I have a confession to make. I love songwriters. I have always championed them, initiating over the years countless composer programs and seminars because, for me, nothing is more exciting than hearing a songwriter do his or her own work. And now, here is my latest songwriters forum. Although this PS Classics release is titled If I Sing, there are no ifs... or ands or buts about it. Every song on this CD is being performed by the writers who originally penned them.
Getting all of these wonderful writers into the studio was no easy task. We had to grab them whenever they were available. So the vocals on this album took six years to compile, starting back in 2000.
But what a lineup! From the world of Broadway, there are veterans like Stephen Schwartz, Lucy Simon, Maury Yeston, Richard Maltby, Jr. and David Shire, Gretchen Cryer and Nancy Ford, as well as some of the newer generation, like Andrew Lippa and the team of Robert Lopez and Jeff Marx (doing a cut song from their score for Avenue Q).
The pop world is represented by my dear friend Julie Gold, Emily Bindiger of the Accidentals, and country-western star Larry Gatlin. Two fine musical directors from the world of cabaret, Rick Jensen and Shelly Markham, also get to show their songwriting talents. And, not to be left out of my own celebration, I sing a composition that I wrote with Lanny Meyers and Jane R. Snyder.
I'm grateful to all these artists for the time and care they put into this new album. After you listen, I'm hoping you'll find that you love songwriters just as much as I do. |
