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shesmyman - truly amazingThis was the first musical that god me hooked to musical theatre, and I still love this show!
It's amazing!
BrokeniPod - Berstein; an idiot? What?!Last time I checked Leonard Bernstein wasn't an idiot.
Go conduct the New York Philharmonic and write a famous musical and four others, and don't forget three symphonies and two operas - THEN you can come and tell me that Bernstein was an idiot. Oh, and West Side Story was written in what - the 50s? - this is the 21st century. If you feel enraged by a song from the 50s - then by gosh! speak out against the vicious tyranny of the evil Leonard Bernstein! Wait, you don't know? Bernstein's dead! So criticize him against racism over a song all you wish, but sadly it will get you nowhere.
Besides that dreadful, tedious comment, West Side Story is great, and this recording is great. I love all the recordings; they can be so hard to distinguish.
NCC1701E - I wishThere are several Broadway musicals that I wish I could have seen live. This is certainly one. I have this on record, then to cassette tape, then CD. Now Digital. I wouldn't be without it. Too much to say but an absolute must have. You will never regret it.
G
hannahetesta - Nice CDJust as good as the movie version!
T-Cro - Amazing!!!I was recently in this production and I love the musical so much! We did such a nice job! Go Jets!
solduchotsprings - Fantastic Album--mangled by iTunesWest Side Story is a classic. However, if you want to listen to the album in its entirety, buy the cd. I bought this from iTunes yesterday, only to have the tracks split-up into two separate "albums" and thus I'm not able to play the songs in the order intended. I changed the track info so that all the tracks match and are viewed as a single album on my Mac. That works for my Mac, but my portable devices are synced to iCloud, which means I can't correct the multi-album error unless I disable iCloud and sync my mobile devices to my Mac only. That's what I've decided to do. I've had this problem occur with ripped cds, but I can't understand how Apple can get this wrong on something they sell in iTunes. Content as great as "West Side Story" purchased via iTunes should work perfectly on their products. Instead, it's just another hassle.
CedricTenore - Life Changing MusicalFrom the moment i saw this musical my pesrpective on life changed, this i definately the best. Nothing and I repeat nothing could replace it.
spooktapuss - Amazing!This is the original broadway recording, which makes it amazing. The story is that of Romeo and Juliet, but set in New York in the 1940s. The music is original, and set the stage for most of the popular musicals today.
Shadow Addict - Wonderful BuyI've had the CD of this show for a while. West Side Story is my favorite show of all time. I am totally addicted to it. I recommend this for any lover of theater.
bwayspringgal127 - A CLASSIC!I have grown up with this musical and whenever I watch it or listen to it, it gets even more powerful and beautiful everytime. Sondhiems lyrics truelly shine in this version of Romeo and Juliet, a.k.a. Tony and Maria. The music is overwehlming and you cant help but want to dance to it like the Jets and the Sharks! It is truelly remarkable!
Bella jenza - WEST SIDE STORYis this the very first original west side story with Larry Kert ????
eyeguy77 - Somethings are just timeless!!Never will I tire of this musical, great things are..well great !
stopthepresses - See the play or the movie, that's all I ask.The soundrack to West Side Story is alright, but the dancing is spectacular. If I were you, I'd get the movie; it almost makes the music sound better when they dance to it. But that's just me.
Biff McKeldin - This Is the One!There are many West Side Story recordings as is befitting one of the greatest scores written for Broadway: there are more polished recordings, more complete recordings, more operatic recordings, more contemporary recordings; but none of them comes close to capturing the excitement found here on the 1957 original cast album. I own many other recordings of this show, and love most of them, but if I could only keep one, this would be it. The singing isn’t always flawless, and it has a harsher edge to it than many other cast albums of the time (probably a conscious choice on the part of the original record producer, Goddard Lieberson – the better to capture the edginess of the show itself), but it has an energy about it that is unmatched.
Aron#1 - Tonight, Maria, And I Feel Pretty RoxI absosully love all these songs they have to be the best musical songs ive heard i absoulutly love this play
Yehieli - I'd like to give it 3 1/2 but I'll round it up to 4This musical was the first kind of Broadway experience I EVER had and I've since come to find it my favorite musical. I've listened to pretty much every possible recording out there and while this one is a very good recording, it's not my favorite.
I find Chita Rivera to sound drunk in almost all of her songs, the exception being America. However, I guess it's a simple matter of not being able to have everything since Chita Rivera WAS a phenomenal dancer.
Carol Lawrence does a great job, but I believe that if you're going to perform on Broadway you should be able to hit all the right notes in your song and it irritates me to no end that in "A Boy Like That," after she sings the second "Oh no, Anita, no!" she goes on to sing a blatantly wrong note on "You (should know better)."
And "Maria" is quite wonderful, really, but why does Larry Kert have to go straight to the r's in Marrrrrrrrrrrrrria? If he needs to sing r's to be able to move on to higher notes, he really ought to have worked on his breath support before accepting the part of Tony, not that I wouldn't rather listen to him that Matt Cavenaugh with his uncontrolled vibrato and awfully nasal tone. Another thing I'm not sure I love are Kert's vowel sounds…they change all the time and they're a little…unrealistic as compared to how they'd sound if he were speaking the lyrics. He's quite good, though, overall.
I like all the Jet songs; they make me smile. It's kind of ironic that I played Maria but loved the Jet songs better than the rest of the music in the musical, though "A Boy Like That" is my favorite.
My conclusion: Great recording, but a little more rehearsal would have hit the nail on the head. It's still worth the purchase, though. =)
Emily :] - Favorite MusicalI preformed West Side Story when I was in 7th grade and ever since, it has been my favorite musical. I just loved the songs and the storyline. This soundtrack is a must have for any fan of musicals in general.
hamarhand911 - GoodWell its good. Problem is most people are used to the movie version. Personally i like the movie better but o well. Its good.
myles525 - Is this for real?Is it me or have my ears gone crazy listening to my iPod loud. Is this really the ORIGINAL Broadway cast? Doesn't sound like Larry Kert or Carol Lawrence to me.
joe in indiana - Packed Full of Retro-50s GoodnessWhat more can I say? It's a classic album. A complete Bernstein masterpiece.
Lmnopq2 - Well,I absolutley love the music but I was expecting the soundtrack from the movie. I love it anyway!
xxtheemoprincexx - love itI love this musical, never get tired of it
krazyk14 - Favorite Musical!Everyone who enjoys Sondheim and Broadway should buy this album! Not just a song or two, but the whole thing! Themovie is one of my favorites but the original b-way cast beats the movie's cats when it comes to singing! This is and always will be my fav musical!
No Real Nickname, but a Broadway Fan - West Side Story: Shakespeare Would Be ProudBeing a musical-theatre fan, I figured that I had heard the title of this show so many times that I ought to see it, so that if nothing else, I would know what everybody was talking about. Little did I know that the Shakespeare-loving side of me would enjoy it, too! I watched this movie for the first time about a year ago now, and the ending brought tears to my eyes. It's a perfect blend of great music, amazing choreography, and William Shakespeare's beautiful, heart-wrenching love story.
Crazy4David_A - A-M-A-Z-I-N-GI had never seen this until a theater in our town did it as a summer show. I saw it opening night and I Loved it!!!! I almost cried but i didn't!! the songs are amazing and the soundtrack is so worth the buy!
hey223 - West side Storyi just saw the new cast on broadway tonight (March 5th, 2009...its very dissapointing.....the original was the greatest and will never be forgotten
rebel 31 - just wowTo the person who wrote the review previous to mine, the part where you say that you are in eight grade sums it up. You clearly do not have the capacity to understand this show. The whole purpose of the show is to promote tolerance and equality amonst all people and that violence and hatred solves nothing. Plus, America is two girls arguing the pros and cons of their home country, it is not one person bashing it for 4 minutes. So before you go out and start yelling like a blabbering fool, actually know what you are talking about so people will take you seriously.
K krew account - MARIA!!well many people tell me i am exactly like the character maria from west side story
i had no idea what this meant so i watched it
and now I FEEL PRETTY along with my "twin!"
hippiegrl94 - Absolutely amazing!I just finished my high school production of West Side Story, and I absolutely love the musical. This soundtrack is amazing, and is a must have for everyone. It is such a deep and wonderful show.
Chicago Bang Bang - The Definitive WSS AlbumWithout a doubt the best West Side Story recording. Don't even bother with the Movie Soundtrack --- the Broadway Cast version is much superior!
Blue Rhino - West Side Story Rox!This is one of my favorite musicals, if not my all time favorite. You totally need to buy this soundtrack. This performance had wonderful acting, awesome songs, and breakthrugh choreography. Get this album as soon as you can if you want to be amazed!
B.Bopp - I like to be in America!This is one of the greatest American musicals ever made. Although I think the movie recording is better, this one really captures the energy and grit that makes the show special. Larry Kert is really amazing. Carol Lawrence is not better than Marni Nixon, but she is still a bit better suited for the part because she was younger. Although Chita Rivera isn't the best singer, she still manages to pull it off with a lot of spunk. This is definitely worth buying.
HubBud - Landmark stuffFamily legend has it that I used to toddle to the record player and play this album at 2 years old. Even then I preferred the Original Cast. Larry Kert, Carol Lawrence, Chita Rivera, Reri Grist, a pit band to fall on your knees and worship, the music of Leonard Bernstein, the production know-how of Goddard Lieberson. This is a one big collision of genius here.
retisonic - larry kertnoone has been able to sing "maria" as well or as beautiful. a classic performance.
ILOVEMUSICALS - Pretty GoodThe musical is probably my favorite one of all time, but I personally LOVE the movie! The soundtrack to the 1961 production is amazing! I have that cd. Any fan should get that one!
TheMuffinQueen - ANITA MAKES EVERY SONG BETTERAnita can make any song better no matter how bad! She has an awesome voice and a funny attitude so everything is better!
BARNBARN - The Best!Maybe it's cause I grew up with it, and nothing against the movie or the current Broadway production, but when I hear anyone sings any of these songs, they always sound slightly wrong until I play the recordings from this version. THIS is how it SHOULD sound. I had it on vinyl until I downloaded this. The digital reproduction sounds great. And I don't care what new mics they have now or digital techniques they have for new versions, this just sounds great. Period.
bethrules11 - Film Is BetterAs good as these preformances are, I think the film ism better. With Richard Beymer(Tony) and Natalie Wood(Maria), the film was great with its singing and acting. The film in fact, could possibly never be surpassed by any other musical.
This one is good though!
--
bethrules11
PS: I Love The Somewhere remakes.
John;p - Its really good, I just prefer the movie & Revival soundtracks.Its not that its bad, I just think that there are versions of certain songs that aren't as good as the movie or revival. I'm not gonna lie, I didn't much care for the lady who played Anita in the original, but to be fair, It may just have been the fact that that particular style of singing was more popular on Broadway, and may just not be my cup of tea. But regardless, this show is amazing, without a doubt a timeless classic, and I can't wait to make my musical debut as Chino in my school's production of West Side Story!!!
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