Chess in Concert [2008 London Concert Cast] [PA]

Performer: Original Soundtrack/Various Artists/Josh Groban
Engineer: Mike Cox; Robin Sellars; Mike Cox; Toby Alington
Producer: Austin Shaw; Hugh Wooldridge; Nigel Wright; Tim Rice; David May
Distributor: WEA (Distributor)

Notes: Lyricist: Tim Rice. Adapters: Hugh Wooldridge; Tim Rice. Personnel: Josh Groban (baritone); Marti Pellow, Christian Lund, David Bedella, Christopher Colley, Idina Menzel, Clarke Peters, Adam Pascal, Kerry Ellis (vocals); Chris Jenkins (tenor); Joel Llufrio, Daniel Byrne, Chad Horton (bass voice); Mitch Dalton (guitar); Lucy Wakeford (harp); Julian Leaper, Kerenza Peacock, Brian G. Wright , Julian Trafford, Rolf Wilson, Julian Tear (violin); Andy Findon (flute, piccolo, alto saxophone); Dave Bishop (flute, clarinet, baritone saxophone); Henry DeLafayette Webster (accordion); David Theodore (oboe); David Miles (bassoon, contrabassoon); Jim Lynch (trumpet, flugelhorn); Adrian Hallowell (trombone, tuba); Andy Wood (trombone); Nigel Black (horns); Andy Vinter (keyboards); Steve McManus (double bass, bass guitar); Andy McGlasson (drums); Mark Evans, Fiona McDonald, John Goodenough (dancer). Audio Mixers: Naomi Neufeld; Robin Sellars; David May. Liner Note Author: Tim Rice. Recording information: Royal Albert Hall, London, England (05/12/2008-05/13/2008). Director: Hugh Wooldridge. Editor: Laura Young. Photographers: Tristram Kenton; Simon Williams. Unknown Contributor Roles: Benny Andersson; Bj�rn Ulvaeus. Arranger: Anders Eljas. With lyrics by Tim Rice, the 1984 "concept" album CHESS represented ABBA's Bjorn Ulvaeus and Benny Andersson's first foray into Andrew Lloyd Webber theatrical territory way before MAMMA MIA. It never quite accomplished its larger goal although the 1986 live production did enjoy a three-year run on London's West End (doing less well in the States) and has had its devotees over the years. Which helps explain this 2009 revival featuring such luminaries as adult contemporary vocalist Josh Groban, Tony winner Idina Menzel (WICKED), and the Tony-nominated Adam Pascal (RENT). The special concert performance was recorded at the Royal Albert Hall in 2008 and boasts the City of London Philharmonic as well as a large 100-voice chorus. There is also a video that was shown on PBS's GREAT PERFORMANCES. It might be argued that lyricist/librettist Tim Rice does not so much collaborate with composers as compete with them. His early successes with Andrew Lloyd Webber, notably JESUS CHRIST SUPERSTAR and EVITA, were content-heavy efforts with often wordy songs and complicated characters, and Lloyd Webber fled to the relative simplicity of practically libretto-free shows about cats and train engines, never again granting a lyricist co-billing with him. Rice had another set of complicated ideas for CHESS, on which he worked with Benny Andersson and Bj�rn Ulvaeus, late of ABBA, setting two interlocking romantic triangles against the backdrop of world chess tournaments during the Cold War. The work was represented first by a 1984 concept album, followed by a successful 1986 London stage production that did not spawn a cast album and an unsuccessful 1988 Broadway stage production that did. All during this period, Rice and several directors tinkered with the plot, and the songwriters added and deleted songs. In 1994, a third recording appeared in Sweden taken from a concert production overseen by Andersson. Not surprisingly, this album, featuring Scandinavian singers singing in accented English, tilted more toward the music over Rice's lyrics and story. And not surprisingly, this 2008 London concert version overseen by Rice tilts the other way. The recording has been mixed so that the vocals are up front, making it much easier to understand what's going on and to comprehend Rice's witty, idiomatic lyrics. The leads include two stage veterans who both got their starts in RENT, Adam Pascal (also of Rice and Elton John's AIDA) as the American chess champion Frederick Trumper and Idina Menzel (also of WICKED) as Florence Vassy, who begins with Frederick and then switches allegiance to the Soviet chess champion Anatoly Sergievsky. This recording is an improvement over both the compromised Broadway album and the hard-to-follow Swedish one, making it the best version of CHESS since the 1984 original.

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