|
|
|
| 2010 Let Us Entertain You |
|
Act One This year's show begins with our tribute to the 'King of Pop, Michael Jackson, who has once again become a huge star, with sales of over 7.5 million copies following his tragic death last year. Our medley begins with Wanna Be Starting Something, taken from the bestselling album of all time, Thriller. The second track is the title song from the 1987 album Bad, which reached number three, helped by its memorable video, which was directed by cinema legend Martin Scorsese. Thriller was the seventh single release from the album of the same name, although the video is probably more famous than the song itself - directed by John Landis, it is regularly voted as the greatest video of all time. The Man In The Mirror reached number twenty one in 1987 but following Jackson's death the song re-entered the chart, reaching number two. We Are The World, written by Jackson and Lionel Ritchie for USA For Africa in 1985, raised over $60 million for famine relief. Featuring a huge cast of singers, it was the fastest selling single in the US chart. Our medley closes with Beat It, featuring a memorable guitar solo by Eddie Van Halen, who, when asked to play on the record, asssumed the call was a prank!
Our look back to the Noughties begins with Can't Get You Out Of My Head, Kylie Minogue's most successful single, reaching number one in over 30 countries and selling four million copies. Next is Patience, Take That's comeback single after their 2006 reformation, which reached number one in the UK. Viva La Vida is Spanish for 'Live the Life' and was released by Coldplay in 2008, giving the band their first UK and US number one single. Valerie was originally released by the rock band The Zutons in in 2006, and was covered in 2007 by Amy Winehouse and producer Mark Ronson, their version reaching number two. Elbow's 2008 single One Day Like This, although not a massive hit, has become a regular fixture on TV sports shows, staying in the charts for a mammoth 35 weeks! The fourth best selling single of 2006 was Scissor Sisters' I Don't Feel Like Dancin'. Co-written by the band and Elton John, it was their first - and so far their only- UK number one. This section closes with Never Forget You, originally released by the Noisettes in 2009.
Our'showtunes' section commences with Til I Hear You Sing, taken from Andrew Lloyd Webber's Phantom Of The Opera sequel Love Never Dies. This song tells of the love the Phantom still feels for Christine some ten years after the original tale. Next is a medley from the 1960s musical Miss Saigon. This collaboration between Claude-Michel Schonberg and Alain Boublil is an updated version of the opera Madame Butterfly, set during the Vietnam war. I'm Not That Girl is taken from the 2003 hit musical Wicked , written by Stephen Schwartz, and is sung by the future Wicked Witch of the West, Elphaba. We feature the 2009 version by West End star Kerry Ellis, which was produced by legendary Queen guitarist Brian May.
We close our first half with two songs from Jerry Herman's 1983 musical La Cage Aux Folles, based on the earlier French movie of the same name. Its recent revival has featured stars as varied as Frasier's Kelsey Grammer, Torchwood's John Barrowman and even Graham Norton! Tonight we perform the title track and the anthemic showstopper I Am What I Am, the latter being more famous as a 1983 hit for Gloria Gaynor.
|
Act Two
Our second half opens with a medley from the Alan Menken and Howard Ashman musical Little Shop Of Horrors. Originally a 1983 off-Broadway hit, the show grew to become the most successful off-Broadway show in history. Based on a low budget 1960 Roger Corman movie, the show itself was subsequently filmed by director Frank Oz and memorably starred Rick Moranis as Seymour, Ellen Greene as Audrey and Steve Martin as the dentist.
Act Two continues with a section of songs from Scottish-based performers. The first of these is Gerry Rafferty's 1978 hit Baker Street, which featured a memorable saxophone solo by Raphael Ravenscroft. There is a popular urban myth about the song, which says that the solo was recorded by Blockbusters host Bob Holness - it wasn't! Sweet Dreams (Are Made Of This) was written by Eurythmics duo Dave Stewart and Annie Lennox for their 1983 album of the same name. The song was a number two hit in the UK and gave the band their first US chart topper. The next number, Vienna, was released by Ultravox in 1981 and famously spent four weeks at number two in the UK charts, being kept from the top spot by Joe Dolce's Shaddup You Face!. The section closes with Mr Rock And Roll, a 2007 release by Glaswegian singer-songwriter Amy Macdonald, which reached number 12 and helped Macdonald's debut album This Is The Life into the top ten.
Our next section begins with Doomsday, an atmospheric piece of music by Murray Gold composed for the revived Dr Who to accompany the hearbreaking scenes from 2006 when the Doctor was separated from Rose Tyler, supposedly forever! Born To Be Wild was originally recorded by Canadian rock band Steppenwolf in 1967 and came to prominence when it was featured in the 1969 movie Easy Rider. In complete contrast, the next number is Samuel Barber's 1936 work Adagio For Strings, from his string quartet Op11. The piece has featured in movies as varied as Platoon, and The Elephant Man and in 2004 listeners of the BBC Today programme voted it the 'saddest piece of music ever'. The section concludes with Cry Me A River, which was originally composed from Ella Fitzgerald in 1928. Our version is based on the recent Michael Buble big band cover that was released as a single in March this year, reaching number 19.
Our finale commences with Eric Clapton's ballad Tears In Heaven. Written in 1991 after the death of his young son Connor, the song won three Grammy awards, including Record Of The Year. Hallelujah was originally recorded by Leonard Cohen in 1984 and has been covered by over 200 different artists. The next song is the title of this year's show, Don't Stop Believing. Originally recorded by US band Journey in 1981, the record only reached number sixty two, but has since reached number two after featuring in the hit TV series Glee. These Are The Days Of Our Lives was predominantly written by Queen drummer Roger Taylor for the band's last LP with Freddie Mercury before his death in 1991. The song was issued as a double A side single (with Bohemian Rhapsody) following Freddie's death and was awarded a Brit award as best single of 1991. The song is especially remembered for its poignant video, in which a visibly ill Mercury appears to be saying goodbye to his fans.
|