Search - Stephen Schwartz, Brian May., Phil Ramone. :: Wicked: 5th Anniversary Special Edition

This CD is positiveley.....emerald!

Ari Magen | elkins park PA | 10/28/2008

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This contains 2 discs. The first disc is the Original Broadway Cast,which won a Grammy Award. The music and lyrics were composed by Stephen Schwartz. The cd features Idina Menzel as Elphaba, Kristen Chenoweth as Galinda, Norbert Leo Butz as Fiyero, and the rest of the Wicked Cast.



The second disk has 8 tracks. LeAnn Rimes, Delta Goodrem, Kerry Ellis, Stephanie J. Block, and Idina Menzel; lend their voices to 3 remixed Wicked songs. 1 recording, Making Good, featuring Stephanie J. Block, is a never before heard original audio of her singing a song while working with Stephen Schwartz.Idina Menzel sings a fantastic remixed version of Defying Gravity that will give you chills.



The rest of the songs are from the German cast recording (As Long As Youre Mine, No Good Deed) and the Japanese cast recording (Dancing Through Life, Popular). Hearing these beloved songs translated is quite entertaining.



The case is beautifully redesigned with new pictures and a new booklet in addition to the original booklet. It also has a Wicked time line on the case chronicling the musicals last 5 years.



This is A MUST for any die hard wicked fan!!!"

Maybe the driver saw Green and thought it meant Go.

Papichulo | Chicago, IL | 11/06/2008

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I downloaded the new songs from iTunes since I already own the album and didn't want to have two copies. Also with the iPod I never really look at CD booklets anymore. I'll be talking about the new songs on Disc 2



1. "For Good" is a beautifully redone here with LeeAnn Rimes and Delta Goodrem. I've never heard of the latter singer but she sings very nice. I could hear this song on Adult Contemporary stations around the country. This version does not stray much from the original Broadway version.

2. "I'm Not That Girl" is sung by Kerry Ellis. This version is more "rocky" with a guitar and drum heard throughout. An extra line at the end of the song "I'm gonna pray that maybe someday I'll be that girl" I'm not sure how I feel about that. I suppose as a stand alone track it works, but in the musical, Elphaba does not believe her and Fiyero could be together at that point.

3. "Making Good" by Stephanie J Block the original Elphaba before she was let go and replaced by Idina, and then later rehired. This song is an early version of "The Wizard and I" (One of My Favs) in fact the last verse is almost exactly like "The Wizard and I." It's simply Stephanie and the piano. It's a great song and nice to hear what it originally came out as.

4. Tracks 4-7 are in other languanges, the music is exactly the same as the original cast CD

8. "Defying Gravity" is a remix is taken from a Maxi CD Single released by Idina Menzel, it's available here at Amazon (1 radio mix and 5 remixes!). The remix is nice, but Idina's vocals were re-recorded and in my opinion don't have as much oomph as the Broadway musical vocal. Also it does NOT feature the adorable Kristin. But if you want to dance this track is very danceable.



Can't wait til they make a movie of this wonderful Musical. I saw it in Chicago August 2006 and liked it so much I got a part-time job at the theater just so I could see it over and over and over again. For me Kristy Cates, Kristoffer Cusick and Stacie Morgan Lewis are THE cast of Wicked.





"

The phenomenon celebrates 5 years

Danielle | Illinois | 02/01/2009

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Wicked has become a true Broadway phenomenon. It's broken Broadway records and has productions in Chicago (which recently finished an amazing run of over 3 years and revitalized Chicago theatre), LA (which also closed recently to move to San Francisco), a National tour, London, Germany, Japan, and in 2009 will be launching a 2nd National tour. In recent years and really in anytime, staying on Broadway for 5 years is a big accomplishment.



This 2 disc set features a shiny cover and inside a timeline of Wicked and a booklet with pictures of actresses who have played Glinda and Elphaba and photos of the international Elphabas and Glindas. The first disc is the regular cd and also comes with the regular cd booklet. The second cd is some special recordings:



1st disc thoughts:

-The Original Broadway Cast Recording sounds just as good as it did 5 years ago. Idina Menzel and Kristin Chenoweth are so completely talented. 5 years later and I still get goosebumps when I hear Idina singing "Defying Gravity" and "No Good Deed". Kristin's "Popular" and "Thank Goodness" are also beautiful and so funny.



2nd disc thoughts:

1. For Good by Leanne Rimes and Delta Goodrem. A very beautiful version of this song. They both sound beautiful. I recently became a Delta fan and it's great to see that Stephen Schwartz recognized her talent.



2. I'm Not That Girl by Kerry Ellis. Kerry is a London Wicked alum and did a stint on Broadway in 2008. This version is a rockier version but I still think it fits the mood of the song and I love it.



3. Making Good by Stephanie J. Block. Stephanie has been involved with Wicked pretty much since the beginning, before Idina Menzel signed on to be Elphaba. This is one of the songs that didn't make it to the final production and was replaced by "The Wizard and I". While I prefer "The Wizard and I", "Making Good" does have some good bits in it and Stephanie sounds fabulous and I get goosebumps listening to it.



4. Solang Ich Dich Hab by Willemijn Verkaik and Mark Seibert. This is the German version of "As long as you're mine". It's weird to hear this song in another language but it's just as romantic in German



5. Gutes Tun by Willemijn Verkaik. German version of "No Good Deed". Willemijn has such an amazing voice and I think she's probably an excellent Elphaba. I'd love to see her make a jump to Broadway as Elphaba one day.



6.Jinnsei Wo Odori-Akase by Li Tao and the Japanese company. Great version of Dancing Through Life. It's really weird to hear it in Japanese but the cast seem really talented



7. Popyurraa by Mikyuki Numao. Japanese version of Popular. Miyuki sounds like a great Glinda. I think it would be great to see this cast perform.



8. Defying Gravity (Tracy Young Flying Monkey Radio Mix) by Idina Menzel. The original Elphaba closes out the extra disc with a dance version of what has become her signature song. I like the mix but I've heard it before.





My only complaint, and the reason I gave the recording 4 stars instead of 5, is the song that I think should have been on this anniversary collection. "The Wicked Witch of the East". It's one of the best songs in the production and I feel that enough people have seen the show and it doesn't reveal anything that doesn't get revealed in another song that is on the orginal cast recording that to me, there is no reason that it wasn't included. It was what I was hoping for when I heard about the re-release of the cd and it's a shame that Stephen Schwartz decided yet again not to include "The Wicked Witch of the East" on the bonus cd. But other than that, I think fanatics and new fans of Wicked will definitely benefit from this new version."