Cole Porter Gwen Verdon Lilo - CanCan 1953 Original Broadway Cast (15 tracks) +Album Reviews

Not the Best

01/14/2000

(2 out of 5 stars)

"I am a huge Cole Porter fan, but this one did not work for me. I think the reviewer before me who called this CD "lively and infectious" was referring to the movie's soundtrack, because this recording of the score was anything *but* lively or infectious. In fact, I knocked off only one star for Porter's score being a rung below his best stuff, but two stars were taken off for the absolutely dead vocals on this. The singers are so stiff and unemotional that it's a wonder they made it to Broadway at all. They seem so intent on e-nun-ci-at-ing the lyrics that they lose all of the Gallic joy and charm that most singers would have a field day with. "C'est Magnifique" and "It's All Right With Me," arguably the best songs in the score, are given especially straight-laced interpretations.As for the score itself: this is an unusual Porter score in that, in my opinion, the lyrics play second fiddle to the music. None of the songs display the amazing linguistic acrobatics of other Porter works, but much of the music is bubbly and fun.So, if you are a real Porter fan and cannot find a better recording of this score, then try it. But for the casual listener, this one isn't worthwhile."

Porter Never Fails To Entertain!!

David | N.J. | 09/17/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"It would be easy to say, as many critics did, that Porter was not up to his usual standards. I have to disagree. "Can Can" is a wonderful score that never has been given it's due. Many popular songs came from this, but the best ones are overlooked.

The performers are all top notch. Lilo takes her material and belts it to perfection. Being a Gwen Verdon fan, I found her numbers thorougly enjoyable.

The sound quality is great considering the age of the material. Angel supplied wonderful liner notes, and the synopsis is very helpful. I can recommend this to Porter fans, and those who enjoy great music. Also for Porter fans, "Mexican Hayride" is now available from Decca Broadway."

Delightful cast album of a tuneful Porter score

A. Andersen | Bellows Falls, VT USA | 02/17/1999

(4 out of 5 stars)

"This is a lively and infectious recording (one of Capital's first Broadway cast albums)of Cole Porter's naughty and nifty 1953 valentine to the Paris of the 1890s when the dancing of the notorious Can-Can made the courts. Lilo is delightful in the lead and the wonderful score is nicely sung. The orchestrations are not as lush as those for the vastly mediocre film but none the less serve the score well. The soundtrack has the added advantage of Maurice Chevalier and Louis Jordan, some interpolated Porter songs, and lush orchestrations and performances. On the down side it had the miscast Shirley Maclaine and Frank Sinatra. Either the cast album or the soundtrack make for fine listening however."

CAN-CAN A MASTERPIECE COMPARED TO TODAY'S BROADWAY

Wolfgang | Austria | 07/09/2007

(4 out of 5 stars)

""Can-Can", as most reviewers indicate, is second-rate Cole Porter in comparison to "Anything Goes" and "Kiss Me Kate"; but any score that includes standards such as "I Love Paris" and the stunningly beautiful ballad "It's All Right With Me" can't be dismissed lightly. This Capitol Original Broadway Cast album showcases the show's strengths (Porter's score & Abe Burrows bawdy book) and weaknesses (lackluster performances from most of the stars and indifferent orchestrations) but still is better than the 1960 film version, which cut most of the score and story, but benefits from the lush Nelson Riddle scoring and features miscast Frank Sinatra's poignant definitive vocal of "It's All Right With Me, one of the greatest vocal performances of the 20th. Century. The soundtrack can be enjoyed on its own level (if EMI ever decides to reissue it on CD) away from the mediocre film and both versions belong in any musical theatre collection. A new production of "Can-Can is opening at the Pasadena Playhouse in Southern California at the time of this review with a revised book and a superb cast which could be Broadway bound and may introduce "Can-Can" to a new generation of theatergoers. This is a good thing for, as it has been established that Cole Porter's score for "Can-Can" is second rate Porter, compared to most of what has passed for musical theatre on Broadway since the 1980's, "Can-Can is a masterpiece. It is genuine musical theatre, not a thrill ride masquerading as musical theatre. And when the audience applauds, they will be applauding the artistic aspects of the show, not the technology as is common with today's Broadway musicals."

Like the songs, liked the singers

Joseph Hart | Visalia, CA United States | 03/08/2007

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Read the reviews (including the Amazon staff reviewer who didn't even get the song titles or lyrics right), and had to say something. This show, "Out of This World," and the revival cast recording of "Anything Goes" with Eileen Rogers and Hal Linden are my 3 favorite Cole Porter scores. When I was into Bway, I listened to them constantly. And loved it! This show produced several standards, and all the songs (except "Never Be An Artist" and "Maidens Typical of France") (did I get the titles right? it's been a long time) I think are wonderful. A pleasure. The lyrics aren't witty. And only mildly clever. But they are still better than anything anyone else except Larry Hart ever wrote. One reviewer said that paradoxically, in this Porter score, the music is better than the words. I don't agree, but I see his point. One thing I noticed however, starting with "World," Porter's sexy cleverness, while never always so subtle, borders on the blatant."

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