CD-Charts Position 31
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Marguerite

CD-Charts > Music > Musicals
by: Original London Cast

Release Date July 28, 2008
I live in the U.S., and have not been able to see the show, but I'm a big Ruthie Henshall fan, so have read a lot about it and have heard clips of a few songs. The music is beautiful, and the songs are heart-wrenching. It's especially helpful to have the printed lyrics, to understand what's going on and the emotion behind it. I love it!

CD-Charts Position 32
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Cats UK

CD-Charts > Music > Musicals
by: Andrew Lloyd Webber

Release Date November 07, 2005
Having seen the show live and falling instantly in love with it I could not wait to buy the Ultimate DVD. Although the DVD was different to the live show I had seen it is still great and gave me access to great stars such as Elaine Page, Sir John Mills and Jason Gardner to name a few. So it was with eager anticipation that I ordered the soundtrack for me and my daughters to listen to in the car. We expected the soundtracks to be the same as our much loved show and DVD - THIS IS NOT THE CASE. Some of the soundtracks are sung by other people and the standard is no where near the standard recieved on the DVD - the only exception being Memories by Elaine Page. We were personally horrified by one of our favourites Mungojerri and Rumpleteazer where the ... Read More:

CD-Charts Position 33
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Rent

CD-Charts > Music > Musicals
by: Various Artists

Release Date March 20, 1999
This is probably THE best musical I have ever seen on stage ever (mind you, I haven't seen IDINA in Wicked yet, but I have seen Wicked, so this is saying something...) Loads of my friends didn't get why me and my friend were so in love with it until they saw it on stage. Now they listen to it all the time like we do. If you are open minded, and willing to listen to it all the way through to get the story, you'll get RENT fever too. Its phenomenal. Moo.

CD-Charts Position 34
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Chess

CD-Charts > Music > Musicals
by: Various Artists

Release Date March 04, 1996
This album has has never been far away from my CD player since it was released around 23 years ago. The music surprised a lot of people at the time because it wasn't completely representative of the Abba style. In the theatre the music is completely overwhelming. I managed to see the production 3 times, twice with the original cast and that is why I would recommend this recording above all others. Some of the players are different but the American, Russian & Florence were as heard on the CD's. The Swedish touring version mentioned further down is excellent, in that it includes the ending as we knew it & other bits and pieces. Still vocally this is the superior version and no one has sung Florence better than Elaine Paige. A pity it wasn't recorded ... Read More:

CD-Charts Position 35
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My Fair Lady - Original Soundtrack

CD-Charts > Music > Musicals
from: Sony Classical

Release Date November 01, 1999
Most musical recordings seem choppy mostly because they are, and are rendered from the stage play, so of course they wouldn't make that much sense. MY FAIR LADY holds up well and you don't get this sense. The entire ablum is a gem and there's not a sour note in it.

CD-Charts Position 36
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Evita - Original London Cast Recording

CD-Charts > Music > Musicals
by: Original London Cast Various Artists, Elaine Paige, David Essex

Release Date March 20, 1999
Over the years Andrew Lloyd Webber has made many musicals, some more successful and appealing to the public than the others. Most people will, however, agree that "Evita" remains one of his most satisfying works to this date. Numerous reasons confirm this statement. Just like in its predecessor "Jesus Christ Superstar", "Evita" is almost entirely sung-through; the lyrics are witty and appropriate; the subject matter is again a personality larger-than-life who rises from obscurity and dies at the peak of its fame, thus becoming a legend; the score is captivating and appealing to the listener, at home or in the theatre.

Following the suit of the Superstar, ALW and Tim Rice first published Evita as an album, which appeared in 1976. It was an instant ... Read More:

CD-Charts Position 37
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Evita (Madonna)

CD-Charts > Music > Musicals
by: Original Soundtrack

Release Date October 28, 1996
If your first introduction to Evita was via the film then this is definately the disk for you. The recording of the original stage productions are excellent for what they are, but in comparison to Madonna's performance Elaine Paige seems harsh and over bearing. Plus the performances by Antonio Banderas and co are a pleasant revelation. Jimmy Nail is supreme as always, and his understated presentation of Megaldi is actually one of the shining performances of the whole production. Now don't get me wrong, I'm not a big Madonna fan and I certainly don't rate her as a actress, but this may just be the finest performance of her career.
The one disappointment for me was the absence of those additional tracks created for the film, such as "Let's Hear It For The Rainbow ... Read More:

CD-Charts Position 38
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Sweeney Todd

CD-Charts > Music > Musicals
by: Original Broadway Cast Recording

Release Date May 28, 2007
Although the amazon site includes the wrong sound samples above (they are from the LaPone revival), this item is indeed the original cast recording with Lansbury and Cariou. Even better, it's been remastered and includeds 2 bonus track not featured on the original (and much more expensive) RCA double disc. What a find!

CD-Charts Position 39
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Aspects of Lloyd Webber

CD-Charts > Music > Musicals
by: John Barrowman

Release Date April 09, 2007
I will be the first to admit I love this guy, John Barrowman has such a great voice but the quality of the recording does not bring this out unfortunately. I know for a fact that his voice is perfect as I have been to many live performances but this CD did not do him or his voice any justice. Lets just hope his new album Music Music Music will do him justice!! This is the 2nd review of this type as I am just finding that some of his old recordings are not done to the best quality.

CD-Charts Position 40
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Bernstein: West Side Story

CD-Charts > Music > Musicals
from: DG

Release Date August 10, 1998
This recording is simply superb. What some of the reviews seem to forget is that this is a recording of the *music*, not the musical. And in this sense, to my mind at least, the performers' accents are irrelevant. What matters is the fact that this recording brings together a group of some of the most talented singers of the time, and boy does it show.

The luscious soprano voice of Dame Kiri Te Kanawa is, as always, simply superb, as is the rich tenor sound of José Carreras; these are complemented nicely by Troyanos' mezzo and Ollmann's baritone voices. The orchestra, featuring Miles Davis on trumpet, is similarly exceptional - their prowess and cohesion is demonstrated particularly in tracks such as "Jump".

Finding faults with this recording is very difficult. One ... Read More: