Search - Gay, Austin :: Beggar's Opera / Polly

Must Stop Ordering When Drinking - Or Maybe I Got Foxed

Frank Wood | Evanston, Il USA | 09/01/2006

(1 out of 5 stars)

"Right. Can't remember what state of sobriety I was in when I ordered this cd and I may have missed some key clues about its nature. But I was so excited to find anything claiming to relate to Gay's "Polly" (which otherwise seems to have completely disappeared after it was censored in the 18th century - even internet wise) that I bought this cd. Turns out it is a cd version of some music originally recorded in the early 1920's. It is moderately interesting even for someone who is not primarily interested in antigue recordings (aka "scratchy records") because the style may be closer to that of the original performance. (There is no reason to think that common tastes were better in the 18th century than in 1920.) It is certainly different than contemporaneous performances of BO.



Don't mean to be sexist - which I am - but the duets, choreses and male performances seem to be less antigue than the soprano pieces. The broads are simply squeaky. Something to do with frequency loss in early recordings, I expect. On the other hand, the bass songs are equally abrasive and archaic.



Even the notes about "Polly" in this cd are disappointing. No mention of the history of "Polly", no mention of the source for the music. Try googling for a link for Gay and Polly. If you find one, be sure to post - I would love to know.



Unless you are an academic involved with some of the most obscure corners of the history of recorded music, I would forget this one. Instead, root for someone to find and record Gay's Polly. And buy a more modern interpretation of the Beggar's Opera. I have certainly heard antique recordings restored more vibrantly than this cd - but I would think that depends to a large extent on the quality of what you have to start with.



The only reason I gave it 2 stars (for some reason, Amazon refuses to record my change from 1 to 2 stars; but that is computers for you) instead of 1 was because of I love the melodies of the songs so much. But I will also admit that it is possible that Gay have been lucky that Polly was suppressed - the melodies and lyrics are not nearly as good as BO. On the other hand, this cd is so antique that is an unfair basis for judgment, But what the H!"