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Sweeney Todd

Simply Sondheim

Simply Sondheim (Audio CD)
by Gay Men's Chorus Of Los Angeles

(2 customer reviews)

SKU:

712847000920

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Description:

GMCLA's final performance with Dr. Jon Bailey as Artistic Director was dazzling, for it confirmed Dr. Jon's extraordinary legacy, building GMCLA into a nationally-heralded musical ensemble. Fortunately, that special show was captured on this live CD. Entitled Simply Sondheim, and featuring guest star Joanna Gleason, all material was written by Broadway's reigning genius Stephen Sondheim, whose gay sensibility puts an extra spin on his acclaimed lyrics. In fact, lyrics from songs unsung by GMCLA can be heard as clever narrative links throughout the performance.
Hear some of your favorite Broadway classics, like Send In The Clowns and No One Is Alone, performed as only GMCLA can, along with rarities like Pleasant Little Kingdom (cut from the score of Follies) sung by Joanna Gleason, as well as new arrangements created especially for the occasion, like the Sweeney Todd Rhapsody. Join the ecstatic audience as GMCLA performs with humor, depth, and emotion, while closing a chapter with Dr. Bailey and preparing to welcome its new Artistic Director.

Product Details:

Audio CD Release Date:	December 01, 2001
Studio:	Gay Men Chorus L.a.
Number Of Discs:	1
Average Customer Rating:	based on 2 reviews

Track Listing:

1.	Our Time
2.	Good Thing Going
3.	Merrily We Roll Along
4.	Pleasant Little Kingdom
5.	The Little Things You Do Together
6.	Send In The Clowns
7.	Sweeney Todd Rhapsody
8.	No One Is Alone
9.	Loving You
10.	Could I Leave You?
11.	I Remember
12.	Sunday
13.	Goodbye For Now
14.	Old Friends

Customer Reviews:

Average Customer Review: 3.5

( 2 customer reviews )
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 13 found the following review helpful:

Cult Classic Feb 12, 2002

Those remarkable men within the Gay Men's Chorus of Los Angeles have done it again! After delivering that powerful classical CD With A Mighty Voice, they pivot-turn and deliver this show-stopping performance of music composed for Broadway by Stephen Sondheim. The diversity of these singers is magnificently realized in an event that could possibly only succeed in L.A. Part of the fun of Simply Sondheim is imagining yourself among that theater-savvy audience 3000 miles away from Broadway as it devours every nuance of these modern show-biz classics arranged for 150 male voices. It's apparent right from the start that Stephen Sondheim's gay wit is ideal material for these talented men, whose memorable performances are captured live on this terrific recording.

And what a sound! Fans who think they know Sondheim's Sweeney Todd for example, will revel upon hearing the 15-minute Sweeney Todd Rhapsody where 150 voices bring new depth to some of Sondheim's greatest work. Familiar tunes like Send In The Clowns sound fresh when delivered by these gents, thanks to their unique and ingenious arrangements. Equally great are the Sondheim rarities, like Goodbye For Now (composed for the film Reds,) or Pleasant Little Kingdom (cut from Follies, performed here by guest star Joanna Gleason), or Loving You from Passion, all charged with the humor, bite, and aching tenderness that keeps the live audience in a whirl.

Sure wish I could have been in that audience! Owning this CD is the next best thing. To Sondheim fans, this is a cult classic; to theater fans, this CD makes a terrific gift. Perhaps the real gift is knowing that the Gay Men's Chorus thrives so well in Los Angeles. What can they possibly record next? Can't wait!

12 of 16 found the following review helpful:

Great Concept. Poor Delivery. Aug 29, 2002
By K. Alford "WriterBearSF"
Having been a long-time fan of GMCLA, I have to say I'm severely disappointed in the quality of this recording.

Problems start with the selection of material. With such a heavy focus on Merrily We Roll Along and Sweeney Todd, you get a feeling a concert version of these shows was their true interest. Sweeney in particular takes up a full fourth of this performance with selections (Wait and These Are My Friends???) that aren't particularly suited to choral arrangement.

Problems continue with the quality of the chorus as a whole. I was surprised to hear the group's tone drifting noticeably flat repeatedly. Arrangements that seem to favor disonance over harmony don't seem to help matters.

Then there's the odd and out-of-place bits of lyrics spoken instead of sung as a seque between the numbers. The rhyming structure makes them sound forced and unnatural when spoken.

On a whole, a big disappointment from a chorus I've often lept to my feet after hearing.