Search - Heidi Grant Murphy :: Times Like This

Bright and lovely

01/31/2003

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This is a CD you don't want to miss. An addition to your special collection of all time favorites. Miss Grant Murphy has a voice that is a pure delight of pleasure; a clear and lyricly treat to the senses. Her Choice of music is different and blends well from selection to selection. Her arrangement of The French Song and (Vanilla) Ice Cream is bright and underlined with wonderful humor. Miss Grant Murphy's rendition of If I Were A Bell is just that...a bell...clear and bright.Do your self a favor and order Times Like This. Bring an early spring into your life."

Lovely, But Bland

Timothy Ostendorf | 03/14/2003

(3 out of 5 stars)

"I've often enjoyed hearing Heidi Grant Murphy at the Metropolitan Opera House. Her crystal-clear soprano is truly beautiful, light and delicate, yet solid enough to handle Strauss and Mozart. Similar singers, most notably Dawn Upshaw, have triumphed in the musical theater repertory, so why not isn't this disc more successful? First of all, Ms. Grant isn't particularly successful as an actress. While some of the songs (most notably "I Have to Tell You") are beautifully realized, most are simply sung, with very little thought as to their meaning for the "character." In recordings a singer has to paint a larger picture, given the absence of sets, costumes, dialogue etc. Perhaps if we could see Grant's face, we'd know what she were feeling; but, of course, we can't. And as the musical director has advised Ms. Murphy to sing everything on the downbeat, the chances of her actually expressing some emotion are slim to none. Additionaly, I find the arrangements to be either unimaginative or intrusive. I will say that I absolutely love the selection of songs here. "Times Like This" is one of my favorite theater songs, as is "New Words." And what a pleasure to see an album of this sort with selections from "She Loves Me" and "Fanny," one not weighted down with the obligatory Sondheim and Lloyd Weber. All in all, this is a pleasant, lovely disc, one which I don't think you'll be sorry to have. But it doesn't compare to Upshaw's Rodgers & Hart CD, Terfel's Alan Jay Lerner disc, or Te Kanawa's Irving Berlin collection, which had the good fortune to be arranged by Jonathan Tunick."

Delightfully upbeat, beautifully sung

Ice Cream | USA | 11/30/2008

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Times Like This has wonderful selections and they are well presented. The vocals are delightfully fun and light-hearted in nature. This album is one you can listen to repeatedly and enjoy every time you hear that beautiful soprano caress each word. Great album."