Rupert Holmes - The Mystery Of Edwin Drood: The Solve-It-Yourself Broadway Musical (1985 Original Broadway Cast)

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Music reviews of The Mystery Of Edwin Drood: The Solve-It-Yourself Broadway Musical (1985 Original Broadway Cast)

Music Review: A strong, stirring score, and a vocally-powerful cast.
Rating: 5 Stars

The cast performs the very fun, imaginative score as well as can be expected. Howard McGillin, who poses a very strong singing voice, sings the hell out of his confession and "A Man Could Go Quite Mad," making them among the highlights of the album. Patti Conhoeur, while she might have a mousey little voice at times, is a very strong actress, as is in evidence in her confession. And she sings her "Moonfall" quite beautifully. And the two of them together (Conhoeur and McGillin) end the first act with a bang on their "The Name of Love/Moonfall" track, which is absolutely to die for. Cleo Laine is very comical, particularly in "The Wages of Sin" and in HER confession. Her "The Garden Path to Hell" is typical of the type of music that she usually likes to sing, but is a nice poignant moment for the charicature of the Princess Puffer.

George Rose is very funning, providing the show with a strong opening in "There You Are," and he, along with the rest of the cast, make an enjoyable moment out of what is essentially an unneccesary, set-piece song, "Off to the Races." Betty Buckley, luckily the pre-SUNSET BLVD. Betty Buckley, is, as is expected, phenomenal. She and McGillin do triumphs with "Two Kinsmen," and she and Conohoeur are a delight in "Perfect Strangers." Buckley has the freakiest voice, just listen to her belting that high note at the climax of the very inspiring finale, "The Writing on the Wall." Buckley and Laine get us right back in the Mystery-mood with their Act Two-opening "Settling Up the Score."

The whole cast is great, and all the prinicple characters do great with "No Good Can Come From Bad," definitley a highlight of the album. The only problem I have with the score, show, and cast is regarding the stage manager-type character, who sings "Never the Luck" and "Out on a Lymmerick." I don't care about this character, and the way he is played doesn't help this. And his material is, at least I believe, the weakest in the show.

But all of the rest of this songfest of brilliant performers and memorable songs make for one of the best musical theatre CDs that I own.

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