The Secret Garden Cast Album Review

Music by Lucy Simon

Book and Lyrics by Marsha Norman

The Secret Garden, the musical based on the popular children's novel of the same name, was a moderate success on Broadway. The score is unquestionably lush, if not quite unfocused and sloppy at times.
I was hesitant to start listening to the cast album because of it's origins, but that disappeared as soon as I saw the cast: Mandy Patinkin! Robert Westenberg(the Prince in Into the Woods)! Allison Fraser(In Trousers)!, Rebecca Luker! John Cameron Mitchell! I couldn't remember where I had seen the name John Cameron Mitchell, but then I realized he sang a bonus track on Into the Woods, one of my first cast albums, that I devoured and listened to constantly. And the talent of the cast is thrilling even when the music seems to be muddled.
Lily's Eyes is fantastically emotional, Patinkin is stunning. It is easily the most accessible tune from the score. Hold On is a hidden gem of a female solo, that comes right before the beautiful 11 o'clock number, How Could I Ever Know.
One thing that could have helped the score is more vocal distinction. Often times 6 or 7 different people are singing over each other and it turns into just wasted music. The orchestrations however are exquisite, and really set a beautiful tone for the story. The cast album is somewhat divided between a folksy sound from Fraser and Michell, and an opertic tone from Luker. Also, the ghost chorus is cheesy and delivers some of the worst lyrics. Grade: B+

Below is my song breakdown:
+ I Heard Someone Crying, A Bit Of Earth, Lily's Eyes, Race You To The Top Of The Morning, Hold On, Where In the World, How Could I Ever Know
= It's A Maze, Winter's On the Wing, Storms, The Girl I Mean To Be,Come To My Garden/Lift Me Up, Come Spirit Come Charm
- A Girl In the Valley, Show Me the Key, Wick, There's A Man, 

Review: Hands On A Hardbody Cast Album

Music by Amanda Green and Trey Anastasio
Lyrics by Amanda Green

The creative team behind this unconventional musical was enough to turn my attention to it, but Hands on A Hardbody the musical closed quickly and without much to show for their efforts, the upcoming talent of Amanda Green, still hasn't... came. The recently released cast album does preserve some of the uniqueness and even beauty of the show. Amanda Green(High Fidelity, Bring It On) and Trey Anastasio(Phish?) combine to create some very interesting country/rock tunes. The book is by Doug Wright, who previously wrote the libretto to one of my favorites, Grey Gardens, which like, HOAHB is a documentary. I watched the documentary a few months ago, and enjoyed it immensely. The people portrayed seemed very real, and it kept my attention. Though by the end it drags and the winner was one of the least interesting ones in the film.

Hunter Foster

The songs themselves are mostly forced character ballads and generic showtune fodder. Each character is given a musical identity, and naturally most of them get country songs. But there is some pop and even a gospel number thrown in. The intro was intriguing and distinguished, but its far too obvious that the authors are trying to introduce the characters quickly while still telling a story. So we get lots of emotional, "I Know Where I've Been" type ballads. Standouts include the bordering on showstopping, "Joy of the Lord", the gospel number that proves both a lift to the dismal, emotional nature of the music, and a toe-tapper. Hunter Foster gets the 11 o'clock number, "God Answered My Prayers" which, is somewhat of an emotional climax. "I'm Gone" manages to stray above a stereotypical love duet, and find some melody, and "Stronger"(which I thought at first was very artificial emotion) proves to be one of the more moving numbers.
But, the song that disappointed me the most was the finale, titled wait for it... "Keep Your Hands On It". So cliche, it's unbearable.: "If you love something, just keep your hands on it". Oi.
HOAHB was a valiant musical endeavor, but at the same time a poor choice for a piece of serious musical theatre. Although as a positive, Green has done some fantastic choral work with the cast that uplift some of the meager tunes. B-
Below is my song breakdown:

+ Human Drama Kind Of Thing, Alone With Me, Joy of the Lord,
Stronger, God Answered My Prayers
=If She Don't Sleep, I'm Gone, Hunt With the Big Dogs, It's A Fix, Used to Be
-If I Had This Truck, My Problem Right There, Burn That Bridge, Hands on A Hardbody, Keep Your Hands On It