Customer Reviews

Amour (2002 Original Broadway Cast)

5 star:		(13)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Though it had but a short run on Broadway, Michel Legrand's Amour has produced a beautiful cast recording with all the intoxicating fizz of the 2002 Broadway production. It has an impeccable cast (including vocal powerhouses Melissa Errico, Nora Mae Lyng, Lewis Cleale, and Norm Lewis), delicate (but lovely) orchestrations, and one of the most flavorful, intriguing, and humorous scores to hit Broadway recently (and this in the same season Hairspray opened, no less).

The problems with the disc will only make it rate 4 stars for people familiar with the original production--it will be a solid 5 for everyone else. But the trimming of some material that should have been included--chief among them the musical's dramatic and musical climx--hampers the album's full impact, especially since a nice but wholly unnecessary bonus track featuring Legrand was included instead.

Still, it's a warm, colorful recording that beautifully represents a charming show.

I now understand why AMOUR was nominated for Best Musical, Best Book, and Best Original Score at the 2002 TONY Awards. It is a sweet, almost abstract, sung-through musical - in the Legrand tradition of "Umbrellas of Cherbourg"; a truly charming, albeit unconventional, and ... well ... sort-of-French-though-it's-in-English-musical. Although it lasted for only 31 previews and 17 performances on Broadway, someone had the good sense to bring the original cast back together 6 months later for this recording. A wonderful, eminently listenable, and infectious recording. This Broadway collector's delight has full liner notes and libretto!!

I was intrigued by the story of Amour and was quite attracted by the CD's nice packaging. However, Amour proves to be a very touching and cute recording. The overture is simple but very effective. It starts with a catchy jazz waltz that (effectively) welcomes listeners. Very good songs and solo pieces are Other People's Stories, The Street Vendors' Waltz, Somebody, and an Ordinary Guy. Its my first time to hear Melissa Errico and Malcolm Gets, and I am quite impressed (I would love to hear Melissa Errico sing a song from Sunday in the Park). Some cute character songs are the Whore's Lament and the Painter's Song.

I heard that Amour was not able to enjoy a long-run on Broadway, but I am quite glad to have a recording. A bonus treat is the last track. A nice surprise is that the strong tracks are the waltz tracks.

Honestly, I really do not understand the reviews made with regard to Amour. One of the reviewers compalained on the silliness of the lyrics. It is supposed to be light, comic, silly, and FUN.

AMOUR quickly expired on Broadway, though its cast album will remain to testify its greatness. Michel Legrand's quirky, romantic score and Jeremy Sams' English translated-lyrics are right on the mark. It's very difficult to summize the death of AMOUR when mindless dreck like MAMMA MIA! runs for years.

Melissa Errico and Malcolm Gets, two of the best in Broadway's young talent, are fine in the lead roles. Nora Mae Lyng, Sarah Litzsinger, Lewis Cleale, Christopher Fitzgerald, Norm Lewis, Bill Nolte and John Cummingham are all likewise top-drawer Broadway talents.

Standouts in the glittery score include Nora Mae Lyng's hilarious "Whore's Lament", as well as choice numbers like "Office Life", "Somebody", "Waiting" and "Special Time of Day".

AMOUR, sadly, just doesn't fit into the current, hyper-commercial tapestry of Broadway. More's the pity. [SH-K-BOOM 4003-2]

This has got ot be one of the best scores on Broadway in recent years. What a shame it didn't last. it's definitely a better score than a lot of the hits that have been on Broadway in recent years. Gorgeous music!

Amour is a real masterpiece. It is a shame that such a beautiful
musical had only a short run on Broadway. I was lucky to watch it in time and I was probably the first to have the Broadway CD. Few years ago I purchased the French CD and when I learned that the musical is going to be produced on stage in NY I was thrilled. I am sure that it is very easy to fall in love with the music even for those who never watched it on stage. Legrand (as usual) composed a beautful and original music which is fresh, comic and romantic. Lets hope that this fantastic musical will be soon staged again and filmed for DVD. We deserve such a gem.
Motti Ravid,

what a charming CD!! i was lucky enough to catch the show on broadway and the CD has succeeded in recapturing the brilliance of this little musical. the music is just so lovely and beautiful. it's a really great CD with an extremely talented cast.

I guess you either love or hate the music of Michel Legrand but I love most of his work. This Broadway show only ran a few performances, but it deserved a better fate because of its charming score and fine cast, particularly its leads. I'm glad the score was recorded because it should encourage regional productions. The orchestrations by Legrand for a very small band are lovely. (Maybe some smart filmmaker will make this into a movie, where the special effect of walking through walls would be easier to pull off--alas, there is no modern day Jacques Demy.)

I can strongly recommend Amour, it's a wonderful musical. Malcolm Gets has the most amazing voice and his co-stars make the whole thing just perfect.
If you haven't seen the musical the CD is a little hard to follow at first but that's all the more reason to keep listening! :-)

I'll make it short and sweet, just as the play's run

was short and less than sweet: I'm writing this in 2007, and AMOUR remains the best musical of the new millennium. Malcolm Gets was just about perfect, Melissa Errico's voice is magnificent, the seven other cast members were remarkably good in multiple roles, James Lapine did his usual superb job of directing...but the real star of AMOUR is, of course, composer Michel Legrand. I hope someday he'll forgive Broadway for this play's reception; I won't.