Mandy Patinkin • Brother, Can You Spare A Dime?

After hearing the doomsday calls from the Republicans at their convention this week, I thought it would be appropriate to remind us all about a time when the the economy really was in trouble. I think back to the Stock Market Crash of 1929, with Republican President Herbert Hoover in the White House. The country was devastated when the bottom fell out of Wall Street and the banks, following a period of great wealth and greed. That depression lasted ten years, and it took the election of Democrat Franklin D. Roosevelt to right the ship, and bring the country back to a position of strength and prosperity. In 1931, the country was still floundering under the leadership of the Republicans, and E. Y. "Yip" Harburg and composer Jay Gorney wrote a song that spoke for much of the country. "Brother Can You Spare A Dime?" was a song that was sung by many, including Rudy Vallee, Bing Crosby, and Al Jolson. It was also recorded much later by the immensely talented Mandy Patinkin on his eponymous debut.



Oddly enough, that scenario was eerily familiar, right? The financial sector falling apart on the watch of a Republican President during a time when the rich got richer, and the poor stayed poor. Thankfully, a Democrat took over and brought the country back to a good place. Hmmm. Well, "Brother Can You Spare A Dime?" wasn't the only Yip Harburg song Mandy performed on the Letterman show. This time, Mandy took on the Judy Garland classic "Over The Rainbow", with lyrics by Harburg and music by Harold Arlen. The song was from The Wizard of Oz, and associated with Garland throughout her career. But here Mandy gives is a try live on national television. And makes it great.



In another appearance on the David Letterman show, Mandy once again went back to Tin Pan Alley to sing "Rock-A-Bye Your Baby With A Dixie Melody", written by Jean Schwartz, Sam M. Lewis and Joe Young. The song was published in 1918, and first recorded by Al Jolson, becoming a theme song associated with the fabled star.



You can purchase Mandy's eponymous album on iTunes and Amazon. It is incredible, and well worth owning. I first purchased my copy in 1989 when it was first released. For more about Mandy Patinkin, visit his official website.

Happy Birthday, Stephen Sondheim!

Today is Stephen Sondheim's 82nd birthday. In tribute to this great composer, I thought I would find some performances of his songs by some interesting performers, something I think I managed to accomplish. I will start with a brilliantly written song from the musical 'Company'. The show offered up several wonderful songs, but I really did love this version by Madeline Kahn, a woman with impeccable comedic timing. Watch this clip as she sings "Getting Married Today".



I just love Tim Curry's voice, so when I found this clip of him singing "Losing My Mind" from 'Follies', I was ecstatic. I can overlook the lack of a stirring picture because the audio is just so damned good.



Do two voices get alone any better than those of Mandy Patinkin and Bernadette Peters? I am not sure it is possible, especially when they are singing the devastatingly gorgeous "Move On" from 'Sunday In The Park With George'.



Now, I could hardly do this post and leave off La LuPone, could I? She has such and amazing voice, and such strong control of it, is seems only right to end the post with her beautiful "Being Alive" from the musical 'Company'.



So Happy Birthday, Mr. Sondheim!

Dark Monday • Broadway Valentine

Clockwise: Annie Lennox, Mandy Patinkin, Chaka Khan, John Barrowman, Daniel Boys, and Ella Fitzgerald.

It is the night before Valentine's Day, so I thought I would pony up to the bar with a few love songs that were from Broadway musicals. But I thought I would offer different interpretations, other than the Broadway cast. I will start out with a fairly famous song, a standard unto itself. It has been sung by many, but few quite like this version, sung by Annie Lennox on New Years Eve 2009. She sings Can't Help Lovin' Dat Man from the 1927 musical Showboat, with music by Jerome Kern and lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II.



This next song is another great song, sung by some great voices in productions. It is a bit harder to sing, so it doesn't have nearly the amount of covers that the first did, but they are pretty special. This is If I Loved You from the Richard Rodgers & Oscar Hammerstein II musical from 1946, Carousel. It is being performed by Mandy Patinkin in a live show. He blows me away.



The next entry is from the musical 1937 Babes in Arms, and written by the great songwriting team of Richard Rodgers and Lorenz Hart. It is truly one of the great songs in the Great American Songbook, with covers by countless singers. This is My Funny Valentine by Chaka Khan, recorded to be a part of the soundtrack to the 1995 film, Waiting To Exhale.



Then next song was written for a 1943 musical that few people have heard of, Speak Low from the 1943 musical One Touch Of Venus composed by Kurt Weill, with lyrics by Ogden Nash. This is an incredible performance by Ella Fitzgerald and Jazz guitarist Joe Pass.



The song I Know Him So Well was an incredible love song from the 1986 show Chess, music by Benny Andersson and Björn Ulvaeus, formerly of ABBA, and with lyrics by Tim Rice. It was sung by the two female leads, about a man who they both loved. I love this version by John Barrowman & Daniel Boys, singing about the man they both loved.



Happy Valentine's Day!

Jazz Takes On Irene

Clockwise: Ella Fitzgerald; Mandy Patinkin; The Association; and Phylis Hyman.

By the time this posts, we could very well be in the thick of things in the Mid-Atlantic area, being pummeled by Hurricane Irene. If so, I can think of no better post than to have some talented Jazz & Pop artists take on the atmosphere. First up is the incredible Ella Fitzgerald singing a song most associate with Lena Horne, Stormy Weather. I love Ella's version!



The Association are not Jazz, but are Pop, and do have a song that occurred to me while thinking of this post. They had a #1 hit on the Billboard Hot 100 with Windy.



Well, it is hard to beat the smooth and strong voice of the amazing Phylis Hyman, and I was happy to include her in this mix. Here is Phylis singing Here's That Rainy Day.



Looking for the storm to end, I wanted to have a great 'rainbow' song. While I was looking, I came across this version of Mandy Patinkin singing I'm Always Chasing Rainbows, and knew it had to be included.



Hope everyone is staying safe!

Dark Monday - Sunday In The Park With George

Adapted from a 2009 post with additional video & music.

I was lucky enough to see Bernadette Peters and Mandy Patinkin in the original Broadway production of Sunday In The Park With George, as well as the recent revival brought over from London's West End. The musical, written by my hero Stephen Sondheim, is a brilliant homage to the painting by George Seurat, A Sunday Afternoon On The Island of La Grande Jatte. I will say I enjoyed the revival, but the original was just so damn good, with amazing performances by both Bernadette and Mandy which left an indelible memory of the experience even though with was about 25 years earlier.



The first act centers on Sondheim's take on the people who influenced the characters in the painting. The second act brings the story to the present, as Seurat's [fictional] great-grandson about to put on a 'light and color' art piece, inspired by the painting produced in the first act. Like most of Sondheim's work, the music and lyrics were textured and layered, with meaning, emotion, and storyline a focus. The first act closed with George (Patinkin) finishing the painting, and placing all the characters in the tableaux.



The show focuses on the process of art for the artist, from George songs like Color And Light, Finishing The Hat, and Putting It Together opening a discussion of the thinking of artists. I certainly remember thinking it was perhaps Sondheim's most personal musical to date. His quiet, reclusive, and ponderous George was about as close to his own reputation as any character has been. In the following clip, I think Bernadette is just outstanding.




The marquee for the revival.

For me, the music in every Sondheim show is just glorious. The following is Daniel Evans singing the simply stunning song, Finishing The Hat, from a Tony Preview Concert in 2008. While the song is about his work, it really is something much more personal, confessional. Amazing lyrics, beautiful music.



The following is a clip for the song Move On from Act II of the show. I love the song, it is gorgeous. Yes,I know I've said that about other songs, but it is true, I just think the score to this musical is brilliant.

Sunday Morning with Mandy Patinkin

I first became aware of Mandy Patinkin's amazing voice when I listened to the Original Broadway Cast album for Evita. By the time I saw him in Sunday In The Park With George, I was buying his album, and ready to run off with him forever, as long as he would sing to me. So I thought I would offer up a couple of Mandy tunes to make your Sunday just a little bit prettier than before. In the first clip, Mandy delivers a gorgeous song in under two minutes, and still gives me goosebumps. Here is I'm Always Chasing Rainbows.



In the second selection, Somewhere Over The Rainbow, Mandy hits notes very few men can even attempt, and delivers this classic with a such beauty and emotion, I could almost cry.



Hope your Sunday is relaxing and quiet. For more about Mandy, check out his official website here.

Dark Monday - Evita

It was 1979, and the musical Evita was all the rage. The music and lyrics were written by the hot young duo of Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice. And by hot I am meaning professionally, because there is no way at any given point in time Webber could be considered physically hot. It starred a young woman who had many roles on Broadway prior to this, but used the role of Eva Peron to skyrocket to fame. Patti LuPone was a tour de force in the role, and earned endless praise. Another breakout star was Mandy Patinkin in the role of Ché Guevara, with his amazing voice and vocal range, and an acting ability that saw no bounds.



Evita was the story of Eva Peron, and her rise from commoner to the first lady of Argentina. It is thought she slept her way to the top, chewing up and spitting out many on her way, and this musical doesn't disagree with that point. But with her booming voice and amazing charm, LuPone keeps the story interesting and the character human. Here is Patti singing Don't Cry For Me Argentina in a special event.



The production won 7 Tony Awards, including Best Musical, Best Lead Actress In A Musical for LuPone, and Best Featured Actor In A Musical for Patinkin. It opened in September 1979, and closed in 1983 after more than 1,500 performances.

Dark Monday - Sunday In The Park With George

I was lucky enough to see Bernadette Peters and Mandy Patinkin in the original Broadway production of Sunday In The Park With George, as well as the recent revival brought over from London's West End. The musical, written by my hero Stephen Sondheim, is a brilliant homage to the painting by George Seurat, A Sunday Afternoon On The Island of La Grande Jatte. I will say I enjoyed the revival, but the original was just so damn good, with amazing performances by both Bernadette and Mandy which left an indelible memory of the experience even though with was about 25 years earlier.



The first act centers on Sondheim's take on the people who influenced the characters in the painting. The second act brings the story to the present, as Seurat's [fictional] great-grandson about to put on a 'light and color' art piece, inspired by the painting produced in the first act. Like most of Sondheim's work, the music and lyrics were textured and layered, with meaning, emotion, and storyline a focus. The first act closed with George (Patinkin) finishing the painting, and placing all the characters in the tableaux.



The show focuses on the process of art for the artist, from George songs like Color And Light, Finishing The Hat, and Putting It Together opening a discussion of the thinking of artists. I certainly remember thinking it was perhaps Sondheim's most personal musical to date. His quiet, reclusive, and ponderous George was about as close to his own reputation as any character has been.


The marquee for the revival.

The following is a clip for the song Move On from Act II of the show. While not from the show, it is Bernadette singing it beautifully.