Album Details: 2005 Digitally Remastered Edition of One of the Most Exciting and Perhaps the Most Unusual Musical Ever (The Featured Actors of the Play Are Always on Roller Skates!). It's Another Gem in the Andrew Lloyd Webber Crown, Complete with Full Libretto and Deluxe Packaging.
Amazon.com: Between his megahits Cats and The Phantom of the Opera, Andrew Lloyd Webber came up with one of his slightest efforts, Starlight Express. The composer admitted it was targeted at kids--centering on a set of trains and the plot of The Little Engine That Could--yet it lacks the charm of his other kids' show, Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat. While the live staging was exciting, featuring costumed roller skaters racing around, over, and through the audience, the score is one of Lloyd Webber's least subtle demonstrations of his ability to compose in different musical styles--country ("U.N.C.O.U.P.L.E.D."), blues ("Poppa's Blues"), rock ("Rolling Stock"), funk ("C.B."), rap ("The Rap"), and the like. Of course, there are some catchy tunes plus one hit (the title tune), and Richard Stilgoe's lyrics are sometimes cutely clever and sometimes banal ("Starlight Express, you must confess, are you real, yes or no / Starlight Express, please answer 'yes,' I don't want you to go."). The show was revised and revived in 1992, switching some songs, removing the most obvious cold-war references, and adding one pop single ("Next Time You Fall in Love"). --David Horiuchi
Excellent Was happy when I finally got the Starlight Express CD. Have always wanted it, but hard to find where I am at. Thanks so much!
Lloyd Webber Masterpiece I saw Starlight Express four times in London. CDs were just emerging at the time so I opted for the LP version. I like this CD version very much. This is a fantastic recording of a light hearted and very enjoyable musical. Thanks Andrew.
Why? Andrew, Why? I can't believe this is by the same Man who wrote Phantom of the Opera. If you like Webber for Phantom, then DONT GET THIS! If you like Whistle Down the Wind by Webber, than you might like this as well. The story is a bit much, the songs get very repetitive, and the vocals are questionable. I just can't see spending almost 40.00 on a CD you wont listen to, but maybe twice. I would put this amount of money into Cats before this. ALthough, Starlight Express does have a quite a poppy edge so if you want something not so classical, this is ok. I still don't think its worth it. If you want a poppy musical get Tarzan. Favorite Song: "Poppa's Blues"
Hasn't Aged Particularly Well Though by no means his crowning achievement, Andrew Lloyd Webber's "Starlight Express" was a dazzling piece of fluff, directed primarily towards children. The futuristic staging and skate-wearing cast was amazing to look at and the score includes several pop gems.
Best Tracks include:
Rolling Stock A Lotta Locomotion There's Me Starlight Express I Am The Starlight Only He Light At The End Of The Tunnel
Definitely not a musical to be taken too seriously, nor in the same league as "Phantom" or "Sunset Boulevard", the score for "Starlight Express" is simply fun..though I prefer the concept album recorded before the show's transfer to Broadway.
FEW NICE MOMENTS, BUT OVERALL NOT ALW'S BEST Seeing that his "Cats" have become a musical phenomenon in its own right after the London (1981.) and Broadway (1982.) premiere, Andrew Lloyd Webber decided to use the same formula on his next project, "Starlight Express". He collaborated with the same people, including Trevor Nunn as a director; Gillian Lynne as a choreographer and Richard Stilgoe provided the lyrics. The main problem of "Starlight Express" is that it pushes the Cats formula to a much bigger and higher degree. The composer dedicated this show to his children and to his own fascination with train toys.
Most of the show's appeal lies in its visual performance rather than in the score or the lyrics. The plot is even lighter than in Cats: it tells the story of the different trains. Rusty, a steam engine is in love with a glamorous carriage Pearl, but has to compete with other trains by racing them to win her affection. The holes in this simple plot were overshadowed by the grandiose staging that involved vigorous light show and cast members on roller-skates racing through the specially made stage. Because of that, Starlight proved to be a family-oriented show guaranteeing an entertaining evening. It was probably one of the main reasons why the show lasted in the West End until 2002. And yet the fact remains that on Broadway it passed rather unnoticed and didn't cover the basic investment.
This two-disc recording captures much of the original show that opened in March 1984 in London's Apollo Victoria theatre. You should be aware, however, that the score was revised in the early 90-is in order to get a more modern sound. The cast recording here has several problems. First, the orchestrations are full of synthesizers and the disco-beat of the 80-is is more than evident and therefore much dated. The story lacks coherence even more than in the case of Cats, so you don't have the feeling that anything is happening. And the score itself is not among ALW's best, for the most part it's just derivative. That said, some of the songs on this recording are worth noting and they make nice pop pieces.
The best of the lot is "Only he", a wonderful love ballad sung by Pearl to Rusty. It's not the music here that matters, it's the lady singing it. The late Stephanie Lawrence had a sweet and tender voice and it will hold you throughout this powerful song. It's amazing that this number was later completely dropped out. Her second big number, "He whistled at me" is a little lighter, but still very pretty. And from the rest of the cast, only Ray Shell's Rusty sticks out. He manages to portray the liveliness of the character in songs such as "Call me Rusty", which has a catching melody. And the other song not to skip is "I am Starlight" on disc 2, sung by Rusty and his father. This is also the only melody that comes close to ALW's symphonic extravaganza, with the perfect blending of the score and the cast. The rest is rather plain and unnoticeable. The lyrics are among the most banal I've ever heard in a musical.
This reissued release has a nice slip case and a separate libretto, which was the main problem with the old issue, since the letters were tiny. Also, the sound here is perfect, due to digital remastering.
This version of "Starlight Express" should therefore be appreciated for its innovative staging and its individual moments rather than its worth as a whole. In this respect, it belongs to the less satisfying scores of Andrew Lloyd Webber and as such it is a mere addition to the collection of the composer's work.
Anything Goes Trivia
Megaton Man
Tailipoe
Trevor
