Billion Dollar Baby (Revival Cast) [SOUNDTRACK]

Morton Gould (Artist), Betty Comden (Artist), Adolph Green (Artist)

Product Details

• Audio CD (July 27, 1995)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Soundtrack
• Label: Original Cast Record
• ASIN: B00005423S
• Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #276,040 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

Track Listings

1. Atlantic City Sequence: Billion Dollar Baby/Who's Gonna Be the Winner? - Casey Nicholaw, Company

2. Dreams Come True - Kristin Chenoweth

3. Newsboys, No. 1 - Newsboys

4. Charleston [Ballet]

5. Broadway Blossom - Debbie Gravitte

6. Pals - Marc Kudisch, Michael McCormick, Casey Nicholaw, , Company

7. There I'd Be - Debbie Gravitte, Richard B. Shull

8. One Track Mind - James Darrah,

9. Bad Timing - Marc Kudisch

10. Dance Marathon - Adolph Green

11. Lovely Girl - Debbie Gravitte

12. Newsboys, No. 2/Funeral [Ballet] - Newsboys, Company

13. Havin' a Time - Debbie Gravitte

14. Faithless - Kristin Chenoweth, Richard B. Shull

15. Newsboys, No. 3 - Newsboys

16. I'm Sure of Your Love - Marc Kudisch

17. Farce Scene - Marc Kudisch, Michael McCormick, Richard B. Shull

18. Wedding (Finale) - Kristin Chenoweth, , Company

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

This might be one of the best shows you've never heard--or even heard of. Oddly enough, it took almost six decades for Billion Dollar Baby to get a proper full recording. This is all the more surprising since it was the show the incomparable Comden and Green wrote right after their smash debut, On the Town. Bravo to New York's York Theatre for its 1998 concert production, on which this recording is based. Set in the 1920s, Billion Dollar Baby is a wickedly funny, startlingly cynical fable about Maribelle Jones, a ruthless, amoral social climber whose fall coincides with the crash of 1929. Comden and Green are at their most acerbic, while Morton Gould's score is so dazzling that you wonder why he didn't do more on Broadway. The cast is topnotch as well, with special kudos to Kristin Chenoweth, who displays razor-sharp claws under the innocent demeanor in the title role, and Debbie Gravitte as a suave, wise, club entertainer. A highly recommended CD. --Elisabeth Vincentelli

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

22 of 26 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars All lost shows are not lost gems, March 17, 2001

By	John McWhorter (New York, New York United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This score is AWFUL! There's a reason no one has gotten around to this one despite its Comden & Green pedigree and the featuring of one of its ballets in JEROME ROBBINS' BROADWAY. Given the snappy title, the Roaring 20s plot, and its reputation as following in the wake of ON THE TOWN, BILLION DOLLAR BABY has always looked interesting from a distance. And it was probably rather fun to look at; the dancing must have been great. But we cannot experience it as an evening at the theatre -- what we get is the score, and sadly, Morton Gould just didn't have the gift of catchy melodies.

This has always been clear to diehard show buffs from the ARMS AND THE GIRL cast album, and this CD confirms that the drabness of the songs in that one were no fluke. There is not a single song in this one that has that certain Element X, including the two that pop up in sheet music anthologies now and then, "One Track Mind" and "Bad Timing". Every song sounds like a classical composer trying his darnedest to write in an idiom he does not really feel in his bones. Unfortunately, even the characters in the plot are almost oddly unlikeable for the period, which makes it even harder to cotton to the bland, perfunctory tunes. The only thing that MIGHT save them somewhat is rendition by a full orchestra in the original arrangements, which offer us a certain tang in themselves from this distance. But here we only have a little combo, which only emphasizes how little there is to work with.

Meanwhile, Comden & Green, as always, suffered when they didn't have a top-drawer composer. When they were good, they were immortal, capturing a cynical yet hopeful note that stands the test of time. But just as often, they could be paint-by-numbers in a way that strands them in their period, when less was expected of a lyric. It is this "Subways Are For Sleeping" brand of Comden & Green that we get here.

Lots of show fans are listening more for the performer than the score, of course. But even they are unlikely to get much out of this one. Kristin Chenoweth is a gifted performer but has little to do here that lets her strut her stuff as she did in YOU'RE A GOOD MAN, CHARLIE BROWN and the TV ANNIE. I love Debbie Gravitte but the songs she has here are so limp that she is wasted (even she can't make anything memorable out of the closest thing she has to a showpiece, "Havin' a Time", and she even sounds like she knows it). And the men here are generally less than stellar.

For archival purposes, hooray, we've got BILLION DOLLAR BABY recorded. But don't buy this one for the car or to cook to; there isn't a thing in it.

12 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Worth Every Penny!, December 25, 2000

By	Brian Mcnicholl "bramhall" (New York, NY) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

WOW! This is a surprisingly fresh score! It was CHICAGO before CHICAGO. The music is served up with panache, passion and polish. It's a fast-paced CD, and gave me a vivid picture of this fascinating show. And the singers: bravos all around! Kristin Chenoweth can do no wrong -- and she's totally a riot playing the Pal Josey-type title character. And Debbie Gravitte -- those pipes are Broadway gold. Marc Kudisch -- what a tremendous, sensitive vocalist. Plus all the others that give it the Big Broadway Sound. Can't believe this has been unheard for so long; it's so alive, it's like the ink isn't even dry yet! Gotta go put it back on again. What a savvy show!

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Comden & Green ride again!, December 26, 2000

By	David Goudsward (Lake Worth, FL USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Starring Kristin Chenoweth, this is a revival of one of the lesser known Comden & Green endeavors. This was the next show created by team, after the success of 'On the Town,' and although it is by no stretch at the same level, it is none the less a delightful show that should not have been neglected as long as it has.

The music by Morton Gould has been orchestrated by musical director James Bassi. Bassi was one of the arrangers of the 'Voices of Ascension' album of choral interpretations of Jerome Kern's work.

Set just prior to the Great Crash, it is the story of Maribelle Jones, who dreams of marrying wealth, and proceeds to finagle her way up the financial ladder via the NY mob.

You've got flappers, mobsters, beauty contests, cance marathons and funerals - what more do you want from a Broadway show!