Sometimes an original Broadway cast album will give a false impression of
just how good a show was in the theater because it preserves the best
material - the songs. Not here. Oh, the songs are very good and are
performed with tremendous verve, energy, skill and pizzazz. It is just that,
in this case, the show was very much as good as the musical material. As a
result, this recording of the score preserves a memory for those who
experienced the theatrically induced high of seeing the show itself, while,
at the same time, surveying the output of the group that was the subject of
the show, the Four Seasons and its lead falsettoist, Frankie Valli, nee
Castelluccio. |
Storyline: The history of Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons is presented
through a blend of the memories of those who lived it including lead
vocalist Valli, song writer and group member Bob Gaudio and group member
Tommy DeVito. The story is punctuated with performances of over thirty of
the group's songs from best sellers like "Sherry" and "Can't Take My Eyes
Off Of You" to songs early in their career where they were just the back up
group to other lead singers.
The cast that the production assembled has
mastered the sound of the Four Seasons. Daniel Reichard sings as Bob Gaudio
did, Christian Hoff nails the sound of Tommy DeVito and J. Robert Spencer
fills just as Nick Massi did. Audiences in the August Wilson Theatre in New
York are amazed at how much John Lloyd Young (who acts every bit as well as
he sings) sounds like Frankie Valli. The proof of that is here on this
recording.
As with many a "jukebox musical" which builds a
show from the catalogue of a single star or group, this recording is also an
effective "greatest hits" album. If you want a survey of songs that the Four
Seasons with Frankie Valli's used to dominate the pop music charts from 1962
to 1975, here is a concise encapsulation that includes (among others)
"Sherry," "Big Girls Don't Cry," "Walk Like A Man," "December 1963 (Oh, What
A Night)," "My Eyes Adored You," "Dawn (Go Away)," "Big Man In Town," "Beggin,',
"C'mon Marriane," "Can't Take My Eyes Off You," "Working My Way Back To
You," "Fallen Angel," "Rag Doll" and "Who Loves You" not to mention a medley
of "Stay," "Let's Hang On!" "Opus 17 (Don't You Worry 'Bout Me)" and "Bye,
Bye, Baby (Baby Goodbye."
As accurate a representation of the sound of
the Four Seasons as these performances seem on disc, a close comparison with
the originals reveals some of the subtle shifts made for dramatic impact
within the show. Most of these shifts are in the size and composition of the
background band as the arrangements get fuller and larger as the show
progresses. Steve Orch's orchestrations and Ron Melrose's vocal arrangements
use the original sound but turn it to dramatic effect. It is a technique
that works well in the live performance and doesn't seem to detract from the
success of the recording as a pure listening experience. In fact, it has
something of the same effect on the listening experience as it does in a live
performance, building the excitement of the sound as the disc plays out over
its just under one hour.
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