Search - Cy Coleman :: Little Me: The New Broadway Cast Recording (1999 Revival)

Hilarious fun!

burghtenor | Washington, DC | 04/04/2002

(4 out of 5 stars)

"As composer Cy Coleman says in the liner notes, the star of LITTLE ME is Neil Simon's book: it's hysterically funny. Happily, this recording includes enough dialogue to convey the book's hilarity.THE BOOK:
LITTLE ME tells the life story of Belle Poitrine (Faith Prince), whose name in French means "beautiful chest." While the only gift with which the Creator has endowed her is a large bosom, Belle rises from being a poor drifter by marrying, doing business with, and/or killing an angry unloved miser (Martin Short), a fast-talking vaudeville agent (Martin Short), a French nightclub singer (Martin Short), an innocent nearsighted soldier (Martin Short), an overzealous Hollywood director (Martin Short), and a destitute dying prince (Martin Short) to attain wealth, culture, social position, and a happy ending with the true love of her life, the innocently-egoistic millionaire Noble Eggleston (Martin Short). THE MUSIC:
While no tune of the score is a standout, there are no clunkers, either. Almost every song is upbeat and melodic. Highlights include "I Love (Sinking) You," in which Belle and Noble reprise their love song as Noble (who has degrees from Harvard and Yale in law and medicine) saves the passengers and crew of the sinking S. S. Gigantic, and the title song, in which Belle and her bevy of buff men in her Southampton mansion proclaim the publishing of her memoirs.THE RECORDING:
In its 1999 reincarnation, LITTLE ME is a two-person show: only one song does not feature Short or Prince. While neither lead has the most melodious voice, and both can get a trifle whiny, they are perfect in their roles. (One critic of Belle's vaudeville debut implies that Belle could have killed a man with her voice alone!)RECOMMENDATION:
LITTLE ME is by no means a standard that you need for your Broadway collection, but it's a lot of fun. Buy it anyway."

Martin is OK, but Faith shines!

Tommy Peter | 06/11/2001

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Martin Short comes off as just fine but nothing really amazing on this recording (playing seven roles, as did Sid Caeser in the original production which was designed as a vehicle for him). Sometimes he's hard to take, other times he's funny. But the REAL star of this recording is Faith Prince as Belle Poitrine, the hick from Drifter's Row who marries a shy soldier (Short) and a shlocky French cabaret star (Short), trades on her noteriety after killing an old banker (Short) in a vaudeville act cooked up by two huckstering producers (Short and Martin McGrath), obtains wealth after suing the makers of the ship whose sinking killed her husband (The SS Gigantic-they said it would never sink!), culture by becoming a Hollywood star and taking over from a director (Short) who dies, and social position after a dying prince (Short) names her a countess after she saves his country from social ruin. And it's all in the pursuit of "the love of my life," Noble Eggleston (Guess who), a rich boy who loves her as much as he in able in spite of their class differences. The show really should be a vehicle for Belle, anyway, since it was based on a novel by Patrick Dennis ("Auntie Mame") that satirized all those self-important "star' memoirs. Prince, in her brassy but quietly endearing way, makes it a vehicle for her, even when up against Short's antics. Perhaps she's just too loveable to be convincing as this ambitious, self-important psudo-star, but does that really matter? You become guests at her party, enthralled by her story and cheering her on at every turn. The score for "Little Me" (By Cy COleman-"Sweet Charity"-and Carolyn Leigh-"Peter Pan") is great and very under-rated, and is very well-performed by PRince and the entire cast, even Short. Micheal Park's delightful "I've Got YOur Number" stands out. This recording also includes enough dialogue to help you really follow along the story, and a lot of it is very funny-written by Neil Simon, no less. From Cy Coleman's liner notes, I get the impression that this revival of "Little Me" closed even before the cast album was released. I guess there were reasons for that, but none of them are in evidence on this wonderful recording."

What a cast recording should be!

thundrsong | New York City, NY | 01/03/2000

(5 out of 5 stars)

"If you were one of the lucky ones to see this show at the Roundabout then this recording will bring you right back to every hilarious moment. If you missed out on seeing it live, this is definitely the next best thing. Martin Short received a well deserved Tony for his performance, and it is not to be missed. One of the real perks of this recording is that they've also included moments of dialogue to set up many of the songs. I wish more cast recordings would do this - well, at least the ones that have a book as funny as this one happens to be. There's also the score by Cy Coleman - the dance numbers and the songs are catchy, fun and memorable. Add to it the lyrics and book by Neil Simon, and you've got a winning combination. If you're a fan of Broadway, a fan of Martin Short, or just like to laugh, this is a great album to have in your collection. I've had it for nearly a year and still find myself reaching for it."