Customer Reviews

All I Ask of You

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Barbara Cook's singing is one of the great wonders of the world of music. This CD is another stellar addition to her very impressive body of work in the `90's. She also chooses her partners better than any other singer - the arrangements and orchestrations by Wally Harper and Peter Matz are just perfect for her and for the songs. It's hard to pick a favorite - All I Ask of You is beautiful, Wonderful Guy is delightful, the She Loves Me medley is marvelous anew after all these years, I Wonder What Became of Me is poignant but not maudlin, and We'll Be Together Again is entrancingly lovely. I also love the combination of New Sun in the Sky and On A Clear Day - my only quibble is that the orchestration is better suited for a live performance. (It is stunning when done live). Overall, another disc that I will listen to repeatedly and enjoy and enjoy. Barbara Cook never gives us less than her best, and at 71 her best is still THE best. What a treasure....

In her Carnegie Hall concert of November, 1998, Miss Barbara Cook sang a medley of songs from "She Loves Me," a musical in which she starred on Broadway in the early '60's. I wished she would rerecord these beautiful songs. There was so much more depth and maturity in her singing nearly 40 years later. Soon thereafter, DRG released "All I Ask of You," which did indeed include these gems. In fact, many of the songs on this cd are also on her Carnegie Hall album of 1975. Listen to the differences in "Glad Rag Doll" and the songs from "She Loves Me." Her handling of the high "b" at the end of "Ice Cream" is more focused and precise than ever before. And the way she wraps her lovely soprano around the last note in both "In Buddy's Eyes" and "Somewhere" is worth the price of the CD. This chanteuse knows how to interpret both ballads and uptempo numbers with equal effect. The fact that she knows how to choose a musical director (Wally Harper) doesn't hurt either. Not bad for a lady in her 70's.

Another beautiful piece of work from this one-time Broadway ingenue, whose voice only gets better with time. I especially liked some lesser-known songs from Broadway, such as The Very Next Man (Fiorello); In Buddy's Eyes (Follies) and a medley from She Loves Me. The orchestrations by Peter Matz are rich, complex, and totally unexpected. In short, a must for any Barbara Cook fan, and anobody who appreciates the Broadway show song.

Ms Cook continues to astound with her lush, warm tones in her direct no nonsense delivery. Listening to her sing songs you've heard your whole life is like listening to them for the first time. She doesn't really force you into her interpretation. Rather, she seduces you simultaneously with her vocal prowess that informs you why she has been a reigning diva for 50 years, and her fresh approach to the lyric and the melody as if she were taking this musical journey with you for the first time. Hearing her last note in Bernstein's "Somewhere" alone is worth the price of admission. Her legendary interpretation of Sondheim's "In Buddy's Eyes" finds a very comfortable home on this new cd.

This is Barbara Cook at her best. Every track is 5 star rated, Barbara's voice has matured to perfection and the inclusion of songs from "She Loves Me" that Barbara Cook first recorded over 30 years ago testify to the truly amazing quality of her voice on this recording. Beautifully arranged by Wally Harper, this recording is a "must have" for anyone seriously interested in Broadway at it's best. "We'll be together again" the final track will break the hardest heart.

I really like this CD. Performed by a former Broadway Actress, by the name of Barbara Cook. She started off her career on Broadway as Marian Paroo in "The Music Man." Then she retired from Broadway and became a terrific singer, which she still is into her 70's. I really like her version of A Wonderful Guy. I wish she would re-record some songs from "The Music Man," on her next CD.

I agree with the previous review.
I wish Ms. Cook would re-visit some of her old stuff,
most especially "The Music Man". I grew up listening to that cast album, and then seeing the movie, with Shirley Jones as Marian Paroo. Shirley did a wonderful job, mind, but she just didn't have the purity of Barbara's voice. And Shirley apparently could not handle "My White Knight".
My big wish is to contact Ms. Cook, because I have a question to ask about "The Music Man"...having read Meredith Willson's book, "But He Doesn't Know the Territory!" The book details Mr. Willson's long struggle to get "The Music Man" to Broadway, and goes into some detail about a counterpoint song, sung on the footbridge, to "My White Knight" that was cut from the show.
My dad an I spent many years trying to figure out how the 2 songs went together, and, as neither of us could play an instrument, we had a lot of trouble. My dad died about the same time as Meredith Willson, and Robert Preston died soon thereafter, so we never found out. I wonder if Barbara Cook still knows how the 2 songs go? Do you, Ms, Cook?