Willkommen musikalisch
I rely way too much on Spotify to help me with my musical discoveries and though I mostly attribute this to the Release Radar playlist on Fridays, I’ve come to realise that I love the Daily Mix’s they’ve curated for me based on what I’m listening to.
It started out as 4 playlists and has now ballooned to 6. And one day, I discovered that one of them was made up mostly of Broadway musical cast recordings. And though I’m very mainstream with my choices, I also found that I’m very drawn to opening number songs. And so, without further ado, here’s a sampling of that Daily Mix that I can no longer find.
Belle
This one is pretty classic from Beauty and the Beast and though I memorise the cartoon version by heart, the live action one isn’t shabby at all. I think it’s also because i’ve girl crushed on Emma Watson for so long that seeing her really live and breathe Belle is a treat.
Also, as a child I didn’t realise that there was so much French in it (I know, it’s so dumb), I had just assumed that people said Bonjour normally. But having that extra layer and seeing this very quaint French town adds all the loveliness.
Good Morning Baltimore
I’ve had a soft spot for Hairspray ever since I first saw it on… DVD (yep it was the DVD era). And though I’ve never actually seen the musical live (along with a lot of this list), I do love the cheeriness of this opening number.
Also, it makes me want to visit Baltimore which I don’t think is something people normally say. And how can one not love the premise of this musical to begin with. Tracy endears me with just this song and then continues to make me love her with I Can Hear The Bells and everything else.
9 to 5
I first fell in love with this song because I’ve gotten strangely obsessed with Country music (and therefore Dolly Parton), but I didn’t realise there was a musical (much more with Alison Freaking Janney in it).
And though this clip from the Tony’s doesn’t do the entire thing justice, given my current state as employee to the man, it definitely rings so true to me working 10-7 rather than 9-5 but same experience anyway. I wish they’d turn this into a movie-musical.
Now or Never
I think I’ve definitely spoken about my obsession with High School Musical so when they finally moved to the big screen, you know I was watching it (over and over). And this opening number makes me go back to all my fantasies of going to a co-ed high school that had you transferring classrooms and having lockers and having sports teams to support.
Kenny Ortega is a genius and seriously made me want to re-do my entire high school experience if only I got to support Zac Efron from the sidelines. But really, every freaking performance in this movie, I want it All, can I have this Dance, Right Here Right Now just owns me. Looks like it’s time for a rewatch.
Willkommen
I didn’t even know this was from a musical but when I saw Miriam Shor and Martha Plimpton on Younger doing Willkommen from Cabaret, I was hooked. Apart from the fact that it was totally unexpected coming from this show, the ladies just owned it. I ended up listening to the soundtrack (fabulous) and watching Alan Cumming’s many versions of it.
So even if the clip is way too short I recommend episode 11 of season 5 of Younger to see the entire clip. It’s quite worth the treat.
Under the Lovely London Sky
I know it’s just a new movie and thus no proper clips around but this was the song that kind of kicked off this entire post. I wasn’t too excited about the movie, but as soon as I sat down in that theatre and Lin Manuel Miranda came on the screen, I was hooked.
It’s such an uplifting start to the movie and just a nice setting to the super fabulous set design and the music and everything. Just the right amount of magic needed. I can’t wait for this to have the full clips online.
What are your favourite musical numbers? I’m sure I missed out on a ton because I’m both lazy and uninitiated into the real world of musicals?
