Customer Reviews

Sibling Revelry

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

 

 

I have been a fan of Liz Callaway's for quite awhile but had never been introduced to Ann Hampton Callaway's music. This CD was a perfect introduction.

These are two very talented ladies.

The CD covers all the musical bases from sweet to heart-tugging to jazzy to humerous. Their sibling interaction and the rendition of the music suggested to them is especially funny and entertaining.

I highly recommed this for any music lover's collection.

This is a live recording of a great cabaret show starring sisters Liz and Ann Hampton Callaway. Liz is the best Broadway singer in NYC and Ann is the top cabaret singer currently. This album is a must for anyone who wants to laugh and enjoy great vocals from two very talented performers.

Ann Hampton and Liz Callaway have been well-known by Broadway and Cabaret afficionados for years. This CD, recorded live at the Rainbow & Stars in 1995 is a wonderful showcase for older sister Ann's deep jazz-tinged crooning and younger sister Liz's clear-bell Broadway soprano. Together or apart, their singing is definitely top notch.

Highlights are "The Huge Medley Parts 1 & 2" where the sisters go through a medley of every song that was recommended them by friends and colleagues who knew they were doing a show together. It's hilarious!

Also, their "jealousy-tinged" version of "Friendship" is good for several laughs at the expense of sibling-rivalry and "The Nanny Named Fran" is also an example of how even a sitcom theme can sound classy if approached with creativity and elan.

However, the CD has a few clunkers and they mostly occur when the sisters sing solo. While Ann Hampton does wonders with a medley of "My Buddy" and "Old Friend", she loses my interest with "Rhythm in My Nursery Rhymes". It's less about her scat singing (which is quite good), and more about the dullness of the song itself. Little sis Liz fares no better with the tepid Frank Loesser tune "My Heart is So Full of You", although she does ignite some sparks with her take on Stephen Schwartz's "Meadowlark".

Suprisingly, what would seem to be the most suitable duet on the album, Stephen Sondheim's "Our Time" (from the wonderfully difficult show MERRILY WE ROLL ALONG) sounds tired and lackluster. But the sisters soon rebound with a brilliant English version (a capella no less!) of Michel Legrand's "You Must Believe In Spring", from Jacques Demy's wonderful film LES DESMOISELLES DE ROCHEFORT.

Overall, a great CD, that despite a few low points, is still pretty fun to listen to and an important addition to any musical theatre fan's collection.

This is a live recording of a great cabaret show starring sisters Liz and Ann Hampton Callaway. Liz is the best Broadway singer in NYC and Ann is the top cabaret singer currently. This album is a must for anyone who wants to laugh and enjoy great vocals from two very talented performers.

Although very different in vocal styles, the voices of Ann Hampton and Liz Callaway blend together in amazing harmony on the album. Recorded live at Rainbow and Stars this album gives you a true feeling of being in a cabaret, and seeing how artists weave their story through music and words.

While in London a few years back, my partner and I stumbled upon this "sister-act" at The Donmar Wharehouse. Based on a little friendly review from former Caberet, Theater and Cinema Diva, Liza Minnelli posted near the marquee we checked the show out. Well let me tell you that this Sister Act is over the top, flat out FABULOUS! The best part, it translates wonderfully on CD to you, the listener at home. If caberet is your thing and you enjoy a little shmaltz to go along with some amazingly talented voices pick up Sibling Revelry and enjoy, enjoy, enjoy!

I listened to Liz Callaway's album The Story Goes On, also on here, in a store and wondered where I had heard her voice. I remembered hearing her as the singing voice of Anastacia in the animated musical and liked her voice then. I fell in love with her voice and purchased that cd. I checked on Amazon for other recordings and saw this one so I ordered it. I loved it. The best song by Ann Hampton Callaway is My Buddy, My Old Friend. It is sure to make you cry and I play it over and over. I already had Liz Callaway's album and one of her songs is on this album as well as The Story Goes On, "Meadowlark" which she does with such a clear voice and this is a great arrangement of the song. I am partial to Liz's voice although they blend well together and as I stated earlier, "My Buddy... is a 3 hankee weeper song with a gorgeous piano and vocal arrangement. The duets including "The Nanny" and "Friendship" are fun to listen to. I was a big fan of The Nanny show so I enjoyed hearing that again and remember Friendship mostly from I Love Lucy episode. I enjoy the banter between the two sisters with cracks on age and who has won the most awards and The Big Medley is fun and has great vocals as well. It has many familiar songs from Broadway and elsewhere including Enough is Enough( Barbra Streisand and Donna Summer, Sisters from White Christmas, Happy Days are Here Again/Get Happy that Barbra Streisand and Judy Garland sang. I don't know what else to say to sell you on this album. This album and Liz Callaway's solo are probably two of the best cds I ever owned and I own hundreds so that is saying a lot. I am sure you won't be disappointed in this cd!

I saw "Sibling Revelry" when the sisters came to Seattle, and the CD is every bit as good as the live show! Soulful vocals, bluesey tenderness, and sparkling wit make this one of the most inspiring and diverse recordings available today. If you're new to the Callaways, buy "Sibling Revelry" first, and then go back and collect all of the Callaway recordings!

This is the album that introduced me to Liz and Ann. Since then, I have purchased every album of their's that I can find, but I keep coming back to this one as my favorite. It's taped live at Rainbow and Stars in NYC and shows off their incredible vocals, obviating the need for a studio. I HIGHLY recommend it to anyone who is a fan of Broadway or Caberet or simply appreciates incredible vocal talent. I've not met a person yet you doesn't love this album!

Ann and Liz really shine on this one. Their mix of Broadway and jazz styles, along with their great senses of humor, make this one of my all-time favorite cd's. Sorry Alice & Emily, these "real" sisters have you beat!