Playlist For Sunday, April 5, 2020: A Report From HQ

Pledge Drive Sunday, Spring 2020: Kim Corcoran, Host of 2 On The Aisle, reporting.

      "Well, here we are, Dave, at HQ in lovely Greece, NY, the home of Jazz90.1, and as you know, every year around this time they throw a bash of a drive, hoping to raise enough money to keep on playing for another 6 months.  A little community radio station, 47 years old...and you heard that right, Dave, 47! And that's been entirely done with ONLY listener support, let me be perfectly clear about that. No ringers brought in, no big name sponsors, no lycra jerseys or comely cheer leaders or fancy-pants celebrities like Bono or Yoko or Ulla, egging people on to do the right thing and give. Nope, they've done it grass-roots style. Using volunteers, cutting costs to the bone, putting newbies in when they have to, limping along with older equipment, just to stay alive and well and give the good people "in the stands" some great music."

      "That's right, Howard. It is truly amazing...the commitment of the folks who work here AND the folks who contribute, year in, year out...and it bears repeating, Howie..."

      "Don't call me Howie. It's Howard."

      "Okay. The caliber, Howard...of the music and the professionalism...found at this station. Looking at it like that, we can only shake our heads and say, "Wow." Just "Wow."

      "At a loss for words, are you, Dave? That rarely happens."

       "Speechless is what I am. Maybe we should just let the music play, Howard...the music of Jazz 90.1."

      "You're probably right. Let the station sing for itself. But before we go to the audio, answer me, Dave...did you donate yet?"

      "Of course, Howie. For that station, I went Platinum."

      "For Platinum, you can call me Howie. Today.  But tomorrow...."


I Ain't Down Yet (Tammy Grimes, The Unsinkable Molly Brown)
I'm All Alone (Tim Curry, Michael McGrath, Spamalot)
Alone (Megan Mullally, Young Frankenstein)
You're Lonely And I'm Lonely (George S. Irving, Judy Blazer, Louisiana
       Purchase)
In My Own Little Corner (Julie Andrews, Cinderella)
The Lonely Goatherd (Julie Andrews, Ensemble, The Sound Of Music) 
The Swamps Of Home (Carol Burnett, Once Upon A Mattress)
A House Is Not A Home (Jill O'Hara, Promises, Promises)
My Ol' Kentucky Rock And Roll Home (Mark Hardwick, Oil City Symphony)
Any Place I Hang My Hat Is Home (Vanessa Williams, St. Louis Woman)
The House We Live In (Christine Ebersole, Grey Gardens)
My House (Lauren Ward, Matilda)
The Big Doll House (Marissa Jaret Winokur, Harvey Fierstein, Ensemble,
       Hairspray)
Waiting(Ensemble, The Band's Visit)
Papi Hears The Ocean(Etai Benson, The Band's Visit)
Haled's Song Of Love(Ari'el Stachel, The Band's Visit)
The Concert (Instrumental, The Band's Visit)
Omar Sharif (Katrina Lenk, The Band's Visit)
I've Got Rhythm (Max Von Essen, Brandon Uranowitz, Robert Fairchild, 
       Ensemble, An American In Paris)
Samson And Delilah (Rhea Blackhurst, Everything The Traffic Will Allow)
Stairway To Paradise (Georges Guettary, An American In Paris)
I Never Know When (Elaine Stritch, Goldilocks)
Pure Imagination (Barbra Streisand, Seth McFarland, Encore: Move Partners
       Sing Broadway)
Being Alive (Bernadette Peters, Sondheim, Etc.)
What Baking Can Do (Jessie Mueller, Waitress)
Waving Through A Window (Ben Platt, Dear Evan Hansen)
Jet Set (Aaron Tveit, Ensemble, Catch Me If You Can)
I Won't Let You Down (Santino Fontana, Tootsie)
Get Down (Brittany Mack, Six)
You Deserve It (Laura Osnes, Corey Cott, Bandstand) 

More Sondheim pics to whet your appetite...

 Yup, a LIVE Sondheim show this Sunday 

(omigosh...that's tomorrow! I better get ready!)

on 2 On The Aisle.

A belated birthday party...with (above)

Merrily We Roll Along.

In the back (and in the beard), Stephen, book writer George Furth,

and Hal Prince.

Front row, Jim Walton, Ann Morrison, and Lonny Price 

who starred.

Audiences complained who was who in the production,

so they put 'em in sweatshirts with their names on.

Hmmmm...

 Lee Remick in the 1985 Lincoln Center concert version 

of Follies.

She played Phyllis and got to sing a couple of the best songs,

"The Story Of Lucy And Jessie" and

"Could I Leave You?"

We all know the answer to that question. 

 Edmund Lyndeck and Jack Eric Williams

as Judge Turpin and Beadle Bamford, respectively,

in the 1979 original production of Sweeney Todd.

Jack's Broadway debut.
Sondheim actually wrote those sweet falsetto lines
just for him!
Unfortunately, he passed away at the age of 50, in 1994.
That's Jack on the left, below,
with Len Cariou and Angela Lansbury. 

 A revival production of Pacific Overtures,

and the song..."Pretty Lady".

 Side By Side By Side,

from Company.

Beth Howland and Dean Jones at the far right.

 Bernadette Peters and Mandy Patinkin in

rehearsal for 

Sunday In The Party With George, 1984.
They look like they're 14 years old! 

 Do YOU Hear a Waltz??

Well, not really...

Goddard Lieberson, Sergio Franchi, Elizabeth Allen,

Stephen and Richard Rodgers

readying no doubt for the recording of the cast album.

It's a pretty well known fact
that Stephen and Richard did NOT get along on this production,
and RR kept a not-so-hidden bottle of "juice" in his piano,
when medication was necessary.

 Zero Mostel and Jack Gilford

in Forum, 1962.

Both of course would portray the same

characters (Pseudolus and Hysterium) in the film version.

We'll hear Zero's "Pretty Little Picture"
and Nathan Lane (in the revival) with "Free."

 Alexis Smith

starring in the original production of Follies.

Those incredible costumes? Florence Klotz. The set design? Boris Aronson.
The 1971 production won 7 Tonys altogether,
and lasted over 500 performances...
but due to the fact that it was one of the costliest
Broadway productions at the time,
it never recouped its investment.

Oh, to be part of that quartet!
Stephen with Lenny B., Adolph G. and Roddy McD!

A toast is a toast is...TOAST!

Hurrah! It's looking good for a LIVE performance of my Stephen Sondheim birthday show on March 29th, this coming SUNDAY! I was bummed to have missed his actual natal day (which was yesterday, the 22nd), but looking forward to sharing an SS-Symphony with you sooner than later.

Cuz who knows what the "fates have in store"?

Damn!

Well, it looks like the birthday party will have to wait! Our station is taking a breather amidst all this crazy Covid19 stuff, and we won't be having any live shows this weekend. SOOOOO the Sondheim shindig must be postponed, no later (hopefully) than March 29? A belated birthday celebration awaits us, then.

Apologies to all you 2 On The Aisle listeners. And of course to Stephen Sondheim. :(

A Happy (if socially distant) Birthday, SS!

 I feel bad that Stephen Sondheim will most likely

be celebrating his 90th birthday in SOCIAL ISOLATION! 

It's this Sunday, March 22,

and all those birthday plans/concerts/tributes

will have to be postponed/tweaked/canceled.

But I'm sure his "Old Friends" will be there for him,

with appropriate libations, if not the huge hoopla.

These are some random pics, many of which 

The New York Times

handily published recently.

Above photo cred: Richard Avedon, of course.

 Follies, 1971...with Alexis Smith, Michael Bartlett,

Fifi Dorsay, and Ethel Shutta.

 Great pic by Martha Swope.

 Recording the cast album of Sweeney

with Len Cariou and Victor Garber, 1979.

 With Pamela Myers at the 

recording session for Company, 1970ish.

 Curtain call for the 1985 concert version of 

Follies,

done at Lincoln Center.

George Hearn, Lee Remick, Stephen, Barbara Cook, and

Mandy Patinkin.

 Recording the cast album of 

A Little Night Music, 1973:

Glynis Johns, Judy Kahan, Hermoine Gingold, Stephen, 

and Goddard Lieberson.

 Opening night of 

Side By Side By Sondheim, 1977,

with friends Lee Remick and Lauren Bacall.

Photo: Bettman/Getty Images

 Elaine Stritch as Madam Armfeldt

in the 2010 revival of A Little Night Music.

Great pic by Sara Krulwich.

 The brand spanking new company of Company,

including Patti LuPone, Christopher Sieber, and Katrina Lenk.

Hopefully Broadway can come back to life SOON

so we can enjoy this new production

(and get a cast album out of it!). 

Photo: Brad Litovsky

 Photo: Sara Krulwich

Jake Gylenhaal was praised for his recent portrayal (2017)

of George Seurat in Sunday In The Park With... that dude.

Zero "picking out" Master Hero's bride.

From the original production of Forum, 1962.

Photo: John Dominis

 Pacific Overtures, 1976.

Photo cred: Van Williams

Still going strong!
Photo: Richard Avedon

Playlist for Sunday, March 22, 2020: 90, Steven, 90!

"May we live in interesting times."

Who said that? I always thought it was a nifty little homily...yeah, who wants a dull same-o same-o life style? Meatloaf Tuesdays, Escargot Wednesdays. But right now, I'd take a piece of Tedium, well-done, and gnaw on it from now til Thursday. Next Thursday. Hell, the Thursday after that!

But no, it's now time to live in a blender, with varying speeds and attachments. One day, Pulse and Puree.  Another Slice mit Dice. Broadway shuttered. Items flying off grocery shelves. Fisticuffs over paper products. Losing hours at work, if not losing the job or the company or your apartment. Staying home, which is for this lady, a prison sentence! I mean, I shouldn't complain...I have a home to stay in. A cozy home, with heat, and blankets, and a feisty kitty. Truly a first world (if claustrophobic) problem. (I'll be singing that Evening Primrose number, "I Remember Sky", pretty soon.)

Plus my radio plays! A musical distraction. An Entertainment. And some sort of  momentary "ahhhhh..." can happen...and that's what I'll try to do for you on Sunday.  Jazz 90.1 remains ON and LIVE and JAZZY as I type this, and hopefully it will remain so til the germs die die die and we can (sort of) get back to normalcy.

ANNNNNNNNDDDDDD, guess what? It's Stephen Sondheim's birthday! He's going to be 90! And that happens on March 22, yes, a 2 On The Aisle broadcast day! Something to look forward to! Of course we'll celebrate Steve with champagne toasts and cake and huzzahs (if there are any huzzahs left on the shelves), which means Company and Follies and A Little Night Music and Sweeney...and everything that we can smush into our 2 little hours on Sunday afternoon. THUS the 90, Stephen, 90 Edition!

 So Chin Up, Cheerio, and Carry On as Our Miss Judy would sing...let us eat (birthday) cake, and pip pip to SS! :)



 The Hills Of Tomorrow (Jim Walton, Lonny Price, Merrily We Roll Along)
The Little Things You Do Together (Elaine Stritch, Company, Company)
Sorry - Grateful (Charles Kimbrough, Charles Braswell, George
       Coe, Company)
We're Gonna Be All Right (Millicent Martin, David Kernan, Side By Side By
       Sondheim)
Could I Leave You? (Lee Remick, Follies)
The Story Of Lucy And Jessie (Lee Remick, Follies)
Uptown, Downtown (Craig Lucas, Marry Me A Little)
Finishing The Hat (Mandy Patinkin, Sunday In The Park With George)
Everybody Loves Louie (Jessica Molaskey, A Kiss To Build A Dream On)
Franklin Shepard, Inc. (Lonny Price, Merrily We Roll Along)
Now You Know (Leslie Kritzer, Vanessa Williams, Barbara Cook,
       Sondheim On Sondheim)
It's That Kind Of A Neighborhood (David Campbell, Lauren Ward, Ensemble,
       Saturday Night)
Agony (Robert Westenberg, Chuck Wagner, Into The Woods)
On The Steps Of The Palace (Kim Crosby, Into The Woods)
No One Is Alone (Bernadette Peters, Into The Woods)
The Ballad Of Sweeney Todd (Ken Jennings, Ensemble, Sweeney Todd)
Johanna (Victor Garber, Sweeney Todd)
Parlor Songs (Jack Eric Williams, Angela Lansbury, Ken Jennings,
       Sweeney Todd)
Remember? (Victoria Mallory, Laurence Guittard, Ensemble,
       A Little Night Music)
I Remember (Charmian Carr, Evening Primrose)
Send In The Clowns (Judy Collins, Judith)
Free (Nathan Lane, Jim Stanek, A Funny Thing Happened On The Way
       To The Forum)
Pretty Little Picture (Zero Mostel, A Funny Thing Happened On The Way
       To The Forum)
The Boy From...(Linda Lavin, The Mad Show) 
Pretty Women (Len Cariou, Edmund Lyndeck, Sweeney Todd)
Someone In A Tree (James Dybas, Mako, Gedde Watanabe, Mark Hsu
       Syers, Pacific Overtures)
Pretty Lady (Patrick Kinser-Lau, Timm Fujii, Mark Hsu Syers, Pacific
       Overtures)
A Bowler Hat (Isao Sato, Pacific Overtures)
Anyone Can Whistle (Tom Wopat, Company, Sondheim On Sondheim)
Losing My Mind (Barbara Cook, Follies)
Side By Side By Side (Dean Jones, Company, Company)

Irish Gumdrops!

 When first asked to star in

Yankee Doodle Dandy,

the almost-biographical story of George M. Cohan,

Jimmy Cagney (pictured above with Joan Leslie)

didn't want to do it.

 George M. had sided with producers in the Actors' Equity Strike 

back in 1919, and Jimmy had a long memory.

But we're all glad he changed his mind!

He walked, talked, sang and danced like Cohan

(tho he DID sprain his ankle a couple of times trying to do just that).

George had at first hoped for Fred Astaire to portray him

(Fred said no!),

but had to admit that Jimmy did a fine job. 

Once, the winner of the Best Musical Tony Award

in 2012...

11 nominations, 8 wins.

Based on the movie of the same name, released in 2007.

All the actors are musicians

(or the musicians are actors),

in this simple yet poignant show.

Predictable in its "busker strives for success (and love)" plot, but...

"a merciful reversal occurs when Once breaks into music, which is often. Characters become less adorably overwrought and more 

genuinely conflicted, with distinctive personalities."

So saith Ben Brantley of the Times, and yes, I agree with his assessment! 

Marc Blitzstein, pictured above with Leonard Bernstein,

wrote the score for Juno,

which was based on a Sean O'Casey play,

Juno And The Paycock.

Critics enjoyed the score,

but the audiences found the context

(the Irish War of Independence)

too dark, despite nice turns by Melvyn Douglas and Shirley Booth.

During the opening number, "We're Alive", 

an IRA member is shot and killed; it was hardly a "1-2-3 kick" show.

16 performances and it evaporated.

Below, Ms. Booth as Juno.

Subsequent revivals 

(one at Encores! with Victoria Clark and John Schuck, below) 

have been met with a bit more success,

but still the story belongs in an opera...which this show almost is.

 The original Irene

hit Broadway in 1919

(wow, over 100 years ago),

with music by Harry Tierney, lyrics Joseph McCarthy.

Come 1973, and thanks to the popularity of 

No, No, Nanette's revival,

it was resusitated with Debbie Reynolds (above left),

Patsy Kelly, Ruth Warrick, Monte Markham and George S. Irving.

The plot: Winsome Irish shop assistant,

hired by Long Island grande dame...now what? 

The production had its share of problems,

with actors leaving, directors changing, rewrites, restagings,

you name it. 

Below, Debbie and Monte, chasing those rainbows.

 

After the first 8 months of the run,

Debbie was replace with Jane Powell, who got her own take on the Irene poster. 

The New Yorks Times critic of the moment, Mel Gussow, said

 "even though Miss Reynolds is gone, Irene survives. 

The two stars are an equal match for peppiness. 

Miss Reynolds may score a point for clowning, 

but Miss Powell wins two for softness.

Love this pic of  Judy,

from the set of Little Nellie Kelly,done in 1940, 

based on George M. Cohan's Broadway musical of 1922.

Judy starred along with George Murphy and Charles Winninger.

 Little Nellie gave Judy the chance to perform

"Singin' In The Rain"

10 years before Gene Kelly's rendition in the movie of the same name.

Annnnd Roger Edens wrote an additional song, 

"It's A Great Day For The Irish",

for Judy to march down 5th Avenue to. 

A big production number, and a huge hit for La Garland.

And below, Judy's one and only death scene

occured in this movie, too.

Don't worry...she comes back to life as her daughter.

(And don't ask, it's a long story!)

This movie was supposedly a bit of a test

by MGM

to see if Judy could sustain her popularity post-Oz.

She was 18 at the time.

Well, I guess she passed this "test" with flying colors,

as critics noted "she gets prettier with each picture!"

Playlist For Sunday, March 15, 2020: I'm a wild, colonial boy!

I've been waiting for this one: The Irish Edition!

Not like I'm really that Irish. My name might seem a bit Irish, but my family tree is a gnarly one, with off-shoots, grafts, missing bark, and plenty of moss. So when you get down to it, the amount of Irish in this gal amounts to the size of my little finger (on the left hand, which is slightly smaller than my right). But I FEEL Irish. And sometimes Italian. But never French Canadian, which part of me actually IS. That, and Dutch. Super exciting.

 Like my family,

only a lot more aesthetic.

Ah, me.

BUT, on St. Pat's Day (or in this case, the Sunday before St. Pat's Day) we can all pretend we're Irish, and enjoy some Irish-flavored musicals, and Irish-flavored drinks, if our throats (like Barry Fitzgerald's in The Quiet Man) feel slightly parched. And some traditional Irish music, as well...just the excuse I need to fall completely off the Broadway wagon (drive that cart slowly, Barry!), and play some Irish Rovers and The Dubliners. The big-wigs at Jazz90.1 usually tolerate me and my musical tastes, so I think I can get away with it. I'll just claim I'm Irish and wistful for the old sod. (And bring a Guinness cake for all said wigs to share and/or sip on.) :)

Yup, I've been there.

I pretended not to be French Canadian.

So...Finian's Rainbow, Juno, Once, and Irene. A little Jimmy Cagney cavorting about as George M. Cohan, and Joel Grey doing the same. Leprechauns, rainbows, pots of gold, and some boy named Danny.  Sounds like a plan. I won't be downin' the whiskey while I spin, but perhaps a wee bit of that "cake" will find its way into the studio. Barry, me throat is parched!


Look To The Rainbow (Ella Logan, Finian's Rainbow)
The North Strand (Ensemble, Once)
Falling Slowly (Steve Kazee, Cristin Milioti, Once)
Abandoned In Bandon (Andy Taylor, Once)
Gold (Steve Kazee, Company, Once)
It's A Great Day For The Irish (Judy Garland, Little Nellie Kelly)
My Darlin' Eileen (Edie Adams, Nathaniel Frey, Albert Linville, Wonderful
       Town)
An Irish Girl (Debbie Reynolds, Irene)
We're Alive (Company, Juno)
Daarlin' Man (Melvyn Douglas, Jack MacGowran, Juno)
Song Of The Ma (Shirley Booth, Juno)
The Liffey Waltz (Ensemble, Juno)
Harrigan (Jimmy Cagney, Joan Leslie, Yankee Doodle Dandy)
Mary's A Grand Old Name (Jimmy Cagney, Sally Sweetland, Yankee
       Doodle Dandy)
Forty-Five Minutes From Broadway (Jimmy Cagney, Yankee Doodle Dandy)
Off The Record (Jimmy Cagney, Yankee Doodle Dandy)
Seven Drunken Nights (The Dubliners)
The Rattlin' Bog (The Irish Rovers)
The Wild Colonial Boy (The Quiet Man)
Raglan Road (The Dubliners)
Whiskey In The Jar (The Dubliners)
Billie/Push Me Along In My Pushcart/Ring To The Name Of Rose/Popularity
       (Jill O'Hara, Ensemble, George M!)
Mary's A Grand Old Name (Jacqueline Alloway, George M!)
Give My Regards To Broadway (Joel Grey, George M!)
How Are Things In Glocca Morra (Ella Logan, Finian's Rainbow)
When I'm Not Near The Girl I Love (David Wayne, Finian's Rainbow)
That Great "Come-And-Get-It" Day (Donald Richardson, Company,
       Finian's Rainbow)
I'm Always Chasing Rainbows (Debbie Reynolds, Irene)
Mama, A Rainbow (Daniel Fortus, Shelley Winter, Minnie's Boys)
Over The Rainbow (Judy Garland, The Wizard Of Oz)
When Irish Eyes Are Smiling (John McCormick)
Black Velvet Band (The Dubliners)
Danny Boy (Judy Garland)

A Grand Night...or Morning...or Lunch...for Broadway!

 Kismet!

(As in "It's Fate, Baby, It's Fate!")

Best Musical of 1954,

with music adapted from the works of 

Alexander Borodin

(lah di dah!)

by Robert Wright and George Forrest.

A wily thief/poet (Alfred Drake), his daughter (Doretta Morrow),

 and a caliph (Richard Kiley)

mix it up in Old Bagdad...

made into a movie a year later with Howard Keel,

Dolores Gray, and Vic Damone?
Go figure.

 Richard Kiley hailed from Chicago, attended the Barnum Dramatic School (did it have 3 rings?), navied during WWII,
and later became a radio announcer back in his hometown. 

 Kiley eventually moved to NYC, and played leading men in 

Kismet, Redhead, No Strings, and Man of La Mancha. 

(Above as the Caliph in Kismet with Doretta.)

Two Tonys, Golden Globes, and Emmys lined his mantle piece

 (I mean he MUST have had a mantle!), 

with additional roles in The Thorn Birds, A Year In The Life,

  and Picket Fences. 

He passed away 21 years ago today, at the age of 76. 

Below, Richard in his signature role of

Don Quixote in Man Of La Mancha.

 Carol Lawrence and Larry Kert

escaping from the theatre!

Nah, just a very posed photo in that Hell's Kitchen area,

where West Side Story was set.

In our Night section of Sunday's 2 On The Aisle,

we gotta play "Tonight",

that Bernstein/Sondheim gem.

 The last scene in that original production...

those old sets, that wrinkled "brick building" scrim.

Man, they don't make 'em like that anymore! 

 Can you imagine being part of this rehearsal?

Singing for Lenny and Steve?

Incredible and petrifying.

Below, the on-Broadway-right-now reincarnation

complete with huge videos playing on the back screen
(beats wrinkles).

To some audience members, distracting.

To others, energizing and compelling! 

In our "Morning" section of Sunday's Wonderful Day Edition is 

John Rubinstein, the original Pippin of....wait for it...Pippin.

A musical from 1972 (could you tell?) with music and lyrics by 

Stephen Schwartz. 

That's our leading man above in the loosely-crocheted tank top

with Ben Vereen, 

who won a Tony for his performance as the Leading Player. 

Bob Fosse directed, choreographed and molded this show 

into what theatre critic/scholar Scott Miller called

 "surreal and disturbing". 

Above, Schwartz in one crazy shirt,

and, amused in the beard, Bob Fosse.

John Rubinstein would return to Pippin years later

and play King Charles (below with Sasha Allen),

Pippin's father.

 Sutton Foster is 

"A Morning Person",

in Shrek The Musical.

I didn't get a chance to see this show 

(which opened on Broadway in 2008) 

but evidently the staging of this number, 

with Fiona dancing with (large) mice,

 was meant to mimic Bob Fosse's "Sweet Charity" nightclub scene.

In a musical like Shrek, which riffed and parodied
scores of other shows, that figures.
Large rodents...big spenders. 

Sounds about right! 

Below, Sutton tries to look sad. 

  Occupying its own little corner on 2 On The Aisle this Sunday 

will be Babes On Broadway, released in 1941, 

third in the series of "Backyard Musicals"...

hey, let's put on a show in the barn, kids! Yeah, that kind...

Directed by Busby Berkeley,  with music by Yip Harburg and Burton Lane. Looks like a fun flick, til you reach the end and witness 

the black-face finale. 

THAT song, I'm not doin'! Instead, we'll hear the trio above with 

"Anything Can Happen In New York,"

featuring Ray McDonald, Mickey Rooney, and Richard Quine.

Some film trivia: 

Production of the movie had to be halted for a time, 

when Judy Garland flew off to Vegas to get married 

(to Husband #1, David Rose).

She was almost "past her prime" at 19, so time was a'wastin'?

Annnnnd her sisters, Virginia and Mary Jane Gumm, 

appear uncredited as chorus girls in this film.

The gang's all here:
Richard Quine, Anne Rooney (related to...?), Mickey Rooney,

Judy Garland, Virginia Weidler, and Ray McDonald.