Can A Show Be Unbelievably Touching, Moving, Sexy and Funny?
Adam J. Wishman | IA | 06/14/2004
(5 out of 5 stars)
"The answer is, "The Full Monty" can. I got this cd before I saw the show, and after listening to it, wasn't really impressed that much. I was actually kind of regretting paying (...) for my ticket. But after seeing the show live, this is one of my favorite cds. "The Full Monty" is a show that you must see live in order to appreciate its brilliance. The story is of course funny, and of course sexy. But what some people don't see, is that behind the strippers, and the g-strings, and the nudity, "The Full Monty" is about unconditional love, and the lengths that people will go to to keep a family together. "The Full Monty" was one of the most touching musicals in Broadway history. There were several parts when I teared up, and one particulare scene where I brokedown crying. "The Full Monty" is brilliant!"
The Full Delight!
Jeffrey A. Unaitis | Syracuse, NY USA | 12/13/2000
(5 out of 5 stars)
"I saw "The Full Monty" on Broadway in November, and immediately knew that I would claim its OCR among my new favorites. I wasn't wrong. It's snappy, jazzy and totally in keeping with the texture of the Broadway show. They did a masterful job in the recording studio, and the instrumentalists and vocalists are all shown to their best and full advantage. The ballads, which are barely remembered from the show, have become my favorite numbers -- tho' it's hard to get the hook from "Let It Go" out of your mind after repeated listenings. The show will run a very long time, and this recording will soon be on every theatregoers' shelf."
Finally, A Broadway Musical *I* Can Like!
Alan Caylow | USA | 10/03/2002
(5 out of 5 stars)
"When I was growing up, my older brother & sister, who were both heavily into their drama classes in high school, drove me friggin' NUTS by playing nothing but showtune music on their respective stereos. Showtunes, showtunes, showtunes, that's all I ever heard playing in the house as a young boy. Maybe that's why I can't stand typical (*cue Ethel Merman*) "Broadway Shooooooow!" kind of music. It just sounds way too corny & cheeseball to my ears, and it's simply not music that I would want to buy, much less listen to. I'm a rock 'n' roller, baby!That's why I'm so thrilled with David Yazbek's wonderful, ROCKING score for the stage musical version of the movie, "The Full Monty," which I had the great pleasure of seeing recently (MARVELOUS show, by the way). Yazbek's songs, blending pop, rock and jazz (with a little pinch of salsa and barbershop vocals, too), are catchy & memorable, with really clever, sometimes-hilarious lyrics that totally hit home. Yazbek's songs totally add something special to the already-endearing story of six unemployed steel workers who bare it all for some much-needed cash & self-respect. I can't get songs like "Scrap," "Big-Ass Rock," "You Rule My World," "Big Black Man," "The Goods," or "Let It Go" out of my head! Even the ballads, like "Breeze Off The River" & "You Walk With Me," are beautiful. Yes, the songs are THAT good."The Full Monty," one of my all-time favorite movies, has now been adapted into one of my all-time favorite musicals, and in no small part to David Yazbek's wonderful, rockin' tunes on this Broadway cast album. Let it go! :-)"
Solid, promising, and workmanlike
Michael A. Benedetto | New York, NY USA | 01/25/2001
(4 out of 5 stars)
"These aren't the most laudatory adjectives, no. The Full Monty doesn't quite merit them... but that doesn't mean that it isn't a good album, one well worth your money. What it does mean is that it's rarely going to knock most of your socks off with soaring melodies and well-crafted lyrics; David Yazbek was clearly striving for a comfortable groove and not for something that would really make us stand up and take notice.Well, he's achieved that goal. Most of the songs are cheerfully melodic and sung with spunk by a wonderful cast, even if few of them are going to have you running for the replay button. The most entertaining: the twisted ballad "Big Ass Rock", Emily Skinner's irresistible "Life With Harold", Kathleen Freeman's star turn ("Jeannette's Showbiz Number"), and the gorgeous "Breeze Off the River". Nothing else offends, even if the lyrics clunk here and there.For such a load of faint praise, you might think I don't like this album. Not true in the slightest. It's just that I find it difficult to articulate why I've been delightedly playing it so often lately."