Customer Reviews

Tap Your Troubles Away - The Words and Music of Jerry Herman (Historic All-Star Tribute)

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

 

 

I ordered this because I have the other album from an Actor's Fund concert in LA (Kurt Weill: The Centennial). I play the Kurt Weill album all the time, but the Jerry Herman album is perhaps now the favorite album in my very massive collection. As soon as Karen morrow starts to sing on the first track, I get totally involved in the concert and always have to listen to the whole CD! I keep it in my car to soothe myself when I'm in that LA traffic! Wilson Cruz is a great surprise, Ken Page tears into "I Am What I Am," and Douglas Sills is amazing, as is Sam Harris and, of course Bernadette. The Lansbury/Channing duet is a classic - and to have that followed by Jerry himself is almost too much to ask for! I hope The Actor's Fund keeps doing these concerts forever!

What can I say? I am blown away by this album. Not only do you have a stellar cast singing all of my favorite Jerry Herman hits - but the sound quality is amazing!

Live recordings are sometimes --- perhaps the word should be "often" --- deadly. Inferior engineering. Sundry static glitches. Acoustics that annoy. Few such recordings work ... and work well. Add "Tap Your Troubles Away!" to the list of those Live Recordings That Work Very Well. Recorded at the Harriet and Charles Luckman Theatre at California State University in Los Angeles on November 10, 2001, the evening was a high-octane, star-studded tribute of Jerry Herman's genius that befitted The Actors' Fund. The 29 tracks are superbly recorded; the audience's appreciation is as palatable as the energy of the talent. There are a slew of surprise here, such as Jo Anne Worley's take on "Just Leave Everything to Me/I Want to Make the World Laugh" and Rod McKuen's "Look Over There." Some tracks are simply stunning: Rita Moreno's searing "I Won't Send Roses;" Sam Harris's rapid-fire denial "I Don't Want to Know" and Tyne Daly's poignant "Tomorrow Morning/And I Was Beautiful." (The weakest track? Surprisingly Bernadette Peters' "Time Heals Everything;" the Peters Principle --- singing the tune so often in the past that it sings itself --- dilutes the promise of the tune.) And then there are the Big Stars of the Night: Carol Channing and Angela Lansbury. The twisted joy here is that Angela sings something she's "always" wanted to sing: "Hello, Dolly!" A few minutes into the throaty rendition, Carol prances out, crying that somebody "stole my song," and then launches into "Mame." A well-versed chorus conquers the rest of the medley, but for several stellar (though too-brief) moments, theatrical history is made. The CD ends with Herman ticking the keys, assuring us that, thankfully, "I'll Be Here Tomorrow." The best of times, indeed!

What an album! I was at the show and the album comes very close to capturing the excitement and electricity of that evening. When Angela Lansbury walked on the stage, the roof almost blew off the theatre! And when Carol Channing joined her (the first time they ever appeared together, apparently) there was a nuclear explosion! Aside from that duet, classic performances by so many - especially Sam Harris, Hugh Panaro, Leslie Uggams and Rita Moreno! This is a must for any collector!

The CD is really uneven. While some of the performances are really stunning (I particularly like Rita Moreno's 'I Won't Send Roses' as well as Jason Graae's solo (you must check out his two solo CD's...they are so funny)), I absolutely hate the virtual orchestra in the background. With all the talent involved in the recording, the orchestra should have sounded better.

This album has some amazing performances on it- Rita Moreno's "I Won't Send Roses" is one of the only two song recordings that literally bring me to tears every time. The only drawback: the orchestra is small and has a synthesizer instead of a string section.

It is worth ten times the price of this album just to hear Angela Lansbury (in incredible voice!) and Carol Channing "switch songs" - but this whole album is phenominal. Jerry Herman must love this one! It is like a love song to him. Every single track is great - my favorites being Sam Harris, Jason Graae, Bernadette Peters and Leslie Uggams - but I play it over and over again and love every moment. There is a lot of apllause left in - and it really makes you feel like you are there!

While I agree that the recording is uneven, there's so much that's wonderful. My personal favorite is Wilson Cruz's definitive performance of "A Little More Mascara." Also noteworthy are Rod McKuen's "Look Over There," Nancy Dussault's "Where in the World is My Prince," Rita Moreno on "I Won't Send Roses," Tyne Daly, Dale Kristien on "Love Look in my Window" and so many more. Kym Hoy on "Loving You" was a nice surprise, too.

IF YOU NEVER BUY ANOTHER " SHOW BIZ " CD IN YOUR LIFE , THEN PLEASE BUY THIS ONE.THE VOICES AND PERFORMANCES OUT CLASS ,AND OUT SING ,ALL YOUVE EVER HEARD BEFORE.THESE ARTISTS ARE BEYOND COMPERE IN THIRE GENERA .LIVING IN ENGLAND , WE ARE NOT EXPOSED TO SOME OF THESE PEOPLE ,SO IT CAME AS A WONDERFUL SURPRISE. GO AN BUY IT nowwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww

I truly must say if you are ever in Los Angeles when they do this show SEE IT .. WHAT TALENT -- and how can you go wrong -- it's Jerry Herman