Original Broadway Cast - Golden Boy

Artist:

Original Cast

UPC:

021471907926

Description:

Music written by Charles Strouse. Lyrics written by Lee Adams.
Principal cast: Sammy Davis Jr. (Joe Wellington); Paula Wayne (Lorna Moon); Kenneth Tobey (Tom Moody); Terrin Miles (Terry); Johnny Brown (Ronnie); Ted Beniades (Roxy); Billy Daniels (Eddie Satin); Charles Welch (Tokio); Cindy Robbins (Mabel); Jaime Rogers (Lopez); Lester Wilson (Les); Louis Gossett (Frank).
Recorded on November 16, 1964.
Digitally remastered by Elliott Federman (DSW, New York, New York).
Golden Boy, the 1964 musical adaptation of Clifford Odets` tragic 1938 play about a reluctant boxer, updated the story and complicated it by making the boxer an African-American, thus introducing the element of interracial romance at a time when the civil rights movement was reaching its height. Not only that, but the show`s creators (including Odets himself, although he died the year before the opening) retained the story`s ending, in which the boxer, distraught over killing an opponent in the ring, commits suicide in an automobile crash. But these serious aspects of Golden Boy were offset somewhat by the casting of Sammy Davis, Jr. in the starring role and by the score, written by Charles Strouse and Lee Adams, the team that had written the songs for Bye Bye Birdie. Davis, making his first Broadway appearance since his 1956 musical Mr. Wonderful, was well established as a nightclub entertainer and pop singer, and his larger-than-life, somewhat self-mocking persona, which he did nothing to disguise, tended to run counter to the prevailing mood of the piece. So did Strouse and Adams` songs, which employed some rhythmic innovations, at least from a Broadway standpoint (they had been listening to Stan Getz`s bossa nova experiments), but still were standard musical theater fare for the most part. Of course, they also had to tailor songs to Davis` established style, and they did. "Night Song" and "Can`t You See It?" sounded like songs the star could be singing at a casino in Las Vegas (and not like anything a young boxer would say); "Can`t You See It?" even name-checked Davis` pal Dean Martin. Co-stars such as Kenneth Tobey and Paula Wayne, notably in the sarcastic "Everything`s Great," sometimes could sound like they were in an entirely different musical (one that was more like Bye Bye Birdie, in fact). In once sense, Davis, who had himself suffered criticism for marrying a white woman, was ideally cast, but as a star personality from a different medium, he automatically transformed Golden Boy not only into a star vehicle but also into a show that reflected his outsized, show-biz personality. Still, he was no doubt what kept it going for 569 performances and sent the cast album into the Top 40. But the salary he had to be paid may have been what made Golden Boy the longest-running Broadway show in history not to turn a profit. (On the date of the recording session for Golden Boy, Davis was hoarse. He later insisted that he be allowed to re-record some of his performances, and he re-did "Night Song," "Stick Around," "I Want to Be with You," and "Can`t You See It" in better voice, although his gruff vocals on "Gimme Some," "Don`t Forget 127th Street," "This Is the Life," "Colorful," and "No More" remained the same. Capitol Records also took the opportunity to replace the spoken epilogue with "Finale -- The Fight," a jazz instrumental. This revised version of the album appeared in 1977 and has been the source of all subsequent reissues.) ~ William Ruhlmann

Track Listing:

DISC 1

1. Workout (Fight Scene)
2. Night Song
3. Everything`s Great
4. Gimme Some
5. Tick Around
6. Don`t Forget 127th St.
7. Lorna`s Here
8. This Is the Life
9. Golden Boy
10. While the City Sleeps
11. Colorful
12. I Want to Be With You
13. Can`t You See It
14. No More
15. Finale- The Fight

Album Information

Release Date:

02/21/2006

Type:

Performer

Genre:

Pop Vocal

Subgenre:

Show Vocals

Label:

DRG (USA)

Catalog Number:

DRGCD 19079

Original Release Year:

1964

# of Discs:

1

Studio/Live:

Studio

Mono/Stereo:

Stereo

Runtime:

48 : 35

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