Michel Legrand, Melissa Errico, Malcolm Gets Amour (2002 Original Broadway Cast) Genres:Pop, Soundtracks, Broadway & Vocalists It's hard not to feel a little embittered by the fate of Amour when you see the junk that spends years on Broadway. Composer Michel Legrand and lyricist Didier van Cauwelaert's delightful show (Le Passe Muraille in the ori... more »ginal French version) closed after a woefully short run in the fall of 2002, yet it had enough dedicated fans that it scored a handful of Tony nominations and ended up being recorded. The sung-through score, which tells the story of a meek civil servant who discovers he can pass through walls, is unfailingly inventive and catchy. The overture, for instance, is full of the poppy ba-ba-ba's familiar to fans of Legrand's scores for the '60s musicals The Umbrellas of Cherbourg and The Young Girls of Rochefort. The songs are done in chanson, musette, waltz and other very French styles, and the cast (led by Malcolm Gets and Melissa Errico) delivers them with wit and panache. This is the very example of a worthy show that can get a second life thanks to its recordings. --Elisabeth Vincentelli« less
It's hard not to feel a little embittered by the fate of Amour when you see the junk that spends years on Broadway. Composer Michel Legrand and lyricist Didier van Cauwelaert's delightful show (Le Passe Muraille in the original French version) closed after a woefully short run in the fall of 2002, yet it had enough dedicated fans that it scored a handful of Tony nominations and ended up being recorded. The sung-through score, which tells the story of a meek civil servant who discovers he can pass through walls, is unfailingly inventive and catchy. The overture, for instance, is full of the poppy ba-ba-ba's familiar to fans of Legrand's scores for the '60s musicals The Umbrellas of Cherbourg and The Young Girls of Rochefort. The songs are done in chanson, musette, waltz and other very French styles, and the cast (led by Malcolm Gets and Melissa Errico) delivers them with wit and panache. This is the very example of a worthy show that can get a second life thanks to its recordings. --Elisabeth Vincentelli
Matthew Murray | New York City, NY USA | 07/09/2003
(4 out of 5 stars)
"Though it had but a short run on Broadway, Michel Legrand's Amour has produced a beautiful cast recording with all the intoxicating fizz of the 2002 Broadway production. It has an impeccable cast (including vocal powerhouses Melissa Errico, Nora Mae Lyng, Lewis Cleale, and Norm Lewis), delicate (but lovely) orchestrations, and one of the most flavorful, intriguing, and humorous scores to hit Broadway recently (and this in the same season Hairspray opened, no less).The problems with the disc will only make it rate 4 stars for people familiar with the original production--it will be a solid 5 for everyone else. But the trimming of some material that should have been included--chief among them the musical's dramatic and musical climx--hampers the album's full impact, especially since a nice but wholly unnecessary bonus track featuring Legrand was included instead.Still, it's a warm, colorful recording that beautifully represents a charming show."
LE GRAND AMOUR
D. Beach | Orlando, FL USA | 10/18/2003
(5 out of 5 stars)
"I now understand why AMOUR was nominated for Best Musical, Best Book, and Best Original Score at the 2002 TONY Awards. It is a sweet, almost abstract, sung-through musical - in the Legrand tradition of "Umbrellas of Cherbourg"; a truly charming, albeit unconventional, and ... well ... sort-of-French-though-it's-in-English-musical. Although it lasted for only 31 previews and 17 performances on Broadway, someone had the good sense to bring the original cast back together 6 months later for this recording. A wonderful, eminently listenable, and infectious recording. This Broadway collector's delight has full liner notes and libretto!!"
A great, underrated Broadway gem
Byron Kolln | the corner where Broadway meets Hollywood | 01/20/2004
(4 out of 5 stars)
"AMOUR quickly expired on Broadway, though its cast album will remain to testify its greatness. Michel Legrand's quirky, romantic score and Jeremy Sams' English translated-lyrics are right on the mark. It's very difficult to summize the death of AMOUR when mindless dreck like MAMMA MIA! runs for years.Melissa Errico and Malcolm Gets, two of the best in Broadway's young talent, are fine in the lead roles. Nora Mae Lyng, Sarah Litzsinger, Lewis Cleale, Christopher Fitzgerald, Norm Lewis, Bill Nolte and John Cummingham are all likewise top-drawer Broadway talents.Standouts in the glittery score include Nora Mae Lyng's hilarious "Whore's Lament", as well as choice numbers like "Office Life", "Somebody", "Waiting" and "Special Time of Day".AMOUR, sadly, just doesn't fit into the current, hyper-commercial tapestry of Broadway. More's the pity. [SH-K-BOOM 4003-2]"
Fun, yet touching CD (nice waltz)
D. Beach | 08/01/2003
(5 out of 5 stars)
"I was intrigued by the story of Amour and was quite attracted by the CD's nice packaging. However, Amour proves to be a very touching and cute recording. The overture is simple but very effective. It starts with a catchy jazz waltz that (effectively) welcomes listeners. Very good songs and solo pieces are Other People's Stories, The Street Vendors' Waltz, Somebody, and an Ordinary Guy. Its my first time to hear Melissa Errico and Malcolm Gets, and I am quite impressed (I would love to hear Melissa Errico sing a song from Sunday in the Park). Some cute character songs are the Whore's Lament and the Painter's Song. I heard that Amour was not able to enjoy a long-run on Broadway, but I am quite glad to have a recording. A bonus treat is the last track. A nice surprise is that the strong tracks are the waltz tracks.Honestly, I really do not understand the reviews made with regard to Amour. One of the reviewers compalained on the silliness of the lyrics. It is supposed to be light, comic, silly, and FUN."
No Justice!
Byron Kolln | 11/11/2003
(5 out of 5 stars)
"This has got ot be one of the best scores on Broadway in recent years. What a shame it didn't last. it's definitely a better score than a lot of the hits that have been on Broadway in recent years. Gorgeous music!"
