Call Me Madam (Original Broadway Cast 1950) (Studio Recording 1950)
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IRVING BERLIN
Call Me Madam (Original Broadway Cast 1950) (Studio Recording 1950)
Tallulah Bankhead, Ralph Chambers, Pat Harrington, Ethel Merman & others
[ Naxos Nostalgia Musicals / CD ]
Release Date: Monday 2 February 2009
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When George S. Kaufman quipped that 'Satire is what closes on Saturday night' he should have added 'unless you've got Ethel Merman in the show'.
Call Me Madam is the kind of musical they don't write anymore - and barely did back in 1950, when it opened on Broadway.
In many ways, it almost seems like a show from the 1930s, with its topical premise, lightweight political satire, speciality dance numbers and starry leading lady.
Still, it managed a substantial run of 644 performances, toured, went to London and was later turned into a film as well.
It all began with a woman named Perle Mesta. Born in 1889, she was the daughter of a wealthy Oklahoma oilman who married into even more money with manufacturer George Mesta. He left her a widow at the age of 36 and she moved to Washington D.C., where she became active in social issues like the Equal Rights Amendment and was a tireless campaigner for the Democratic Party.
But it was as a party-giver that Mesta really shone. Her spectacular soirées defined glamour in the U.S. capital in the 1940s. She made a speciality of inviting people from all sides of the political spectrum and every level of government.
She even wound up on the cover of Time magazine in 1948, but her comment about that was a typically saucy, self-deprecating one: 'Any bitch with a million dollars and a nice dress can be a great hostess in Washington'.
One of her biggest favourites was Harry S. Truman and after he won the presidential election in 1948, he rewarded Mesta by making her Ambassador to the small European country of Luxembourg.
That appointment caused a lot of snickering at the time and it was bound to emerge as a satirical target for someone.
Playwrights Howard Lindsay and Russel Crouse were best known for their long-running comedy Life With Father, but they had tasted political blood with their successful dissection of the presidency in State of the Union and they were anxious to revisit the scene of the crime - only this time as a musical.
They decided to turn Mesta into a brash arriviste widow named Sally Wilson and soon realized the one person who could play it was Ethel Merman.
Original Cast* & Album**, 1950
[01] Overture
RCA Victor 14-0001, mx E0-VC-1912-11*
[02] Mrs Sally Adams
Paul Lukas (spoken) & Chorus
RCA Victor 14-0001, mx E0-VC-1912-11*
[03] The Hostess With The Mostes'
Ethel Merman
Decca 27353, mx W 80183-A2**
[04] Washington Square Dance
Ethel Merman & Chorus
Decca 27356, mx W 80182-A2**
[05] Welcome To Lichtenburg
Paul Lukas
RCA Victor 14-0003, mx E0-VC-1914-11*
[06] Can You Use Any Money Today
Ethel Merman
Decca 27353, mx W 80184-A2**
[07] Marrying For Love
Paul Lukas, Dinah Shore (spoken), Ethel Merman & Chorus
RCA Victor 14-0004, mx E0-VC-1915-11*; Decca 27354, mx W 80042-A2**
[08] (Dance To The Music Of) The Ocarina
Paul Lukas (spoken), Galina Talva & Chorus
RCA Victor 14-0005, mx E0-VC-1916-11*
[09] It's A Lovely Day Today
Russell Nype, Galina Talva & Chorus
RCA Victor 14-0005, mx E0-VC-1917-11*
[10] The Best Thing For You
Paul Lukas & Dinah Shore (spoken), Ethel Merman
RCA Victor 14-0004, mx E0-VC-1918-11*; Decca 27354, mx W 80041-A2**
[11] Something To Dance About
Ethel Merman
Decca 27355, mx W 80043-A2**
[12] Once Upon A Time Today
Russell Nype
RCA Victor 14-0003, mx E0-VC-1919-11*
[13] They Like Ike
Pat Harrington, Ralph Chambers, Jay Velice
RCA Victor 14-0002, mx E0-VC-1920-11*
Orchestra conducted by Jay Blackton* / Gordon Jenkins**
Film Soundtrack, 1953
[14] You're Just In Love
Donald O'Connor, Ethel Merman
Decca 28645, mx W 84042
Orchestra conducted by Alfred Newman
[15] Scene from 'Call Me Madam', 1950
Introduced by Tallulah Bankhead, with Meredith Willson's Orchestra and Chorus
a. The Hostess With The Mostes'
Ethel Merman
b. Welcome To Lichtenburg
Paul Lukas
c. Can You Use Any Money Today
Ethel Merman
d. The Best Thing For You
Ethel Merman
e. You're Just In Love
Russell Nype & Ethel Merman
From 'The Big Show', NBC Radio
Film Soundtrack, 1953
[16] The International Rag
Ethel Merman
Decca 28642, mx W 84039
[17] What Chance Have I With Love?
Donald O'Connor
Decca 28644, mx W 84044
[18] Finale
George Sanders, Ethel Merman & Chorus
Decca 28641, mx W 84042
Orchestra conducted by Alfred Newman
Tracks 1, 2, 5, 7 (part), 8, 9, 10 (part), 12, 13
recorded 7 & 9 November 1950, New York;
issued in RCA Victor albums OC1 (78), LOC1000 (LP)
Tracks 3, 4, 6, 7 (part), 10 (part), 11
recorded 17 October & 20 November 1950, New York;
issued in Decca albums A-818 (78), DL8035 (LP)
Track 15 from 'The Big Show'
NBC Radio, 5 November 1950, New York
Tracks 14, 16, 17, 18
recorded 1953, Hollywood;
issued in Decca albums DA936 (78), DL5465 (LP)
Producer's Note: The distortion audible in the scene from 'The Big Show' is in the original source material. It was felt that the rarity of the broadcast outweighed any technical problems.
