[.ca] Hello Dolly Deluxe Edition

From Amazon.com:
Sitting in the balcony at the final preview of this 1964 Jerry Herman show, still very much in school and long before my career as a critic began, I knew somehow that I was witnessing theatrical history. Even as that callow youth, I was certain that Carol Channing had been born to play the role of Dolly Gallagher Levi, the meddling turn-of-the century New York widow who had been adapted from Thornton Wilder's straight play The Matchmaker. Channing has proved me right by playing the role ever since, of course, miraculously only improving with age. Beyond Dolly herself, however, the musical emitted a synergistic exuberance (at least five years before we used the word "synergy"). The supporting cast, including David Burns, Eileen Brennan, and Charles Nelson Reilly, were terrific. Herman's tunes and lyrics were sublimely crafted both to create their characters and stand alone. (The title song took on a life of its own.) The show's designers, librettist Michael Stewart and director Gower Champion, combined to transport the audience to 60 years earlier in little old New York. This wasn't all just my opinion: Hello, Dolly! won a record 10 Tonys. The original cast recording can still take you to that other time and place, even if you didn't see the original show. But, at the risk of offending my inner adolescent, the 1994 revival, naturally starring Channing, was even better--both on stage and on disc. --Robert Windeler

broadway bliss!:
My mom went out and bought the LP of "Hello, Dolly!" on the day that Richard Nixon was inaugurated. She needed something to help her get through the day, and badly. It helped!!! Since then this cast recording has been the ultimate pick-me-up for me and everyone in my family. We are all cast album junkies (I'm the worst) and this is my VERY favorite. The exuberance of the performances is astounding. I am very happy with this Deluxe Edition, though the bonuses are a bit disappointing, with the exception of the interview with Carol Channing, which is wonderful. As for Carol Channing not being able to sing, in the role of Dolly: no-one can or ever will be able to top her. Carol Channing Rules!!!!

The epitome of 1960s Broadway:
HELLO DOLLY! is not the best musical Bradway has ever produced. It was not even the Best musical of the 1960s - but it has that brassy broadway sound that many people associate with the Great White Way. This remastered original cast album sounds just fine, but then so did the previous Cd release. The "Bonus Tracks" provide welcome samples of Pearl Bailey, Mary Martin and Ethel Merman in the role, but the part still belongs to Carol Channing. Jerry Herman's score remains a delight and the cast delivers the songs with gusto. The packaging is awful! WHY would RCA Victor resort to such ugly, generic packaging for this product which has been a best-seller for them for 40 years now. A cheap cardboard sleeve with a 16 page booklet glued in. The boolet for the most part simply reprints the liner notes from teh previous CD release. The disc sits in a tray opposite the booklet. This is not a good way to store Cd's at all. It is the packaging that reduced this from a 5-star item to 4 stars. Happily, nothing can dim Carol Channing's performance.

One of the top musical comedies:
This recording is a very good example of what might be the best Musical Comedy ever made. David Burns does a good job with what little he has to sing. I remember Charles Nelson Reily from Match Game on T.V., and his performance is a truly great one. But the true star here is Carol Channing. Her performance glows back there in 1964. A few weeks ago,I was watching the 2004 Tony awards. Channing awarded someone with a popular rapper(cannot quite remember his name). They did a rap version of "Hello Dolly" It was HILLARIOUS. Even 40 years cannot take away Carol's special something that made this such a great show. Get this and enjoy it until you wear it out!!

Channing Charms with Jerry Herman Musical:
HELLO, DOLLY! is not really among the truly great American musicals--but that isn't to say that it doesn't offer a rollicking good time, as the original cast recording amply demonstrates. Based on the comedy THE MATCHMAKER by Thornton Wilder, the play is the story of professional busybody Dolly Levi--a widow of the early 20th Century who dabbles in private lives for both profit and pleasure, often working as a matchmaker for those whose love lives seem beyond all hope. On this particular occasion, she dabbles in a number of lives, making the course of true love run smooth... for both others and herself. The Jerry Herman songs are jewels, and with the music tailored to her eccentric talents star Carol Channing works wonders with them. "I Put My Hand In" is a true delight, a near-patter song that Channing tosses off as if the complex lyrics were pure stream of consciousness, and on her lips "Before the Parade Passes By" becomes a classic show-stopper. Channing's performance of "So Long Dearie" is charmingly wicked--and one need hardly mention the wonders she works with the title tune. But even though this is truly Channing's show from start to finish, she isn't the only talent in it--and the rest is quite fine. David Burns is appropriately blustery, and "It Takes A Woman" is a classic of comic musical numbers; Eileen Brennan sparkles; and Charles Nelson Riley, of all people, proves that his talent on stage far exceeded the stereotypes of his various television appearances. The arrangements are bright, and although the state-of-the-art of this 1960s hardly compares to present recording technology, the soundtrack of HELLO, DOLLY! not only sparkles, it actually manages to convey the excitement you inevitably feel when the lights go down and the orchestra strikes up for what you know will be a good, old fashioned knock-out Broadway show. While it's really too much of a star vehicle to be considered in the same league with such classics as SHOWBOAT, THE KING AND I, and the like, it's just too much fun to ignore. Recommended. GFT, Amazon Reviewer

A single CD that is a collector's delight!:
This CD is a special treat for those of us who love classic Broadway musicals like "Hello, Dolly!" The CD contains all of the songs on the original LP and CD. The cast sings with all their might and the result is a wonderful recording; the CD has excellent sound quality! I got goosebumps when listening to the title song with Carol Channing! GRIN "Put On Your Sunday Clothes" and "Elegance" are rousing numbers; "Ribbons Down My Back" is a beautiful tender ballad. There are quite a number of wonderful extras: a 10 minute interview with Carol Channing; two songs performed by Mary Martin in the 1965 London production of this stage musical; and two more songs performed with Pearl Bailey when "Hello Dolly!" was done with an all black cast in 1967 on Broadway. Of special note are two recordings of Ethel Merman singing songs written specially for her when she was picked to be the original Dolly (she turned down the part). Ms. Merman put these songs out on a 45 rpm record since she was not part of the original cast recording on January 19, 1964 (three nights after opening night on Broadway). The liner notes are extensive and the listener is treated to some great photographs, too. (These pictures, though, are in black and white; and the notes could have been a bit more attractively packaged. I agree with the reviewer who notes that this CD could have had better packaging.) All in all, this is an excellent audio CD recording of the original cast with splendid extras. A must for musical lovers and fans of the ladies who played Dolly over the years!

• Prologue
• I Put My Hand In
• It Takes a Woman
• Put on Your Sunday Clothes
• Ribbons Down My Back
• Motherhood
• Dancing
• Before the Parade Passes By
• Elegance
• Hello, Dolly!
• It Only Takes a Moment
• So Long Dearie
• Finale
• I Put My Hand In \o*\c - Mary Martin
• Before the Parade Passes By \o*\c - Pearl Bailey
• Hello, Dolly! \o*\c - Pearl Bailey
• So Long Dearie \o*\c - Mary Martin
• Love, Look in My Window \o*\c - Ethel Merman
• World, Take Me Back \o*\c - Ethel Merman
• On Recording Hello, Dolly! \o*\c - Carol Channing
• When Did You Sense That Hello, Dolly! Would Be a Hit? \o*\c - Carol Channing
• On the Title Number \o*\c - Carol Channing
• "Dolly Changed Me..."; the Book \o*\c - Carol Channing
• Plot \o*\c - Carol Channing
• Optimism, And Finding One's Character \o*\c - Carol Channing
• Prime of Life \o*\c - Carol Channing