan’s recording credits include  Centre Stage Showtime!, which features The National Symphony Orchestra, along with the maestros John Owen Edwards, and, Martin Yates. This includes the same recordings of Summer Nights, and, Quintet (Tonight).

Graham Bickley, Mike Holoway, Doug LeBreque, Emily Losser, Robert Meadmore, Katrina Murphy, Caroline O’Connor, and, Catherine Porter’s recording credits include The Great Musicals – Dashing Heroes, Blushing Maidens; This also involved The National Symphony Orchestra; with maestros Julian Kelly, John Owen Edwards, and, Martin Yates.

Clare Burt, Kim Criswell, Gregg Edelman, James Graeme, Doug LaBreque, Emily Losser, Catherine Porter, and, Randy Rogel’s recording credits include The Great Musicals – Laughter And Tears; This also involved The National Symphony Orchestra; with maestros Craig Barna, John Owen Edwards, and, Martin Yates.

John Barrowman, Graham Bickley, Simon Bowman, Clare Burt, Dean Collinson, Kim Criswell, Muriel Dickinson, James Graeme, Debbie Gravitte, Michael Gruber, Andrew Halliday, Jan Hovarth, Paulette Ivory, Vanessa A. Jones, Doug LaBreque, Jerry Lanning, Shona Lindsay, Michael Maguire, Sean McDermott, Max Milner, Claire Moore, Deborah Myers, Caroline O’Connor, Grania Renihan, Jacqui Scott, David Shannon, Sally Ann Triplett, Hayley Wareham, and, Jacinta Whyte’s recording credits include Magic Of The Musicals; this also involved the Estonian National Symphony Orchestra, and, the National Symphony Orchestra; with maestros Craig Barna, Julian Kelly, John Owen Edwards, Patrick Vaccariello, and, Martin Yates. This includes the same recordings of All That Jazz, Dancing Queen, Only You, Summer Nights, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, We Are The Champions, What Kind Of Fool, Elaborate Lives, Our Kind Of Love, Whistle Down The Wind, All I Ask Of You, Anything Goes, With One Look, The People’s Song, If I Were A Rich Man, You’ll Never Walk Alone, and, Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious .

Mark Adams, John Barrowman, Simon Bowman, Dean Collinson, Kim Criswell, Carmen Cusack, Louise Gold, James Graeme, Andrew Halliday, Paulette Ivory, Vanessa A. Jones, Doug LaBreque, Jerry Lanning, Michael Maguire, Sean McDermott, Gary Mauer, Max Milner, Katrina Murphy, Deborah Myers, Caroline O’Connor, Jacqui Scott, David Shannon, Sally Ann Triplett, Hayley Wareham, and, Jacinta Whyte’s recording credits include The Best Of The Musicals, this also involved the Estonian National Symphony Orchestra, and, the National Symphony Orchestra / NSO Ensemble, with maestros Gerry Allison, Craig Barna, Julian Kelly, John Owen Edwards, Patrick Varricello, and, Martin Yates. That album also contains the same recordings of: Circle Of Life, The Impossible Dream, Elaborate Lives, Anything You Can Do, Memory, Maybe This Time, Dancing Queen, On The Street Where You Live, Anthem, What Kind Of Fool, Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious, All I Ask Of You, As Long As He Needs Me, Anything Goes, and, We Are The Champions.

Clare Burt, Claire Moore, Christopher Biggins, Grainne Renihan, and, Sally Ann Triplett may have taken part in Thing A Thon.

Review

by Emma Shane

My first reaction to this album was “Do we need another compilation album containing a miscellaneous collection of bits of the JAY/TER  catalogue”. However, on listening to it, I found that the selection of material on this one is rather good. Some of the better pieces in that record company’s catalogue.

As has, I think happened before with JAY/TER compilations, some of the track selections may well originate from solo albums rather than actual cast album recordings of shows, and that may well account for some of the problems (detailed later, with performances which don’t seem to quite represent their performances in shows they come from). Although the four discs are nominally divided into ‘Broadway’,. ‘London’, ‘Hollywood’, and, ‘Andrew Lloyd-Webber’ the designations given to some of the songs seem a little arbitrary, with songs from the same shows (and sometimes the same album of that show) turning up in different categories. Chicago and Guys And Dolls both appear as ‘Broadway’ and ‘Hollywood’ musicals. There are also several musicals which originated in a category other than the one in which they have actually been placed (West Side Story, Anything Goes, and, Showboat all started on Broadway, while Chitty Chitty Bang Bang started as a film). I was also initially disappointed to find that despite the provision of a separate disc for his work, two Andrew Lloyd-Webber songs had found their way onto the ‘London’ disc, but fortunately, when I came to hear them they turned out to be rather well sung.

Indeed it is the quality of some of the performances which make this album a bit more than “just another compilation album”. I was struck on several occasions by some of these outstanding performances, notably:  Jacinta Whyte, Kim Criswell, and Clare Burt. I was particularly impressed by Clare Burt’s performance of Unexpected Song, it sounded beautiful! In fact as soon as I heard it I found myself thinking “This woman’s a brilliant singer, she should be doing roles like Sally Bowles in Cabaret and Fosca in Passion”, then I read the sleeve-notes and realised who it was! (In fact Ms Burt has played both roles: Sally Bowles in the BBC Radio broadcast of Cabaret, and Fosca in Passion for the much missed Bridewell Theatre Company).  I was also very impressed by Jacinta Whyte’s Memory, which had something of a haunting quality to it that came close to matching Kim Criswell’s wonderful recording of that song. Meanwhile, Ms Criswell herself performs a splendid version of With One Look, both of which demonstrate (as do many other tracks in this collection) that Andrew Lloyd-Webber’s work can actually sound rather good (even to someone who isn’t a Lloyd-Webber fan) if it is well performed. Of course that is true of many notable composers, not just Lloyd-Webber; For example Ulvaeus and Andersson. Speaking of the latter, I was a little disappointed by Caroline O’Connor’s performance of Dancing Queen. It is an excellent song, one TV poll named it Ulvaeus and Anderson’s greatest hit, like Irving Berlin’s Anything You Can Do, it is the kind of song which stands up to varying interpretations, and may be almost singer-proof (I say almost, having on at least one occasion seen it nearly half-wrecked by being badly performed). Not that Caroline O’Connor does the song badly by any means. Indeed her performance of it is more than adequate. The trouble is that after hearing Louise Plowright do rather too good a job with that song in the musical Mamma Mia (and on half a track of that show’s Cast Album), its difficult to hear anyone else’s version, without making comparisons, and her rendition of that song is rather a hard act to follow.

Dancing Queen is not the only number, to suffer from the fact that while it is perfectly adequate there are known performances (and sometimes recordings) which were just that bit better. Anything You Can Do, Make Believe, and, Deadwood Stage all suffer similarly: Anything You Can Do suffers the least, for (like Dancing Queen) it is almost performance-proof, and actually comes across quite well. It’s just more playful than actual rivalry. Make Believe suffers terribly from the fact that in the 1951 film version it was sung exceptionally well by Kathryn Grayson and Howard Keel, and unfortunately while Teri Hansen and Doug LaBrecque may be good singers in their own way, they are not Grayson and Keel (or for that matter Frederica Von Stade and Jerry Hadley). Deadwood Stage’s main problem is a strange arrangement, which is most definitely not the Ray Heindorf one we all know.  How well Debbie Gravitte compared to Doris Day, I couldn’t really tell. The peculiar arrangement might work alright in a stage production (especially an Am Dram one), but it just doesn’t sound right on a compilation album.

There are however, some numbers on this album, which do stand up to the famous performances that have gone before, For example Michael Gruber, Christina Saffron and Randy Rogel do a fine job with Good Mornin’ from Singin’ In The Rain. For shear energy, enthusiasm, high quality and great ensemble performances other tracks which stand out include: Comedy Tonight, Oklahoma!, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, and of course Anything Goes.

From an American musical (by Cole Porter) of the same title Anything Goes is one of those tracks which doesn’t seem to have any particular reason for being designated as ‘London’, other than the fact that on this particular recording it is sung by a British performer, Louise Gold, sometimes referred to as ‘An English Ethel Merman’. (Who incidentally played the role or Reno Sweeney for the last month of the last-but-one London revival of the show, in 1990). However, it doesn’t really matter why the track is where it is. Because its such a joy to hear anyway. It is my belief that this is one of the best recordings of this song that there is. Ms Gold makes a wonderful Merman-Style singer, however, there is much more to her vocal prowess than just that, for even on this track, you can hear her indulge in the kind of vocal acrobatics, and innovative delivery of different lyrics, which Ethel Merman would never not have even approved of let alone dared do. She has the power of Merman, a style that is very much her own. And this is just the right kind of number to show her off her shining talents. Something she does all too little of on widely circulated compilation albums. The only other easily available compilation album where she features in a comparable performance is JAY/TER’s Encore - The Very Best From The Musicals.

Indeed fans for specific performers featured on this album (particularly: Graham Bickley, James Graeme, Caroline O’Connor, and, Sally Ann Triplett) will almost certainly find something to enjoy here. Although, such fans will probably already have the original albums from which these recordings come. While I myself didn’t particularly take to Caroline O’Connor’s various contributions to the compilation, I must say in all fairness that her performances were not bad, and am sure many people would enjoy them (they just didn’t do anything for me). On this occasion, however, I was quite impressed by Sally Ann Triplett’s performance, particularly with As Long As He Needs Me and Chitty Chitty Bang Bang. Even fans of some of the less prominent performers on this album will find some good stuff (though again there’s probably recordings that such fans already have): Christopher Biggins, Clare Burt, Kim Criswell, Louise Gold, Mike Holoway, Emily Losser Grania Renihan and Jacinta Whyte all give of their best, even though each is only on a single track.

So all in all this album makes very pleasant background listening. It would be excellent background music for a party (where jazz and music theatre may be an appropriately neutral background sound), or in a shop, and could also be very useful to Radio D-J’s  as giving a good selection of some quite decent recordings of popular showtunes (and at least one hit pop song). Would I recommend it to musical theatre buffs? Well, that might depend on what else you have in your collection. This is a compilation album, and so if you’ve already got a large number of the tracks on other CDs (such as the ones they originate from), then perhaps not, unless of course you are one of those people who collects every album for a favourite performer (this album does after all include several performers who have their fan followings), or of course, if you think the album would come in useful as background music. It’s a fun album, some performances are brilliant, some merely adequate, but none are actually bad. However, a lot of the tracks are probably available elsewhere, on the albums from whence they really came).

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