"As Thousands Cheer" Soundtrack Lyrics

"As Thousands Cheer" Soundtrack Description

Old headlines, fresh ink

A cast album that feels like flipping through a 1933 newspaper and finding the margins still talk back. The 1999 recording of “As Thousands Cheer” takes the lean, witty Off-Broadway revival and bottles it—two players in the pit, six on the mic, and Irving Berlin’s melodies refusing to age on schedule. The sketches are gone on disc, mostly; the songs do the carrying. You can hear the grin in the arrangements and the sting in the subjects. It’s revue history trimmed for the commute, not a museum tour.

Production & Release

Cut in early December 1998 at Clinton Recording Studios and released March 23, 1999, the album marks the first full cast recording of Berlin & Moss Hart’s 1933 lightning bolt. Varèse Sarabande handled the release; Bruce Kimmel produced; the band is a pocket: piano + string bass, with David Evans shaping the arrangements like a newsroom editor who hates bloat. Later reissues surfaced under Concord’s theatrical catalog, but the bones here are the Drama Dept. revival company you wanted captured.

• Recorded: early December 1998, New York (Clinton Recording Studios)
• Release year: 1999 (album date for this entry)
• Producer: Bruce Kimmel
• Music direction/arrangements: David Evans
• Core ensemble (revival): Judy Kuhn, Howard McGillin, B.D. Wong, Mary Beth Peil, Kevin Chamberlin, Paula Newsome
• Why it matters: first time the revue’s musical tapestry got a proper cast album; some “newspaper” numbers reinstated just for the record

Musical Styles & Themes

Berlin writes like the front page: direct, singable, instantly legible. The album leans cabaret-clean—no lush pit, just smart chords and unfussy grooves—so the lyrics bite. Stylistically you get tin-pan sass, ballad candor, and dance-floor bounce where needed. Thematically, it’s America looking at itself: weather turned into “Heat Wave”, society columns into “Easter Parade”, grief and race into “Supper Time”, identity into “Harlem on My Mind”. The satire lands because the tunes go down easy.

Track Highlights (not the full tracklist)

• “Heat Wave” — The weather report as headline hook. Even pared back, it struts. That walking left hand is practically choreography.
• “Easter Parade” — A standard reborn as scene partner; the revival tiptoed around usage onstage, the album gives you the glow straight up.
• “Harlem on My Mind” — A society woman’s confession, half-fetish, half-longing; the minimal band gets out of the lyric’s way.
• “Supper Time” — The album’s gravity center: a widow sings about a lynching, and the room stops. Berlin’s clean language makes it hit harder.
• “How’s Chances?” — Flirtation built like a headline pun—smile on the face, structure underneath.
• “Debts” — Nerdy catnip: a topical quip about international repayments that plays like a pocket patter song.
• Finale bit — That self-referential “we don’t need a reprise” wink; revue DNA showing off.

What the “story” looks like in a revue

No plot, just a stack of headlines. That’s the conceit: sketches and songs built from 1930s news—politics, society pages, weather, even the comic strips. Onstage, six actors juggle dozens of personae; on record, the songs carry the headlines. The arc is tonal rather than literal: satire → sentiment → sting → celebration. The through-line is the newspaper frame, and Berlin’s sense that the melody should read like a lead paragraph.

Cast breakdown (revival principals)

• Judy Kuhn — burnished soprano, sly comic timing; she can turn a patter into a threat with one vowel.
• Howard McGillin — patrician gleam, easy croon; your society-page anchor.
• B.D. Wong — precision and play; lands the quick-change humor without smudging the consonants.
• Mary Beth Peil — velvet steel; ballads sit comfortably in her pocket.
• Kevin Chamberlin — deadpan mischief baked in; a stealth rhythm section in human form.
• Paula Newsome — savvy pulse, sharp edges; keeps the satire moving.

Why this cast album still works

• Scale: piano-and-bass clarity lets the lyric do its job; no string cushions to hide in.
• Editing: the revival trims Hart’s world to the good stuff; the album adds back a few period curios you want to hear, not necessarily stage.
• Balance: you get the wink and the wound—the revue’s secret sauce.

Behind the Scenes

A one-day, marathon session—cast reunited, coffee doing overtime, jokes in the control room—captured the show with Bruce Kimmel producing. David Evans runs the keyboard like a newsroom: tight, responsive, economical. The recording’s a time capsule of that Drama Dept. staging that had critics buzzing: fewer bodies than 1933, same bite. And yes, this was the first time the show ever got a real cast album; took six decades and a small army’s calendar math to make it happen.

• Arranging choice: keep it lean (piano/bass), put the words in front.
• Reinstated for disc: a handful of topical numbers that sing better than they now play.
• Rights tango: one or two evergreen titles danced around for the stage, eased onto the album.

Critic & Fan Reactions

The theatre press called the revival a small miracle and the album the right souvenir: sixty-five-year-old satire with present-tense snap. Record folks clocked the orchestration minimalism—some missed the plush, most heard intent. Among fans, it became the go-to “show your friend Berlin beyond the obvious” disc. You finish humming “How’s Chances?” and then realize “Supper Time” hasn’t let go yet.

Quotes

“Cut the fat, keep the headline.” — liner-note brain, distilled

“Two instruments, six voices, one newspaper.” — rewatch notes

FAQ

Is this a new musical or a revival recording?

A revival cast album—capturing the Drama Dept.’s acclaimed 1998 Off-Broadway production, released in 1999.

Full orchestra?

Nope. It’s intentionally piano and bass, which keeps Berlin’s text and tune in sharp focus.

Why is this album notable?

It’s the first time the 1933 revue got a dedicated cast recording, with a few period songs reinstated just for audio.

Does it include the sketches?

Mostly songs, with the “newspaper” concept implied rather than staged. Think musical headlines without the ink smudges.

Who steered the sound?

Producer Bruce Kimmel and music director/arranger David Evans—clean, witty, unfussy.

Any modern reissues?

Yes; later digital editions circulate under Concord’s theatrical umbrella, but the core program mirrors the Varèse release.

Technical Info

• Title: As Thousands Cheer — 1998 Off-Broadway Cast / Original Cast Recording
• Year: 1999
• Type: musical
• Composer/Lyricist: Irving Berlin
• Concept/Sketches: Moss Hart (revue format, newspaper headlines)
• Cast (revival album): Judy Kuhn, Howard McGillin, B.D. Wong, Mary Beth Peil, Kevin Chamberlin, Paula Newsome
• Band: Piano (David Evans), String Bass (Lou Bruno)
• Producer: Bruce Kimmel
• Music Director/Arranger: David Evans
• Recorded at: Clinton Recording Studios, New York
• Release label (1999): Varèse Sarabande (catalog VSD-5999)
• Album length: ~45:08
• Standards featured: “Heat Wave,” “Easter Parade,” “Harlem on My Mind,” “Supper Time,” among others

Additional Info

• Context note: The original 1933 production gave Ethel Waters equal star billing—historic, and you feel that legacy whenever “Supper Time” shows up.
• Listening tip: Play the satire cuts back-to-back, then chase with the ballads. The emotional whiplash is the point.
• Reissue quirk: Some digital storefronts date the compilation as 1998 under Concord’s theater line; the cast recording’s splash in stores happened in 1999.
• Why two instruments work: Headlines should be legible; the minimal pit keeps every consonant in focus.

September, 24th 2025