Jukebox musicals
built around the work of famous songwriters have been a constant of the
Broadway and West End stages on the last decades. The huge success of some of
those shows (MAMMA MIA!, THE JERSEY BOYS, WE WILL ROCK YOU, etc) are the main
reason producers continue to invest in them. This BEAUTIFUL is the last to open
on Broadway and through the Carole King’s songbook, plus other songs, it tells
the story of her life.
This recording
proofs two things. One: proving I’m a total zero when it comes to pop music is
the fact that I didn’t had a clue that King was responsible for songs like “The
Locomotion” (I believed it was a Kylie Minogue original), “(You Make Me Feel
Like) A Natural Woman”, “One Fine Day” or “You’ve Got a Friend”. Two: I wasn’t
familiar with King’s career. It’s true, this is isn’t exactly my kind of music,
but I enjoy all the mentioned songs plus others that are part of this
listenable cast recording.
For me, the
highlights are “It Might as Well Rain Until September”, “Up on the Roof”
(beautifully sung by E. Clayton Cornelious) and, no surprise here, “Happy Days
Here Again” which wasn’t written by King. These songs, plus all the others have
nice dated orchestrations by Steve Sidwell. In the entire recording there’s
only a song that I really don’t like – “We Gotta Get Out of This Place”.
In the role of
King, Jessie Mueller incarnates her way of singing (I listened to a couple of
King’s versions before writing this review) and delivers the songs with
confidence. As her first husband, Jake Epstein don’t sing much, but has a
pleasant voice. Jarred Spector, a former JERSEY BOY, is a perfect fit in the
role of composer Barry Mann, with a strong Anika Larsen as his wife and work
partner Cynthia Weil.
In conclusion,
this is an enjoyable recording that I’m sure will please and bring nice
memories to a lot of people who lived those times and it’s also a strong
showcase for Jessie Mueller talent and Carole King songs.
Rate: 6 (from 1
to 10)
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