Sound Advice
Schedule of New & Upcoming CD, DVD & Book Releases
Updated 11/19/24
This week's update | See previous releases
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Now Available (scroll down for upcoming releases):
Bathhouse.pptx (Yale Drama Series)
(Yale Univ Press - Paperback Book/Kindle Edition)
Play by Jesús I. Valles. Foreword by Jeremy O. Harris. Winner of the Yale Drama Prize. 160 pages.
D.C. Anderson - Believe, Breathe and Sing
(LML Music - new digital album)
Singer D.C. Anderson with Rose Snyder (piano), Ritt Henn (bass, ukulele and shaker), Gantt Kushner (guitar), Audrey Q Snyder (cello) and David Robison (piano). "Believe, Breathe and Sing," "Sparrow," "Whiskey Blues," "A Kiss," "Twenty Twenty Five," "Fish Fry and Guava Pie," "Ethan and Emily," "Love Song to a Friend," "The Worst Thing We Ever Did," "Oh, My Diana," "Other Mother," "Don't Put My Baby Down," "Old No22," "Pelican," "Sara," "Arms," "Funeral Blues," "When the Angels Come to Call," "For My Luck I Suppose."
Funny Girl
(The Criterion Collection - Blu-ray/4k UHD)
1968 musical film based on the stage musical with score by Jule Styne and Bob Merrill. Barbra Streisand, Omar Shariff, Kay Medford, Anne Francis, Walter Pidgeon. Directed by William Wyler. Screenplay by Isobel Lennart. 4K digital restoration, with 5.1 surround DTS-HD Master Audio soundtrack; one 4K UHD disc of the film presented in Dolby Vision HDR and one Blu-ray with the film and special features; new audio interview with Barbra Streisand; new conversation between director William Wylers son David and author Alicia Malone; Directed by William Wyler (1986), a documentary on Wylers life and career; archival interview with actor Omar Sharif; deleted scene featuring Streisand and Sharif; featurettes from the original theatrical release; English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing. PLUS: An essay by author and film critic Michael Koresky.
How Sondheim Can Change Your Life
(Atria Books - Hardcover Book/Kindle Edition/Audible Audiobook/Audio CD)
Author Richard Schloch makes the case that Sondheim's greatness–beyond the clever lyrics and adventurous music–rests in his ability to tell stories that relate to us all. From Louise's desire for freedom to Sweeney Todd's thirst for revenge, we as an audience relate easily to Sondheim's characters. Follows the arc of Sondheim's career and includes stories about productions and iconic performers, deep readings of his music and lyrics, and insights into his creative process. 304 pages.
Recording Broadway: A Life in Cast Albums
(Applause - Hardcover Book)
By Thomas Z. Shepard and Gayden Wren. Foreword by John Kander. Producer Thomas Z. Shepard's writes about his childhood as a piano prodigy, and of the making of fifty plus years' worth of show albums, featuring stories of his work with Broadway people including Julie Andrews, Leonard Bernstein, Sheldon Harnick, Barbara Cook, Placido Domingo, Gregory Hines, John Kander, Fred Ebb, Danny Kaye, Angela Lansbury, Mandy Patinkin, Bernadette Peters, Chita Rivera, Stephen Sondheim, Barbra Streisand, Andrew Lloyd Webber, and many more. 408 pages.
The Sabbath Girl: A New Musical
(Center Stage Records - new digital album)
Original Off-Broadway cast recording of score Neil Berg (music/lyrics) and Cary Gitter (lyrics). Marilyn Caserta, Diana DiMarzio, Rory Max Kaplan, Lauren Singerman, and Max Wolkowitz. Released 11/15/24. CD to be released spring 2025.
Women Writing Musicals: The Legacy That the History Books Left Out
(Applause - Hardcover/Kindle Edition/Audible Audiobook/Audiobook on CD)
By Jennifer Ashley Tepper. Tells the stories of over 300 inspiring women who wrote Broadway and Off-Broadway musicals that Publishers Weekly calls "an exhaustive tribute to women whose contributions to Broadway musical history have often been overlooked." Covers prolific and celebrated Broadway writers like Betty Comden and Jeanine Tesori, women who have written musicals but gained fame elsewhere like Dolly Parton and Sara Bareilles, and dramatists youve never heard ofbut definitely should have. 408 pages.
November 22, 2024
Starlight Express
(The Other Songs Records - new on CD/vinyl)
New Troubadour Wembley Park Theatre cast recording of score by Andrew Lloyd Webber and Richard Stilgoe. "Overture/Entry of Trains," "Rolling Stock," "Crazy," "I Am Me," "Whistle at Me," "Freight is Great," "Hydrogen," "AC/DC," "Pumping Iron," "Make Up My Heart," "Momma's Blues," "Starlight Express," "U.N.C.O.U.P.L.E.D," "Wide Smile," "The Race," "I Am the Starlight," "The Final Race," "One Rock 'N' Roll Too Many," "I Do," "Light at the End of the Tunnel," "Megamix." Digital version released earlier.
SUNSET BLVD: The Album
(The Other Songs Records - new on CD/vinyl)
London cast recording of Sunset Boulevard score by Andrew Lloyd Webber, Don Black and Christopher Hampton. Cast includes Nicole Scherzinger, Tom Francis, Grace Hodgett-Young, David Thaxton. "Overture," "Let Me Take You Back," "Let's Do Lunch," "Betty's Pitch," "The Car Chase," "Surrender," "With One Look," Scene: Did you say you were a writer?, "Salome," "The Greatest Star Of All," "Schwab's Drugstore," "Girl Meets Boy," Scene: Where have you been?, "I Started Work," "What's On This Evening?," "New Ways To Dream," Scene: Today's the day, "New Year's Tango," "The Perfect Year," "This Time Next Year," Scene: Happy New Year, darling, "Entr'acte," "Sunset Boulevard," "There's Been A Call / It Took Her Three Days," "Arrival at Paramount," "Norma In The Studio," "As If We Never Said Goodbye," "Paramount Conversations / Surrender (Reprise)," "Girl Meets Boy (Reprise)," Scene: Who's Betty Schaefer? / I Should Have Stayed There, Scene: The Back Lot, "Too Much In Love To Care," Scene: I made her a star, "New Ways To Dream (Reprise)," "The Phone Call," "What's Going On, Joe?," "No One Ever Leaves A Star," "Max, Where Am I?," "End Credits." Digital album released earlier.
Wicked: The Soundtrack
(Republic Records - new on CD/digital)
Soundtrack for 2024 film based on the musical. Score by Stephen Schwartz. "No One Mourns the Wicked," "Dear Old Shiz," "The Wizard And I," "What Is This Feeling?," "Something Bad," "Dancing Through Life," "Popular," "Im Not That Girl," "One Short Day," "A Sentimental Man," "Defying Gravity," "Ozdust Duet" (bonus track). Jonathan Bailey, Marissa Bode, Courtney-Mae Briggs, Sharon D. Clarke, Peter Dinklage, Cynthia Erivo, Jeff Goldblum, Ariana Grande, Ethan Slater, Michelle Yeoh.
November 25, 2024
The Show Goes On: Broadway Hirings, Firings and Replacements
(STCK Books - new Paperback book)
By Ron Fassler. Conducting more than a hundred interviews, Fassler has drawn from a wide range of the New York theatre community gathering dozens of stories that border on the heroic. How is a suitable replacement chosen to take over on Broadway? What goes into an actor making a role their own in the shadow of anothers highly lauded performance? What happens when someone hops on the moving train that is a multi-million dollar production and replaces a flailing actor during an out of town tryout? 462 pages.
November 26, 2024
Ira Gershwin: A Life in Words
(Liveright - Hardcover Book/Kindle Edition)
By Michael Owen. First full-length biography devoted to the life of Ira Gershwin. Draws on extensive archival sources and often using Ira's own words. 30 illustrations. 400 pages.
Suffs
(Theatre Communications Group - Paperback Book)
Libretto for musical by Shaina Taub. 144 pages.
November 30, 2024
Adventures in Theater History: Philadelphia
(Brookline Books - Hardcover Book/Kindle Edition)
By Peter Schmitz. Collection of short, focused narratives on the history of theater in Philadelphia and the visitors to the city's theaters. Chapters: Only in Philadelphia; The Wicked Stage; Playhouses; Local Heroes; Visiting Stars; Disputes, Deaths, and Disasters; The Tryout Town; The Manning Street Theater. Images and illustrations. 328 pages.
December 2, 2024
Secret Lovers Songbook
(new Paperback Book)
Companion book to Anya Turner & Robert Grusecki's tenth studio recording released in September 2024. Ten new songs inspired by their own life experience and the artistry of poet Emily Dickinson, novelist Virginia Woolf, essayist Joan Didion, Impressionist painter Mary Cassatt, New Zealand-born street artist Deborah Wood, Harlem blues singer Gladys Bentley, transgender jazz pianist Billy Tipton, and British jazz singer/pianist Liane Carroll. AnyaRobertMusic.com.
December 5, 2024
Chris, Mrs. - A New Holiday Musical
(new album)
Score by Matthew Stodolak and Katie Kerr marries traditional holiday themes with a contemporary musical theater sound. Studio cast includes Adam Jacobs, Danielle Wade, Samantha Pauly, and Danny Burstein. Produced by Boldly Productions, with new orchestrations by Stodolak. The show premiered at Toronto's Winter Garden Theatre in 2023. First single, Ready to Try," now available.
December 6, 2024
Hadestown - Live From London
(Sing It Again Records - new on CD/digital/vinyl)
Original West End cast recording of score by Anais Mitchell, recorded live at the Lyric Theatre in London. Cast includes Dónal Finn, Grace Hodgett Young, Zachary James, Melanie La Barrie, Gloria Onitiri, Bella Brown, Madeline Charlemagne, and Allie Daniel. CD and digital editions include more than 20 minutes of additional music featuring five songs exclusive to those formats. Produced by Todd Sickafoose, David Lai and Anais Mitchell, and co-produced by Mara Isaacs and Liam Robinson. Digital track list: "Road to Hell," "Melanie La Barrie & Original West End Company of Hadestown," "Come Home With Me," "Wedding Song," "Livin' It Up on Top," "All I've Ever Known ("In Spite of Herself"...) [Intro]," "All I've Ever Known," "Way Down Hadestown," "Chant," "When the Chips Are Down ("Songbird vs. Rattlesnake"...) [Intro]," "When the Chips Are Down," "Wait for Me ("Hey, The Big Artiste"...) [Intro]," "Wait for Me," "Why We Build the Wall," "Why We Build the Wall ("Behind Closed Doors"...) [Outro]," "If It's True," "Epic III," "Epic III ("They Danced"...)," "Promises," "Wait for Me (Reprise)," "Road to Hell (Reprise)."
December 10, 2024
It Happened at the Palace: A History of New Yorks Iconic Broadway Theater
(Broad Book Press - Hardcover Book/Kindle Edition)
By Stewart F. Lane. A historical account and love letter to the performing arts, a chronicle of New York's cultural evolution, and a business saga of revival and triumph. More than 175 photographs, untold stories, and intimate portraits of stage legends and the intricate process of preserving a landmark not only of bricks and mortar but of dreams and memories. 200 pages.
January 10, 2025
Reefer Madness: New Los Angeles Cast Recording
(Yellow Sound Label - new on CD/digital)
Music by Dan Studney and lyrics by Kevin Murphy. Featuring the full cast from its critically acclaimed 25th Anniversary Los Angeles revival, including Nicole Parker, Thomas Dekker, Anthony Norman, Darcy Rose Byrnes, J. Elaine Marcos, and Bryan Daniel Porter. CD will feature two bonus tracks not available on the digital album. Album produced by Michael Croiter, Kevin Murphy, and Dan Studney. Three tracks released 11/14/24. reefermadness.com.
January 21, 2025
A Show Tune for Today: 366 Songs to Brighten Your Year Calendar
(Applause - calendar)
By Peter Filichia. Day-to-day calendar (one that can be used again and again, in any year). 366 bite-size entries, with anecdotes, observations, fun facts, and other confections tied to a single song, perfect for starting each day. Tied to a show's opening date, holidays, historic dates, lyrics, or connections more surprising. 400 pages.
January 23, 2025
Slow Train Coming: Bob Dylans Girl From the North Country and Broadway's Rebirth
(Methuen Drama - Hardcover Book/Kindle)
By Todd Almond. The journey of a musical from potential disaster to success, and the Broadway industry that managed to stay alive during the pandemic shutdown of 2020-22. Told through personal stories, anecdotes from the cast, production shots, behind-the-scenes photos, and insights from the creators. 280 pages.
February 25, 2025
The Book of Joel
(powerHouse Books - Hardcover Book)
By Joel Grey. The visual life story of Joel Grey: actor, singer, dancer, director, and photographer. This sprawling yet intimate scrapbook-style volume uncovers a kaleidoscope of both famous and previously unseen photographs, family snapshots, playbills, posters, and ephemera from Greys personal archive, revealing an encyclopedic and all-absorbing visual romp through one of the last living greats of American entertainment. Excavated from Grey's personal archives and the treasure trove of his New York Public Library collection. Also included: intimate essays contributed by Eddie Redmayne Tony Kushner. 176 pages.
March 22, 2025
Every Day a Little Death: Crime Fiction Inspired by the Songs of Stephen Sondheim
(Level Best Books - new book)
Edited by Josh Pachter. Twenty crime stories, one inspired by a song from each of the twenty musicals with scores by Stephen Sondheim (including the made-for-TV Evening Primrose and the final show, Here We Are). Contributing authors include both widely published crime writers and people who are involved in the world of the theatre.
March 25, 2025
Elphie
(William Morrow - Hardcover Book/Paperback/Kinde Edition/Audible Audiobook)
By Gregory Maguire. The childhood story of Wicked's Elphaba, including her promiscuous mother, her pious father, her saintly sister Nessarose, and her junior felon brother Shell. Deluxe collectors hardcover features stenciled edges and a color illustrated map of Oz. 288 pages.
May 13, 2025
Stereophonic
(Theatre Communications Group - Paperback Book)
Play by David Adjmi (songs by Will Butler). On Broadway this season. 160 pages.
May 25, 2025
Matching Minds with Sondheim: The Puzzles and Games of the Broadway Legend
(Applause - Hardcover Book)
Gaming expert and theatre fan Barry Joseph draws from over eighty years of Sondheims activities, collecting his extremely rare and never-publicly-seen puzzles and game designs, original interviews with the celebrity friends who played them, deep dives into Sondheim-related archives from around the country, and analysis from both puzzle designers and theatre professionals from around the world. Allows readers to solve Sondheimian puzzles and bring Sondheimian games into their own homes. 208 pages. MatchingMindswithSondheim.com.
2026, date TBA
Liza Minnelli memoir
(Grand Central Publishing - new Hardcover book/ebook)
Liza Minnelli, with Michael Feinstein, Heidi Evans, and Josh Getlin. Audio edition will include bonus content with unreleased autobiographical recordings and musings that Minnelli and Feinstein have been working on for 15 years.
Release date unknown
Boop! The Musical
(new album)
Cast recording the score by David Foster and Susan Birkenhead of musical (book by Bob Martin) now playing at CIBC Theatre in Chicago. Cast includes Jasmine Amy Rogers, Faith Prince, Ainsley Melham, Erich Bergen, Stephen DeRosa. Recorded the week of November 12. Details TBA.
Charlie Rosen's Broadway Big Band
(new double album)
First recording from this band, which "puts both modern and classic showtunes on display, sung by the best and brightest of Broadway's young generation of leading performers, in the timeless tradition of Big Band. A full sized Jazz orchestra composed of 17 musicians play Rosen's re-imagined arrangements of an eclectic mix of tunes from Broadway's past, present, and beyond."
Complete Lyrics of Sheldon Harnick
(new book)
Empire: The Musical
(Yellow Sound Label - new album)
Original Off-Broadway cast recording of score by Caroline Sherman and Robert Hull. Produced by Michael Croiter. Recorded at PowerStation at BerkleeNYC. Release date TBA.
The Fantasticks
(JAY Records - new album)
Studio album recording of score by Harvey Schmidt and Tom Jones. Brad Oscar, Telly Leung, Elizabeth Teeter, Lewis Cleale, and Ron Raines.
The Fitzgeralds of St. Paul
(Brainstorm Live Entertainment - new album)
Concept album for score by Christie Baugher. Heidi Blickenstaff, Jewell Wilson Bridges, Jessica and Santino Fontana, Grace McLean, Shannon O'Boyle, Tiffany Topol, Alysha Umphress, and others. Kickstarter campaign to launch 11/8/24.
Harbinger Records upcoming releases: material from Eubie Blake; download only demos of Hugh Martin and Sheldon Harnick; Steve Ross' back catalog for download;
The Jerusalem Syndrome
(JAY Records - new on CD/digital)
Original Off-Broadway (2023 York Theatre Company) cast recording of score by Laurence Holzman, Felicia Needleman, and Kyle Rosen.Farah Alvin, Dana Costello, Scott Cote, Andrea Fleming, James D. Gish, Alan H. Green, Danielle Lee James, John Jellison, Josh Lamon, Garrett Long, Karen Murphy, Jeffrey Schecter, Jennifer Smith, Chandler Sinks, Pablo Torres, Curtis Wiley, Lenny Wolpe, and Laura Woyasz. Digital release expected in January 2024 and CD in March 2024.
I Can Get It for You Wholesale
(Concord - new album)
2024 Off-Broadway cast recording of score by Harold Rome (book by Jerome Weidman). Santino Fontana, Adam Chanler-Berat, Eddie Cooper, Victor de Paula Rocha, Adam Grupper, Darron Hayes, Greg Hildreth, Rebecca Naomi Jones, Judy Kuhn, Julia Lester, Hayley Podschun, Sarah Steele, Joy Woods, Ephie Aardema, Jennifer Babiak, Billy Cohen, and John Plumpis. Arrangements by David Chase. Expected Fall 2024.
Larry Kramer authorized biography
(Henry Holt & Co. - new book)
By Bill Goldstein. To include interviews with Kramer and his husband David Webster, along with friends, colleagues, and "foes" plus material from Kramer's archives at Yale University.
Lizard Boy
(new album)
Live recording of 2023 Prospect Theatre cast. Score by Justin Huertas. Cast features Huertas, Kiki deLohr, and William A. Williams. Release date TBA.
Merrily We Roll Along
(Theatre Communications Group - Paperback Book)
Libretto for musical by Stephen Sondheim (music and lyrics) and George Furth (book). 112 pages
The Nutty Professor
(new album)
Studio recording of score by Marvin Hamlisch and Rupert Holmes. Based on the recent Ogunquit Playhouse staging of the musical based on the Jerry Lewis movie.. Cast TBA. 2024 release expected.
Paradise Square OBC
(new on CD/digital)
Broadway cast recording of score Jason Howland (music), Nathan Tysen and Masi Asare (lyrics), with additional music by Larry Kirwan, inspired by the songs of Stephen Foster. Joaquina Kalukango, Chilina Kennedy, John Dossett, Sidney DuPont, A.J. Shively, Nathaniel Stampley, Gabrielle McClinton, Jacob Fishel, Kevin Dennis and Matt Bogart. Produced by Jason Howland and Billy Jay Stein. Recorded at Power Station at BerkleeNYC during the weeks of April 18 and April 25.
Romeo & Bernadette: A Musical Tale of Verona and Brooklyn
(Yellow Sound Label - new album)
Off-Broadway cast recording. Nikita Burshteyn (Newsies), Anna Kostakis, Carlos Lopez (Man of La Mancha), Michael Marotta (Tenderly: The Rosemary Clooney Musical), Judy McLane (Mamma Mia!), Michael Notardonato, Ari Raskin, Troy Valjean Rucker (August Rush), Zach Schanne (Pippin), and Viet Vo (Viet Gone). Lyrics by Mark Saltzman and music adapted from classic Italian melodies. Recorded 2/18/20. Late March release expected.
Sycamore Trees
(PS Classics - new album)
Original cast recording of score by Ricky Ian Gordon (book by Gordon and Nina Mankin). Farah Alvin, Marc Kudisch, Judy Kuhn, Jessica Molaskey, Matthew Risch, Diane Sutherland, and Tony Yazbeck. The musical debuted at DC's Signature Theatre in 2010. Orchestrations by Bruce Coughlin. Fred Lassen conducts the eight-piece orchestra, with Andrew Resnick at the piano. The album was produced by Tommy Krasker and Bart Migal, with audio restoration by Migal. Special limited edition of 250 CDs. PSClassics.com.
Tammy Faye
(new album)
Music by Elton John; lyrics by Jake Shears. Cast from Almeida Theatre debut production. Details TBA.
This Side of the World
(new album)
East West Players cast recording of score by Paulo K Tiról.
Three Houses - A Concept Album
(new album)
Score by Dave Malloy. Kickstarter.com.