Customer Reviews

Annie Get Your Gun (1991 Studio Recording)

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

 

 

This studio recording of ANNIE GET YOUR GUN features the thrilling Kim Criswell singing the title role, as well as the booming voice of Thomas Hampson in the role of Frank Butler. John McGlinn conducts the outstanding London Sinfonietta.

Criswell is an ideal choice for Annie. She invokes the brassy vocals of the Ethel Merman (the role's originator), yet manages to inject some of her own spunky charm into the character. The ballsy Dolly Tate is played by Peta Bartlett; with a very young Rebecca Luker playing the ingenue role of Winnie opposite the Tommy of Jason Graae.

This recording is now quite rare; though is worth tracking down. Arguably the greatest recording of the score aside from the '66 Lincoln Center revival w/ Ethel Merman.

This is probably my favorite recording of this remarkable score. Kim Criswell doesn't have the brass lungs of Ethel Merman; she creates a more feminine, but still spunky, Annie Oakley. Thomas Hampson's stentorian baritone is well-suited to the pompous Frank Butler, and the supporting cast, including Jason Graae and Rebecca Luker, is excellent. As usual with John McGlinn's recordings of Broadway shows, this one is complete, so there's a lot of music here that had never been recorded before. The full 1946 score is performed, with "An Old-Fashioned Wedding," composed for the 1966 Lincoln Center revival, placed last as an appendix.

Along with ANYTHING GOES, BRIGADOON, and SHOW BOAT, this is a brilliant gem in John McGlinn's recorded legacy.

The studio recording of Irving Berlin's masterpioece has the advantage over cast recordings of bringing out the subtleties of the tunes better than most cast recordings and of using better singers and much better chorus and orchestra than is usual in the theatre. Thomas Hampson's Frank Butler is splendid and Kim Criswell's Annie is super.

If you want to hear the whole score, EVERY song, this is the CD for you. Kim Criswell is great as Annie.

This is a great addition to my collection of theatre CD's. There are no big 'stars' here - but there are a lot of talented performers and performances.