How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying: Soundtrack from the Musical Comedy is the cast album for the 50th anniversary Broadway revival of the 1961 musical How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying, which had music and lyrics by Frank Loesser and book by Abe Burrows, Jack Weinstock, and Willie Gilbert, based on Shepherd Mead's 1952 book of the same name. Released digitally on May 31, 2011, and in physical formats on June 7 by Decca Broadway, the album featured performances of the musical numbers by the cast, headlined by Daniel Radcliffe and John Larroquette. It was nominated for Best Musical Theater Album at the 54th Annual Grammy Awards.
Background The original orchestration of the 1961 musical had nearly 27 players, whereas the 2011 revival had 14 players. Rob Ashford, director and stage choreographer had retained more of the reed and brass written at the expense of the strings, being diminished with the augmentation of synth, thus allowing the present-day creative staff to have the show arranged and orchestrated to their own style. Doug Besterman reorchestrated the musical to give it a brand new sound. At the liner notes, the producers felt they decided "to think in terms of a muscular jazz ensemble rather than a symphonic sound". The team found inspiration in the work of 1950s arranger Marty Paich and blendedStereolab's 1993 extended play, Space Age Bachelor Pad Music along with Henry Mancini and Martin Denny's 1957 album Exotica.
Reception Jon O'Brien of AllMusic wrote "How to Succeed... loses much of its context when stripped of its visual spectacle, but diffusing any reservations about the Harry Potter star's musical ability, this soundtrack is still a charming listen for the army of worldwide theatergoers who haven't had the chance to make up their own minds themselves." Steven Suskin of Playbill wrote "The cast album is different, though; you can very easily compare today's recording with that of yesteryear".
Track listing
Chart performance
Weekly charts +Chart (2011)PeakpositionUS Billboard 200 (Billboard)123US Cast Albums (Billboard)2
Year-end charts +Chart (2011)PositionUS Cast Albums (Billboard)5
Credits
Performers Daniel Radcliffe – J. Pierrepont Finch Rose Hemingway – Rosemary Pilkington John Larroquette – J.B. Biggley Christopher Hanke – Bud Frump Mary Faber – Smitty Tammy Blanchard – Hedy LaRue Michael Park – Bert Bratt Ellen Harvey – Miss Jones Megan Sikora – Miss Krumholtz Barrett Martin – Mr. Andrews Nick Mayo – Mr. Gatch Charlie Williams – Mr. Jenkins Kevin Covert – Mr. Johnson/TV Announcer Ryan Watkinson – Mr. Matthews Marty Lawson – Mr. Peterson Joey Sorge – Mr. Thackaberry David Hull – Mr. Toynbee Rob Bartlett – Mr. Twimble/Wally Womper Anderson Cooper – Narrator
Musicians Bass – Neal Caine Drums – Paul Pizzuti Guitar – Scott Kuney Harp – Grace Paradise Horn – David Peel Percussion – Erik Charlston Piano, synth – Matt Perri Reeds – Lawrence Feldman, Mark Thrasher, Steve Kenyon Trombone – George Flynn, John Allred Trumpet – Nicholas Marchione, Scott Wendholt
Production personnel Original music and lyrics – Frank Loesser Producer – Robert Sher Musical assistance – Doug Feltch Engineer – Adam Long Assistant engineer – Johnny Lindamood, Darren Moore, Halsey Quemere, Sheldon Yellowhair Associate engineer – Jason Strangfeld Programming – Randy Cohen Sound mixing and editing – Adam Long, Robert Sher Mastering – Brad Sarno Music co-ordinator – Howard Jones, Jason Buell Music preparation – Anixter Rice Music Service Conductor – David Chase Associate conductor – Matt Perri Stage manager – Pat Sosnow Assistant stage manager – Jim Athens Production stage manager – Michael J. Passaro A&R – Brian Drutman, Evelyn Morgan Music business affairs – Sheryl Gold Liner notes – David Chase, Neil Meron, Craig Zadan Liner note assistant – Abe Burrows Packaging, design and layout – Van Dean Package co-ordinator – Rafaela Hernández Photography – Matthias Clamer, Chris Callis Production photography – Ari Mintz Production director – Obie O'Brien Production assistance – Donald Oliver, Gino Murphy, Mario X. Soto Associate producer – Adam Blanshay, Jason Buell, Scott Kirschenbaum, Gregory Rae Executive producer – Van Dean, Kenny Howard, Barry L. Miller Supervising producer – David Chase, Doug Besterman, Jon Weston Production facilitator – Brandon Wardell Technical advisor – Joel Scheuneman
Source: AllMusic
See also
Songs from How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying, a 2012 extended play by Nick Jonas, based on the similar Broadway musical revival with Jonas replacing Radcliffe as the protagonist.
References