Sail Away (Original 1962 London Cast Recording)

Noel Coward (Artist), Elaine Stritch (Artist)

Product Details

• Audio CD (July 22, 2003)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Varese Sarabande
• ASIN: B0000A5A0M
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #239,782 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

Track Listings

1. Come To Me

2. Sail Away

3. Where Shall I Find Him?

4. Beatnik Love Affair

5. Later Than Spring

6. The Passenger's Always Right

7. Useless Useful Phrases

8. Go Slow Johnny

9. You're A Long, Long Way From America

10. The Customer's Always Right

11. Something Very Strange

12. Don't Turn Away From Love

13. Bronxville Darby And Joan

14. When You Want Me

15. Later Than Spring (Reprise)

16. Why Do The Wrong People Travel?

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

Let's face it: Sometimes, even Noel Coward could fail. Take his 1961 musical Sail Away: Coward wrote the book, lyrics, and score--and sometimes you wish he had delegated a bit more. Set on the cruise ship S.S. Coronia, the show certainly has its moments, but overall it fails to make a lasting impression. While there are lovely tunes ("Sail Away," "Later than Spring") and a few peerless comic showcases ("Useless Useful Phrases," "Why Do the Wrong People Travel?"), Coward's trademark wit comes across as toothless now. And yet Sail Away remains cultish because it turned Elaine Stritch into a marquee name. The singer-actor was so good during the out-of-town tryouts that Coward expanded her part, and Stritch ran with it. She sells a ballad like "Something Very Strange" with all her heart, but what she really transcends are bravura pieces such as "Why Do the Wrong People Travel?" (which she reprised in her one-woman show At Liberty). If you want to listen to the birth of a stage star, this CD is it. --Elisabeth Vincentelli

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars cute Elaine Stritch cast album, September 16, 2003

By	Byron Kolln (the corner where Broadway meets Hollywood) - See all my reviews (TOP 50 REVIEWER)

SAIL AWAY wasn't a big hit on Broadway when it opened in 1961, running a scant 167 performances. However, the show was received with a better reception in London, opening at the Savoy Theatre in 1962, running 252 performances. Noel Coward's sparkling score and the fabulous Elaine Stritch are the main drawcards for buying this cast album.

Fynsworth Alley has reissued the original London cast album of SAIL AWAY, which Stritch herself considers as superior to the Broadway cast album. At last, this tuneful and witty score, with the formidale Stritch as the lead character Mimi Paragon, can be discovered for a new generation of fans.

Most memorable are Elaine Stritch's numbers "Why Do the Wrong People Travel?", "Useless Useful Phrases", "Come to Me", and the lovely 11 o'clock number "Something Very Strange".

The supporting cast includes John Hewer (THE BOY FRIEND) and Dorothy Reynolds (SALAD DAYS), with Grover Dale, Sheila Forbes, Mavis Villiers, Edith Day, David Holliday, Margaret Christensen and Sydney Arnold.

SAIL AWAY is a must-own for fans of Elaine Stritch and the genius of Noel Coward.

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Stritch to the Max, July 27, 2003

By	"roly101" (NJ) - See all my reviews

For anyone who is a fan of Elaine Stritch, this is a must own.

For those of you looking for an interesting new (old) show, this is the one for you. The music is delightfully simple and the lyrics are wonderful. Certain songs have me thinking of Sondheim. Coward is a sarcastic and incredibly funny lyricist.

Just as Bernadette Peters is a perfect match for Sondheim, Stritch is a perfect match for Coward.

BUY IT NOW!

12 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Welllll........Elaine is Good But...., August 6, 2003

By A Customer

Many Broadway officianados were no doubt looking forward to the reissue of this long out of print "classic" starring the incomparable Elaine Stritch. Sad to say, one listening confirms why this show failed to make an impact, either on Broadway or London's West End. This dreary, bland little musical about not much of anything barely registers on any level. Most of the songs are trivial as well as instantly forgettable, and there is no story to speak of so nothing much keeps you interested. It takes Ms. Stritch's six solos to pull you out of the ether and, although even her considerable talents can't quite make a musical out of this mess, it's a marvelous document of Stritch hitting her stride. Thanks to CD programming, I can skip the rest of the dross and just listen to "Stritchie" (as Noel Coward use to call her) do her thing. And what a wonderful thing it is. Stritch may not have the best vocal instrument ever, but is there anyone else who can put their interpretive stamp on a song the way she does? Much like the late, great Dolores Gray, when Elaine Stritch interprets a song, every other singer in the world might as well forget about ever trying it. Stritch puts her definitive stamp on everything she touches. Yes, a trilly songbird like Julie Andrews makes a song sound wonderful. but with Stritch you hear the words, their meaning, and the song "feels" wonderful. Here, her "Why Do the Wrong People Travel" is a classic of sorts, and she amazingly brought as much gusto to the song in her one-woman show "At Liberty" some forty years later. In fact, she makes even the pedestrian "Useless Useful Phrases" worth a few listens. In fact, it's hard not to imagine what Stritch could have done with great parts at this point in her career, instead of mediocre trifles like "Sail Away". Oh well, what matters most is that Stritch was in the house for "Sail Away", and now she's there to stay. Bon vayage!