General thoughts
The OLC is a 'must have' edition to any Les Mis fan's music collection. It contains The Original London Cast with its rather plain grey-cover is considered by many to be the definitive Les Misérables recording. One thing that can be noticed about this recording is that it's incredibly slow as compared to the more recent recordings of Les Miz. For the faster songs like 'Do you hear the people sing' and 'One day more' it can be a little annoying, but for songs like 'Who am I' which are usually recorded at a frantic, hunted pace - the slower pace can be an absolute joy.
Who am I?
Can I condemn this man to slavery?
Pretend I do not feel his agony?
Only on the OLC recording do the slow, sweet cellos in the background stand out clearly. Lately (September 1999), I've had this song playing in my head like a plaintive, haunting refrain. I have no idea why, but it's made me revisit the musical. Strangely enough, I don't seem to have forgotten a single word of the lyrics and I can sing along with Valjean.
In addition, songs like 'I saw him once' and the longer version of 'Little People' appear on this album. These songs did not survive the evolution of the show to its current incarnation. 'I saw him once' gives the somewhat colourless character of Cosette a song of her own and Rebecca Caine's beautifully sweet, clear voice does the song justice and makes me regret that this song was cut from the show.
The Characters
Colm Wilkinson as
Valjean
Colm Wilkinson as Valjean throws himself into this role with great enthusiasm
and intensity. In the minds of many, Wilkinson's portrayal of Valjean stamped
his personality on the character. Whether you love or hate Wilkinson, his passion
shines through as Valjean's anguished character shines through the performance.
Roger Allam as Javert
Roger Allam is one of the less intense Javerts. I confess that his performance
did not strike me as being particularly worthy of remembrance. In songs like
'Confrontation', he fails to convey the deep, cold rage and runs the
risk of being overshadowed by the far more dominant Wilkinson. Other actors
have been more successful in drawing out the nuances of Javert's ostensibly
simplistic, but actually complex psyche.
Patti LuPone as
Fantine
LuPone's portrayal of Fantine was all that it should be - anguished, tortured
and well-sung. Since then, I have heard her sing 'I dreamed a dream'
in a lamentably languid fashion, but way back when in the days of the OLC, her
Fantine was lovely. I can have no complaints in relation her performance.
Alun Armstrong and
Sue Jane Tanner as the Thenardiers
I have to confess that the Thenardiers while always getting a chuckle out of
me during live performances, fail to strike a similar chord when the visual
stimulus is lacking. Somehow, Thenardier songs for me at any rate, have always
been visual in their effectiveness.
Frances Ruffelle
as Eponine
Frances Ruffelle is a performer guaranteed to generate lively discussion and
debate. Like many on the OLC, she is considered by many Les Mis fans to be the
Eponine. Her plaintive voice is very reminiscent of the voice of Marie - the
Eponine from the Original French Concept Album. Ruffelle sings with a lot of
heart and anguish, and her Eponine is a sad, wistful girl with a heart breaking
because of unrequited love. Like many of the OLC, Ruffelle puts a Cockney accent
into her voice for the songs, which some may or may not like. From a personal
point of view, it has never troubled me. I always thought it was an attempt
to transpose the earthy French accent into an earthy English context.
Michael Ball as
Marius
Cameron Mackintosh has described Michael Ball as the 'original' Marius and until
this moment still that role's definitive voice'. I cannot disagree with this.
Ball's very ardent and desperately in love Marius lifts this rather callow character
out of its insipid and annoying niche. While you can't exactly admire Marius,
Ball's Marius is a likeable one and the voice is beautiful and wonderfully expressive.
In 'A heart full of love', he sings: 'Oh God for shame,' in such
a stricken and enchanted fashion that it's hard not to be touched by the emotion
in his voice. He doesn't sing a disappointing note on this recording and his
performance of 'Empty Chairs at Empty Tables' is as deliciously tragic
to listen to as it is exhausting.
Rebecca Caine as
Cosette
It is the nature of the role that the actress who plays Cosette has very little
to sing, and is often the target of resentment of Eponine fans. Caine is sweet,
demure and has a wonderful voice. There isn't much more that can be said. The
version of 'A Heart Full of Love' has the following incongruous lines
which were altered in later versions:
Marius: O God for shame, I do not even know your name
and then a little later, even though she hasn't yet revealed her name:
Marius: Cosette! Cosette!
Still, this is probably the prettiest sounding version of 'A heart full of love' you will find. The version on the Original Broadway Cast Recording is handicapped by the passionless David Bryant, and the version on the Complete Symphonic Recording is almost murdered by the shrill and vibrato-afflicted Tracey Shayne.
David Burt as Enjolras
Poor David Burt. He acquitted himself admirably, but when compared to the likes
of Anthony Warlow or the controversial Michael Maguire, it's hard to remember
much about him. He sings well enough, but has a rather plaintive note in his
voice which might be ideal for Eponine, but doesn't sit so well on an Enjolras.
It's especially apparent when he whines: 'Red, the blood of angry men....!'
and also when he sings: 'One more day before the storm'. The latter should
be a blood-stirring moment which makes the skin prickle, but Burt sounds like
he should be singing 'On my own' instead.
Afterthoughts
I liked the OLC better than the OBC merely because I thought it was more musically
pleasing, and that the portrayals of the characters were more heart- felt and
thoughtful. It may lack the drama of the other recordings, but it's a delight
to listen to this earlier version of this beloved musical and hear what has
changed and what has remained the same.
Visit the Amazon.com link for the OLC
General Thoughts
With its hard, edgier sound, the OBC is dramatic and compelling. It was the
first version of Les Misérables that I had ever heard and I remember listening
to 'Confrontation' and 'One day more' with wide-eyed appreciation. Now,
years later, after having heard other recordings Les Misérables, the OBC suffers
by comparison.
On the positive side, the kid who plays Gavroche has a great voice - powerful, thrilling and very Artful Dodger in his gutsiness.
The Characters
Colm Wilkinson as Valjean
Wilkinson isn't much different here than he was on the Original London Cast
Recording. Perhaps he sings a little faster, perhaps he sounds a little more
frantic, but he's basically the same Valjean he was before.
Terrence Mann as
Javert
Terrence Mann is an implacable angel of blind justice in his portrayal of Javert.
He is inexorable, powerful and quietly angry and 'Confrontation' is one
of the highlights of the OBC Recording. Mann is not quite so strong in his interpretation
of more lyrical numbers like 'Stars', but conveys the message competently
and dies in a truly thrilling conclusion when he sings 'Javert's Suicide'.
Randy Graff as Fantine
Randy Graff was a truly awful Fantine. I found that I couldn't overlook her
appalling mispronunciation of the word 'autumn' when singing 'I dreamed a
dream'. She managed to mangle it as she bellowed: 'But he was gone, when
au-TOMMMM came!' making her sound as if she longed to be a Wagnerian
warrior woman instead of the tragic young woman who was remembering her lost
innocence. Graff is a good singer, but it wasn't until I heard LuPone or Debbie
Byrne's interpretation of 'I dreamed a dream' that I grew to like the
song.
Leo Burmester and
Jennifer Butt as the Thenardiers
See the OLC review.
Frances Ruffelle
as Eponine
Frances Ruffelle is largely the same as she was in the OLC. Her voice is shriller
and harsher on this recording, and I preferred her OLC performance. I once heard
an ABC radio announcer comment after hearing
Ruffelle singing 'On my own' on the OBC, 'Not a great voice, but a
lot of heart.' Ruffelle really wails on this performance. In a sense, it
might be more consistent with the 'real' Eponine that Hugo had intended, but
certainly does not necessarily amount to listening pleasure.
David Bryant as
Marius
David Bryant has got to be the most unexciting, and unpassionate Marius
that I have ever heard. If you contrast his half-hearted singing of 'Oh God
for shame' to Michael Ball's intense: 'Oh God for shame', Bryant
comes off sounding like a veritable moon-calf. His singing voice is pleasant
enough, but Marius requires the actor to do more than just sing the role if
it is to be rescued from insipidity. Bryant sings with all the enthusiasm of
a man asking: "Would you please pass the butter?" A
big thumbs down to this one.
Judy Kuhn as Cosette
Whenever there is a beautiful portrayal of Cosette, it is a shame that Cosette's
role is so small that we hear so little of the actress. Judy Kuhn has a beautiful
voice. Kuhn's Cosette isn't quite so fragile and delicate as Rebecca Caine's
Cosette. She deserved a better Marius than David Bryant.
Michael Maguire
as Enjolras
Discussion of Michael Maguire will usually lead to very heated debate. Personally,
I find his singing adequate and his appearance dramatic and convincing. While
he may not have vocal ability of Anthony Warlow, Maguire's Enjolras is perfect
in terms of passion and intensity. One of the very memorable moments during
one of the Royal Variety Performances was Michael Maguire running to centre
stage singing: 'One more day before the storm, at the barricades of freedom'.
It's easy to imagine such a man leading students in a political movement.
Visit the Amazon.com link for the OBC
The CSR has every single note of Les Misérables. While it is also known as the 'International Recording' of Les Misérables, it is dominated by North American, British and Australian performers, with Kaho Shimada as the only non- English-speaking performer.
This recording sounds wonderful. With a large cast, it manages to capture the very epic nature of Les Misérables and the ensemble songs in particular leave all other recordings far behind. In addition to that, there are little gems which have always been missing in other recordings. For instance:
Fantine:
Monsieur don't mock me now I pray,
It's hard enough I've lost my pride.
You let your foreman send me away,
Yes you were there, and turned aside....
The exchange between Fantine and Valjean for this song is a poignant precursor to 'Come to me' and it is wonderful to have a recording of it. There is also the following brief exchange:
Eponine: I like the way you grow your hair
Marius: Oh I like the way you always tease
Eponine: Little he knows... little he sees.....
'Drink with me' on the CSR is one of the most heart-breaking versions I've ever heard and the large number of performers adds a wealth of colour and shading to the performance. Kenny D'Aquila as the cynical Grantaire is wonderfully tragic as he sings:
Can it be you fear to die?
Will the world remember you when you fall
Can it be your death means nothing at all,
Is your life - just one more lie?
Other standout songs are 'Do you hear the people sing', 'On my own' and 'One day more'.
The recording also begins very dramatically:
Look down, look down, don't look 'em in the eye
Look down, look down you're here until you die....
There's something awfully thrilling about this opening sequence and it's definitely a goose-bumps kind of opening.
Characters
Garry Morris as Valjean
I am one of the few people on the planet who actually prefers Morris' interpretation
of Valjean to Wilkinson's. Perhaps after hearing so many Wilkinson Valjeans,
I was all Colmed-Out, but while I don't dislike Wilkinson's Valjean, I think
that Morris only turns on the agony in the agonising moments, whereas Wilkinson
had a tendency to sound anguished all the time. I am not a huge fan of Wilkinson's
gargley accent, although I did like his singing in the London Recording. Dismissed
by many as a 'country and western' (as if this was supposed to be a derogatory
epithet), Morris is able to step out of Wilkinson's shadow and bring new colour
to an old character.
Philip Quast as
Javert
Philip Quast is amazing. Quast might be little-known in Australia, but has certainly
impressed many with his very profound interpretation of the enigmatic Javert.
For the first time, we have a Javert who sings the 'Stars' as well as
he sings dramatic numbers like 'Confrontation'. Quast's Javert has a
vulnerable facet which tempers the single-minded Hound of the Law.
Debra Byrne as Fantine
Probably one of my favourite Fantines, Byrne manages to sound anguished while
not going overboard. Although she is generally not a favourite, Byrne has a
beautiful voice and gives a very polished, poignant performance. I think the
delicate, fading voice was a perfect portrayal of what I've always envisaged
Fantine to be - a fragile flower battered about by life.
Barry James and
Gay Soper as the Thenardiers
See the OLC review.
Kaho Shimada as
Eponine
Almost as controversial as the hawk-featured Michael Maguire, Kaho Shimada has
had her praises sung while simultaneously she has been reviled and labelled
as a cat yowling in agony. People often seem to think that to counter an allegation
that Shimada's performance was woeful it is sufficient to assert that she was
unable to speak English at the time of recording the CSR. It's not much of a
rationale to defend Shimada and I've always thought that her recording was incredibly
sensitive and convincing whether she was singing in English or in Japanese.
Shimada's Eponine is sad rather than whiny, she's resigned rather than angry.
Michael Ball as
Marius
A little more restrained than he was on the OLC Recording, Michael Ball gives
a strong and very sympathetic performance of Marius. His exchanges with Eponine
in particular make for beautiful listening.
Tracey Shayne as
Cosette
The only dud on the CSR, Tracey Shayne was appalling. Chosen to 'complement'
an American Valjean, her consistent accent seems to have been her only redeeming
feature. I found her voice shrill and unpleasant and her use of vibrato to be
excessive. For the first time since discovering the show, I was relieved that
Cosette had such a small role. Fortunately, her voice was largely drowned out
towards the end of 'In my life', 'A heart full of love' and in the ensemble
pieces. I've always imagined though that a dying Valjean hearing Shayne shriek:
'Papa! Papa! They said you'd gone away,' would either expire promptly, or revive
to beg her to cease her incessant noise. I've heard her voice described as sounding
like a bleating lamb. Close.
Anthony Warlow as
Enjolras
Like Philip Quast, Anthony Warlow has a marvellous voice. It is strong, convincing
and if you listen to him sing 'Do you hear the people sing?' his wonderful
diction comes through loud and clear. In my opinion, Warlow is the best Enjolras
on all the recordings that I've heard. Only Michel Sardou from the Original
French Concept Album has come close to conveying the complex character of Enjolras
with such faithfulness.
Visit the Amazon.com link for the CSR
At Last
I can keep my silence no longer. I've decided that I must finally write
the review for this 'chapter' of the Les Miserables history. It's one of several
chapters, because far from being 'the tenth anniversary concert', the concert
staged at the Albert Hall seems to be only one of but a few other Les Miserables
concerts staged well after the tenth anniversary. Quite mind-boggling if you
care to think of it. Makes me think of Cameron Macintosh's words at the end
of 'Stage by Stage' where he says that the world will be a miserable place for
years to come, or words to that same effect.
I liked the idea of the concert. For years I had wanted to have a copy on videotape that I could have. There were times when it just wasn't enough to have it on CD and to listen to it over and over again. I'm still disappointed that they didn't make a movie version of the musical - and I don't mean the one with Uma Thurman and Liam Neeson.
Great Stuff
From the moment when the first notes of the musical began, I was excited and
thrilled. Colm Wilkinson, the king of facial contortions and warbling gymnastics
was truly singing his heart out with all the heart and feeling we had come to
expect from him.
Bad Stuff
On the downside, I cringe each time I have to hear Ruthie Henshall. I recall
reading someone describing her voice as being like 'butter'. For me, it's like
finger-nails on the chalkboard. Until Ruthie Henshall, Randy Graff would have
to be acknowledged as one of the worst Fantine's to have been recorded; Patti
LuPone did a creditable job, and I was very much convinced by Debbie Byrne's
heart-broken and tragic portrayal of the role.
Imagine my horror when confronted with a Fantine who sings like she's trying to swallow a meatball. My complaint with Ruthie Henshall's singing is that it sounds forced and far from effortless. She lacks an open throated sound and when she sings, it's almost as though her throat muscles are contracting at the same time and the sound comes out slightly mangled. I know that some would say that she's merely being an actress playing the role of an anguished and tortured woman.
Unfortunately, while her character is supposed to be agonised, her singing is not supposed to invoke agony in the listener. In the epilogue, the only saving grace was the knowledge that Lea Salonga was shortly to intervene to harmonise and dilute the squawling sound.
I have received many outraged, infuriated e-mails in relation to my comments above. Someone pointed out that Ms Henshall was ill on the night. I've heard her version of "Now that I've seen her" from Miss Saigon and I wasn't terribly impressed with her voice there either. It's too forced a sound, and quite harsh. She probably would be great with cabaret numbers, but not the gentle wistful numbers like Fantine's songs.
Enough of the bad
stuff
One of the memorable moments for me is the face of Grantaire as he sings
Drink with me. It's one of the most touching moments
of the performance - that and the little dying gasp that Lea Salonga gives while
she sings A Little Fall of Rain with Michael Ball. To
die so beautifully is truly an enviable talent.
Visit the Amazon.com link for the TAC
This page last updated 17 September 1999