Alan Jay Lerner and
Frederick Loewe's 1947 Broadway musical Brigadoon, a fantasy about two disillusioned 20th century New Yorkers who find romance in a magical 18th century Scottish village, was the songwriting team's first big success, boasting a score that included the standards "Almost Like Being in Love," "The Heather on the Hill," and "Come to Me, Bend to Me." Over the years, it spawned a series of recordings, including the original Broadway cast album; the 1954 original motion picture soundtrack album with
Gene Kelly; a studio cast album with
Jack Cassidy and
Shirley Jones recorded in 1957 and released in 1958; the 1966 original television soundtrack album with
Robert Goulet; the 1988 London revival cast album; and a studio cast album conducted by
John McGlinn recorded in 1991 and released in 1992. Of these, arguably the best is the
Cassidy/
Jones album, since both the Broadway and soundtrack discs are incomplete representations of the score. But this studio cast recording from 1995, starring
George Dvorsky, who appeared in an unrecorded New York City Opera production, and featuring
Maurice Clarke of the 1988 London revival, is also well done.
Dvorsky sings and acts in a stagy but appropriate style that recalls
John Raitt in the leading male role of Tommy Albright;
Clarke is suitably lively in the secondary role of Charlie Cameron, who gets to sing "I'll Go Home With Bonnie Jean" and "Come to Me, Bend to Me." Also excellent is
Megan Kelly, handling the soubrette role of Meg Brockie, who sings the saucy "The Love of My Life" and "My Mother's Weddin' Day" in a wonderful brogue. The only reservation must be for
Janis Kelly, playing the lead female role of Fiona MacKeith, who employs an operatic style to her singing that is out of keeping with the other performances. Still, this is one of the better recordings of Brigadoon. ~ William Ruhlmann