Description:
Although Gertrude Lawrence recorded an album of songs from Lady in the Dark for RCA Victor in 1941, and co-star Danny Kaye cut some singles of its songs for Columbia, there was no official original Broadway cast album of the show. Lawrence and another original cast member, MacDonald Carey, participated in a radio version in 1950 that concentrated more on the libretto than the score, and that was released on disc in 1984. Stage and screen veteran Ann Sothern, then currently starring in the hit TV sitcom Private Secretary, headed up a television production that was performed and broadcast live on September 25, 1954. The cast later
Although Gertrude Lawrence recorded an album of songs from Lady in the Dark for RCA Victor in 1941, and co-star Danny Kaye cut some singles of its songs for Columbia, there was no official original Broadway cast album of the show. Lawrence and another original cast member, MacDonald Carey, participated in a radio version in 1950 that concentrated more on the libretto than the score, and that was released on disc in 1984. Stage and screen veteran Ann Sothern, then currently starring in the hit TV sitcom Private Secretary, headed up a television production that was performed and broadcast live on September 25, 1954. The cast later repaired to the recording studio for a highlight's disc issued by RCA, but this 1997 AEI release is the actual TV soundtrack taken off a kinescope. Although the sound quality leaves something to be desired, with lots of hiss and crackles, this is the most complete version of the score yet presented. Lady in the Dark was unusually serious for a musical of its time, presenting the story of a mature New York magazine editor plagued by indecision on the job and in her personal life, who takes to the psychiatrist's couch to solve her problems and ends up recounting her dreams and memories, which are then staged as musical sequences. Sothern and the supporting cast handle the material well, demonstrating that there are some good forgotten songs by Kurt Weill and Ira Gershwin in addition to the favorites, "My Ship," "Jenny" (aka "The Saga of Jenny"), and "Tschaikowsky." The value of the album is increased by the inclusion of six of the eight songs from the 1941 Lawrence album, and three more from the 1950 radio broadcast as bonus tracks. ~ William Ruhlmann, All Music Guide
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Manufacturer: AEI
Release date: 12 July 2005
EAN: 0765911004126 UPC: 765911004126
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