Customer Reviews

Opposite You

5 star:		(10)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I am always looking for something new from our Broadway stars. This is a cherished and magnificent find. I've been a fan of Marin Mazie for some time - and somehow her husband - Jason Danieley escaped my awareness even though I'm familiar with his performance in the Full Monty. Here, they are terrific singing together - and alone - Most spectacular - Contrapuntal Berlin, as duets; Jason's rendition of Good Things Going; Jason's I Won't Send Roses; their supurb styling of "Too Many Mornings" from Follies is about the best I've heard anywhere. If you love exceptional singing; wonderful arrangements; and near perfect vocal pairings - Opposite You should not be overlooked.

I love Jason Danieley.

So there's objective viewpoint out the window.

I mean, really, I adore the man. His voice is perfection to me, and it's what I always hoped mine would grow into. His performances have always been professional and touching, and oh! that voice! His wife doesn't lack for talent, either.

And now the steel-throated couple is together at last on a duets album.

While there's nothing really wrong with the album, these two are amazingly talented, and they can do better than a lot of what's on display here. About a quarter of the songs are neither good nor bad. They're just... there. However, when these two are good, they're very, very good. The Sondheim medley that closes the album is pure bliss - these two were born to sing his words and music. Danieley offers a simply gorgeous "Good Thing Going/Too Many Mornings", Mazzie responds with a rendition of "Not a Day Goes By" that actually doesn't pale in comparison to Bernadette Peters' version, and the two come together in a rapturous performance of "Move On" from Sunday in the Park with George that almost erases the memory of Mandy Patinkin from the original Broadway cast.

Individual songs of note are "The Natural Order of Things", a sadly pretty rumination on age and change that benefits from some truly moving lyrics and musical phrases, the endearingly goofy "Nellie the Nudist Queen", and Harold Arlen's "Honeysuckle Rose", a well-chosen album opener.

It's worth a look if you're a fan of either singer. And as an album from Broadway performers, its mix of Arlen and Sondheim is a refreshing change from the usual Wildhorn/Webber/Boublil-Schönberg selections that riddle similar debuts.

FROM TWO OF THE MUSICAL THEATRE'S BEST VOICES COMES THIS FABULOUS CD. EVERY SONG AND MEDELY IS ARRANGED AND SUNG TO THE ENTH DEGREE....MARIN'S "A SORTA LOVE SONG" GAVE ME A SHIVER DOWN MY BACK, JASON'S " I WON'T SEND ROSES" BROUGHT A TEAR TO MY CHEEK, "ABA DABA HONEYMOON" PUT A HUGE SMILE. THREE SONGS IN A ROW THAT I CAN T STOP LISTENING TOO! THANK-YOU BOTH FOR THE EARLY CHRISTMAS GIFT , I LOVE IT ! IT'S JUST WHAT I WANTED!!!!!EVERYBODY BUY THIS CD TODAY!
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This album is a fresh look at some old Broadway gems that are not the traditional war horses of lounge singers and talent shows. The singing is pitch perfect and the orchestrations restrained enough to let the voices shine but full enough to give the songs heft. The choice of material represents and eclectic menu of passion, wistfulness and very clever humor. A well thought out album that gets better with repeated listening. The singing is crystal clear and should catapault this highly engaging couple to more renown.

I cannot be as effusive as other reviewers, but if you like musical theatre and comedy, this is the CD for you. Together and apart, a lovely balance of show tunes. Orchestrations are spot on and restrained in the best possible way. I could wish for more selections on this CD.

Marin Mazzie has a lush, gorgeous voice with a hypnotic depth to it. Although her husband sings beautifully I had not expected that the CD would be a collection of duets and found it jarring to be interrupted from Marin's lovely sound. I wish that she would come out with her own CD and can't understand why that hasn't happened yet.

Though Danieley is a huge success in Curtains, and Mazzie is a major star in Spamalot, this CD of them together is uneven, and ultimately a disappointment. Their voices just don't "go together." Mazzie has a huge soprano voice, and her strong vibrato, which often sets off a song beautifully on the stage, sounds fuzzy here, as if she is singing "between the notes." Since she is singing the harmony much of the time and Danieley is singing melody (more quietly), this becomes a problem, as her strong vibrato makes the melody hard to hear and follow. I found myself wondering what the songs would have been like if Danieley had sung the harmony to Mazzie's melody.

Still there's loads of energy here for those who love these stars, and there are some great solos. Danieley shows off his smart humor in the solo "I Want You to Be," a hilarious, staccato song in which he addresses his lover, saying "I want you to be the mother of the children I'm not sure I want to have, I want you to be the loving wife I come home to, if I do..." His impeccable diction and control of vibrato make this a delightful take on whether to get married.

Irving Berlin's "I Got Lost in His Arms" is a lovely solo by Mazzie, though she tends to sing it in full voice, when subtlety might have added to the mood. Since that song is paired with "Who Are You Now" (Jule Styne and BobMerill), she has a chance to show all her talents. The most enjoyable duet track is "Contrapuntal Berlin," which combines "Simple Melody," sung by Mazzie with "An Old Fashioned Wedding" sung by Danieley, and "You're Just in Love," in which they sing in counterpoint. "Abba-Dabba Honeymoon" is another terrific song.

Perhaps it was the choice of songs, perhaps it was the arrangements, perhaps it was the mixing, or a combination of all, but these two huge voices just did not blend effectively on many songs, especially the slow ones, nor did they offer new interpretations of these standards. The really fast songs are fun to hear, but the CD is too loud, the melody is not always clear, and neither star is shown off to his/her best. They both deserved better. n Mary Whipple

Two perfect Broadway voices! Two charismatic performers. Totally enjoyable. A few "silly" songs but even those are highly listenable.

I am a huge Jason Danieley fan and this hit the spot. He and his wife sing wonderfully together. Also great is, "I Miss The Music" on the broadway "Curtains" CD.

These two beautiful voices blend together very well. Both performers have many Broadway credits and they sing a number of musical theater songs as well as some I didnt recognize. This CD is for someone who loves old-fashioned musicals with a good dose of Sondheim thrown in.