Hansel and Gretel / The Yeomen of the Guard

Description

We are delighted to bring to listeners two rare cast recordings from the heyday of TV musical spectaculars, THE YEOMEN OF THE GUARD (1957) and HANSEL AND GRETEL (1958). Both star Broadway’s legendary lyric soprano ingénue Barbara Cook early in her career and both were broadcast live on NBC-TV
nationwide.

While THE YEOMEN OF THE GUARD was an adaptation of Gilbert & Sullivan’s
famous comic opera, HANSEL AND GRETEL was an original musical version of the
Brothers Grimm’s children’s story. Composer Alec Wilder and his lyricist
William Engvick provided the light-hearted, lyrical score. Playing Hansel to
Barbara Cook’s Gretel was Red Buttons, who had just won an Oscar for his
role in the film SAYONARA, while Rudy Vallee played their father and Stubby
Kaye the town-crier.

THE YEOMEN OF THE GUARD also starred Bill Hayes, Celeste Holm and Alfred
Drake, who all feature on the five songs included here. To complement our
television soundtracks, we have included sixteen rare “bonus tracks” as
performed by its stars. The four singles by Red Buttons, Strange Things Are
Happening, The Ho Ho Song, The Buttons Bounce and Oh! My Mother-in-Law are
comedy novelty songs from 1953 and 1954. Barbara Cook accompanies Eddie
Bracken on a rare 78rpm duet, That Girl recorded in 1953.

During his London engagement in GUYS AND DOLLS, Stubby Kaye recorded these
four sides, Sorta on the Border, O (Oh!), Cheers and The More You Laugh. The
last seven tracks from Rudy Vallee are standards from his career he
re-recorded in 1954, I’m Just a Vagabond Lover, The (Maine) Stein Song,
Vieni, Vieni, comedy patter classics Let’s Do It, Mad Dogs and Englishmen,
and novelty numbers The Pig Got Up and Slowly Walked Away, Betty Co-Ed.

HANSEL AND GRETEL (Wilder-Engvick)
1. THE HANSEL AND GRETEL SONG Red Buttons, Barbara Cook
2. MARKET TODAY Stubby Kaye
3. MEN RUN THE WORLD Rudy Vallee
4. EVENING SONG Barbara Cook
5. MORNING SONG Barbara Cook
6. EENIE, MEENIE, MYNIE MOE Paula Laurence
7. WHAT ARE LITTLE GIRLS MADE OF?
Red Buttons, Barbara Cook, Paula Laurence
8. FINALE Company
THE YEOMEN OF THE GUARD (Gilbert-Sullivan)
9. WHEN A WOOER GOES A-WOOING
Barbara Cook, Celeste Holm, Bill Hayes, Alfred Drake
10. I HAVE A SONG TO SING Barbara Cook, Alfred Drake
11. OH! A PRIVATE BUFFOON Alfred Drake
12. WERE I THY BRIDE Celeste Holm
13. IS LIFE A BOON? Bill Hayes
BONUS TRACKS
14. STRANGE THINGS ARE HAPPENING Red Buttons
15. THE HO HO SONG Red Buttons
16. THE BUTTONS’ BOUNCE Red Buttons
17. OH! MY MOTHER-IN-LAW Red Buttons
18. THAT GIRL Barbara Cook, Eddie Bracken
19. SORTA ON THE BORDER Stubby Kaye
20. O (OH!) Stubby Kaye
21. CHEERS Stubby Kaye
22. THE MORE YOU LAUGH Stubby Kaye
23. LET’S DO IT Rudy Vallee
24. I’M JUST A VAGABOND LOVER Rudy Vallee
25. THE PIG GOT UP AND SLOWLY WALKEDAWAY Rudy Vallee
26. MAINE STEIN SONG Rudy Vallee
27. MAD DOGS AND ENGLISHMEN Rudy Vallee
28. VIENI, VIENI Rudy Vallee
29. BETTY CO-ED Rudy Vallee