Oliver!: The 1994 London Palladium Cast Recording [CAST RECORDING]

Lionel Bart (Artist)

Product Details

• Audio CD (April 4, 1995)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Cast Recording
• Label: Angel Records
• ASIN: B000002SLN
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  Audio Cassette
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars See all reviews (37 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #21,676 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com
Trust the musical theater to make life as an orphan sound, well, almost fun. After opening on the West End in 1960, Lionel Bart's Oliver! successfully transferred to Broadway, prefacing the British invasion of the 1970s and 1980s. Sam Mendes, who also directed acclaimed London productions of Company and Cabaret (the latter one moving on to Broadway) was at the helm for this version and certainly got things moving at a clip--especially since Lionel Bart wrote some new music and lyrics and the score was snappily rearranged. Jonathan Pryce is a suitably larger-than-life Fagin, and Sally Dexter shines as Nancy--her confrontation with Fagin and Miles Anderson's Bill Sikes in a new reprise of "It's a Fine Life" is pricelessly nasty. Going for maximum oomph and minimum sappiness, this swell recording may make even Oliver! haters reconsider. --Elisabeth Vincentelli

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

17 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Broadway is Not Always Best, June 26, 2000

By	Michael Del Rossi (Monroeville, NJ United States) - See all my reviews

What is there left unsaid to say about this great recording? I just found out that my high school will be performing Oliver next year, so I thought I would have to purchase a cast recording of the show. I was not sure whether or not I should get the Original Broadway Cast or the 1994 London Cast. Well, after reading the reviews for this CD I decided to purchase this one. Let me start off the review by saying that this is one of the most well casted shows I have come across in a long while. Jonathan Pryce's Fagin is excellent. He is dark yet playful and Sally Dexter's Nancy is magnificent. I especially like her songs "It's a Fine Life" and "I'll Do Anything". All of the orphans do a great job. Artful Dodger is great, forgive me I forget his name, he is one of the best I have heard. The rest of the supporting cast is beyond comparison. They blow everyone else away.

Another thing I really like about this recording as opposed to the Original Broadway Cast is that the tempo is peppier and in my opinion this makes listening to this CD much more enjoyable. The tempo keeps the songs and storyline going. Please invest in this CD, it is magical.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent Cast and Great Music, January 22, 2002

By	Gracejoy "gracejoy7" (New York, NY United States) - See all my reviews

This recording has a lot of pep and energy and feeling -- the characters all seem to come to life and you can sense that the cast put their hearts into their perfomance. Bill Sikes certainly sounds scary and mean; Fagin is delightfully sneaky; and the Artful Dodger is boyish, wild, and clever. Sally Dexter is wonderfully cast as Nancy and she can go from brash to mellow, depending on the mood of the song (her "As Long As He Needs Me" is quite moving and full of emotion). And for me (an American) the saucy Cockney accents are delighftul!

The only problem I have with this recording is the boy who plays Oliver. He has a good Broadway voice, but he sounds like a little adult -- vibrato everywhere -- and he just does not sound like the innocent, wide-eyed child Oliver was supposed to be. I also think he goes a little flat sometimes (because of the excessive vibrato). Nevertheless, he has a nice, strong voice, and after you get used to it you may even start to like it.

Overall, this is a first-class recording of an exciting musical full of good music -- and an excellent cast.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Super cast!, March 5, 2000

By	Steven Sauke (Seattle, WA USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This is a great recording of "Oliver!" Everyone sings incredibly! Gregory Bradley is an excellent Oliver, and Adam Searles is awesome as Dodger. But then, he was awesome as Gavroche, too. Jenny Galloway is perfect for the part of Widow Corney (and for Mme Thénardier in Les Mis). I'd say those three are the best in the cast, but the others are great too. Jenny Galloway and James Saxon are hilarious in "I Shall Scream." Sally Dexter's rendering of "As Long as He Needs Me" and the following scene on the London Bridge left me in tears--and that was just from listening to the CD!

In short, this is an excellent recording of an excellent, though heartbreaking, musical. Get it!