Search - King David :: King David CD - Broadway Cast

Ten years late, but hey, this one's hard to find...

Steven Valenti | Cleveland, OH | 09/20/2007

(3 out of 5 stars)

"This obscure recording of "King David" contains the highlights of a concert version of the biblical musical by Alan Menken and Tim Rice. Recorded in 1997, the show (about David- he of "and Goliath" fame) has yet to be produced in a major production, despite being backed by Disney and written by two major musical writers. This cd, in fact, is out of print and hard to come by at a reasonable price. That's probably why it's taken me years to finally splurge on it. All in all, I'm glad to finally own it, even if I can't declare it an overlooked masterpiece or an unjustly "lost" musical. It's pretty solid and tuneful, but both Menken and Rice have done superior work elsewhere. Menken, most famous for "Little Shop of Horrors" and his superb Disney movie scores ("The Little Mermaid," "Beauty and the Beast," "Pocahontas," etc.), contributes varied and melodic tunes that are pleasant and occasionally stirring, but also a tad too reminiscent of songs from the Disney films. In fact, the whole score suffers from feeling too Disney-fied; this is a decidedly G-rated score. If "King David" was an animated film, that would be fine, but as it was written directly for the stage, it would benefit from some adult sophistication. As a lyricist, Rice could certainly be one to help in that regard-- remember the clever wordplay, cynicism, humor, and resonance of his lyrics for "Jesus Christ Superstar," "Evita," and "Chess"? Alas, here he demonstrates his good vocabulary and keen rhyming ability, but not enough wit or bite. There is one song, however, that suddenly demonstrates the writers working in a different, more interesting mode that doesn't scream "General Audiences." It's a nicely evocative song called "Warm Spring Night" that, in its understated 70s- ballad tone, is a welcome departure from Disneyland. The recording itself is well produced and brings class to the material: it features a huge orchestra and chorus, and some first-rate cast members, including the underused-of-late Judy Kuhn and Marcus Lovett, perhaps best known as The Man in Lloyd Webber's "Whistle Down the Wind."

"

Kill to find this recording!

willz15 | 11/06/2001

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Alan Menken and Tim Rice with Judy Kuhn in the Female Lead role. It seems like a dream come true and it is. Why Disney chose to promote shallow and gimmicky music like The Lion King and AIDA, God only knows!
King David is the best. Alan menkens music just keeps maturing. This score matches the superiority of his in my opinion two finest disney Scores pocahontas and The Hunchback of Notre Dame. Never Again is very much like Someday from Hunchback but all his music is original, catchy and thoroughly beautiful.
Tim Rices lyrics as always are clever, witty and heart warming. Many a track will have you reaching for the tissues.The cast are all superb and the orchestrations are full, wholesome and mighty.
Come on Disney give this musical gem the attention it deserves, re-release the CD and bring the show back to Broadway, the West end and the World!"

Beautiful, yet sadly not well-known

Harold Rundle | Okinawa, Japan | 09/21/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Okay, so I'm kind of bias when reviewing anything by Alan Menken (the genius behind such works as Beauty and the Beast and Little Shop of Horrors) because I absolutely love everything he does. Then add Tim Rice to the mix (Aida, The Lion King) and you have brilliance. To top it off, they throw Judy Kuhn (the voice of Pocahontas) and Roger Bart (the singing voice of Hercules) into the cast to give us sheer perfection. Trust me when I say this is amazing but unfortunately out of print. Find a copy while you can though because it's wonderful! I personally love Saul Has Slain His Thousands, You Have It All (the only song sung by Roger Bart... tear), and Never Again.



I also reccomend Der Glockner Von Notre Dame, the German stage version of The Hunchback of Notre Dame if you are a fan of Menken. It too is out of print but worth bidding for even though it is in another language."