Anything Goes [1988 Studio Cast]

• Artist: 1988 Studio Cast
• Rating:
• Release Date: 1989
• Total Time: 73:34
• Type: Lyrics are included with the album, Soundtrack
• Genre: Soundtrack

Review

According to theater historian Miles Kreuger, one of three annotators of this 1988 studio cast recording of Cole Porter's Anything Goes, the show "has proved to be the most frequently revived musical of the 1930s and is performed almost daily by professional and amateur groups alike." Even so, it was relatively unperformed in major venues and rarely recorded until 1987, when a revised version opened on Broadway and became a hit. That production boasted both a new libretto and an altered score that interpolated songs from other Porter works. The whole point of this recording is to do the opposite, to present Anything Goes as it would have been heard in its original production, with the songs originally written for it in the original orchestrations where possible, restored where necessary. John McGlinn, another annotator, who also served as the recording's conductor, explains that many of the orchestrations were lost and that he labored with one of the orchestrators, Hans Spialek, then in his late 80s, to re-create them. This is the recording's chief selling point: it is a work of aural scholarship and, with a 144-page booklet, its notes presented in English, German, and French, and also a work of considerable research. All of that is impressive. But no attention at all is given in that lengthy booklet to the recording itself, which employs a cast of opera and operetta singers who, for the most part, lack the liveliness necessary to put across a frothy musical like this. Frederica Von Stade, as the ingénue Hope Harcourt, is especially stilted, while Cris Groenendaal, as the male romantic lead Billy Crocker, has none of the friskiness and charm the part calls for. Thank God, then, for Kim Criswell, who digs into the starring role of evangelist-turned-nightclub singer Reno Sweeney as if she were channeling its creator, Ethel Merman, but also with her own spunkiness, and saves the proceedings during the many songs in which she appears. And a second thanks must go for comic actor Jack Gilford as Moonface Martin (Public Enemy Number 13), who also adds some humor to what is supposed to be a musical comedy. Still, on the whole, this is a recording more valuable in theory than in practice, with a booklet that's more enjoyable than the disc it accompanies. ~ William Ruhlmann, All Music Guide

Tracks

Track Title	Composers	Performers	Time
Overture	Cole Porter	The London Symphony Orchestra	(5:10)
I Get a Kick out of You	Cole Porter	The London Symphony Orchestra, Kim Criswell	(2:44)
Bon Voyage	Cole Porter	The London Symphony Orchestra, Chorus	(2:33)
All Through the Night	Cole Porter	The London Symphony Orchestra, Frederica Von Stade, Bruce Hubbard, Cris Groenendaal, Michael B. Wailing, Bryan Landrine	(6:13)
There'll Always Be a Lady Fair	Cole Porter	The London Symphony Orchestra, Bruce Hubbard, Michael B. Wailing, Bryan Landrine	(3:01)
Where Are the Men?	Cole Porter	The London Symphony Orchestra, Rebecca Caine, Judy Green, Chorus	(4:57)
You're the Top	Cole Porter	The London Symphony Orchestra, Kim Criswell, Cris Groenendaal	(2:27)
Encore: You're the Top	Cole Porter	The London Symphony Orchestra, Kim Criswell, Cris Groenendaal	(3:53)
Reprise: There'll Always Be a Lady Fair	Cole Porter	The London Symphony Orchestra, Bruce Hubbard, Michael B. Wailing, Bryan Landrine	(1:37)
Anything Goes	Cole Porter	The London Symphony Orchestra, Kim Criswell, Bruce Hubbard, Michael B. Wailing, Bryan Landrine	(5:11)
Finale Act One	Cole Porter	The London Symphony Orchestra, Frederica Von Stade, Kim Criswell, Cris Groenendaal, Jack Gilford, Bryan Landrine	(2:35)
Entr'acte	Cole Porter	The London Symphony Orchestra	(1:57)
Public Enemy Number One	Cole Porter	The London Symphony Orchestra, Bruce Hubbard, Michael B. Wailing, Bryan Landrine	(2:54)
What a Joy to Be Young	Cole Porter	The London Symphony Orchestra, Frederica Von Stade	(3:10)
Blow, Gabriel, Blow	Cole Porter	The London Symphony Orchestra, Kim Criswell	(3:18)
Be Like the Bluebird	Cole Porter	The London Symphony Orchestra, Jack Gilford	(2:48)
Buddie, Beware	Cole Porter	The London Symphony Orchestra, Kim Criswell	(4:39)
The Gypsy in Me	Cole Porter	The London Symphony Orchestra, Frederica Von Stade	(4:23)
Finale Ultimo	Cole Porter	The London Symphony Orchestra, Chorus	(1:34)
There's No Cure Like Travel	Cole Porter	The London Symphony Orchestra, Rebecca Caine, Judy Green, Chorus	(2:54)
Kate the Great	Cole Porter	The London Symphony Orchestra, Kim Criswell, Chorus	(2:19)
Waltz Down the Aisle	Cole Porter	The London Symphony Orchestra, Frederica Von Stade, Simon Green	(3:17)

Credits

The London Symphony Orchestra (Performer), The London Symphony Orchestra (?), John McGlinn (Conductor), John McGlinn (Liner Notes), Ambrosian Chorus (Performer), Ambrosian Chorus (?), Frederica Von Stade (Performer), Frederica Von Stade (?), Robert Russell Bennett (Orchestration), Robert Russell Bennett (Original Orchestrations), Kim Criswell (Performer), Kim Criswell (?), John Kurlander (Engineer), John McCarthy (?), John McCarthy (Choir Master), Larry Moore (Arranger), Cole Porter (Main Performer), Cole Porter (Performer), Jay David Saks (Producer), Russell Warner (Arranger), Russell Warner (Orchestration), P.G. Wodehouse (?), Bruce Hubbard (Cast), The Girls (Performer), Cris Groenendaal (Performer), Cris Groenendaal (?), Hans Spialek (Orchestration), Hans Spialek (Original Orchestrations), Miles Kreuger (Liner Notes), John Fraser (Producer), Robert Kimball (Liner Notes), Simon Green (Performer), Simon Green (?), Jack Gilford (Performer), Jack Gilford (?), Bob Murdock (Illustrations), Michael B. Wailing (?), Michael B. Wailing (Cast), Guy Bolton (?), Alison Fox (Production Assistant), Rebecca Caine (Performer), Morris Miller (Editing), Bryan Landrine (Cast), Michel Roubinet (Translation), Judy Green (Cast), Chorus (Performer)