Search - Various Artists :: The Paul Simon Album: Broadway Sings The Best Of Paul Simon

Yick!

Ceejay | 04/14/1999

(1 out of 5 stars)

"In the light of the failure of Simon's "Caveman", this seems to be pouring salt in the wound. None of the singers, particularly Lauren Kennedy, seemed to know what they were doing with this music. The choice of the singers was poor as far as style, and many of them were mediocre singers at best."

My goodness, what a terrible idea.

Ceejay | Chesapeake Beach, MD USA | 12/18/2003

(1 out of 5 stars)

"Don't get me wrong - I adore Broadway musicals, and the performers on this CD are not untalented. I also think Paul Simon is one of the musical geniuses of the late 20th/early 21st century. But his songs are subtle, occasionally abstruse, and witty in a sly, understated way. Asking Broadway-style singers to tackle his repertoire is akin to asking a knuckleball pitcher to paint the outside corner of the plate - one requires an entirely different discipline than the other. The stock in trade of the Broadway performer is immediate, in-your-face emotion... something for which Simon's songs are ill-suited. The beauty of a Paul Simon song is how its seeming impassivity quietly works its way into your psyche, until you suddenly realize that he's uncovered a subliminal truth. There's something deeply human and breathtakingly honest couched in all those clever words and images - but it's the kind of thing that's revealed only with a delicate touch, as opposed to a sledgehammer. A Broadway-style approach doesn't reveal those elusive truths so much as beat the stuffing out of them.



As much as I appreciate the desire to pay homage to Paul Simon's many musical gifts, this was an idea that never should've made it out of the production booth."

Some things are better left alone.

Ceejay | 02/04/1999

(2 out of 5 stars)

"One could not say this is a bad CD, but the only bright spot was "The Sounds of Silence"."