Berlin ("When I Lost You") and several more "usual suspects" (or semi-usual ones).Īrt imitates lifeor, rather, recreates itin an inspired scene near the end dramatizing the night one Christmas season (1983) when carolers met outside Berlin's Manhattan townhouse. We get some evergreens like the first big hit ("Alexander's Ragtime Band"), the rousing "I Love a Piano," and the ballad inspired by the death of the first Mrs. Many tracks are brief, some just shy of or not much over one minute in lengthshort and (very) sweet, thus allowing for more material. ![]() The solidly built, ingratiating melody lines and accompaniment figures as he plays them make us appreciate the craft of composing with structures that emphasize what seem to satisfyingly be the most natural and inevitable series of phrases developing a tune.Īs has become the custom, the emphasis is on songs from early in the 20th century, so there are spunky, super-catchy tunes, the novelty numbers, comic bits, ragtime flavor, making things generally lighthearted and brisk. As per usual, the spiffy, precise accompaniment on piano is by reliable Richard Danley. But the collection still presents a substantial amount of the brash, frisky, presentational style from our star and a bevy of enthusiasm-heavy performers, both established and greener ones. It's also appropriate for the plot wherein the iconic writer is supposed to be already well into his 90s. I note a more intimate style of vocalizing from him here, a gentler approach that adds to the fondness for the material's warm-and-fuzzy nostalgia. ![]() Deffaa's go-to choice to play Berlin, is once again on board, handling much of the singing. Its raison d'être is a response to a request from a theatre company seeking a small or flexible cast project about the material and the man.įor this studio cast album, Michael Townsend Wright, Mr. Quite a few of the repertoire choices and singers have been heard on other Deffaa-produced recordings, so it's fair to say that Say It . This piece is in that oft-tried-and-true "And then I wrote ." format (with spoken comments here and there). Cohan, Al Jolson, Sophie Tucker, Ethel Merman, Berlin's secretary and wives). Now comes the latest release, the delightful and spirited Say It with Music: The Irving Berlin Saga, and once again the curtain comes up on the elderly tunesmith as he looks back on his career, recalling hits and people in his life (Eddie Cantor, Fanny Brice, George M. ![]() ![]() A few date back far enough to be from the period when there were co-writers (usually contributing the music). He's written and published numerous plays about the composer-lyricist and has put together revues, recording many of these projects that are stuffed with early-career Berlin delights. The legacy of legendary Irving Berlin is in good hands with his champion Chip Deffaa. (Sources say the earliest kind of jukebox appeared the year after Berlin appeared on earthback in 1888.) With half of its selections also sampling the aforementioned two decades, Countermelody is a pleasing potpourri evoking the New Orleans style played with retro radiance by Evan Arntzen and his band, and featuring some vocalsone by the leader and some by two-time Grammy nominee Catherine Russell. Early pages from the voluminous songbook of Irving Berlin (think primarily the teens and '20s of the last century) are revitalized for a biographical jukebox musical about him. How about a flashback in time to more or less a century ago for the bulk of our listening this time? Zippy, energizing melodies are the M.O., and the performers take care to project carefree joy (and a few dashes of other emotions).
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