Search - David Heneker, John Taylor, Tommy Steele :: Half a Sixpence (1965 Original Broadway Cast)

Classic Broadway Pizzazz!

JUST ME | USA | 06/13/2000

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Painfully long out-of-print, Half A Sixpence is that rare thing today, a musical with a show-stopping original score that has great songs you can remember, providing one with that seldom-seen joy of leaving the theater humming. The score sounds much like the classic scores of Jerry Herman, with touching ballads, comedy songs, rousing showstoppers, and a very memorable star turn by British Tommy Steele, who gained well-deserved American fame with this show. It's not hard to see why after listening to him belt it out like there's no tomorrow. Here's a very British show with the best of Broadway sensibilities that shows you how well the Brits did it before the invasion of the "RockOperettas" of the 1980's changed the sound of musical plays! Half A Sixpence is a must-have on anyone's musical theater cast album list. It's a FLASH-BANG-WALLOP!"

The abbreviated version but fabulous

F. Behrens | Keene, NH USA | 06/09/2000

(5 out of 5 stars)

"It is a pity that the London version of was truncated to make room for lots of dances in the Broadway run. While it might be true that the dances were one of the reasons for the great success of the American version, the 11 songs that were left make us wish to hear more. You see, as it appears on the RCA Victor re-release of the Broadway cast recording (09026-63691-2), this musical is one of the most joyous romps I have ever enjoyed on a recording or a stage! Tommy Steele has retained most of his songs in this version, and that gives him almost as much to do as Merman had in "Annie Get Your Gun." And he carries it off with apparent ease. The fact that it is based on the charming H.G. Wells novel "Kipps" and/or the equally charming film version means nothing to us since the CD has only the songs; but knowing the plot does help us place each number in a dramatic context. The booklet is most helpful in letting us follow the story line. Grab this one and lobby for a recording of the complete London version, perhaps even with the dialogue!"

Fine, but too short!

Michael A. Benedetto | New York, NY USA | 02/05/2001

(4 out of 5 stars)

""Half a Sixpence" would probably have had only mild success in New York, if even that, were it not for the choreography of Onna White. The show had been tepidly received in London, but when White took over for Broadway, it became a dazzling dance extravaganza.Sadly, though, this came at the expense of the score. Several excellent songs ("The Oak and the Ash", "I'm Not Talking to You", "I Only Want a Little House") were cut between London and Broadway to make room for additional dancing, and they're not heard on this album. As a result, the OBCR can come off as repetitious and dull.It isn't, really, when taken as the sum of its parts. What's left of the score is often thrilling ("Money to Burn", "Flash! Bang! Wallop!") or lovely ("Long Ago", "I Know What I Am") -- but there isn't enough of it, and it's not as varied as it was in London. The dance music was left off the album (as was one song for the chorus), and it clocks in at about ten minutes shorter than most cast recordings of the period.As the longer and more definitively cast London version is currently unavailable, though, fans of musical theatre should not hesitate to grab this album. David Heneker (who died several days ago, as I write this) was a great talent, and this preserves some of his best work."