The Maury Yeston Songbook [CAST RECORDING]

Maury Yeston (Artist), Christine Andreas (Artist), Brent Barrett (Artist), Betty Buckley (Artist), Liz Callaway (Artist), Alice Ripley (Artist), Sutton Foster (Artist), Brian d'Arcy James (Artist), Philip Chaffin (Artist)

Product Details

• Audio CD (April 8, 2003)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Cast Recording
• Label: P.S. Classics
• ASIN: B00008H2LJ
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (18 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #86,219 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

Despite racking up Tony nominations and/or box-office success with Nine, Grand Hotel, and Titanic, Maury Yeston remains a relatively unknown Broadway auteur. And yet, what a fabulous songwriter he is. Listen to "Home," for instance: This excerpt from Phantom (the other adaptation of Phantom of the Opera) has great melodic hooks, along with natural sweep and unrestrained emotion. Like every song on this CD, it also has such dramatic drive that it easily stands on its own outside of its regular narrative frame. This collection of new recordings provides an excellent overview of Yeston's talent, juxtaposing numbers from his three best-known scores (though there's only one from Titanic) with rarities and a generous selection from his 1991 song cycle December Songs. Christine Ebersole, Liz Callaway, and Betty Buckley turn in expectedly strong performances, but watch also for Laura Benanti (the star of the 2003 revival of Nine), Christine Andreas, and Foster Sutton, who completely make the material theirs. --Elisabeth Vincentelli

Product Description

The Tony Award-winning composer/lyricist -- who's given us the smash hit musicals Titanic, Phantom and Grand Hotel, and whose first stage show, Nine, is currently being revived in New York with Antonio Banderas -- is celebrated in song by the best stars o

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars this is so amazing I could die!, April 16, 2003

By	Shayne Kirwan Hudson (cedar city, utah) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This is an incredibly moving piece of music. When I first went to buy it I was reluctant because I didn't know much of the music, which also actually a reason I wanted to buy it, I like new music that I've never heard before. Anyway the music is incredibly melodic and moving. I could listen to it endlessly without ever getting tired of it. I love all of the songs on it. But some of my favorite songs are " My Grandmother's Love letters" " By The River" " I Am Longing" and " Another Day In The Modern World." The whole cd is incredibly amazing. If you have never listened to Maury Yeston before you are seriously missing something. If you can't tell I highly, highly recommend this cd.

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Yeston's Best- Excellent CD, June 16, 2003

By	Matthew (Washington DC) - See all my reviews

Being a huge Yeston fan I couldn't wait for the release of this CD. And it didn't disappoint. This is a CD that every Yeston fan, or Musical theater fan should have in their collection. With songs from Phantom, Grand Hotel, December Songs, Titanic, Nine, In the Beginning and with several world premieres this CD is priceless. Alice Ripley's rendition of "Please Let's Not Even Say Hello" is heartfelt and with one of the best voice's on Broadway Sutton Foster's "I Want to Go To Hollywood" is sensational. One of the best songs on the CD is "Danglin'" sung by Johnny Rodgers- hard to believe that Yeston actually wrote it. Laura Benanti and Robert Cuccioli's rendition of "Home," one of the greatest duets ever written is gorgeous. Other great performances are given by Christine Andreas, Liz Callaway, Brian d'Arcy James, Howard McGillin, and many more. All the performances aren't great, however. While Betty Buckley sings "I Had A Dream About You" beautifully she barks her way through "Be On Your Own" (sounds like Grizabella is being run over by a truck.) Alice Ripley's "Call To the Vatican" while not horrible, doesn't come anywhere near to the performances of Anita Morris or even Jane Krakowski for that matter. Going for a Marilyn Monroe quality her voice is a little too breathy and the way she takes license with the rythms in the song drives me insane. But these performance haven't stopped me from playing this CD non-stop for the past week.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars I'd rate it higher than five stars if that were possible., March 11, 2005

By	R. Williamson "Music Lover" (Virginia) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This CD is, in a word, spectacular. It's difficult to believe that one person wrote all the music and lyrics to such a diverse collection. It is also difficult to believe that Maury Yeston is not better known. If you are familiar with the shows "Nine" and "Titanic" but don't really know his music and are the least bit curious, don't hesitate to buy this CD. Trust me: You WON'T be disappointed. The material is wonderful, and most of the singers are great. A couple of the performances are a bit "over the top" but the material still shines through. My personal favorites are Please Let's Not Even Say Hello, I Want to Go to Hollywood, Danglin, My Grandmother's Love Letters, Simple, and No Moon. But, believe me, there are absolutely no "clinkers" on this CD; every selection is a fantastic piece of songwriting. Bravo to Maury Yeston!