Nine -1982 Original Broadway Cast-

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Yeston at his best, with a terrific Broadway Cast
This is the original, and definitive recording of NINE. This is Maury Yeston at his best, with an exquisite original Broadway cast mixing Broadway and New York Cabaret veterans in a show that was part morality play, part fashion show. I loved the original which I saw on Broadway several times. Included here are the remastered extended versions of the songs. Included are the cut songs from the recent Broadway revival. And thankfully missing the male chorus voices on the London fundraiser version with Jonathan Pryce. For us musical theatre purists, you still get the weird breath intakes of Karen Akers...and you still hear the pages flip in the orchestra if you are following along in a score, and you still here the conductors baton tap the music stand several times when trying to get the studio orchestra to pick up the pace. Brilliant. One of my favorite original cast albums, and the only recording of the show that can be used for reference purposes for your own production, in the correct original keys, without the revival cuts.

Viva Raul!!!!
Raul Julia ......the grand performer is the main reason to buy this CD ......i was never a fan of "Nine" but you can feel Raul, his magic in every song.....the songs might not stay with you forever , but Raul renditions will...Long live the great Raul Julia Arcelay..the Best of the Best!!!

9
"Nine" the brilliant Broadway musical directed by the brilliant Tommy Tune and starring the brilliant Raul Julia and with a brilliant scenic design of glaring white tile including the stage floor, and a brilliant costume design, except for the "Folies Bergere" number, every one was dressed in black, and a brilliant casting coup- 1 man surrounded by 21 women-and a couple of handfuls of brilliant musical numbers and by now you get the picture, the show was brilliant but it was its' brilliance that sabotaged the show and to boot the show was stubbornly not audience-friendly. This led to moments of awe-inspiring highs surrounded by moments of boredom. The first high comes about 15 minutes into the show by the entrance of flame-haired Anita Morris. Dressed head to toe in a lacy,skin-tight,see-through outfit that doesn't even try to hide her ample attributes-and she is making a phone call to her lover draped over a white tiled cube(bed) and she slithers, slides, stretches in positions not humanly possible, purring seductively to her boyfriend and having a real good time with herself in what is possibly the hottest and most erotic moment I have ever witnessed on a Broadway stage and threatened to blister and melt the very tile she played on. Ironically the number was "A Call From the Vatican". Another high moment came with Liliane Montevecchi as Guidos'(Julia) producer who bemoans the gloom of modern cinema and longs for the days of song, dance and color,,"Folies Bergere" A pivotal moment in Guidos' life is when at the age of 9,he and a couple of his classmates visit a notorious whore who teaches the young boys how to "Be Italian" This incident so shames Guidos' mother she sends him away to a draconian Catholic school run by cruel nuns who happily beat the devil out of their students. This leads to the beautiful Gregorian Chant-like "The Bells of St Sebastian". Guido begins his new film of Casanova "The Grand Canal" which is a 15 minute mini-opera. I have to mention Karen Akers who plays Guidos' wife and I adore her voice which to me sounds like a mix of honey and melted caramels-just listen to her long ago section of "My Husband Makes Movies" and "Be On Your Own". Raul Julia also has effective numbers "Guidos Song" "Only With You" and he sings the afore-mentioned spine-shivery "Bell of St Sebastian" and he duets with his 9-year old self on the finale "Nine" which ends the show on an effectivly quiet moment. There are other fine moments to be found "Unusual Way" with Shelly Burch comes to mind. This CD is a wonderful reminder of just how great a Broadway musical can be and although I enjoyed the entire show warts and all, I only wish the show had been more accessable to a wider audience so everyone could have witnessed the brilliance I had.

"Nine" is spectacular!
Based on Fellini's autobiographical film, "8 12", "Nine" opened in 1982 with a score by Maury Yeston and a book by Arthur Kopit. It starred Raul Julia, Karen Akers, Anita Morris, Liliane Montevecchi among others. Its direction was by Tommy Tune. All of these individuals (oh yes, Jonathan Tunick, the orchestrator) are responsible for this spectacular original cast album of the spectacular musical, "Nine. Mr. Yeston has supplied as score that is filled with memorable songs that are tuneful and musically interesting. His lyrics are witty and original. Every song is outstanding. I must single out Ms. Akers' wonderful torch songs, "My Husband Makes Movies" and "Be On Your Own" as being the bests of the score. Ms. Akers performs them so well, which makes them even more enjoyable. I also cannot forget the exceptional "Folies Bergeres" sequence featuing Ms. Montevecchi in her element. However, Mr. Julia and the other cast memembers give absolutely wonderful performances as well. This is a nearly complete recording at something like 70 minutes. ("Nine" is not two and a half hours long for those of you who began to question the above statement.) As a bonus, it features Mr. Yeston performing some of his great songs.

...Their sound can last a hundred years...
I have to admit that when I first listened to this CD I was not favorably impressed. None of the songs captured me instantly and many seemed rather jarring and confusing, particularly as I was not acquainted with the show and no synopis is included. I put it away only to recently pick it up with the guilty feeling that I had not given it any true consideration. This proved to be very true. After forcing myself to listen to it several times, I had to force myself to stop listening! There is something truly magical and mysterious about this show, a quality which sings through the stirring, passionate, indelibly European music and the moving, often bitingly clever and even provocative lyrics. Maury Yeston certainly knew what he was doing. He has created something which is very different from much of the broadway fare that came before it and was to follow it, something which is truly unique, but in such a subtle, elusive way that it is impossible to pinpoint wherein this individuality lies. This is certainly not one of the greatest musicals of all time. It is flawed; there is a disjointed quality to the songs some of which are decidely weaker than others. It is simply distintive. This is must in great part be attributed to the performances. The cast of 'Nine' is superb and deserves to be remembered as it is. As Guido Contini, Raul Julia gives a performance which perfectly captures the internal struggles and outward charm of this character. While his singing does not match up to his acting,(his voice is rather grating, and occasionally he does things to the high notes that I would prefer not to discuss) he makes an admirable effort in each song and succeeds in most. He nails 'Guido's Song' in which the character's state of mind is so brilliantly outlined and has just the right bravado for 'The Grand Canal.'Nobody, even the worst singer in the world, could ruin the sweetly simple and utterly lovely 'Only With You', though I do not feel that he does justice to 'The Bells of St Sebastian' which is one of my favorite songs; I find the mix of styles and rythms incredably stirring. It is the women who surround Julia who are responsible for the life and the fantasy that is so palpable on this recording. The women's overture is one of those inspired strokes of genius which serve to bring an entirely new sound to Broadway. As a whole they provide excellent support in 'The Grand Canal' and in the rollicking 'The Germans at the Spa' which is hysterical but also performs the task for which it was written, namely to create atmosphere, much better than many similar songs in other shows. Camille Saviola provides excellent vocals as mama Maddelena. As Yeston comments in the liner notes, hers is only one of many standout performances. This musical is wonderful in its ability to make stars of each of its soloists, each is brilliantly showcased in the respective song/s. Karen Akers(Luisa) may not have the strongest voice, but as another reviewer commented she has a worldly weariness which perfectly suits her character. Her two songs 'My Husband makes Movies'and 'Be on Your Own' are two of the most moving moments in 'Nine', the former raises so many questions about life and love while the latter is almost heartbreaking in its desparation..."go off and live your petty fictions full of blatant contradictions you can't see..." Anita Morris(Carla) does not have what could be described as an attractive voice, but she has just the right brash, steamy powerful belt for 'A Call from the Vatican'. Taina Elg(Guido's mother) and Shelly Burch(Claudia) both provide sweetly pretty renditions of 'Nine' and 'Unusual Way' respectively while Kathi Moss' voice soars in the wonderfully exciting 'Be Italian'. One of the weaker moments is the unconvincing 'Getting Tall'; Cameron Johann does not have the ability or is simply too young to save this song. But all this would still not be worthy of five stars, it is the true showstopper, the glorious 'Follies Bergeres', which catapults this show to the hights of my regard. Brilliantly concieved, it is brilliantly executed here by Julia and Stephanie Cotsirilos but particularly by the extraordinary Liliane Montevecchi. Never was there a performance which was more worthy of a Tony. She soars through this song both as an actress and a singer...and almost evokes Edith Piaf in some of those dizzying climaxes...I could go on raving for some time longer but this review has already become ridiculously long. The one true downside of this recording are Yeston's demo recordings of some of the songs which are quite simply ghastly. Talk about composers butchering their own material! In spite of this I heartily reccomend that any fan of musicals add this to their collection, would I really write such a long, pompous review if I didnt feel it was worth it?