A lighthearted romp reflecting the Elvis revolution, Bye Bye Birdie follows Albert Peterson (a pre-Mary Poppins Dick Van Dyke), the manager of rock & roller Conrad Birdie (Dick Gautier), who is sweeping throug... more »h the town of Sweet Apple on a publicity stunt surrounding his being drafted into the Army. Meanwhile, Albert's faithful but exasperated secretary (Chita Rivera) hopes he will give up show business to settle down with her and become a respectable English teacher. In Charles Strouse and Lee Adams's energetic and tuneful score, Van Dyke sings the standard "Put On a Happy Face," the high schoolers are high schoolers ("A Lot of Livin' to Do," "The Telephone Hour," "One Boy") and bewilder their parents ("Kids"), Gautier thrusts his hips ("Honestly Sincere," "One Last Kiss"), and homage is paid to that icon of home entertainment, Ed Sullivan ("Hymn for a Sunday Evening"). Bye Bye Birdie won the 1961 Tony for Best Musical, and Van Dyke reprised his role in the 1963 film version. The 2000 remastering features outstanding clarity as well as a bonus track of Strouse himself introducing and singing "Put On a Happy Face" at a Smithsonian lecture in 1978. --David Horiuchi« less
A lighthearted romp reflecting the Elvis revolution, Bye Bye Birdie follows Albert Peterson (a pre-Mary Poppins Dick Van Dyke), the manager of rock & roller Conrad Birdie (Dick Gautier), who is sweeping through the town of Sweet Apple on a publicity stunt surrounding his being drafted into the Army. Meanwhile, Albert's faithful but exasperated secretary (Chita Rivera) hopes he will give up show business to settle down with her and become a respectable English teacher. In Charles Strouse and Lee Adams's energetic and tuneful score, Van Dyke sings the standard "Put On a Happy Face," the high schoolers are high schoolers ("A Lot of Livin' to Do," "The Telephone Hour," "One Boy") and bewilder their parents ("Kids"), Gautier thrusts his hips ("Honestly Sincere," "One Last Kiss"), and homage is paid to that icon of home entertainment, Ed Sullivan ("Hymn for a Sunday Evening"). Bye Bye Birdie won the 1961 Tony for Best Musical, and Van Dyke reprised his role in the 1963 film version. The 2000 remastering features outstanding clarity as well as a bonus track of Strouse himself introducing and singing "Put On a Happy Face" at a Smithsonian lecture in 1978. --David Horiuchi
"I keep coming across reviews where people show theydon't"get it," and I always want to defend the person who wasunfairly criticized. When BBB opened on Broadway on April 14, 1960, rock and roll was for kids and Broadway musicals were for adults. Thus -- much more so than in the movie version three years later -- Bye Bye Birdie was a SATIRE of rock and roll. The rock and roll numbers in it are SATIRIZATIONS of the music AND lyrics that were typical of rock and roll at the time. So, when Lee Adams writes "one boy to joke with, have Coke with," or the "banal" lyrics in Honestly Sincere (and they're more than just banal, they're out-and-out DUMB, on purpose), he's SATIRIZING the stupid and banal lyrics of the rock and roll songs of the era. The lyrics for One Last Kiss are as silly as they can be -- and, OF COURSE, this was done on purpose! Lee Adams was actually a very clever lyricist. You can see this clearly in the non-rock-and-roll songs in BBB, especially Normal American Boy, Hymn For a Sunday Evening, Spanish Rose, Kids -- in fact, in ALL the songs for the "adults." Listen, anyone who can rhyme "bickerish" with "licorice" isn't banal!"
Remastering marks a significant improvement
Ronald F. Payne | Alexandria, VA United States | 02/17/2006
(5 out of 5 stars)
"If, like me, you bought your favorite cast albums in their first cd incarnation, you may be wondering if it's worth it to buy the same show album all over again. The answer is an emphatic "Yes".
Not for the bonus tracks, but the sound--I'm hearing details of performance and orchestration that I've missed before. The remastering adds clarity that will signifcantly enhance your enjoyment. The liner notes are an improvement also, giving a lot of behind the scenes perspective to how this show was developed and improved on it's way to becoming a Broadway hit."
Original Version - Original Charm
Ronald F. Payne | 08/10/1999
(5 out of 5 stars)
"What bad thing can you say about the original version of the musical that stole America's heart? Dick Van Dyke, Chita Rivera, and Susan Watson are all magnificant! This C.D. has the original charm, which makes it special every time you listen to it. I've done this play, and when I first heard this C.D., I knew this was the musical for me!"
Cast provide penty of fun for this OCR.
Mark Andrew Lawrence | Toronto | 09/10/2004
(4 out of 5 stars)
"BYE BYE BIRDIE was a show with nothing more in mind but to provide a light entertaining evening for theatre-goers. It went on to win the 1961 Tony award for Best Musical and has since become one of the most frequently staged musicals by high schools and community groups. The score by Charles Strouse is bright and lively, and Lee Adams' lyrics are clever, especially his satires on the popular music of the day.
Columbia's original Broadway cast album is still the best of the 4 available recordings. The London cast with Peter Marshall proves once agan that the Brits just don't understand American performing styles. The dreadful 1963 film tries to turn it into a showcase for Ann Magaret, and the 1995 TV version with Jason Alexander is curiously short on fun. On this CD Van Dyke, Rivera and company provide plenty! Great liner notes and detailed synopsis... and all at a great price!"
Better Than the Movie Soundtrack
Mike | 10/09/2007
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Bye Bye Birdie (1960 Original Broadway Cast) Many of the classic Broadway musicals of mid-20th century are available as both movie soundtracks and as Broadway cast albums. Though all are enjoyable, the cast albums sound more natural, more enthusiastic, and more spontaneous than the (later) movie soundtracks. Probably that is because the cast albums were recorded shortly after the show opened on Broadway. The original cast album of "Bye Bye Birdie" is in this category. And there is more background about the musical. The excellent and lengthy liner notes recount the story of how the musical was written and developed into the evergreen musical that it became."