Brel Alive & Well [Original recording remastered, Cast Recording, Soundtrack]

With this superb four-person cast, supported by a small number of instruments, the voices and lyrics make this a full-bodied hit. Mort Shuman's "Amsterdam," Brel's dedication to the night life in the port of the Dutch city, haunts and enlivens me. His "Next", a sad memory of his first sexual encounter, provided gratis by the army, makes it clear why he never wants to be "next" ever again. Elly Stone's voice leaves me near tears. Shawn Elliott and Alice Whitfield have slightly smaller roles and receive lesser accolades, but their contributions are memorable and make the production full, rich and well-rounded. The closing, "If we only have love," is a tribute to the author and to the cast. With 23 stylish numbers, this CD is one you can play endlessly, enjoying. Adding "The middle class" to this version is not only a nice 'extra', it is one of the best numbers, a memorable tribute to the terror of first despising the middle class, only to later find you are part of it, and despised as well.

These are 'show tunes' in the best sense of the term, and although there is no linear plot to follow, the music makes the show one worth repeating. Enjoy!

You can't commend Mort Shuman enough for how seamlessly he translated Brel's original French into English without compromising any of the content or rhythm and it speaks volumes about how talented he was as a songwriter in his own right. Future generations are, and will be, grateful to him for it. Regardless of how one interprets the work of this cast, Shuman will always be responsible for anybody's English version of a Brel song because he was the one who sat down with Brel himself and worked it all out.

One thing this project experimented with to a good deal of success was using a female as Brel's voice for some of the more tender and vulnerable songs. I think 'Timid Frieda' and 'Old Folks' outshine Brel's originals due to that element and 'You're Not Alone' at least matches Brel. The two female cast members, Stone and Whitfield, sing throughout, but those solo performances are a nice touch.

Although Shuman and Elliott perform admirably, I find myself preferring Scott Walker's voice and sneer on 'Mathilde', 'Jackie', 'Amsterdam' and 'Next'. Walker projected more power and anyone who's into Brel should really seek out Walker's work if they haven't already.

Mortality is the foremost theme in all of Brel's work, and what made him so great is how he made death and poverty beautiful and not so much a tragedy. Still, for all the songs about dying and aging he'd still throw in a jaunty trot like 'Madeleine' or 'Brussels' to balance things out.

Moods aside, the music strikes the North American as very European and somewhat exotic for it has a richness of tradition and history that the Americas lack. Not necessarily in terms of time, but in terms of critical experience and culture. We don't know what it's like to live in a country that lost a war or to experiment with different forms of government or socialism on a grand scale. Brel's music comes from just such a place and it's interesting, leaving the listener somewhat jealous.

Brel's greatest talent in my opinion though is how he dealt with challenging and complex issues using such simple language that anybody can understand them, and not only that, but feel it in their heart. You just can't find anything more heartbreaking than 'Old Folks' and 'Fanette' anywhere and neither of them ever get dense or particularly poetic. They're like a raw feed, so to speak, from the center of existence.

Brel himself gets five stars anywhere but this particular interpretation gets four. That's a good four though.