Search - Andrew Lloyd Webber :: Music Magic

Review from the Fanatical Cat!!

mistacor | West Paterson, NJ USA | 10/05/2000

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Now, I basically, quite literally, bought this CD for the sole purpose it displayed CATS and nothing more. So I do know I can talk about the CATS portion much more vividly than I could on Evita or the others.... All of the tracks are instrumental, for the record, which is quite a bonus for any theatre lover or CATS lover for that matter since there certainly aren't enough CDS with just the instrumental versions of the song. It starts with Memory, a bittersweet melody that somehow comes out much more lovely than you would expect. It's very nicely programmed for a listener to sing along. Memory is followed by Mr. Mistoffelees which was very much a thrill to me. Of course, I've heard the song a thousand times already but this version turned out to be special beyond words. The liveliness of the song is accentuated to no end in this track, making the whole so much more energized and fun! It's a long track in time-wise, but I found myself surprised and upset that the track ended so soon; you get so absorbed in it. And, in some cases, it is a track better than most. At first listen, in my opinion, to Old Deuteronomy, the track directly after Mr. Mistoffelees, had you not heard of CATS before you would think it was a lovely, soft tune of romantic love or a slow waltz of sorts. However, it's not and so much more once the lyric parts come through instrumentally. The Cats loyalty and endearment of their Jellicle leader comes through loud and clear here. And then, finally, the CATS portion ends with Gus ~ The Theatre Cat. It's a nice rendition but, to tell the truth, this track-section would have ended so much clearer if it had been removed and replaced with the lively, knockabout number of the current Mungojerrie & Rumpleteazer. Buy this tri-CD pack! All CATS fanatics won't regret it!And it is very fair-priced for such an invaluable item to the theatre collector.Purrs,~ Mistacor"