Track Listing

1. Overture - Jeanne Lehman, , Penny Worth
2. World Must Be Bigger Than an Avenue - Debbie Reynolds
3. What Do You Want to Make Those Eyes at Me For? - Chorus
4. Family Tree - Ruth Warrick, Chorus
5. Alice Blue Gown - Debbie Reynolds
6. They Go Wild, Simply Wild, Over Me - George S. Irving
7. Irish Girl - Debbie Reynolds, Chorus
8. Mother, Angel, Darling - Patsy Kelly, Debbie Reynolds
9. Riviera Rage - Debbie Reynolds
10. I'm Always Chasing Rainbows - Debbie Reynolds
11. Last Part of Ev'ry Party - Chorus
12. We're Getting Away With It - Carmen Alvarez, Ted Pugh, , Janie Sell
13. Irene
14. Great Lover Tango - Janie Sell
15. You Made Me Love You - Debbie Reynolds
16. You Made Me Love You (Reprise) - Patsy Kelly,
17. Finale - Debbie Reynolds, Company

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #166713 in Music
• Released on: 1992-11-24
• Number of discs: 1
• Format: Cast Recording
• Dimensions: .23 pounds

Customer Reviews

"The World Must Be Bigger Than an Avenue".....
IRENE was a classic Broadway musical of the 1930s. After the success of the 1971 revival of NO NO NANETTE, producers Harry Rigby, Albert W. Seldon and Jerome Minskoff decided that IRENE should be the next classic musical to get a Broadway revival.

With a score by Harry Tierney and Joseph McCarthy (with additional new material by Charles Gaynor and Otis Clements) and a book by Hugh Wheeler and Joseph Stein, IRENE returned to Broadway, opening at the Minskoff Theatre in 1973, and enjoying a run of 605 performances.

Movie musical star Debbie Reynolds made her Broadway debut in the title role. The slight story concerns Irene O'Dare, a pianotuner from 9th Avenue who decides to journey forth and see where life's adventures take her. The cast also included Monte Markham, Carmen Alvarez, Janie Sell, Ruth Warrick and Ted Pugh, with George S. Irving as the eccentric fashion designer Madame Lucy.

Patsy Kelly (who won a Tony for her performance as Pauline the maid in NO NO NANETTE) played Irene's feisty mother. The score is pure musical-theatre heaven, with several big numbers including "The World Must Be Bigger Than an Avenue", "Mother, Angel, Darling", "You Made Me Love You", "The Family Tree" and the cute dance number "The Riviera Rage". There is also the score's most memorable song, "Alice-Blue Gown" as well as "I'm Always Chasing Rainbows" (recorded for the cast album but dropped for Reynolds' engagement, later restored when Jane Powell took over the role of Irene).

For musical theatre fans, an essential cast album. Highly-recommended.

Nostalgic Review
This soundtrack is a great piece of nostalgia! It features many songs that were originally popular in the '20s and '30s. The cast does a great job capturing the feel of the era. The tempoes are a little slow, but other than that I have no complaints. I highly reccomend this recording to anyone who enjoys music from the golden era.

Classic
Debbie Reynolds sings beautifully. She holds control over the show and brings it to the front. Her classic "ALways chasing rainbows" is wonderful as is, "You Made me love you".