Search - Richard Rodgers, Oscar Hammerstein II :: Rodgers & Hammerstein's Classic Musicals: Oklahoma! / The King and I / Carousel (Original Motion Picture Soundtracks)

RODGERS AND HAMMERSTEIN REMASTERS REVISITED

hcampo | Culver City, California United States | 09/19/2001

(3 out of 5 stars)

"My original reviews of the three Rodgers and Hammerstein expanded soundtrack reissues are based on my belief, which is shared by many other people who grew up with and have grown to love these magnificent performances for their musical excellence, not as a mere souvenir of a movie for casual listening, which I perceive is about only what most of the reviewers of these CD's seem to care. If I want to experience the movie, I watch the movie on DVD or tape. If I want to enjoy the music on a recording, I want to music to be allowed to speak for itself without sound effects mixed in meant exclusively for the visual presentation. The film versions of these three Rodgers and Hammerstein musicals showcase the finest performances, before or since, that these magnificent scores have ever received. The additional music on the expanded editions of these albums is NOT from the original multi channel vocal and music separation soundtrack master recordings stored in the 20th Century Fox vaults but instead recorded directly from a final mix print soundtrack complete with foot stomping and extraneous sound effects, which besides having no place on a music only recording, actually detract from the listening experience rather than enhance it. If this were 42nd. Street, the foot stomping would make sense, since it is an integral part of the musical presentation, but without the visuals these random sounds don't make any sense in OKLAHOMA, THE KING AND I and especially CAROUSEL, where the magnificent arrangements of Robert Russell Bennett, Alfred Newman and Ken Darby should be allowed to speak for themselves without intrusions from foley effects. If this were a live recording, such sounds would be an artifact of the original and impossible to remove and therefore have to be acceptable if one wanted to hear the score in its entirety. But in the case of OKLAHOMA, CAROUSEL and THE KING AND I (also SOUTH PACIFIC), a wealth of unmixed original musical material exists in the studio vaults which could have been made available for this remastering and even more music could have been included on these albums (for OKLAHOMA, probably enough to fill 2 CD's). For instance, THE OUT OF MY DREAMS BALLET in OKLAHOMA could have been presented in its ENTIRETY, with the extra verse of the song which was on the original album but on this CD replaced by a much shorter version used in the film, without any worry about the sound effects intruding at the beginning and especially at the end. THE KANSAS CITY, FARMER AND THE COWHAND DANCE MUSIC AND THE FINALE could have been presented minus the foley intrusions that almost drown out the music entirely. In CAROUSEL, LOUISE'S BALLET could have been presented in its ENTIRETY without any worry about the ocean sound effects intruding at the beginning and the OPENING MUSIC lead up to the CAROUSEL WALTZ Main Title could have been presented minus the dialogue at the beginning of the album. The deluxe laserdisc of THE KING AND I contained a CD of about 76 minutes including the complete vocal score and Alfred Newman's excellent underscoring, all completely free of extraneous sound effects and dialogue. Why weren't these tracks used for this CD release? That is the saddest part concerning this release. The original material could have been made available if anyone at EMI-Angel had cared enough to present RODGERS & HAMMERSTEIN'S soundtracks with the integrity that these classic recordings deserve and should have gotten. If you can get past these aberrations imposed on us by producer Didier C. Deutsch, (in addition to some amateur sloppy fade-ins and fade-outs cross cutting the old and new material) the sound on these CD's is very good and offers an energetic and beautifully orchestrated performance of OKLAHOMA by Gordon Mac Rae, Shirley Jones and the entire supporting cast. In fact, this performance is superior to the Broadway original in every respect. CAROUSEL offers a performance of the seven minute Soliloquy by Gordon Mac Rae which is one of the greatest vocal performances of the 20th. Century. In the capable hands of the legendary composer/arranger/conductor Alfred Newman, Richard Rodgers' soaring melodies are taken to heights of brilliance undreamed of in the Broadway original. This is especially evident in "Louise's Ballet." Ken Darby's excellent choral arrangements and wonderful vocals by MacRae, Jones, Claramae Turner, Barbara Ruick, Robert Rounseville and Cameron Mitchell all add up to the most perfect performance of this musical ever. THE KING AND I preserves Yul Brynner's definitive performance as the King and the perfect combination of Deborah Kerr and Marni Nixon as Anna, with orchestrations, supporting vocals and choral work (again by Newman and Darby) that will take your breath away in its magnificence. But even so, try to find the previous CD versions of these albums, which may not have the additional music, but do include the entire vocal scores(including the longer version of the song OUT OF MY DREAMS in OKLAHOMA) without all the intrusive sound effects and sloppy edits making for a far more enjoyable listening experience. Let's hope that someday EMI-Angel will give all three of the Rodgers and Hammerstein soundtracks their due and re-release them with added material from the untainted studio vault separations. That would really be SOMETHING SPECIAL."

CAPITOL RECORDS VERSIONS ARE MUCH BETTER!!!!!!!!

hcampo | 03/27/2002

(4 out of 5 stars)

"The Angel Records re-issues of the "Rodgers and Hammerstein Three Pack" are terribly presented. The sound quality is horrible and the "expanded matereal" is nothing but the dance numbers taken right from the unmixed six- track stereo tapes, complete with every foley effect (EX: foot stomping, animal noises,and unwanted dialougue only meant for he movie).
All three soundtracks were issued on LP by Capitol records after each film debuted (1955- 1957). The LP versions feature the entire vocal score (minus the extra material) and no foley interruption, strictly instrumental and more pleasant to listen to. The LP versions were released on 3CDs in 1994 as a box set (bearing the same title as this one. This version of the box set is still in print and is highly recommended. You will enjoy these classic scores if you listen to the REAL SOUNDTRACKS."