Search - Jerry Herman, Angela Lansbury, Carol Channing :: Tap Your Troubles Away - The Words and Music of Jerry Herman (Historic All-Star Tribute)

The Best Live Album I've ever heard!

01/19/2003

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I ordered this because I have the other album from an Actor's Fund concert in LA (Kurt Weill: The Centennial). I play the Kurt Weill album all the time, but the Jerry Herman album is perhaps now the favorite album in my very massive collection. As soon as Karen morrow starts to sing on the first track, I get totally involved in the concert and always have to listen to the whole CD! I keep it in my car to soothe myself when I'm in that LA traffic! Wilson Cruz is a great surprise, Ken Page tears into "I Am What I Am," and Douglas Sills is amazing, as is Sam Harris and, of course Bernadette. The Lansbury/Channing duet is a classic - and to have that followed by Jerry himself is almost too much to ask for! I hope The Actor's Fund keeps doing these concerts forever!"

Wow! Amazing!

01/28/2003

(5 out of 5 stars)

"What can I say? I am blown away by this album. Not only do you have a stellar cast singing all of my favorite Jerry Herman hits - but the sound quality is amazing!"

THE BEST OF TIMES, RECORDED LIVE. SIMPLY STUNNING!

Alan W. Petrucelli | THE ENTERTAINMENT REPORT (ALAN W. PETRUCELLI) | 01/16/2003

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Live recordings are sometimes --- perhaps the word should be "often" --- deadly. Inferior engineering. Sundry static glitches. Acoustics that annoy. Few such recordings work ... and work well. Add "Tap Your Troubles Away!" to the list of those Live Recordings That Work Very Well. Recorded at the Harriet and Charles Luckman Theatre at California State University in Los Angeles on November 10, 2001, the evening was a high-octane, star-studded tribute of Jerry Herman's genius that befitted The Actors' Fund. The 29 tracks are superbly recorded; the audience's appreciation is as palatable as the energy of the talent. There are a slew of surprise here, such as Jo Anne Worley's take on "Just Leave Everything to Me/I Want to Make the World Laugh" and Rod McKuen's "Look Over There." Some tracks are simply stunning: Rita Moreno's searing "I Won't Send Roses;" Sam Harris's rapid-fire denial "I Don't Want to Know" and Tyne Daly's poignant "Tomorrow Morning/And I Was Beautiful." (The weakest track? Surprisingly Bernadette Peters' "Time Heals Everything;" the Peters Principle --- singing the tune so often in the past that it sings itself --- dilutes the promise of the tune.) And then there are the Big Stars of the Night: Carol Channing and Angela Lansbury. The twisted joy here is that Angela sings something she's "always" wanted to sing: "Hello, Dolly!" A few minutes into the throaty rendition, Carol prances out, crying that somebody "stole my song," and then launches into "Mame." A well-versed chorus conquers the rest of the medley, but for several stellar (though too-brief) moments, theatrical history is made. The CD ends with Herman ticking the keys, assuring us that, thankfully, "I'll Be Here Tomorrow." The best of times, indeed!"