Audio CD review:
Jerome Kern, Otto Harbach, Joan Roberts, Jack Cassidy, Kaye Ballard - Jerome Kern's Roberta (1952 Studio Cast)

Jerome Kern, Otto Harbach, Joan Roberts, Jack Cassidy, Kaye Ballard - Jerome Kern's Roberta (1952 Studio Cast)

Band: Jerome Kern, Otto Harbach, Joan Roberts, Jack Cassidy, Kaye Ballard Title: Jerome Kern's Roberta (1952 Studio Cast) Rating: Release Date: 22 March, 2005 Media: Audio CD Tracks: 1: Overture 2: Madrigal 3: You're Devastating 4: Let's Begin 5: (When Your Heart's On Fire) Smoke Gets In Your Eyes 6: I Won't Dance 7: The Touch Of Your Hand 8: Something Had To Happen 9: Yesterdays 10: I'll Be Hard To Handle 11: Lovely To Look At 12: Finale

Editoral Review Of course it's hard to go wrong with chestnuts such as "Smoke Gets in Your Eyes" and "Let's Begin" (from the show) or "Lovely To Look At" (from the movie), but Joan Roberts' interpretation isn't likely to quicken your pulse. An amalgam of the Broadway (1933) and Hollywood (1935) versions of Jerome Kern's Roberta, this studio cast album from 1952 is a treat for the composer's admirers but may be a harder sell to more casual fans of the American songbook. Faring much better are the young Kaye Ballard and Portia Nelson, at the time earning their stripes in nightclubs. The latter offers a quivering "Yesterdays," while Ballard's brassy take on "I'll Be Hard to Handle," distinguished by excellent comic timing, is the disc's highlight--along with the divine 40-second instrumental break in "I Won't Dance. " --Elisabeth Vincentelli .. You can see a complete list of all Jerome Kern, Otto Harbach, Joan Roberts, Jack Cassidy, Kaye Ballard discography, or go back to the Jerome Kern, Otto Harbach, Joan Roberts, Jack Cassidy, Kaye Ballard tabs