Barbra! Barbra! Barbra!
Byron Kolln | the corner where Broadway meets Hollywood | 01/16/2007
(4 out of 5 stars)
"In the early 1960's, a young woman with a great big voice began plying her musical talents in small but important cabaret venues like the Bon Soir and the Blue Angel. Barbra Joan Streisand was her name. Her raw, firebrand vocal delivery soon won her a legion of fans, and it wasn't long until composer Harold Rome recommended her for the featured role of Miss Marmelstein in his 1962 Broadway musical I CAN GET IT FOR YOU WHOLESALE (as well as his PINS AND NEEDLES revival that same year). Just two years later, Streisand won the role of Fanny Brice in FUNNY GIRL, and the rest, as they say, is history.
Here on her very first album, Streisand performs the bulk of her best cabaret material. Her voice is full of youthful promise, a brash firebrand style which instantly appeals. In later years, Streisand would refine her voice into one of a sleek, almost glacial beauty; but there is still a lot to admire in Streisand's vocals here. Pieces like "Come to the Supermarket (In Old Peking)" and "Soon It's Gonna Rain" are fantastic numbers that she absolutely goes to town with.
She soared to the top of the charts with "Happy Days are Here Again"; and singlehandedly revived interest in the forgotten Broadway musical HOUSE OF FLOWERS with her cover of "A Sleepin' Bee".
Musical director Peter Matz provided arrangements which suited Streisand's still-evolving voice perfectly, and would subsequently guide her through many more albums. Her brash, unkempt personality shines through beautifully on this recording, and newer fans who aren't terribly familiar with Streisand's pre-FUNNY GIRL material should seek the album out.
[Columbia CK 57374]"
Just discovered
Jondalar | Columbus | 10/02/2006
(5 out of 5 stars)
"I don't like Streisands politics. I hate when stars go into the political arena. It just really turns me off. But I gave this album a try because I wanted to know what her first album sounded like. It's stellar. Now I understand why BABS is a star. I have never heard of version of Cry Me A River like this. This is the absolute best version of the song EVER! I've listened to this song twenty times in a row. I think she better singer in the early days then she was in the later on, because she just sang! WOW!"