London Symphony Orchestra & Sir Simon Rattle and others - Bernstein: Wonderful Town (Bonus Track Version) (2018) [24-96]

Sir Simon Rattle and the London Symphony Orchestra pay homage to Leonard Bernstein with a recording of Wonderful Town that captures the energy and excitement of sold-out performances from December 2017. Featuring an all-star cast led by Danielle de Niese and Alysha Umphress, this release coincides with worldwide #BernsteinAt100 celebrations marking the centenary of the Orchestra’s former President.

Bernstein’s five-time Tony award-winning musical follows sisters Ruth and Eileen on their quest to make it big, pursuing careers in writing and acting from their cramped basement apartment in New York’s bohemian Greenwich Village. Fresh from rural Ohio, the sisters end up getting more than they bargained for, realising that life in the Big Apple is not as glamorous as it may seem.

A bright and cheery love letter to the city that never sleeps and the colourful characters inhabiting it, Wonderful Town draws on Fields and Chodorov’s 1940 play My Sister Eileen, which itself is based on a series of autobiographical short stories by the ‘real-life’ Ruth McKenney.

Bernstein’s infectious score includes classic numbers such as ‘Ohio’, ‘One Hundred Easy Ways’, and ‘A Little Bit in Love’, as well as a riotous conga that had delighted audiences dancing in the aisles of the Barbican hall. The digital version of the album will include an additional version of Conga!’, featuring audience participation, as a bonus track.

Concert reviews:

‘I cannot imagine better casting for the sisters than the quintessentially sassy Danielle de Niese and the effortlessly funny Alysha Umphress.’

The Times

‘Simon Rattle pulls out all the stops for LSO’s Bernstein celebration’

Financial Times

Tracklist:

1. Sir Simon Rattle & London Symphony Orchestra – Wonderful Town: No. 1, Overture (05:10)
2. Sir Simon Rattle, Ashley Riches, London Symphony Orchestra, Flora Dawson & London Symphony Chorus – Wonderful Town, Act I: No. 2. Christopher Street (05:05)
3. Sir Simon Rattle, Danielle de Niese, London Symphony Orchestra & Alysha Umphress – Wonderful Town, Act I: No. 3. Ohio (03:42)
4. Sir Simon Rattle, Alysha Umphress, London Symphony Orchestra & London Symphony Chorus – Wonderful Town, Act I: No. 4. Conquering New York (04:11)
5. Sir Simon Rattle, Alysha Umphress & London Symphony Orchestra – Wonderful Town, Act I: No. 5. One Hundred Easy Ways to Lose a Man (03:48)
6. Sir Simon Rattle, Alysha Umphress, David Butt Philip, London Symphony Orchestra, Duncan Rock, Nathan Gunn & Ashley Riches – Wonderful Town, Act I: No. 6. What a Waste (03:40)
7. Sir Simon Rattle, London Symphony Orchestra & Danielle de Niese – Wonderful Town, Act I: No. 8. A Little Bit in Love (03:09)
8. Sir Simon Rattle, Duncan Rock & London Symphony Orchestra – Wonderful Town, Act I: No. 9. Pass the Football (04:04)
9. Sir Simon Rattle, Stephen John Davies, Ashley Riches, Alysha Umphress, Nathan Gunn, Danielle de Niese & London Symphony Orchestra – Wonderful Town, Act I: No. 10. Conversation Piece (04:01)
10. Sir Simon Rattle, London Symphony Orchestra & Nathan Gunn – Wonderful Town, Act I: No. 11. A Quiet Girl (04:04)
11. Sir Simon Rattle, Kevin Brewis, London Symphony Chorus, Alysha Umphress & London Symphony Orchestra – Wonderful Town, Act I: No. 12. Conga! (03:47)
12. Sir Simon Rattle & London Symphony Orchestra – Wonderful Town: No. 13: Entr'acte (03:50)
13. Sir Simon Rattle, Kevin Brewis, London Symphony Chorus, David Butt Philip, Michael Baxter, Danielle de Niese, Andrew Keelan, London Symphony Orchestra & Stephen John Davies – Wonderful Town, Act II: No. 14. My Darlin' Eileen (03:54)
14. Sir Simon Rattle, London Symphony Orchestra, Andrew Keelan, Jane Quinn, London Symphony Chorus, Kevin Brewis, Sophia Foroughi & Alysha Umphress – Wonderful Town, Act II: No. 15. Swing! (05:24)
15. Sir Simon Rattle, Danielle de Niese, London Symphony Orchestra & Alysha Umphress – Wonderful Town, Act II: No. 16. Quiet Incidental (00:49)
16. Sir Simon Rattle, London Symphony Orchestra, Danielle de Niese & Alysha Umphress – Wonderful Town, Act II: No. 16a. Ohio (Reprise) (01:24)
17. Sir Simon Rattle, London Symphony Orchestra, Danielle de Niese, London Symphony Chorus & Nathan Gunn – Wonderful Town, Act II: No. 17. It's Love (03:31)
18. Sir Simon Rattle & London Symphony Orchestra – Wonderful Town, Act II: No. 18. Ballet at the Village Vortex (02:47)
19. Sir Simon Rattle, Alysha Umphress, London Symphony Orchestra, Danielle de Niese & London Symphony Chorus – Wonderful Town, Act II: No. 19. Wrong Note Rag (02:22)
20. Sir Simon Rattle, London Symphony Chorus, Alysha Umphress, Nathan Gunn, Danielle de Niese & London Symphony Orchestra – Wonderful Town, Act II: No. 19a. It's Love (Reprise) (01:27)
21. Sir Simon Rattle, London Symphony Orchestra, London Symphony Chorus, Kevin Brewis & Alysha Umphress – Wonderful Town, Act I: No. 12. Conga! (Audience Participation Version) [Bonus Track] (03:48)

Total length: 01:13:57