The Boy From Oz-”Original Broadway Cast Recording

Yes, it’s a shame producers felt the need to rewrite The Boy From Oz for American audiences. It’s also a pity Todd McKenny didn’t get to relive the role of his career on Broadway and it’s a freaking travesty they cut Tenterfield Saddler from the New York production. So why would any true-blue Aussie show queen want to buy this particular recording (apart from the fact that dyed-in-the-wool show queens buy every thing)? Firstly, there’s Hugh Jackman, whose turn as Peter Allen has received glittering reviews (as opposed to the show itself, which was panned). Jackman is an intelligent and sensitive performer, and brings to Allen’s ballads a tenderness and conviction that further humanises the ham behind the Hawaiian shirts. Secondly, there are the songs themselves. Like or loathe Allen the singer, he wrote a mean ballad. Thankfully the producers have included Tenterfield Saddler as a bonus track on this record and Jackman’s rendition is enjoyably upsetting. Finally, there’s Isabel Keating as Judy Garland, whose lilting All I Wanted Was The Dream is perfectly balanced by the urgency of Don’t Wish Too Hard, Judy’s informed warning to daughter Liza not to marry a suss-dog. Be quick on the skip button though for She Loves To Hear The Music, which inexplicably increases in tempo until it recalls Yakety Sax. Beth Fowler’s accent as Pete’s Mum sabotages Don’t Cry Out Loud: she sounds like the love child of Princess Anne and a Cockney chimney sweep.