ON THE RECORD: Through the Years with Youmans and Wodehouse
By Steven Suskin
04 Nov 2001
HAL CAZALET & SYLVIA McNAIR: THE LAND WHERE THE GOOD SONGS GO Harbinger HCD 1901
What this album title does not say is that this is a collection of songs with lyrics by P.G. Wodehouse. Wodehouse helped revolutionize the American musical theatre during his brief collaboration with composer Jerome Kern. Working mostly with Guy Bolton, who wrote the librettos with Wodehouse, the trio turned out a series of influential musicals that are collectively known as the Princess Theatre shows (although only a handful played at the 299-seat Princess). Coincidentally, these were the same scores that so inspired George Gershwin and Vincent Youmans (as mentioned above).
The shows — including Leave It to Jane and Oh, Boy! — may be forgotten, but the songs are delicious. At this time, music was prominent in the American musical. Composers like Victor Herbert or Rudolf Friml got the fame and money, while the lyrics and lyricists were of relatively little importance. Wodehouse's work was clever enough that you wanted to hear the words, and Kern was keen enough to adapt his style to allow the words to be heard. Wodehouse soon stopped writing lyrics, content to concentrate on fiction (with occasional co-librettist chores). This has resulted in By Jeeves, without — alas — lyrics by Wodehouse.
The Kern-Wodehouse-Bolton team lasted less than a year-and-a-half; broken up, in part, because Wodehouse wanted equal treatment with Kern in terms of billing and money, which at the time was unheard of. But the work the trio did helped formulate what would become American musical comedy. If Kern inspired a whole generation of future composers, Wodehouse's work paved the way — almost directly — for two fellows who idolized him, Ira Gershwin and Larry Hart.
(For those who care about such things: Wodehouse's penultimate lyric writing job was a collaboration with Ira Gershwin, to music by George Gershwin — who as a teenager had been rehearsal pianist for Wodehouse's penultimate Kern collaboration. Ira Gershwin's first Broadway show — and first Broadway hit — meanwhile, was composed not by George but by Vincent Youmans.)
The Land Where the Good Songs Go — which, incidentally, is the title of an especially lovely song from Miss 1917 — contains sixteen Wodehouse songs. Fourteen, really, as far as I'm concerned; two of them feature "additional lyrics" Wodehouse contributed to the 1935 London production of Anything Goes. While they cleverly Anglicize the songs, "You're the Top" and "Anything Goes" remain Cole Porter songs in my book.
These are the only two standards on the disc. George Gershwin and Ivor Novello are each represented by one song; the other twelve are by Kern, and they are the reason to get this charming album. Frankly, I was won over the moment the singers launched into a spirited rendition of "Sir Galahad," one of my favorite early Kern songs. (This is the one in which the rambunctious Wodehouse rhymes "platinum" with "flatten 'em.")
The songs are mostly duets, sung by the accomplished Sylvia McNair — with 70 classical and popular albums to her credit, plus two Grammy Awards — and the relatively unknown Hal Cazalet. Cazalet does a fine job with the nimble lyrics, bringing full value to Wodehouse's work. Reading the liner notes one discovers that this Cazalet fellow is actually Wodehouse's great grandson. (The handsome booklet includes complete lyrics and interesting essays by Tim Rice, Cazalet, and Tony Ring.) Cazalet also produced the album and plays half of the two-piano arrangement on a rousing rendition of "The Enchanted Train." His sister, Lara Cazalet, sings one track, the original version of "Bill." This was cut from a show on the road in 1918 and revised nine years later by Kern and Hammerstein for use in Show Boat.
The music is in the expert hands of Steven Blier, of the New York Festival of Song, who has a perfect feel for the material. He even alters his keyboard style, ever so slightly, from Kern to Porter to Gershwin! Assorted tracks are accompanied by banjo or uke, adding delectable touches.
Overall, this disc is a family rescue mission, trying to retrieve great grandpa's songs from "The Land Where Good Songs Go." And that's precisely what Cazalet, McNair, and Blier do. The music is inevitably old fashioned and maybe even quaint; highly pleasant, though. The lyrics are top-notch; clever, funny, intelligent, and impeccably wedded to the notes.
DRG 25TH ANNIVERSARY SHOW STOPPING PERFORMANCES DRG 12628
DRG has celebrated its 25th Anniversary by releasing a 2-CD compilation of forty tracks from their various cast albums. These range from major Broadway hits to forgotten off-Broadway flops, with numerous revivals (including six from Encores!) and some older albums licensed from other labels. While many of us have many of these CDs, I think it's safe to say that you'll hear things you've never heard before.
Performers include Patti LuPone, Debra Monk, Michael Rupert, Stephen Bogardus, Tyne Daly, Margaret Whiting, Comden and Green, Phyllis Newman, Anthony Perkins, Lynne Thigpen, James Naughton, Heather Headley, Melissa Errico, Brian Stokes Mitchell, Linda Hopkins, Marin Mazzie, Michele Lee, Carol Burnett, Liza Minnelli and Barbara Cook — Which is quite an assortment.
DRG has also released Great Cabaret Performances [DRG 91477], a 1-CD compilation of tracks from personality albums. This also has an impressive lineup, featuring Ann Hampton Callaway, Billy Stritch, Amanda McBroom, Margaret Whiting, Eartha Kitt, Faith Prince, Liz Callaway, Elaine Stritch, Julie Wilson, Karen Akers, and — again — Barbara Cook. These two new anthologies provide listeners with three hours of interesting songs and performances.
— by Steven Suskin, author of "Broadway Yearbook 1999-2000" and "Show Tunes" (both from Oxford University Press) and the "Opening Night on Broadway" books. Prior ON THE RECORD columns can be accessed in the Features section along the left-hand side of the screen.
