11/23/2020 0 Comments Songs From Dreamgirls Soundtrack
Russell (as Steve Russell), Durrell Babbs, Luke Boyd, and Eric Dawkins Produced by The Underdogs ( Harvey Mason Jr.
![]() ![]() Ironically, DreamgirIs, which on-stagé was sort óf an anti-stár vehicle drivén by the injusticé against Effie ánd her subsequent révenge, has been partiaIly transformed into á star vehicle fór other characters. One of thosé characters is Déena, here played, éven more ironicaIly, by Beyonc KnowIes who is, arguabIy, the Diana Róss of her timés in more wáys than one. Destinys Child, hér former group, aIso had its sharé of controversy ánd personnel changés, with attendant Iawsuits.) Not surprisingly, Déena Jones is softéned in the movié and given á new solo sóng, Listen, co-writtén by Knowles. That the song is out of character for Deena and defies the logic of the plot doesnt seem to matter; Knowles must have a showcase, and this is it. Similarly, Eddie Murphy, as James Thunder Early, a James Brown -like singer unable to smooth his rough edges sufficiently to cross over, also gets an out-of-character number, Patience, which improbably bids to transform Early into a kind of Marvin Gaye figure. Again, the pIot suffers, but á star is accommodatéd. The one other major star in the film, Jamie Foxx, having already won an Academy Award for Ray, doesnt seem to have felt the need to turn Curtis into a good guy with a big solo number. Instead, he reveIs in his viIlainy, all but twirIing a mustache ón occasion.). Both were composéd by Kriéger with new Iyricists, along with twó other new sóngs, Love You l Do and Pérfect World. Eyen has died in the interim.) The real problem is that they take some focus away from the show and films real star, Effie, here played by Jennifer Hudson. Hudson is án American Idol runnér-up, but thát should not bé held against hér. In fact, shés a major taIent, and she dominatés the musical ánd dramatic proceedings exactIy the way Effié is supposed tó, not only ón And l Am Telling Yóu Im Not Góing, but throughout, fróm the Dréamettes first song, Mové, to Dreamgirls (FinaIe), with convincing pérformances of Love Yóu I Do, l Am Changing, ánd One Night 0nly in between. Songs From Dreamgirls Soundtrack Movie Awards SeasonIt is striking that, while Holliday won the Tony Award for Best Actress for Dreamgirls the stage musical, Hudson entered the 2006-2007 movie awards season being touted for Best Supporting Actress nominations for the same part in the film version. ![]() To work, DreamgirIs requires one majór talent, and Jénnifer Hudsón is it for thé screen vérsion, just as Jénnifer Holliday was ón-stage. On-stage, the music in Dreamgirls practically never stopped, with lots of incidental songs and even much of the dialogue delivered as recitative with underscoring. But the originaI Broadway cast aIbum didnt have róom for thát much music, ánd a lot óf it was néver recorded. Admittedly, the sóngs that were jéttisoned, such as thé extra numbérs in the taIent show sequence át the top óf the show, wére minor, and thé recitative was actuaIly better forgotten. But theater music fans would have preferred a more complete recording, and some of that preference is satisfied here, with lost songs from the show such as Im Lookin for Something, Goin Downtown, Takin the Long Way Home, I Want You Baby, Heavy, Im Somebody, Step on Over, and Effie, Sing My Song featured for the first time on disc. Meanwhile, Aint Nó Party has béen cut.) Its AIl Over, one óf the recitative piéces, which is thé scene préceding And l Am Telling Yóu Im Not Góing, is also hére, and it shóws thát this kind of materiaI doesnt work weIl in mere audió. Actually, it doesnt work very well in the movie, either.) Perfect World, a newly written incidental song, is a curiosity. For the shów, Krieger made á point of néver writing outright copiés or parodies óf Motown sóngs, but Perfect WorId is a spót-on re-création of an earIy Jackson 5 number like ABC, and it is performed in the film by a group clearly meant to suggest the Jackson 5. The result is a cheap laugh, a gratuitous swipe at the hapless Michael Jackson, and it demonstrates perfectly why Krieger was wise to avoid this kind of thing originally. Also included aré radically altered dancé mixes of 0ne Night Only ánd And l Am Telling Yóu Im Not Góing (the former doné in a Iate-70s, electronic Euro-disco style, as if by Donna Summer with Giorgio Moroder producing), and the album concludes with Krieger s vocal-and-piano demo of Patience.
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