Sweet Smell of Success Original Cast Recording

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CD

  • Release Date: 04/23/2002
  • Sales Rank: 65,814
  • Label: SONY
  • UPC: 696998992221
 
  • Overview
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  • Editorial Reviews
  • Customer Reviews
  • Details & Credits

Editorial Reviews

Despite an impressive pedigree and a Tony award for lead actor John Lithgow, Sweet Smell of Success failed to light up the box office, ending its run after three months. This cast album reinforces some of the main criticisms against the show, including the lack of big, memorable songs and too much chorus. Still, taken apart from the show, the music works fairly well, presenting a cohesive underscore and persuasive performances. Though at times the music sounds a bit too much like one of those Broadway parodies so perfectly executed on The Simpsons, composer Marvin Hamlisch is enough of a pro to toss out a few gems along with the more run-of-the-mill material. "Don't Know Where You Leave Off" is pleasant enough, and the entire enterprise maintains a brilliantly orchestrated dark, jazzy, '50s feel that really suits the story. The packaging is indicative of the black-and-white tone of the stage show, with a clever synopsis and lyrics included in the liner notes. Fans of the Broadway production will get a terrific souvenir, while students of musical theater will appreciate the construction of the piece on a more theoretical level. All in all, it's a show that just may work better on album than on stage. ~ Neil Shurley, All Music Guide All Music Guide

Customer Reviews

Sweet Smell of Successby Anonymous

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July 06, 2002: This is the best Broadway score I've heard since The Producers! Some of the best songs are the jazzy ones like ''Welcome to the Night'', ''One Track Mind'', and ''Dirt''. I also liked the not-jazzy tunes like ''I Cannot Hear The City'', ''For Susan'', and ''Don't Look Now''. Buy this CD!

Sweet Smell of Successby Anonymous

Reader Rating:
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June 17, 2002: The show may well have been misconceived. The Susan-Dallas romance and Sidney's angst unbalanced everything, and what little there was of JJ didn't come off. The score was in the service of a lost cause in the theatre, but on this CD, it's mostly wonderful. The love songs that slowed the show badly are actually beautiful in themselves. Sidney's song ''At the Fountain'' is very fine. The big chorus numbers like ''Welcome to the Night'' come across with real power. This is a CD I have been playing often since I bought it in May. True, a few of Carnelia's lyrics are goofy (listen for the one about ''combing his hair with my comb'')but this is an impressive, much overlooked score.


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