Stephen Sondheim, Alexis Smith, Anthony Perkins - Sondheim Evening: A Musical Tribute (1973 Concert Cast)

Affectionately referred to as the "Scrabble album" for its playful cover art, Sondheim Evening: A Musical Tribute was the first of many tribute albums celebrating the music of Broadway's greatest modern composer, Stephen Sondheim. In 1973, however, he was still a relative newcomer whose work as a lyricist was more celebrated than his early efforts as a composer, which included Company and Follies. Accordingly, this tribute deviates from later efforts by including a few songs for which he only provided lyrics, but somewhat surprisingly, it also sets a trend by unearthing rarely heard selections--from Saturday Night and Evening Primrose--as well as songs cut from various shows, including A Little Night Music, which had just premiered a few weeks earlier). And that cast! Members of the original companies--including Angela Lansbury, Chita Rivera, Dorothy Collins, Alexis Smith, and Donna McKechnie, just to name a few--as well as Sondheim himself singing "Anyone Can Whistle" from the piano. Obviously, later tribute albums have more material to work with and similar all-star rosters (though they sometimes resort to gimmicks such as men singing women's songs), but this one has yet to be topped. --David Horiuchi Amazon.com

One of the most exciting evenings in the theatre, ever.

Reviewing this album in 1998 I wrote:

This concert was recorded live at the Shubert theatre in New York in March of 1973 - just a few weeks after A LITTLE NIGHT MUSIC had opened. Being a live recording there are some technical drawbacks - hence 4 stars instead of 5 - but the electicity generated by the performers and the event have never been matched by any subsequent Sondheim concert.
Among the highlights: -Nancy Walker's definative performance of "I'm Still Here."

-Ethel Shutta recreating her showstopping "Broadway Baby" which was abridged on the FOLLIES cast album

-Jack Cassidy and Susan Browning in a premiere recording of "So Many people" from the unproduced SATURDAY NIGHT

-Larry Kert offering both "Happily Ever After" and its replacement "Being Alive" from COMPANY.

-A half-dozen songs that had not been heard because they were dropped from shows before opening night or left off teh cast albums.

-Angela Lansbury recreating two of her big numbers from the ill-fated ANYONE CAN WHISTLE

-and, a grand finale where Sondheim himself sings (?) the title song from WHISTLE.

A useful overview of some of his best work (to 1973 at least) enlived by some steller performances. The original 2 LP set had been out-of-print for many years fetching $85 a copy at collector shops. RCA's CD edition restores some addional material left off the Lp and is a great bargain!

I should add a few small advisories: The sound is only so-so - picked up mainly by floor mics, and the orchestra sounds tinny. But in the end it only adds to the you-are-there quality. Collectors have traded complete tapes of the whole show for years, and having heard these I can say that the tracks here are the best of the lot.

March 30, 2008

Vintage Stephen Sondheim

This re-release of a 1973 live concert tribute to Stephen Sondheim, long out of print, is a must for any Sondheim lover. It contains some performances preserved no where else, including re-creations by the original performers of songs from little-known Sondheim shows, or songs that were dropped before the musicals they were from debuted on Broadway, or songs in the case of "Follies" that were not included on the original cast recording. Just a few of the performers include Angela Lansbury, Larry Blyden, Alexis Smith, Chita Rivera and Jack Cassidy. It ends with an especially poignant performance by Sondheim himself singing the title song from his short-lived musical "Anyone Can Whistle". January 12, 2008

The BEST of Sondheim

The best Sondheim collection available. The live performances add greatly to the album. All the performances are fresh and fun, or heartfelt and lovely. Added bonus is the performance of unused songs from several shows. The whole thing is wonderful. Only wish it had been done more recently to include the shows of the past 30 yrs. Could be quite an evening. The Carnegie Hall tribute album is glossier and more recent, but I like this better. July 22, 2006

Marry Me a Little

This is an old favorite that I already had on LP, but decided to finally upgrade to CD. Obviously, I like it or I wouldn't have bothered. August 15, 2005

One of the Best Sondheim Concerts ever

I bought this set used on vinyl when I was 17. Then again on cassette when I was 25. I'm now about to buy it on cd. Why? Hands down it is the best concert album of his works. Nothing gimimicky, just a great evening of song, most with the original performers recreating their moments. Also, there are more than a handful of cut songs and obscure lyrics. For you Sondheim buffs: the original lyrics to "We're Gonna Be All Right" which got sanitized during the tryout becuase Dorothy Rodgers thought the lyrics were too racy. And a previous reviewer complained that there were No performance of Night Music songs on the disc, Here's why. The Cast Album had just been recorded by Columbia and they held the rights to any of the original cast recording of the songs. During "Liasons" and "Send in the Clowns" the Engineers from Warner Brothers (the original Label) had to shut off the mics. A shame...written accounts of the evening state that Glynis Johns had the house in tears with Send in the Clowns. Still and all, a worthwhile album. January 13, 2004

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