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It's delightful, it's delicious, it's dlevy!

I post about musicals a lot. Find me on Twitter: @itsdlevy. You might also enjoy my other Tumblrs, Fuck Yeah Stephen Sondheim and Fuck Yeah Dorothy Fields.

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Back To Before

Christiane Noll, Girls of Ragtime,

Ragtime (songs from) Original 2009 Broadway Cast

When I got home from seeing Ragtime today, I was clearly floating on a Ragtime high, so I bought the EP of songs from the 2009 revival, which I am now kind of bummed I didn’t see.

Most of the tracks, while good, aren’t particularly distinguishable from the other two English-language Ragtime albums. Still, this score is just so good. So good. Earlier today I said that I think it’s the best Broadway score of the last 50 years, and I think I stand by that. Certainly it’s the best Broadway score of the last fifty years in the Americana vein.

(Can we really compare it to Sweeney Todd? It’s sort of apples and oranges. Even so, it won’t surprise me when Ragtime takes its place in the repertoire of our nation’s opera houses. In many ways, I think it’s a great companion piece to Porgy & Bess.)

Anyway, Christiane Noll gives quite a different reading to “Back to Before.” I wouldn’t say it replaces Marin Mazzie’s version, but it’s a great counterpoint.