Way Back to Paradise

i first heard this song at school when we had guest speakers about opera and i fell in love with it and than we listened to Audra McDonald sing and i fell in love with her voice. So both the Song and the Singer are AWESOME!!!!!!!

I adore Audra McDonald. She is a meteoric talent, and the best thing about Broadway these days. She can sing almost anything, from George Gershwin's operatic "My Man's Gone Now" to the jazzy little piece "I Double Dare You," both of which she has recorded. Considering this, it is incomprehensible to me why she should choose material such as this for her first solo album. Granted, it showcases her voice well - just listen to the high notes she hits in "Come to Jesus" among other things - but it is extremely unmelodious and difficult to listen to. The only bit I would bother listening to again is "You Don't Know This Man," which is very smoky in orchestration and dramatic in delivery, though "Mistress of the Senator" and "Tom" aren't bad either. Buy it if you are a fan of the composers or style. If you like Audra and ar wanting something a little more classic, go for her second or third CD.

This CD is amazing, no doubt about it. Audra McDonald has one of the most amazing voices in the world. "You Don't Know This Man" made me want to cry before I even bought it, and I can tell you right now that I will never regret buying that. There is a passion in her voice that you can't find in most singer's voices. Her tone is so clear and beautiful that I can hardly regain conciousness of anything else going on around me. You should definitely buy this CD.

I love her version of Stars and the Moon! It's amazing!!~~

Audra McDonald and Adam Guettel are leaders of the future of the American Musical Theatre. THank goodness they are at the reign! The cuts on this amazing album (where Audra used material from Composer's who were basically not known outside of NY), is a tribute to a voice formidable. Guettel and McDonald teaming up on Cut 3 is the highlight of this superb album. Incidently, Adam Guettel (Grandson of Richard Rodgers) went on to write his first musical that was loved by theatre-goers (Floyd Collin's seems to have been a NY secret), 'Light in the Piazza'...but that is another two paragraphs..one on Guettel's genius and another of the show, cast and recroding, in itself!