An Evening With Mike Nichols And Elaine May (Original Cast Recording) [Cast Recording]

Mike Nichols/Elaine May | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (June 23, 1998)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Cast Recording
• Label: Polygram Records
• ASIN: B000007Q8O
• Also Available in: Vinyl  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #258,789 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Essential, January 21, 2000

By 

Marc Kloszewski (Indiana, PA United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: An Evening With Mike Nichols And Elaine May (Original Cast Recording) (Audio CD)

I wish I could give this 5 stars, but I usually skip the "Disk Jockey" track--it's OK, but the other three are just pure gold. I was going to say Nichols usually plays (relatively) straight man to May's loopy characters, but both of them really do get to show off their sense of creativity and humor in the odd ways that seemingly normal people interact. "Adultery" is a set of variations on the same theme: two people meeting at a hotel for a tryst, but in three different countries: The US (where the two obsess about their guilt), England (acting veddy properly, and the man seems to be more interested in the woman's hat than her body), and France (when the woman shows up WITHOUT her husband, the man laments, "But it won't be ze same wizzout George!"). Hilarious. "Telephone" posits Nichols' poor shmuck (he has lost his last dime in a pay phone) against three different telephone company employees, all very inspiringly played by May. "Mother and Son" is a another telephone call, this time between Jewish Mother and put-upon son. You can imagine...("I sat by that phone all Wednedsay, all Thursday, all Friday, [my husband] said 'Phyllis, eat something, you'll faint!'"). This stuff, aside from the practicalities of the telephone service, will never age--it's endlessly enjoyable. Wouldn't it be great if Nichols & May consented to doing some improv together again? Get this for your collection. START a comedy collection with this--you can't do much better.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An Evening With Mike Nichols And Elaine May, January 3, 2000

By 

KENTON (Seattle, Washington USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: An Evening With Mike Nichols And Elaine May (Original Cast Recording) (Audio CD)

In this age of "explicative deleted" humor I was thrilled to find the reissue of this classic, intelligent and creative album. It is as funny now as it was in the 60's. The repartee and the timing are impeccable. Nichols and May have given us so many entertaining moments throughout the years (He as a Director, she as a writer/director. They collaborated recently on "Birdcage") that it really is a thrill to return to their roots. The album has become such a part of my life that bits and pieces; little snippets from the dialog are an integral part of my everyday life. Each vignette is perfect. Just listen and laugh!

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars One of my all-time favorites, April 12, 2002

By 

Robin Wolfson "Reliza" (Cameron Park, CA USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

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This review is from: An Evening With Mike Nichols And Elaine May (Original Cast Recording) (Audio CD)

I grew up with this album, and to this day my sister and I can still recite most of it by heart. So it was a real joy when I found it had been released on CD. This is Nichols and May at their zaniest: the desperate man arguing with the officious telephone operator ("That is Kaplan, K as in knife...") or the NASA scientist being lectured by his mother ("I read in the paper where you keep losing them.")

After all these years, this one remains a classic.