I Am A Swede

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DSKnkqAOhpA&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lrY-nC6QYwk

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D6zBjYIyz-0

While I do find the Broadway album over produced (but as Swede said, it's nothing compared to the second one), it's ironic how hard she had to fight to be allowed to record it. And yet I believe it became a huge huge hit.

It was definitely a huge hit, reaching number 1 on the Billboard chart and giving Babs a Grammy for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance.

Barbra hated doing Funny Lady, she only did it because she was contractually obligated to do a sequel to Funny Girl if it was a success.

She may have hated it, but it gave us this dynamite number:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0zWNOB8fIow

But, if we're talking musically and not movie wise, I lose interest by the 80s. Stephen Sondheim is my all time favorite composer, and I appreciate thatg she helped get many of his songs noticed by non theatre people thanks to Babs singing them on her 80s Broadway albums, but they're SO over produced, they just become cheesy mushy adult contemporary crap. And I feel that way about a lot of her stuff post late 70s--it startes to verge into Celine Dion territory for me (don't get me wrong, I have some Celine guilty pleasurers). There's no edge, and by that I don't mean she should do cutting edge pop, but it starts to sound like muzak to me.

I agree that "Back to Broadway" (1993) is a bit over produced. I much prefer "The Broadway Album" (1985). Alongside "Guilty" (1980) I think that's her best album since the 60s. Her rendition of "Send in the clowns" is one of my all-time favourite Babs songs.

Those television specials she did hold up well too.

They're fantastic! It's amazing that she was only 23-24 years old when she did "My Name Is Barbra" and "Color Me Barbra".

From Color Me Barbra:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m3hNwnY7bDI

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kH2qmvnJHmg

Well, personally I'd rather listen to Barbra holding the notes than someone like Mariah or Beyonce trying to fit as many notes as possible into every sentence.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rt_jjHAQoJU

Well, everyone else has their own thread (Madonna, Tina Turner, Adele, Lady Gaga, Britney etc) so I thought, why not?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y9yepsv842U

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tmXYMjCsXAo

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TVMtffzbAwk

Maggie Smith

Here we go again. I don't even think this is political, it goes far beyond that, but...

Various superpowered religious organizations are going to push harder than ever for legislation that will let an employer deny any medical treatment if it goes against their religious liberty.

This is not too far off from having people die if they aren't the right kind of person, which already happens, and is probably fine with many out there.

http://www.chicagotr...0,5218603.story

Absolutely unbelievable! I'm glad I live in a country where things like this aren't even an issue.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TzQb2uJfMX0

This is so sad. Not totally unexpected, but so, so sad.

Her first album is one of those rare ones that have no weak songs. No song you skip over when you listen to it. Sheer perfection from beginning to end.