South Pacific [Original Broadway Cast Recording]

South Pacific [Original Broadway Cast Recording]

1	Overture 3:37
2	Dites-Moi / Barbara Luna 1:26
3	A Cockeyed Optimist / Mary Martin 1:45
4	Twin Soliloquies / Emil Pinza 2:29
5	Some Enchanted Evening / Emil Pinza 3:03
6	Bloody Mary / Marines 2:18
7	There Is Nothin' Like a Dame / Marines 3:39
8	Bali Ha'i 3:29
9	I'm Gonna Wash That Man Right Outa My Hair / Nurses 3:30
10	A Wonderful Guy / Nurses 3:34
11	Younger Than Springtime 3:28
12	Happy Talk 3:35
13	Honey Bun / Mary Martin 2:04
14	You've Got to Be Carefully Taught 1:19
15	This Nearly Was Mine / Emil Pinza 3:30
16	Finale: Dites-Moi (Reprise) / Emil Pinza 3:06
17	Loneliness of Evening / Mary Martin Bonus Track 3:23
18	My Girl Back Home / Mary Martin Bonus Track 3:01
19	Bali Ha'i / Emil Pinza Bonus Track 3:19
20	South Pacific: Symphonic Scenario for Concert Orchestra / Philadelphia Pops Orchestra 9:48

Barnes & Noble

South Pacific, Rodgers and Hammerstein's 1949 Pulitzer Prize-winning musical, is one of the team's greatest and most universal works. The richly textured cast album features Mary Martin as Nellie Forbush, the American nurse in love with an older Frenchman, played by opera star Ezio Pinza. South Pacific expertly balances their unusual love story with pungent social commentary, notably in the famous antihatred lyrics of "You've Got to Be Carefully Taught." Martin's powerful vocals on "A Cockeyed Optimist," "I'm Gonna Wash That Man Right Outa My Hair," and "A Wonderful Guy" are thrilling, as are Rodgers and Hammerstein classics "Younger Than Springtime" and "There Is Nothin' Like a Dame." Still, it's Pinza's breathtaking "Some Enchanted Evening" and "This Nearly Was Mine" that will leave you with a lump in your throat. David Elliot Cohen

All Music Guide

Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II's fourth musical, South Pacific, was based on several stories in James A. Michener's book Tales of the South Pacific, specifically two that dealt with wartime romances complicated by racial issues. Lyricist and co-librettist Hammerstein explored the relationship between an older French planter with two young half-Polynesian children and a young American nurse, and between an American lieutenant and a native girl. The cultural contrasts were supported by musical ones: The score veered between lush, operatic ballads ("Some Enchanted Evening," "This Nearly Was Mine") and earthy comedic numbers ("There Is Nothin' Like a Dame," "I'm Gonna Wash That Man Right Outa My Hair").

The story also allowed Rodgers & Hammerstein to portray the rough-edged, lusty character of U.S. servicemen and to present music with an exotic flavor ("Bali Ha'i"). The result was a massive hit. Opening on Broadway April 7, 1949, South Pacific ran 1,925 performances, longer than any musical before it except Rodgers & Hammerstein's Oklahoma! The score was even more popular, if possible. At a time when many different record companies might put out their own covers of a popular song, "Some Enchanted Evening" was a Top Ten hit for no less than six artists, with Perry Como's version hitting number one. Margaret Whiting beat out three chart competitors for the top version of "A Wonderful Guy." But it was the original Broadway cast album that was the real blockbuster. Released at a time when record formats were changing, it came out on 78s, EPs, and an early 12" LP, and became the longest running number one hit in history. ~ William Ruhlmann, Rovi