Customer Reviews

70, Girls, 70 (1971 Original Broadway Cast)

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

 

 

What a special treat. This ranks with chicago and cabaret as kander and ebb's best. what a magnificent score, beautifully recorded so we can relive the theater experience. and what an experience. virtually every song is a gem, starting with the rousing "old folks", through mildred natwick's precious performances on HOME and the elephant song. trust me, i own virtually every show cd every produced and having discovered this cd, i cannot stop playing it.

A wonderful Kander and Ebb score! Full of their usual showstopping type numbers! You'll just love "Coffee In A Cardboard Cup" and "Broadway, My Street", while "Do We?" and "Old Folks" are sure to at least make you chuckle. I highly recommend this C.D to join any collection. You might own "Cabaret", "Chicago" and "Kiss Of The Spider Woman", but your Kander and Ebb collection will be incomplete without this one!

Also recommended by the same song writing team: "Woman Of The Year", "The Happy Time" and "Flora The Red Menace."

70 GIRLS 70 was written by John Kander and Fred Ebb, best-remembered for their firecracker CABARET and CHICAGO scores. This 1971 offering was based on the British play BREATH OF SPRING (later turned into the film MAKE MINE MINK) about a motley group of seniors who steal furs and money from young people, in order to help the elderly and less-fortunate.

The show featured an amazing lineup of regal old-timers headed by Mildred Natwick, Hans Conried and Lillian Roth, and also featured Henrietta Jacobson, Lillian Hayman, Dorothea Freitag and Lucie Lancaster. 70 GIRLS 70 shuttered after 35 performances.

The score yielded at least one hit: "Yes", which became a staple in Liza Minnelli's repertoire for years. Other great numbers include "Go Visit" (a showstopping turn for Henrietta Jacobson and young Tommy Breslin); "Coffee in a Cardboard Cup"; "Broadway, My Street" and "The Elephant Song".

Still, a must-own for Broadway enthusiasts. [SONY SK-30589]

70, Girls, 70 was quite ill-fated (Broadway comedian David Burns dropped dead onstage during the pre-Broadway tour; he was replaced by Hans Conreid -- and the "show-within-a-show" storyline confused audiences. The show had "book trouble" from day one.)
Nevertheless, if you can forget the flimsy premise about old performers returning to the stage, playing "old folks" who moonlight as burglars, what a SOCKO-BOFFO-"Punch 'em in the GUT" score this is! The orchestrations are brassy, punchy, and full of toe-tappng synchopation. Mildred Natwick, in her musical debut, is confident and commanding, even if her voice has a bit of an unsteady quaver, now and then. She always was a great character actress, and she successfully morphed into a great Broadway diva in this show. Too bad it ran only a month. Hans Conreid produces his usual "haughty growl" as he navigates some very tricky comic songs. Old-timer Henrietta Jacobson is great as a soft-shoeing grandmother. But the pair who steal the show are Goldye Shaw and Lillian Heyman with their riotous comment on the values of modern society, "Coffee in a Cardboard Cup". This show has the brass, punch, and energy of Broadway's greatest musicals. That it somehow is NOT one of Broadway's greatest musicals is due to a failure of creative concept, not a dearth of talent. There is enough old-fahsioned, vaudeville-style talent in the cast of "70, Girls, 70" to blast a bank vault to smithereens. Listen and learn, kiddies -- this is what the old-style Broadway pros used to do, when Broadway was really something special.

I have been a fan of Kander and Ebb for sometime, and I have several of their CD's and or DVD's. I heard some selections from "70, girls,70" on a local radio station in Australia, and decieded to get a copy. I have not been disappointd, the delight of hearing Mildred Natwick, and Lillian Roth, is something not to be missed. Great Stuff. Up there with "On the 20th Century" and "Steele Pier"
Graeme Studd, Australia

One of my favorite musicals that shows what these two could do with an improbable plot. Fantastic cast of oldsters, especially Mildred Natwick, who introduced "YES"... later the opening number for "Liza with a Z." I highly recommend this as a backup for those who have, and loved, their original 78 rpm album. Lots of fun and absolutely a must for "Old Folk," and a treat for the younger generation.

Received this product well ahead of time.....I was a candidate for a part in this musical in my local community theatre group I learned all the songs before the casting time. Thank you so much!!
The merchandise was in "extra good condition"

I love this recording. I first heard it when I was 21 ... and now I am 60, so it's alot more funny and relevant now. Probably one of the best cast recordings of it's era ... next to "Mame" and, of course, "Company" ... but for a "flop" of a show, they gave it a grand treatment. It's a hoot from start to finish.

While I am a Kander and Ebb fan, this flop is rightfully put out of the standard spinning market. The songs are boring and the plot is not really understood (in the music or the liner notes.) The voices are... well, old. Its not really an engaging listen, with no great lyrics or message. Maybe an older person enjoys this, but there is little that I find enjoyable here. "Coffee in a Cardboard Cup" and "Say Yes" are not bad messages, and could probably be incorporated in a cabaret that would be enjoyable, but this CD is a pass. Only collectors are suggested to get this one.

There are some clever songs in this show, especially "Old People", but it has a confusing plot and some of the numbers are not particularly memorable. It's not one of my favorites, but I like it enough that I didn't try to take it back, as I did Steel Pier. It's basically about a bunch of old folks who turn to burglary to improve their life style.