Barbara Cook ~ The Gay Life
Vernon Kilns Early California
Robert Preston - 1950's
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Showing posts with label The Music Man. Show all posts
Showing posts with label The Music Man. Show all posts
November 15, 2021
January 30, 2019
20,000 vinyl LPs 167: Tammy Grimes ~ The Unsinkable Molly Brown
~
Tracklist:
Side 1:
A1 - Overture
A2 - I Ain't Down Yet
A3 - Belly Up To The Bar, Boys
A4 - I've A'ready Started In
A5 - I'll Never Say No
A6 - My Own Brass Bed
A7 - The Denver Police
A8 - Bea-U-Ti-Ful People Of Denver
A9 - Are You Sure
Side 2:
B1 - I Ain't Down Yet (Reprise)
B2 - Happy Birthday, Mrs. J. J. Brown
B3 - Bon Jour (The Language Song)
B4 - If I Knew
B5 - Chick-A-Pen
B6 - Keep-A-Hoppin' And Leadville Johnny Brown
B7 - Up Where The People Are
B8 - Dolce Far Niente And I May Never Fall In Love With You
B9 - I Ain't Down Yet (Finale)
Credits:
Illustration – Tom Morrow*
Gavin Bryars ~ The Sinkinig of the Titanic
RMS Titanic images
Titanic (1997 film
Tammy Grimes Stage work
NY Times ~ obit
Playbill ~ obit
Variety ~ obit
Styrous® ~ Wednesday, January 30, 2019
vinyl LP front cover detail
Illustration by Tom Morrow
detail photo of album cover by Styrous®
Today is the birthday of Tammy Grimes who had a unique, sort of quirky voice that intrigued me from the first time I heard it.
Known for a speaking voice compared to a buzz saw, a "lyric baritone" singing voice that one critic called "a low, throaty quiver, a hum that takes wings", and "the stage personality of a daffy but endearing pseudo-English eccentric".
Tammy Grimes was a Broadway theatre actress, who was catapulted to stardom with The Unsinkable Molly Brown.
The Unsinkable Molly Brown is a 1960 musical with music and lyrics by Meredith Willson whose previous credit was The Music Man. The libretto was by Richard Morris. The plot is a fictionalized account of the life of Margaret Brown and her wealthy miner-husband, who survived the sinking of the RMS Titanic. The Titanic incident is but a small part of the musical.
Margaret (aka Molly) Brown giving Captain Arthur Henry Rostron an award on May 29, 1912 for his service in the rescue of survivors of the Titanic.
Tammy Grimes won a Tony Award for her portrayal of the real life character, Margaret Brown, but was largely unknown in 1960 when she was cast in the title role. The show’s producers considered the music and lyrics by Willson more marketable than Grimes, so, declined to put her name above the title, which meant that (because of the Tony regulations of the time) she could be nominated only in the featured-actress category.
The Unsinkable Molly Brown is a 1960 musical with music and lyrics by Meredith Willson whose previous credit was The Music Man. The libretto was by Richard Morris. The plot is a fictionalized account of the life of Margaret Brown and her wealthy miner-husband, who survived the sinking of the RMS Titanic. The Titanic incident is but a small part of the musical.
Margaret (aka Molly) Brown giving Captain Arthur Henry Rostron an award on May 29, 1912 for his service in the rescue of survivors of the Titanic.
photographer unknown
Tammy Grimes won a Tony Award for her portrayal of the real life character, Margaret Brown, but was largely unknown in 1960 when she was cast in the title role. The show’s producers considered the music and lyrics by Willson more marketable than Grimes, so, declined to put her name above the title, which meant that (because of the Tony regulations of the time) she could be nominated only in the featured-actress category.
vinyl LP front cover detail
detail photo by Styrous®
Tammy Grimes portrayed the character of Margaret Brown and her rendition of I Ain't Down Yet is the absolutely best version of the tune (link below). Although it sounds nothing like it, the song has the essence of Hey Look Me Over from the musical, Wildcat, which starred Lucille Ball (links below);
both songs proclaim the refusal to admit defeat even at the lowest point in
one's life and they are rousing, inspiring, fight and get-on-with-life
songs.
The Unsinkable Molly Brown
vinyl LP front cover
Illustration by Tom Morrow
photo of album cover by Styrous®
vinyl LP front cover
Illustration by Tom Morrow
photo of album cover by Styrous®
Grimes made her debut on the New York stage at
the Neighborhood Playhouse in May 1955 in Jonah and the Whale.
In 1964 The Unsinkable Molly Brown was made into a movie. Debbie Reynolds (link below) portrayed the role of Molly Brown and did a great interpretation of the role.
In 1964 The Unsinkable Molly Brown was made into a movie. Debbie Reynolds (link below) portrayed the role of Molly Brown and did a great interpretation of the role.
In 1997 Kathy Bates portrayed the Molly Brown character in the film Titanic (link below);
she did not sing but did a marvelous job of projecting a strong-willed
woman who takes everything in her stride but nothing for granted. I've
always liked ANY film Bates has been in. Titanic, directed by James Cameron, won Academy Awards for Best Picture, Best Director and Best Film Editing.
The Unsinkable Molly Brown
vinyl LP front cover detail
Illustration by Tom Morrow
detail photo of album cover by Styrous®
vinyl LP front cover detail
Illustration by Tom Morrow
detail photo of album cover by Styrous®
Grimes made her Broadway stage debut as an understudy for Kim Stanley in the starring role in Bus Stop in June 1955.
On May 16, 1960, she acted and sang as Mehitabel in an abridged version of the musical Archy and Mehitabel as part of the syndicated TV anthology series Play of the Week presented by David Susskind, and co-written by Mel Brooks and Joe Darion. The cast included Eddie Bracken, who reprised the role in the 1970 animated feature version Shinbone Alley with Carol Channing (link below) in the Mehitabel role, and Jules Munshin.
On May 16, 1960, she acted and sang as Mehitabel in an abridged version of the musical Archy and Mehitabel as part of the syndicated TV anthology series Play of the Week presented by David Susskind, and co-written by Mel Brooks and Joe Darion. The cast included Eddie Bracken, who reprised the role in the 1970 animated feature version Shinbone Alley with Carol Channing (link below) in the Mehitabel role, and Jules Munshin.
The Unsinkable Molly Brown
vinyl LP front cover detail
Illustration by Tom Morrow
detail photo of album cover by Styrous®
Cleavon Little, Lauren Bacall, Tammy Grimes & Fritz Weaver -1970
vinyl LP front cover detail
Illustration by Tom Morrow
detail photo of album cover by Styrous®
Grimes starred in her second Broadway musical, High Spirits, which opened on Broadway at the Alvin Theatre on April 7, 1964. It is an adaptation of the Noël Coward comic play Blithe Spirit, with
songs by Hugh Martin and Timothy Gray. It ran for 375 performances. The original cast recording of the Broadway cast was released by ABC Records and it made the Top 20.
High Spirits was nominated for eight Tony Awards, but did not win any of them. Other major musical nominees that same year (1964) were Funny Girl with Barbra Streisand (link below), and Hello, Dolly! with Carol Channing (link below); most of the major Tony wins went to Dolly!.
According to the Lyndon Johnson presidential diaries, on Wednesday 26th January, 1966, Grimes sang songs from The Unsinkable Molly Brown in the East Room of the White House.
She starred in her own ABC television series, The Tammy Grimes Show, which aired during the 1966–67 season on the ABC network. It Premiered on September 8, 1966, but was cancelled after only one month (links below).
In 1969 after almost a decade of performing in what The New York Times called "dubious delights", Grimes appeared in a revival of Private Lives by Noël Coward as Amanda, winning the Tony Award for Best Actress the next year.
High Spirits was nominated for eight Tony Awards, but did not win any of them. Other major musical nominees that same year (1964) were Funny Girl with Barbra Streisand (link below), and Hello, Dolly! with Carol Channing (link below); most of the major Tony wins went to Dolly!.
According to the Lyndon Johnson presidential diaries, on Wednesday 26th January, 1966, Grimes sang songs from The Unsinkable Molly Brown in the East Room of the White House.
She starred in her own ABC television series, The Tammy Grimes Show, which aired during the 1966–67 season on the ABC network. It Premiered on September 8, 1966, but was cancelled after only one month (links below).
In 1969 after almost a decade of performing in what The New York Times called "dubious delights", Grimes appeared in a revival of Private Lives by Noël Coward as Amanda, winning the Tony Award for Best Actress the next year.
photo: AP/REX/Shutterstock
The The Unsinkable Molly Brown record album came with a Souvenir Programme that had images from the stage production as well as bios of all the performers (link below).
The Unsinkable Molly Brown
vinyl LP back cover w/Souvenir Programme
Illustration by Tom Morrow
photo of album cover by Styrous®
vinyl LP back cover w/Souvenir Programme
Illustration by Tom Morrow
photo of album cover by Styrous®
vinyl LP back cover
photo by Styrous®
There are videos of her that demonstrate her bizarre voice on YouTube (links below) one, I Can't Remember Ever Loving You, was written by Randy Newman (link below).
The Unsinkable Molly Brown
vinyl LP back cover detail
detail photo by Styrous®
vinyl LP back cover detail
detail photo by Styrous®
Grimes was born in Lynn, Massachusetts, on January 30, 1934. Her mother was Eola Willard (née Niles), a naturalist and spiritualist, and Luther Nichols Grimes, an innkeeper, country-club manager, and farmer. She studied singing with Beverley Peck Johnson.
Grimes married Christopher Plummer on August 16, 1956. She married Jeremy Slate in 1966 and divorced him a year later. She married composer Richard Bell in 1971 and the couple remained wed until Bell's death in 2005.
In 1965, Grimes made headlines after she had been beaten and injured twice in four days in New York City, by what were described as "white racists". According to a report, she believed the attacks were related to her association with several black entertainers and recent appearances in public with Sammy Davis Jr., who was said to be staging a nightclub act for her.
Grimes married Christopher Plummer on August 16, 1956. She married Jeremy Slate in 1966 and divorced him a year later. She married composer Richard Bell in 1971 and the couple remained wed until Bell's death in 2005.
In 1965, Grimes made headlines after she had been beaten and injured twice in four days in New York City, by what were described as "white racists". According to a report, she believed the attacks were related to her association with several black entertainers and recent appearances in public with Sammy Davis Jr., who was said to be staging a nightclub act for her.
The Unsinkable Molly Brown
vinyl LP back cover detail
detail photo by Styrous®
Tammy Grimes died from natural causes on October 30, 2016, in Englewood, New Jersey. She was 82 years old.
vinyl LP back cover detail
detail photo by Styrous®
Tammy Grimes died from natural causes on October 30, 2016, in Englewood, New Jersey. She was 82 years old.
Side 1:
A1 - Overture
A2 - I Ain't Down Yet
A3 - Belly Up To The Bar, Boys
A4 - I've A'ready Started In
A5 - I'll Never Say No
A6 - My Own Brass Bed
A7 - The Denver Police
A8 - Bea-U-Ti-Ful People Of Denver
A9 - Are You Sure
Side 2:
B1 - I Ain't Down Yet (Reprise)
B2 - Happy Birthday, Mrs. J. J. Brown
B3 - Bon Jour (The Language Song)
B4 - If I Knew
B5 - Chick-A-Pen
B6 - Keep-A-Hoppin' And Leadville Johnny Brown
B7 - Up Where The People Are
B8 - Dolce Far Niente And I May Never Fall In Love With You
B9 - I Ain't Down Yet (Finale)
Credits:
Illustration – Tom Morrow*
Viewfinder links:
archy, mehitabel & Carol
Lucille Ball
Eddie Bracken
Carol Channing
Noël Coward
Tammy Grimes
Debbie Reynolds
Titanic subjects: archy, mehitabel & Carol
Lucille Ball
Eddie Bracken
Carol Channing
Noël Coward
Tammy Grimes
Debbie Reynolds
Gavin Bryars ~ The Sinkinig of the Titanic
RMS Titanic images
Titanic (1997 film
Net links:
Tammy Grimes Filmography Tammy Grimes Stage work
NY Times ~ obit
Playbill ~ obit
Variety ~ obit
YouTube link:
Tammy Grimes ~ Dolce Far Niente
~ I Can't Remember Ever Loving You
~ Limehouse Blues
~ Quest-ce Que C'est
~ Sophisticated Lady
The Tammy Grimes Show ~
Part 1 (9 min., 50 sec.)
Part 2 (9 min., 44 sec.)
Part 3 (9 min., 24 sec.)
Tammy Grimes ~ Dolce Far Niente
~ I Can't Remember Ever Loving You
~ Limehouse Blues
~ Quest-ce Que C'est
~ Sophisticated Lady
The Tammy Grimes Show ~
Part 1 (9 min., 50 sec.)
Part 2 (9 min., 44 sec.)
Part 3 (9 min., 24 sec.)
photo by Leo Friedman
Styrous® ~ Wednesday, January 30, 2019
August 9, 2017
20,000 Vinyl LPs 101: The Gay Life with Barbara Cook
Barbara Cook died yesterday, Tuesday, August 8, 2017. Cook was one of the bastions of Broadway musical singers.
Cook came to prominence in the 1950s. She made her Broadway debut in Flahooley which starred Yma Sumac (1951). She continued performing mostly in theatre until the
mid-1970s, when she began a second career as a cabaret and concert
singer.
During her years as Broadway’s leading ingénue Cook was lauded for her excellent lyric soprano voice. She was particularly admired for her vocal agility, wide range, warm sound, and emotive interpretations. As she aged her voice took on a darker quality, even in her head voice, that was less prominent in her youth.
During her years as Broadway’s leading ingénue Cook was lauded for her excellent lyric soprano voice. She was particularly admired for her vocal agility, wide range, warm sound, and emotive interpretations. As she aged her voice took on a darker quality, even in her head voice, that was less prominent in her youth.
The Gay Life ~ Barbara Cook
vinyl LP album back cover
photo by Styrous®
vinyl LP album back cover
photo by Styrous®
Cook was born in Atlanta, Georgia, on October 25, 1927. She began singing at an early age, at the Elks Club. She spent three years after graduating from high school working as a typist.
In 1948, Cook decided to try to find work as an actress in New York. She began to sing at clubs and resorts, eventually procuring an engagement at the Blue Angel club in 1950.
Cook's clear soprano voice enabled her to win the role of Cunegonde in the Leonard Bernstein operetta Candide in 1956. She became famous for the show stopping song, Glitter and Be Gay. Although Candide was not a commercial success, Cook's portrayal of Cunegonde established her as one of Broadway's leading ingenues.
Her two most famous roles after Candide were her Tony Award winning portrayal of Marian the Librarian in the Meredith Willson 1957 hit The Music Man and as Amalia Balash in the 1962 Jerry Bock-Sheldon Harnick musical She Loves Me.
Barbara Cook as Cunegonde, Candide - 1956
Her two most famous roles after Candide were her Tony Award winning portrayal of Marian the Librarian in the Meredith Willson 1957 hit The Music Man and as Amalia Balash in the 1962 Jerry Bock-Sheldon Harnick musical She Loves Me.
In 1994, Cook was inducted into the American Theatre Hall of Fame. In 1997, she celebrated her 70th birthday by giving a concert at Albert Hall in London with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra in November, joined by performers including Elaine Stritch and Maria Friedman. The Times
reviewer noted: "The world is usually divided into actresses who try to
sing and singers who try to act. Cook is one of the few performers who
manage to combine the best of both traditions, as she reminded us in It Might as Well be Spring by Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II - and, at the close, in her encore of the Bock and Harnick song, Ice Cream."
On October 22, 2007, Cook sang at the Broward Center for the Performing Arts with the Fort Lauderdale Gay Men's Chorus
in the chorus's concert entitled "An Evening With Barbara Cook". Upon
completion of the concert, an almost full house greeted her with a round
of Happy Birthday in honor of her impending 80th birthday, which, on December 2, 2007, she celebrated belatedly in the UK with a concert at the Coliseum Theatre in London's West End.
As she entered her ninth decade, Cook performed in two sold-out concerts with the New York Philharmonic at Lincoln Center in 2007.
On April 12, 2011, Cook appeared with James Taylor, Bette Midler and Sting, at Carnegie Hall for a gala called "Celebrating 120 Years of Carnegie Hall".
At the time of her death, Cook was widely recognized as one of the
"premier interpreters" of musical theatre songs and standards, in
particular the songs of composer Stephen Sondheim.
Her subtle and sensitive interpretations of American popular song
continued to earn high praise even into her eighties. She was named an
honoree at the 2011 Kennedy Center Honors.
Cook died from respiratory failure yesterday, August 8, 2017 at her Manhattan home. She was 89 years old. The marquee lights of the Broadway theaters will be dimmed for one minute in tribute to Cook, tonight, August 9.
The Gay Life is a musical with a book by Fay and Michael Kanin, lyrics by Howard Dietz, and music by Arthur Schwartz.
Based on a cycle of seven short plays by Arthur Schnitzler, published in 1893 and first staged in 1910, The Gay Life focuses on womanizing playboy Anatol Von Huber. The score is a mixture of traditional Broadway show tunes and operetta.
Tracklist:
Side 1:
A1 – Herbert Greene Overture
A2 – The Gay Life Ensemble What A Charming Couple
A3 – Jeanne Bal Why Go Anywhere At All?
A4 – Jules Munshin Bring Your Darling Daughter
A5 – Walter Chiari, Jules Munshin Now I'm Ready For A Frau
A6 – Barbara Cook Magic Moment
A7 – Walter Chiari, Barbara Cook Who Can? You Can!
A8 – The Gay Life Ensemble Oh, Mein Liebchen
A9 – Barbara Cook The Label On The Bottle
Side 2:
B1 – Walter Chiari, Barbara Cook This Kind Of Girl
B2 – Jules Munshin The Bloom Is Off The Rose
B3 – Walter Chiari, Jules Munshin I'm Glad I'm Single
B4 – Barbara Cook Something You Never Had Before
B5 – Jules Munshin, Lu Leonard, Loring Smith You Will Never Be Lonely
B6 – Walter Chiari, Barbara Cook You're Not The Type
B7 – Elizabeth Allen Come A-Wandering With Me
B8 – Walter Chiari, Jules Munshin I Never Had A Chance
B9 – Barbara Cook I Wouldn't Marry You
B? – Walter Chiari And For The First Time
B10 – The Gay Life Ensemble Finale
Credits:
Conductor – Herbert Greene
Lyrics By – Arthur Schwartz, Howard Dietz
Music By – Arthur Schwartz, Howard Dietz
Notes:
Capitol Full Dimensional Stereo
Walter Chiari, Barbara Cook, Jules Munshin – The Gay Life (Original Broadway Cast)
Label: Capitol Records – SWAO 1560
Format: vinyl LP, Stereo, gatefold
Country: US
Released: 1961
Genre: Stage & Screen
Style: Musical
Side 1:
A1 – Herbert Greene Overture
A2 – The Gay Life Ensemble What A Charming Couple
A3 – Jeanne Bal Why Go Anywhere At All?
A4 – Jules Munshin Bring Your Darling Daughter
A5 – Walter Chiari, Jules Munshin Now I'm Ready For A Frau
A6 – Barbara Cook Magic Moment
A7 – Walter Chiari, Barbara Cook Who Can? You Can!
A8 – The Gay Life Ensemble Oh, Mein Liebchen
A9 – Barbara Cook The Label On The Bottle
Side 2:
B1 – Walter Chiari, Barbara Cook This Kind Of Girl
B2 – Jules Munshin The Bloom Is Off The Rose
B3 – Walter Chiari, Jules Munshin I'm Glad I'm Single
B4 – Barbara Cook Something You Never Had Before
B5 – Jules Munshin, Lu Leonard, Loring Smith You Will Never Be Lonely
B6 – Walter Chiari, Barbara Cook You're Not The Type
B7 – Elizabeth Allen Come A-Wandering With Me
B8 – Walter Chiari, Jules Munshin I Never Had A Chance
B9 – Barbara Cook I Wouldn't Marry You
B? – Walter Chiari And For The First Time
B10 – The Gay Life Ensemble Finale
Credits:
Conductor – Herbert Greene
Lyrics By – Arthur Schwartz, Howard Dietz
Music By – Arthur Schwartz, Howard Dietz
Notes:
Capitol Full Dimensional Stereo
Walter Chiari, Barbara Cook, Jules Munshin – The Gay Life (Original Broadway Cast)
Label: Capitol Records – SWAO 1560
Format: vinyl LP, Stereo, gatefold
Country: US
Released: 1961
Genre: Stage & Screen
Style: Musical
Net links:
Barbara Cook ~
Discography
Stage work
NPR ~ My First Memories Are Of Singing (audio interview)
Variety obit
Playbill obit
Washington Post obit
LA Times obit
YouTube links:
Magic Moment (The Gay Life)
Something You Never Had Before (The Gay Life)
The Label On The Bottle
Glitter and Be Gay (Candide)
Barbara Cook on Candide: Auditioning for Bernstein
PBS ~ An Evening with Barbara Cook (54 min)
Barbara Cook on The Dick Cavett Show, 1982 (28 min)
photo by Mike Martin
Styrous® ~ Tuesday, August 9, 2017
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