Well, dear readers, I have yet another of my promised announcements today. Isn’t that exciting? Isn’t that just too too? I have parsed them out because I didn’t want you dear readers to become overwhelmed by so many of them at one time. I wanted you to be merely whelmed. Of course, the caveat that I must always add to these announcements is, their coming to fruition is something we hope will happen, but I’ve been in this business long enough to know that even with signed papers things can change. However, that said, all appears to be full speed ahead on everything I’ve announced thus far. So, just keep your fingers crossed.
Today’s announcement is especially exciting for me, because I’ve been thinking about it for some time. So, are you ready, dear readers? I have made a deal to bring The First Nudie Musical to the stage. I’m half-way through the adaptation, and have been writing lots of new songs for it. All the negotiations for these various and sundried announcements have been going on for some time, but it is grand fun to finally be able to share them with you dear readers. There is a production/tryout tentatively booked for next May, but since it isn’t quite firm yet, I don’t want to say more until it’s absolutely certain which theater it will be (there are three that have said they’d like to do it). One of the reasons for my upcoming New York trip is to meet with potential directors for the show. For the last few months my days have been absolutely amazing – living in three different worlds – doing a few hours on the book, then a few hours on Nudie, then on the film – such fun and it really keeps my brain on its toes. It also keeps my toes on its brain, but that’s another story. I thought, at first, it would be hard to go from one to the other, but it has proved the opposite – it’s sheer joy, and I never get tired of it. When writing the first book sometimes weeks would go by where I just wouldn’t feel like writing, but that has not happened here. I have had to devise a system for when I start working on the TV show next week – I’ve come up with something that I think will work just fine, so that I don’t have to stop the forward momentum.
I will be giving frequent updates on all the projects – plus I have one more announcement for tomorrow. Something that would not happen right away, but the possibility of which is very exciting indeed. Stay tuned.
My goodness, I’m exhausted from all these announcements. Let’s all click on the Unseemly Button, because don’t I have some excellent questions to answer?
Well, we had more questions than I thought we’d have, which makes me very happy. So, let’s get right to them, shall we?
Philip Crosby asks how is Gordon Hunt related to Peter Hunt. Gordon is Peter’s brother and also father to Helen. Quite a talented family, if you ask me.
William E. Lurie has several questions: In the Hairspray Playbill bio for Mary Bond Davis it states that Ms. Davis was in the Ann-Margret tour of Best Little Whorehouse and yet she doesn’t appear on the CD. I believe Ms. Davis came into the tour four or five months after we’d done the CD. Do I have details on my forthcoming NY trip or with they be revealed later? Well, I do know that I’m coming in on October 5th and leaving the morning of the 9th. We’re just starting to make a schedule, as I have to meet with the theater where we’re doing the benefit, and also have to audition some folks. And meet potential directors for the stage version of Nudie. But we’re going to plan a night for us all to meet either at Joe Allen or somewhere else, not certain yet, but I will keep you posted as we get closer to the date. When is my birthday and when is Guy Haines’ birthday? My birthday is December 8th – Guy’s birthday is sometime in October, but I always forget which day. What is my opinion of shows that were appearing on Broadway at the time of 9/11, who used that event as the reason for closing (in other words, they were on the verge of closing anyway). Well, I have no idea what was in the producer’s minds, but I wouldn’t look kindly on anyone who would use a tragedy as an excuse for closing a show that would have closed anyway.
Jay asks which, of all the suggestions for new concept albums, I’ll be producing first? Well, I just don’t know, I simply don’t know, no, I do not know, I really wouldn’t know at this time, no, at this time I would not know.
JB says that one of his favorite albums that I produced is the Judy Kuhn/Jule Styne album. How did the album do sales-wise and have I considered doing another solo album with Miss Judy Kuhn. It was one of the better sellers of the vocal albums, in the top ten percent. I’ve talked to Judy a couple of times about doing something else, but for whatever reasons, it just hasn’t happened yet. But, you never know what the future will hold.
Pam has a question for Donald Feltham: When are you going to be in Chicago again and what is the status of the baseball musical? I had no idea that Donald Feltham had been in Chicago! Did he play Velma or Roxie? I believe Mr. Feltham has something happening with his brand spanking new musical, so perhaps he’ll tell us about it.
Arnold M. Brockman states that Mrs. Oscar Hammerstein stated that Jerome Kern wrote “dum dum dum-dum” but Oscar wrote “Old Man River” (actually Arnold told the story about Richard Rodgers and If I Loved You, but other dear readers have said it was, in fact, Kern). What do I think of this concept – the melody may linger but do the lyrics make the song? Well, of course great lyrics which sit on a melody perfectly do make the song identifiable in our minds. When we hear “dum dum dum-dum” we do think of Old Man River immediately. But there are other songs where a song will play and you can hum along with the music without thinking of the lyric at all. Of course, I can’t think of any examples right now, but I’ll open the floor to those who can. Is there a song that I strongly feel would be better served with new lyrics? Well, I don’t know – I suppose there are some Frank Wildhorn songs that would be better off with different and better lyrics – same with Andrew Lloyd Webber. His melody for All I Ask of You is really pretty, but I simply can’t listen to the awful lyrics. What is the most amazing musical find I’ve ever encountered? A song I’d never heard before the encounter. Well, there is only one answer: Almost everything I found in Mr. Irving Berlin’s trunk. But recording and discovering Take It In Your Stride, If You Haven’t Got an Ear For Music and A Lovely Day for a Walk were as exciting as anything that’s every happened to me. If I could advise Mr. Stephen Sondheim on his next project what would it be? Well, one doesn’t advise Mr. Stephen Sondheim on anything, project-wise. But I’d love to seem him do something where he could just sit down and write a wonderfully melodic and brilliant score along the lines of Company or Follies or Night Music. Would Kind Hearts and Coronets make a good musical? I don’t think so really. Too genteel and British, despite the black comedy of it all. Finally, have I heard Jessica Molaskey’s Pentimento CD, which Arnold M. Brockman thinks is the CD of the year. Yes, I’m happy to say that I was amongst the first to hear it, as it was offered to me. I didn’t feel, at the time, that it was right for the company I created and ran, nor given the circumstances of what was going on at that time, could I have picked the album up. I did enjoy it though.
Jed asks what is my favorite Schoolhouse Rock song? I am sad to admit that I have never seen an episode of Schoolhouse Rock nor have I ever heard a Schoolhouse Rock song. Perhaps I’ll pick up the recently released DVD and see what I’ve been missing.
Tom from Oz asks how I would rate The Lavender Hill Mob – better or the equal of The Ladykillers? What are my three favorite English comedies? I like The Lavender Hill Mob, but I find The Ladykillers to be a classic. I don’t know that I can pick three – but I’m very fond of Monty Python and the Holy Grail, A Hard Day’s Night, The Ladykillers, The Man in the White Suit, several of the Carry On movies (especially the delightfully dippy Carry on Cleo) and quite a few others.
Laura asks how old is Benjamin Kritzer in the sequel that I am working on? Without giving anything away yet, this book picks up where the other one left off – with Benjamin at ten, and it follows him to his thirteenth birthday.
Michael Shayne says that I previously mentioned that I disliked Mr. Thomas Shepard for tinkering with original cast album reissues. What do I think about putting the song tracks in show order or do I think they should be kept the way the original producer had them originally tracked. I have no problem with putting cast album tracks in show order, I think that’s perfectly fine. My problem with Mr. Shepard is that he will sometimes change Mr. Lieberson’s mix, or in the case of Gypsy edit in a different vocal or a different take of a song. That is what I find reprehensible. I’m sorry, but if I came in and did the reissue of Company and changed Mr. Shepard’s work, he would not be happy about it and in fact would scream and yell and cause a big stink. So, why he thinks he has the right to do that to Mr. Lieberson’s work is beyond me. Can I give an inside account of the recording session of Beyond Therapy. Certainly. We rehearsed for one day prior to going into the studio. On the recording day, we did the play in order. First, we’d rehearse the scene (and record the rehearsal), then we’d do one or two full takes of each scene. Then Gordon Hunt and I would compare notes, and we’d do insert fixes for certain lines we weren’t happy with (and if Mr. Durang wanted to do something over we’d do it, too). We started at ten and finished at seven. Then Gordon asked me to put the thing together using what I felt were the best takes. So, what I did was sit and listen to everything and as I did so I created an editing script, with very detailed directions about which takes were to be used for which lines. I then gave that to Vinnie, who put the whole thing together. I then gave that to Gordon, who listened, made some notes, and asked me if there were better readings on a handful of lines, and if I could tighten a few pauses – really only about two pages worth of notes. I then went in, made the changes I felt we could, and then spent a day putting in the background sounds for the entire show. Then, after we’d done that, I chose what music would go where and we laid that in. By the way (BTW, in Internet lingo), since they appeared to forget to put on a credit for the music, the song that’s used is Someone To Watch Over Me, and the pianist is Terry Trotter. At that point, I still wasn’t happy with the sound of the gunshots – so we fooled around and laid a few different ones in – including some that weren’t meant to go where they were – and then I sent that to Chris Durang for his notes. That was my last involvement in the project – so whether the gunshots got replaced or not is unknown to me. Other than that, however, everything is mixed and edited as I produced it and wanted it. Now that Cindy Williams isn’t married to Bill Hudson anymore, have I thought about dating her? Did I meet her at Birmingham or LACC? Well, I adore Cindy, but our little moment in time has long since passed and neither one of us would probably be interested in dating. I met her at LACC in 1965. What do I see as the next step in the evolution of the recording process? Oh, I don’t know – I suppose it’ll all be on computer. We already have Pro Tools for recording and mixing and editing, but there are tradeoffs in terms of sound vs. ease. Finally, what made me come up with the concept of adding taps to various songs on my albums? Well, I love the sound of taps, and when it’s appropriate in the arrangement or design of a number, I just think it’s exciting and fun to hear – it’s hard to explain, but I always think I’m making little movies for the ear, and the sound of taps paints a picture aurally.
Kerry asks if all these lunches, meetings and dinners, have anything to do with my upcoming announcements. Why, yes, most of them do.
Hapgood asks if among my stable of artists are there any that I feel I discovered who would have had far less success had I not initially recorded them. Well, not really – most of the singers I’ve done already had fine careers going. However, I do think being there for Liz Callaway was very helpful to her. Hers was really the first album by a non-Broadway star that had been done in ages (or at least I think that’s the case). And I think Michelle Nicastro’s Toonful series got her a tremendous following. Did I mark the anniversary of 9/11 in any way? Well, I can tell you I did not mark it by listening or watching any radio or television. But I did think about it, of course, and did my own private reflection. What currently working comedians am I fond of? I must say, while I admire some, I don’t really love any of them. I do love Mal Z. Lawrence, who was in Catskill’s on Broadway, and I still love Mr. Shelley Berman. What is the most recent piece of theater I’ve seen and what did I think of it? Well, I haven’t seen anything new in the theater itself, but I did finally see Contact on television, which I reviewed right after it was on. I will see a few things in New York, so ask this question after October 8th. What is my opinion of marching bands and have I ever been in one? No, I have never been in one, but I like to watch them on TV and in movies. Which type of saxophone is my favorite? Well, I love sax, any kind of sax, but I suppose I’m partial to the silky sweet sound of a soprano sax. Which unlikely stars of musicals (those who had a background in another medium) should have done more? Which should never have been let near a stage? Lauren Bacall should have done more – she’s too too much fun to watch. Katherine Hepburn, if Coco was any evidence of, I could’ve lived without ever seeing in another musical.
Craig asks if I’ve listened to Hairspray, the CD, yet? No, but I unwrapped it, so I’m close. This weekend for sure. How am I and how as my day? I am fine and my day was fine, too. Craig didn’t ask how green was my valley, but I’ll answer anyway – very very very (that is three verys) green. What besides work will I be doing whilst in New York? I will hopefully meet some of our East Coast Hainsies/Kimlets, and I will hopefully see a show or two, especially the aforementioned Hairspray.
Well, dear readers, I must take the day, I must do the things I do, I must do, do, do, I must attend a meeting for the television program I start work on Monday, I must lunch, I must dinner, I must see Mr. Dave Frishberg, I must write, write, write (that is three writes which, of course, don’t make a wrong. Today’s topic of discussion: I have decided that today’s topic of discussion is now going to be our regular Thursday topic of discussion (that is, unless I forget that it is our regular Thursday topic of discussion) – what is currently, right at this very moment in time, in your CD player (home and car and work), and your VCR or DVD player? I’ll start: CD player: the recently released soundtracks to The Gypsy Moths (by Elmer Bernstein) and Mr. Hugo Friedhofer’s score for a film I’ve never seen, Above and Beyond. Also, the never-released cast album for The Capeman, which I’ll talk further about in an upcoming notes. DVD player – The Ladykillers and the rest of the Alec Guiness Collection, plus assorted episodes from The Outer Limits newly-released DVD. Your turn.