REVIEWS OF
THE ORIGINAL BROADWAY CAST RECORDING


TALKIN' BROADWAY

This season's only (currently running) musical revue, Swing!, bravely takes advantage of the recent resurgence of swing dancing, a theme that could have easily led to two hours of dusty schmaltz and reminiscence. However, for those of you who cringe at the thought of yet another revue, find solace in my words.

In the hands of Titanic choreographer Lynne Taylor-Corbett this slick little show has turned out to be a refreshing treat, as reflected by its cast album recently released on Sony Classical. Leading a stellar cast of musicians, dancers, and vocalists, cabaret superstar Ann Hampton Callaway vocally ignites the record with her breathtaking version of Johnny Mercer's sultry "Blues in the Night." Callaway unquestionably has the hottest voice on Broadway, bar none, end of story. Whether scatting up a storm with Everett Bradley ("Bli-Blip") or yanking at your heart strings with "I'll Be Seeing You," Ann's luminous presence makes this disc a necessity for all, not just cabaret and jazz/blues fans. Yet the other stars don't let Ann steal all the limelight; Michael Gruber, Everett Bradley, and Casey MacGill are wonderfully charismatic as the leading male vocalists. Sometimes-musician MacGill has a history with big band (his award winning album Jump) and it certainly shows in his dapper performance.

Second only to the afore-lauded "Blues," Laura Benanti's "Cry Me a River" (a duet with a muted trombone) is simply heartbreaking. If nothing else, this disc certainly makes one respect and admire the inherent ability of blues and jazz to allow performers to truly emote. The vivid, scorching melodies by legends such as Duke Ellington and Earl Hagen are performed to perfection by the Gotham City Gates, Swing!'s house band.

There's no doubt about it, these cats can jump, jive, and wail with the best of them. Perhaps some of the extended instrumental tracks grow tiresome on disc, and perhaps certain tracks such as "Boogie Woogie Country" come off as a tad ridiculous and out of place. But with such awesome performances, I just can't hold it against them.


Amazon.Com - Editorial Reviews


Amazon.Com

The neo-swing movement hit Broadway in full force with the December 1999 opening of Swing!, a
high-energy song and dance revue celebrating the music of the '30s and '40s. The show combines
swing classics ("Stompin' at the Savoy") and wartime standards ("I'll Be Seeing You") with originals
from its cast members. Cabaret chanteuse Ann Hampton Callaway, Everett Bradley, Laura Benanti, Michael Gruber, and ukulele-toting Casey MacGill (fronting the Gotham City Gates) perform solos and duets as well as quintets arranged by Manhattan Transfer's Yaron Gershovsky. Callaway (whose writing credits include the theme song for the TV series The Nanny and Barbara Streisand's "I've Dreamed of You" and "At the Same Time") has a voice that can burn on a ballad, blare like a trumpet, or scat up a storm. Of course it's a shame not to be able to see director-choreographer Lynne Taylor-Corbett's high-flying swing and Latin dancers, but this cast recording is an enjoyable romp in the spirit of Broadway's 1981 Ellington tribute, Sophisticated Ladies. --David Horiuchi


The artist, Jonathan Smith , February 20, 2000
A note from the musical director!

It all starts with the music, right? The folks at Sony Classical (Producer Steve Epstein) really know how to capture the spirit and sound of the live show. Whether you can get to the St. James to see us or not (and you most certainly should!) we hope you'll get the same thrill from the recording that we do from playing this music every night. It pops out of your speakers as if you were sitting right in the front row, and lets you live (or re-live) the music and drama of a night with the cast of "Swing", with all the attention on the music.

5 great singers, 8 hot musicians, some tapping feet and clapping hands: Everyone should find something to love here!


Amazon.Com - Customer Reviews

One word... wow.
Reviewer: Michael Costa
January 27, 2000
I saw the show in November and when I found out the CD wasn't released yet, I was mad. I've been waiting for 3 months now, but I assure you it was worth every second I waited. This CD is everything you could ever need in swing. It has every kind of swing possible, and every song is so well done that you'll listen to it again and again until you have to buy another one because the first one got worn out. I totally recommend it! BUY IT RIGHT NOW.


The joint is jumpin'
Reviewer: Frank Behrens
January 25, 2000
It seems that even as I write these words the joint is jumpin' at the St. James Theatre in New York
City to a new review called Swing! [what would they do without exclamation marks?] and the
score is now available on a Sony release (SK 89122). For those of us who lived through the
40s--and I was a mere youth when the decade started--these tunes will elicit many many memories of the war that WW I was supposed to have made impossible and of the transformation of some forms of jazz into the Swing that was both a symptom of the uneasy times and a way of coping with them.

Here a talented cast--headed by Ann Hampton Callaway, Everett Bradley and Laura
Benati--recreate the musical times with songs that have "It Don't Mean a Thing" as a framing theme and include "jammin'" numbers like "Bounce Me Brother," "Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy," and
"Stompin' at the Savoy" mixed with very lovely ones like the classic "I'll Be Seeing You" and "Blues
in the Night."

Of course hearing the original versions of all these by the singers who introduced them and the
bands that played them is a far more valuable experience historically. But from what I hear, the
arrangers for this production have treated the material with respect and the soloists are "In the
Mood" (I believe) that was intended by the composers. A worthwhile salute to an historical period
and a joy to hear today.

 

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