A Recorded Portrait
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A HIGH FIDELITY RECORDING 2E4 RP} FOGRAPH: FRED PLAUT ae aera earenat. & ae ss apts cna hae it teed A Otte ID i Aah 5 rea Na Ft gee CTT +. aout eae ; wats ay ae cyte aA ET AP aS i Ped ibe , ais Tt beast 3) pec’ Paoenes es ee Sp : M-G-M RECORDS PRESENTS A Recorded Portrait ee - Oscar Hammerstein _ _ II TAMmeXelanv.s) asr-nulelam aide Arnold Michaelis MUSICALS BY RODGERS AND HAMMERSTEIN *1943—“Oklahoma!” 1951—“The King and I” 1945—“Carousel” 1953—“Me and Juliet” 1945—“State Fair” (film) 1955—“Pipe Dream” 1947—“Allegro” 1957—“Cinderella” (CBS-TV) **1949-“South Pacific” *Holds the record for the longest musical-comedy run in Broadway history with 2,248 performances. **Holds the record for the second longest musical-comedy run in Broadway history with 1,925 per- formances. FAVORITE SONGS BY RODGERS AND HAMMERSTEIN A Fellow Needs A Girl (Allegro), Bali Ha’i (South Pacific), Do I Love You? (Cin- derella), Hello, Young Lovers (King And I), If I Loved You (Carousel), I’m In Love With A Wonderful Guy (South Pacific), It Might As Well Be Spring (film State Fair), It’s A Grand Night For Singing (film State Fair), June Is Bustin’ Out All Over (Carousel), No Other Love (Me And Juliet), Oh What A Beautiful Mornin’ (Oklahoma!), People Will Say We’re In Love (Oklahoma!), Some En- chanted Evening (South Pacific), The Surrey With The Fringe On Top (Okla- homa!), That’s For Me (film State Fair), This Nearly Was Mine (South Pacific), We Kiss In A Shadow (King And I), What’s The Use of Wond’rin’ (Carousel), You’ll Never Walk Alone (Carousel), Younger Than Springtime (South Pacific). — — <x = ro 2 a RICHARD RODGERS-OSCAR HAMMERSTEIN II—A Recorded Portrait ° = S This M-G-M High-Fidelity recording has been produced with techniques which insure This M-G-M Long-Playing Microgroove Record is Oo the finest possible reproduction on high-fidelity reproducing equipment as well as designed for reproduction on turntables revolving at fo reproducing equipment of standard quality. At each step of processing from the 33, revolutions per minute. The device of a lion's = actual recording in the concert hall or studio on to the final pressing, every attempt head and the letters M-G-M are registered in the = has been made to achieve and maintain proper balance and clarity throughout the United States Patent Office as a trade-mark of Loew's a range of dynamics which can be captured through modern recording techniques. A HIGH FIDELITY RECORDING Incorporated. Printed in U.S.A. RICHARD RODGERS WITH LORENZ HART How do you measure genius? With Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II, a person Some of their greatest songs with an everyday knowledge of and interest in popular music you might use as a yardstick the Room (Girl Friend), number of classic-standards one could hum, sing or even recognize from the Rodgers and Ham- Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered (Pal Joey), The Blue Dancing On The Ceiling (Evergreen), Falling In Love With Love (Boys From merstein catalogues. Syracuse), The Girl Friend (Girl Friend), Here In My Arms (Dearest Enemy), I Could Write A Book (Pal Joey), I Didn’t Know What Time It Was (Too Many To the faithful theatre-goer, it might be the sum total of all the unforgettable experiences felt Girls), Isn’t It Romantic? (film Love Me Tonight), It Never Entered My Mind In Arms), Little Girl Blue and shared in the audiences of the hit musical productions since the early 1920’s containing (Higher And Higher), The Lady Is A Tramp (Babes (Jumbo), Lover (film Love Me Tonight), Manhattan (Garrick Gaieties), Mimi Rodgers music and Hammerstein lyrics. (film Love Me Tonight), The Most Beautiful Girl In The World (Jumbo), My Funny Valentine (Babes In Arms), My Heart Stood Still (Connecticut Yankee), A pure materialist might total their vast earnings collected annually from song royalties, My Romance (Jumbo), There’s A Small Hotel (On Your Toes), This Can’t Be Love Yankee), Where Or When? performance rights, theatre grosses, the musical publishing house and theatrical production firm (Boys From Syracuse), Thou Swell (Connecticut (Babes In Arms), With A Song In My Heart (Spring Is Here), You Took Advan- in which they are partners. tage Of Me (Present Arms) It could be measured in terms of youth and early success. Richard Rodgers was just 23 when he and his first lyricist-collaborator Lorenz Hart began their practically unbroken string LYRICS BY OSCAR HAMMERSTEIN Il of Broadway successes in 1925 with “Garrick Gaieties’” and their list of ‘pop’ classics with “Man- Prior to his association with Richard Rodgers hattan.” Oscar Hammerstein was just 25 when he teamed with Otto Harbach, Frank Mandel, and Herbert Stothart and wrote the lyrics to his first Broadway success “Tickle Me” in 1920. All The Things You Are (Very Warm For May), Can’t Help Lovin’ Dat Man (Show Boat), The Desert Song* (Desert Song), Indian Love Call* (Rose Marie), At 32, he had written with Jerome Kern what many still consider to be the greatest American I’ve Told Every Little Star (Music In The Air), The Last Time I Saw Paris, musical of all time, “Show Boat.” Lover Come Back To Me (New Moon), Ol’ Man River (Show Boat), One Alone* (Desert Song), Only Make Believe (Show Boat), Rose Marie* (Rose Marie), Some have tried to evaluate their genius by: means of comparison, by calling Rodgers and Softly, As In A Morning Sunrise (New Moon), The Song Is You (Music In The. Air), Stouthearted Men (New Moon), Sunny* (Sunny), Wanting You (New Hammerstein “The American Gilbert and Sullivan,” or labelling Hammerstein “the Bobbie Burns Moon), Who?* (Sunny), Why Do I Love You? (Show Boat) of Broadway.” Cole Porter assessed Rodgers’ musical artistry on yet another plane when he said: *Lyrics in collaboration “I can always tell Dick Rodgers’ songs. They have a certain holiness about them.” MUSICALS BY RICHARD RODGERS The musical historians measure the genius of Rodgers and Hammerstein in terms of their monumental and lasting contribution to the theatre and the nation’s cultural heritage. The evo- With Lorenz Hart lution of musical comedy in the 20th century is the evolution of the artistic talents of Rodgers and 1920—“Poor Little Ritz Girl’”* 1928—“Chee-Chee”’ Hammerstein—the men who “put long pants” on the musical theatre by their discarding of out- 1924—“The Melody Man” 1929—“Spring Is Here” dated formulae, bold use of mature themes and challenging settings, and integration of plot, 1925—“The Garrick Gaieties” 1929—“Heads Up” 1925—“Dearest Enemy” 1930—“Simple Simon” music, and dance into a truly indigenous American art-form. 1926—“The Girl Friend” 1930—“Evergreen” (London) 1926—“The Garrick Gaieties”, 1931—“America’s Sweetheart” All these yardsticks are valid. 2nd edition 1935—“J umbo” 1926—“Lido Lady” (London) 1936—“On Your Toes” But they must be placed in yet another context to make them completely meaningful— 1926—“Peggy Ann” 1937—“Babes In Arms” the yardstick of Rodgers and Hammerstein as human beings. 1926—“Betsy” 1937—“I’d Rather Be Right” 1927—“One Damn Thing After 1938—“I Married An Angel” This Arnold Michaelis provides through the medium of his “Recorded Portraits” of Richard Another” (London) ~ 1938—“The Boys From Syracuse” 1927—“A Connecticut Yankee” 1939—“Too Many Girls” Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein—warm, frank, intimate conversations with each which cap- 1928—“She’s My Baby” 1940—“Higher And Higher” ture the essence of their thoughts, memories, philosophies, and motivations. 1928—“Present Arms” 1940—“Pal Joey” *Romberg and Gerber contributed half the score. 1942—“By Jupiter” Hearing Mr. Rodgers describe his evaluation of inspiration, why he sought out Hammer- stein in 1942 during the tragic disintegration of Lorenz Hart, listening to him at the piano explain- WORKS BY OSCAR HAMMERSTEIN Il ing how he used music to delineate character in “South Pacific”; hearing Oscar Hammerstein describe the almost diametrically opposite influences of his grandfathers, his philosophy of per- Prior to his association with Richard Rodgers fection, of the game he and Rodgers play which proves “Oklahoma!” was really a flop, hearing 1920—“Always You” (Stothart) 1927—“Show Boat” (Kern) him so movingly recite and then discuss his own lyrics, the listener gets to know these men per- 1920—“Tickle Me” (Harbach, Mandel, 1928—“Good Boy” (Harbach, haps better than most of their intimate friends. To know Rodgers and Hammerstein so fully as Stothart) Stothart, Kalmar, Ruby) 1920—“Jimmie” (Harbach, Mandel, 1928—“New Moon” (Mandel, Schwab, human beings is to comprehend the quality and scope of their genius. Stothart) Romberg) 1922—“Daffy Dill” (Bolton, Stothart) 1928—“Rainbow” (Stallings, Also available in Mr. Michaelis’ M-G-M “Recorded Portrait” series is the ‘Recorded 1922—“Queen O’ Hearts” (Mandel, Youmans) Portrait” of Eleanor Roosevelt (M-G-M E3648 RP). Others are currently in production. Gensler, Wilkinson) 1929—“‘Sweet Adeline” (Kern) 1923—“Wildflower” (Harbach, 1931—“Free For All” (Schwab, In bringing his series of “Recorded Portraits” to the M-G-M label, Mr. Michaelis realizes a Stothart, Youmans) Whiting) 1923—“‘Mary Jane McKane” (Duncan, 1931—“East Wind” (Mandel, long-cherished ambition of capturing on record for today and preserving for posterity the ideas, Youmans, Stothart) Romberg) and the personalities of the great men and women of our time. 1924—“Gypsy Jim” (Gropper) 1932—‘“Music In The Air” (Kern) 1924—“‘New Toys” (Gropper) 193883—“Ball At The Savoy” (Grun- A veteran radio and television producer on NBC, CBS, and ABC, Mr. Michaelis moved 1924—“Rose Marie” (Harbach, Friml, wald, Lohner-Beda, Abraham) Stothart) Produced in London.