Hullo, blog. It's been awhile.
My brother has set himself a challenge over on Facebook: 50 (western) musical numbers, one song per show, no jukebox musicals allowed (but I'm bending that on occasion). I'm going with 75, so I can reuse composers. Gilbert & Sullivan were banned for being operettas, although RENT, Les Mis, Porgy & Bess, and Phantom were allowed in.... All That Jazz is also all standards, even with some lyrical changes. (Well, maybe not Take Off With Us, but... it's really no Everything Old is New Again and There Will Be Some Changes Made.)
So. Here are my 75. (Shockingly, Peter Pan will NOT be making this list.)
Yet to hear and thus ineligible: La Cage Aux Folles, The Drowsy Chaperone, The Rose, Urinetown, Next to Normal, The Last Five Years, In the Heights, Tick Tick Boom, New York New York, The Wild Party, Natasha Pierre and the Great Comet of 1812, If/Then, Carousel, Chess, See What I Wanna See, Victor/Victoria, Dames, Once Upon a Mattress, Candide, Gigi, Paint Your Wagon, The Band Wagon, Top Hat, Merrily We Roll Along, Mame, Yankee Doodle Dandy, Easter Parade, How to Succeed In Business, A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum, Pal Joey, Purlie, State Fair, A Day in Hollywood/A Night in the Ukraine, Summer Stock, A Gentleman's Guide to Love and Murder, No No Nannette, Passing Strange, Curtains, The Light in the Piazza, Bat Boy the Musical, Oh Kay!, 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, the Scarlet Pimpernel, Ragtime, Miss Saigon, Funny Face, the Mystery of Edwin Drood, Joseph & the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, the Boy from Oz, Woman of the Year, A Little Night Music, Follies, Applause, Fiorello!
Composers represented multiple times:
Sondheim (5)
Lerner & Loewe (4)
Kander & Ebb (3)
Oscar Hammerstein (3) (Richard Rodgers didn't work on Show Boat)
Andrew Lloyd Webber (3)
Cole Porter (3)
Ira Gershwin (3) (George didn't work on A Star is Born)
Alan Menken (3)
Stephen Schwartz (3)
Tim Rice (3) (2 with Elton John and 1 with Andrew Lloyd Webber)
Honorary Mentions - those shows I haven't seen all the way through, but I enjoy select songs from them:
South Pacific - Some Enchanted Evening (Rodgers & Hammerstein). I've never actually seen South Pacific, so I only know a couple of the songs. But I'm currently listening to Bloody Mary and it is... something else.
Wonderful Town - Ohio (Leonard Bernstein/Betty Comden/Adolph Green).
Sunset Boulevard - As If We Never Said Goodbye (Andrew Lloyd Webber/Don Black/Christopher Hampton).
Songs for a New World - Stars and the Moon (technically a revue, but I love this song, Jason Robert Brown).
Sunday in the Park with George - Finishing the Hat (Stephen Sondheim).
Gypsy - Everything's Coming Up Roses (Jule Styne/Stephen Sondheim).
The Fantastics - Try to Remember (Harvey Schmidt/Tom Jones). Jerry Orbach was just the best.
Stormy Weather - Stormy Weather (Harold Arlen/Ted Koehler)
Jesus Christ Superstar - I Don't Know How to Love Him (Andrew Lloyd Webber/Tim Rice)
42nd Street - 42nd Street (I may have seen this. I can't quite quite recall if I've seen the whole thing or just clips. Some of those backstage musicals blur a bit. Harry Warren/Al Dubin)
Holiday Inn - White Christmas (Irving Berlin)
Annie Get Your Gun - There's No Business Like Show Business (Irving Berlin)
Damn Yankees - Lola (Richard Adler/Jerry Ross)
Man of La Mancha - The Impossible Dream (Mitch Leigh/Joe Darion)
Guys & Dolls - Sit Down You're Rockin' the Boat (Frank Loesser)
Gold Diggers of 1935 - Lullaby of Broadway (Harry Warren and Al Dubin)
Jeckyll & Hyde - Bring On the Men (Yes, I have heard that this is supposed to be one of the worst musicals ever written. But I love the way Linda Eder sings this number. Frank Wildhorn)
The Top 75 (these first couple are not good musicals, but have at least a good number in them):
75. Tie: Burlesque - Bound To You (Christina Aguilera/Samuel Dixon/Sia (?!)) and Seven Brides for Seven Brothers - the Barn Dance, which is a dance and not a song, but whatever (Saul Chaplin and Gene De Paul).
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74. Annie - It's the Hard Knock Life. (Charles Strouse/Martin Charnin). I'll be honest, I think of Jay-Z when I hear this opening now...
73. Tommy - The Acid Queen (The Who).
72. Les Girls - You're Just Too Too (Cole Porter). I love Kay Kendall in this.
71. Fame - Fame (Michael Gore).
70. Mary Poppins - Chim Chim Cheree (Richard & Robert Sherman).
69. Beautiful - 1650 Broadway Medley (multiple). Totally a jukebox musical, but I thought this medley was actually quite clever.
68. An American in Paris - I Got Rhythm (*cough*Gershwin jukebox*cough* But this list was light on Gene Kelly). (Also seen in Girl Crazy)
67. Bedknobs and Broomsticks - Portobello Road (Richard and Robert Sherman, partial clip). It's strange to me that Mary Poppins is so much more beloved.
66. Bye Bye Birdie - Telephone Hour (Carles Strouse/Lee Adams).
65. Meet Me In St. Louis - Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas (Hugh Martin/Ralph Blane, half jukebox, half original).
64. The King & I - Shall We Dance (Rodgers & Hammerstein).
63. Beauty & the Beast - Tale as Old as Time (Alan Menken).
62. Hairspray - You Can't Stop the Beat (Marc Shaiman/ Scott Wittman).
61. Oliver - Consider Yourself (Lionel Bart).
58. On the Town - New York, New York (Leonard Bernstein/Betty Comden/Adolph Green).
57. Hello, Dolly - Put On Your Sunday Clothes (Jerry Herman).
56. On A Clear Day You Can See Forever - On A Clear Day... (Lerner/Loewe).
55. Spring Awakening - Mama Who Bore Me (Duncan Sheik/ Steven Sater).
54. Cats - Grizabella, the Glamour Cat/ Memory (Andrew Lloyd Webber).
53. Lion King - He Lives in You (Elton John/ Tim Rice).
52. Pippin - Simple Joys (Stephen Schwartz). (Patina Miller Aaaahhh.)
51. Nine - Unusual Way (Maury Yeston).
50. Dr. Horrible's Sing-A-Long Blog - Brand New Day (Jed & Joss Whedon/Maurissa Tancharoen).
49. Spamalot - Where Are You (Eric Idle/John Du Prez/Neil Innes). I'm going Christian Borle on this one, because he CRACKS ME UP in Spamalot. His smile when Lancelot comes in still delights me. (Tragically the video of just this song doesn't seem to be on Youtube any more, so enjoy Sara Ramirez, as well.)
48. Brigadoon - Almost Like Being In Love (Lerner/Loewe).
60. Nashville - I'm Easy (Keith Carradine).
59. A Star is Born - The Man That Got Away. (Harold Arlen and Ira Gershwin).
47. Camelot - The Lusty Month of May (Lerner/Loewe).
46. Wizard of Oz - Somewhere Over the Rainbow (Arlen/Harburg).
45. Kiss Me Kate - Another Opening, Another Show (Cole Porter). Too Darn Hot, Tom, Dick, and Harry (which I do mostly love for Fosse - he's in the red/grey outfit), and Brush Up Your Shakespeare are also wonderful.
44. Funny Girl - Don't Rain On My Parade (Jule Styne/Bob Merrill).
43. The Scottsboro Boys - Southern Days (Kander/Ebb) (iTunes link; I can't find it fully online, sadly). I always feel that this one was a bit of a callback to Tomorrow Belongs to Me. Commencing in Chattanooga is also great.
42. Little Shop of Horrors - Suddenly Seymour (Alan Menken/Howard Ashman).
41. Dreamgirls - I Am Changing (Henry Krieger/Tom Eyen).
40. Gold Diggers 0f 1933 - Remember My Forgotten Man (Harry Warren and Al Dubin).
39. The Pajama Game - Steam Heat (Richard Adler/Jerry Ross). Hernando's Hideaway is also great.
38. My Fair Lady - On the Street Where You Live (Lerner/Loewe).
37. Les Mis - On My Own (Claude-Michel Schonberg/Herbert Kretzmer). Oh, look. I get to post my favorite Les Mis tweet:
36. Grease - You're the One That I Want (Jim Jacobs/Warren Casey).
35. Wicked - Defying Gravity (Stephen Schwartz).
34. Into the Woods - No One Is Alone (Sondheim). Although I do also love Moments.
33. The Threepenny Opera - Mack the Knife (Kurt Weill/Bertolt Brecht). (Did you know there was a 1989 filmed version of Threepenny with Roger Daltrey?)
32. Sweet Charity - Big Spender (Cy Coleman/Dorothy Fields).
31. A Chorus Line - Let Me Dance for You (Marvin Hamlisch/Edward Kleban). One is obviously also awesome.
30. Newsies - Sieze the Day (Alan Menken/ J.A.C. Redford).
29. Godspell - By My Side (Stephen Schwartz). This also wins stupidest lyrics to a pretty song.
28. Porgy & Bess - I Got Plenty O' Nuttin' (Gershwins/DuBose Heyward). I'm letting this in for the new musical version.
27. The Music Man - The Sadder But Wiser Girl (Meredith Wilson). Tragic gender politics, but it makes me laugh.
26. Phantom - Notes/Prima Donna (Andrew Lloyd Webber/Charles Hart). My current favorite; I love Carlotta's high notes. Wishing You Were Somehow Here Again gets the runner up.
25. Aida - The Gods Love Nubia (Elton John/Tim Rice). Elaborate Lives is also beautiful.
24. Marat/Sade - Homage to Marat; Marat We're Poor; People's Reaction; Poor Old Marat (Richard Peaslee). Kinda cheating, but I don't really care. I love this one.
23. Avenue Q - Schadenfreude (Robert Lopez/Jeff Marx).
22. Book of Mormon - I Believe (Trey Parker/ Robert Lopez/ Matt Stone).
21. West Side Story - America (Leonard Bernstein/Stephen Sondheim).
20. Hair - Easy To Be Hard (James Rado/Gerome Ragni/ Galt McDermot). One of my all time favorite performances. I also love Ain't Got No. And I think Flesh Failures is probably the BEST number in the show, but it leads into Let the Sunshine In, which is a really tough transition.
19. Sweeney Todd - A Little Priest (Sondheim).
18. Assassins - The Ballad of Guiteau (Sondheim). Michael Cerveris may have won the Tony for the Ballad of Booth, but I personally prefer Denis O'Hare's Guiteau for repeated listens. (Mr. O'Hare was also nominated for the Tony).
17. Moulin Rouge - Come What May (David Baerwald).
16. Anything Goes - Anything Goes (Cole Porter). Patti singing Blow, Gabriel, Blow is also excellent, but it has a long bridge for dancing. (jukebox, but I don't care.)
15. Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson - Rock Star (partial) (Michael Friedman). I would actually pick Ten Little Indians here, but being a new arrangement of a children's tune, I think that means it is disqualified. But I do love Rock Star, too.
14. Rocky Horror - Once In a While (Richard O'Brien).
13. Oklahoma - I Cain't Say No (Rodgers/Hammerstein). All Er Nothin' is also great. Ado Annie forever. (Please also enjoy this rendition by Amanda Palmer (hey, I was at that show.)
12. Caroline, or Change - Lot's Wife (Tony Kushner/Jeanine Tesori). Hers is one of the most indelible performances I've ever seen.
11. Fiddler On the Roof - Tradition (Jerry Bock/Sheldon Harnick).
10. Singin' In the Rain - Make 'Em Laugh (Arthur Freed/Nacio Herb Brown).
9. American Idiot - Letterbomb (Green Day). Although I do love the show versions of 21 Guns, Favorite Son, and Homecoming, too (I've listened to the Broadway versions more often than their album counterparts). [I don't care if it is kinda sorta a jukebox. The new orchestrations, reworkings of Favorite Son and Too Much Too Soon (b-sides), the mashup of Last of the American Girls/She's a Rebel, and the addition of When It's Time, mean it stands on its own, to me.]
8. Chicago - All That Jazz (Kander/Ebb). (And here's a partial clip from the Tonys, because it gives you Ann Reinking, too. Did you know she once did a version? She did. )
7. Company - Marry Me a Little (Sondheim). I listen to Getting Married Today about as often (here have Madeline Kahn's version. And Katie Finneran's.) But man. Raúl Esparza as Bobby. That was some seriously brilliant casting.
6. Show Boat - Old Man River (this is the 1951 version) (Jerome Kern and Oscar Hammerstein).
5. Cabaret - I Don't Care Much (Kander/Ebb). But here, have Mein Herr, too.
4. Evita - Oh, What a Circus (starts at 8:07) (or Lament or Requiem for Evita) (Andrew Lloyd Webber/Tim Rice). Oh man. There are SO many songs I adore in this one. My brother picked A New Argentina (partial), which is also amazing. Waltz for Eva and Che is my current favorite because I just love their interacting and their dance. I listen to Buenos Aires when traveling. The Money Kept Rolling In (this one was worn out on our VHS in high school. Eva!), and Another Suitcase in Another Hall are also great. But I have to pick one of the ones with that swelling orchestra.
3. Hedwig and the Angry Inch - Midnight Radio (Stephen Trask).
2. 1776 - Momma Look Sharp (Sherman Edwards). Don't get me wrong, I love Cool, Cool, Considerate Men and Sit Down, John, but this is one of the most beautiful songs in all of Broadway.
1. RENT - Another Day (Jonathan Larson). I mean, duh.
My brother has set himself a challenge over on Facebook: 50 (western) musical numbers, one song per show, no jukebox musicals allowed (but I'm bending that on occasion). I'm going with 75, so I can reuse composers. Gilbert & Sullivan were banned for being operettas, although RENT, Les Mis, Porgy & Bess, and Phantom were allowed in.... All That Jazz is also all standards, even with some lyrical changes. (Well, maybe not Take Off With Us, but... it's really no Everything Old is New Again and There Will Be Some Changes Made.)
So. Here are my 75. (Shockingly, Peter Pan will NOT be making this list.)
Yet to hear and thus ineligible: La Cage Aux Folles, The Drowsy Chaperone, The Rose, Urinetown, Next to Normal, The Last Five Years, In the Heights, Tick Tick Boom, New York New York, The Wild Party, Natasha Pierre and the Great Comet of 1812, If/Then, Carousel, Chess, See What I Wanna See, Victor/Victoria, Dames, Once Upon a Mattress, Candide, Gigi, Paint Your Wagon, The Band Wagon, Top Hat, Merrily We Roll Along, Mame, Yankee Doodle Dandy, Easter Parade, How to Succeed In Business, A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum, Pal Joey, Purlie, State Fair, A Day in Hollywood/A Night in the Ukraine, Summer Stock, A Gentleman's Guide to Love and Murder, No No Nannette, Passing Strange, Curtains, The Light in the Piazza, Bat Boy the Musical, Oh Kay!, 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, the Scarlet Pimpernel, Ragtime, Miss Saigon, Funny Face, the Mystery of Edwin Drood, Joseph & the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, the Boy from Oz, Woman of the Year, A Little Night Music, Follies, Applause, Fiorello!
Composers represented multiple times:
Sondheim (5)
Lerner & Loewe (4)
Kander & Ebb (3)
Oscar Hammerstein (3) (Richard Rodgers didn't work on Show Boat)
Andrew Lloyd Webber (3)
Cole Porter (3)
Ira Gershwin (3) (George didn't work on A Star is Born)
Alan Menken (3)
Stephen Schwartz (3)
Tim Rice (3) (2 with Elton John and 1 with Andrew Lloyd Webber)
Honorary Mentions - those shows I haven't seen all the way through, but I enjoy select songs from them:
South Pacific - Some Enchanted Evening (Rodgers & Hammerstein). I've never actually seen South Pacific, so I only know a couple of the songs. But I'm currently listening to Bloody Mary and it is... something else.
Wonderful Town - Ohio (Leonard Bernstein/Betty Comden/Adolph Green).
Sunset Boulevard - As If We Never Said Goodbye (Andrew Lloyd Webber/Don Black/Christopher Hampton).
Songs for a New World - Stars and the Moon (technically a revue, but I love this song, Jason Robert Brown).
Sunday in the Park with George - Finishing the Hat (Stephen Sondheim).
Gypsy - Everything's Coming Up Roses (Jule Styne/Stephen Sondheim).
The Fantastics - Try to Remember (Harvey Schmidt/Tom Jones). Jerry Orbach was just the best.
Stormy Weather - Stormy Weather (Harold Arlen/Ted Koehler)
Jesus Christ Superstar - I Don't Know How to Love Him (Andrew Lloyd Webber/Tim Rice)
42nd Street - 42nd Street (I may have seen this. I can't quite quite recall if I've seen the whole thing or just clips. Some of those backstage musicals blur a bit. Harry Warren/Al Dubin)
Holiday Inn - White Christmas (Irving Berlin)
Annie Get Your Gun - There's No Business Like Show Business (Irving Berlin)
Damn Yankees - Lola (Richard Adler/Jerry Ross)
Man of La Mancha - The Impossible Dream (Mitch Leigh/Joe Darion)
Guys & Dolls - Sit Down You're Rockin' the Boat (Frank Loesser)
Gold Diggers of 1935 - Lullaby of Broadway (Harry Warren and Al Dubin)
Jeckyll & Hyde - Bring On the Men (Yes, I have heard that this is supposed to be one of the worst musicals ever written. But I love the way Linda Eder sings this number. Frank Wildhorn)
The Top 75 (these first couple are not good musicals, but have at least a good number in them):
75. Tie: Burlesque - Bound To You (Christina Aguilera/Samuel Dixon/Sia (?!)) and Seven Brides for Seven Brothers - the Barn Dance, which is a dance and not a song, but whatever (Saul Chaplin and Gene De Paul).
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74. Annie - It's the Hard Knock Life. (Charles Strouse/Martin Charnin). I'll be honest, I think of Jay-Z when I hear this opening now...
73. Tommy - The Acid Queen (The Who).
72. Les Girls - You're Just Too Too (Cole Porter). I love Kay Kendall in this.
71. Fame - Fame (Michael Gore).
70. Mary Poppins - Chim Chim Cheree (Richard & Robert Sherman).
69. Beautiful - 1650 Broadway Medley (multiple). Totally a jukebox musical, but I thought this medley was actually quite clever.
68. An American in Paris - I Got Rhythm (*cough*Gershwin jukebox*cough* But this list was light on Gene Kelly). (Also seen in Girl Crazy)
67. Bedknobs and Broomsticks - Portobello Road (Richard and Robert Sherman, partial clip). It's strange to me that Mary Poppins is so much more beloved.
66. Bye Bye Birdie - Telephone Hour (Carles Strouse/Lee Adams).
65. Meet Me In St. Louis - Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas (Hugh Martin/Ralph Blane, half jukebox, half original).
64. The King & I - Shall We Dance (Rodgers & Hammerstein).
63. Beauty & the Beast - Tale as Old as Time (Alan Menken).
62. Hairspray - You Can't Stop the Beat (Marc Shaiman/ Scott Wittman).
61. Oliver - Consider Yourself (Lionel Bart).
58. On the Town - New York, New York (Leonard Bernstein/Betty Comden/Adolph Green).
57. Hello, Dolly - Put On Your Sunday Clothes (Jerry Herman).
56. On A Clear Day You Can See Forever - On A Clear Day... (Lerner/Loewe).
55. Spring Awakening - Mama Who Bore Me (Duncan Sheik/ Steven Sater).
54. Cats - Grizabella, the Glamour Cat/ Memory (Andrew Lloyd Webber).
53. Lion King - He Lives in You (Elton John/ Tim Rice).
52. Pippin - Simple Joys (Stephen Schwartz). (Patina Miller Aaaahhh.)
51. Nine - Unusual Way (Maury Yeston).
50. Dr. Horrible's Sing-A-Long Blog - Brand New Day (Jed & Joss Whedon/Maurissa Tancharoen).
49. Spamalot - Where Are You (Eric Idle/John Du Prez/Neil Innes). I'm going Christian Borle on this one, because he CRACKS ME UP in Spamalot. His smile when Lancelot comes in still delights me. (Tragically the video of just this song doesn't seem to be on Youtube any more, so enjoy Sara Ramirez, as well.)
48. Brigadoon - Almost Like Being In Love (Lerner/Loewe).
60. Nashville - I'm Easy (Keith Carradine).
59. A Star is Born - The Man That Got Away. (Harold Arlen and Ira Gershwin).
47. Camelot - The Lusty Month of May (Lerner/Loewe).
46. Wizard of Oz - Somewhere Over the Rainbow (Arlen/Harburg).
45. Kiss Me Kate - Another Opening, Another Show (Cole Porter). Too Darn Hot, Tom, Dick, and Harry (which I do mostly love for Fosse - he's in the red/grey outfit), and Brush Up Your Shakespeare are also wonderful.
44. Funny Girl - Don't Rain On My Parade (Jule Styne/Bob Merrill).
43. The Scottsboro Boys - Southern Days (Kander/Ebb) (iTunes link; I can't find it fully online, sadly). I always feel that this one was a bit of a callback to Tomorrow Belongs to Me. Commencing in Chattanooga is also great.
42. Little Shop of Horrors - Suddenly Seymour (Alan Menken/Howard Ashman).
41. Dreamgirls - I Am Changing (Henry Krieger/Tom Eyen).
40. Gold Diggers 0f 1933 - Remember My Forgotten Man (Harry Warren and Al Dubin).
39. The Pajama Game - Steam Heat (Richard Adler/Jerry Ross). Hernando's Hideaway is also great.
38. My Fair Lady - On the Street Where You Live (Lerner/Loewe).
37. Les Mis - On My Own (Claude-Michel Schonberg/Herbert Kretzmer). Oh, look. I get to post my favorite Les Mis tweet:
36. Grease - You're the One That I Want (Jim Jacobs/Warren Casey).
35. Wicked - Defying Gravity (Stephen Schwartz).
34. Into the Woods - No One Is Alone (Sondheim). Although I do also love Moments.
33. The Threepenny Opera - Mack the Knife (Kurt Weill/Bertolt Brecht). (Did you know there was a 1989 filmed version of Threepenny with Roger Daltrey?)
32. Sweet Charity - Big Spender (Cy Coleman/Dorothy Fields).
31. A Chorus Line - Let Me Dance for You (Marvin Hamlisch/Edward Kleban). One is obviously also awesome.
30. Newsies - Sieze the Day (Alan Menken/ J.A.C. Redford).
29. Godspell - By My Side (Stephen Schwartz). This also wins stupidest lyrics to a pretty song.
28. Porgy & Bess - I Got Plenty O' Nuttin' (Gershwins/DuBose Heyward). I'm letting this in for the new musical version.
27. The Music Man - The Sadder But Wiser Girl (Meredith Wilson). Tragic gender politics, but it makes me laugh.
26. Phantom - Notes/Prima Donna (Andrew Lloyd Webber/Charles Hart). My current favorite; I love Carlotta's high notes. Wishing You Were Somehow Here Again gets the runner up.
25. Aida - The Gods Love Nubia (Elton John/Tim Rice). Elaborate Lives is also beautiful.
24. Marat/Sade - Homage to Marat; Marat We're Poor; People's Reaction; Poor Old Marat (Richard Peaslee). Kinda cheating, but I don't really care. I love this one.
23. Avenue Q - Schadenfreude (Robert Lopez/Jeff Marx).
22. Book of Mormon - I Believe (Trey Parker/ Robert Lopez/ Matt Stone).
21. West Side Story - America (Leonard Bernstein/Stephen Sondheim).
20. Hair - Easy To Be Hard (James Rado/Gerome Ragni/ Galt McDermot). One of my all time favorite performances. I also love Ain't Got No. And I think Flesh Failures is probably the BEST number in the show, but it leads into Let the Sunshine In, which is a really tough transition.
19. Sweeney Todd - A Little Priest (Sondheim).
18. Assassins - The Ballad of Guiteau (Sondheim). Michael Cerveris may have won the Tony for the Ballad of Booth, but I personally prefer Denis O'Hare's Guiteau for repeated listens. (Mr. O'Hare was also nominated for the Tony).
17. Moulin Rouge - Come What May (David Baerwald).
16. Anything Goes - Anything Goes (Cole Porter). Patti singing Blow, Gabriel, Blow is also excellent, but it has a long bridge for dancing. (jukebox, but I don't care.)
15. Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson - Rock Star (partial) (Michael Friedman). I would actually pick Ten Little Indians here, but being a new arrangement of a children's tune, I think that means it is disqualified. But I do love Rock Star, too.
14. Rocky Horror - Once In a While (Richard O'Brien).
13. Oklahoma - I Cain't Say No (Rodgers/Hammerstein). All Er Nothin' is also great. Ado Annie forever. (Please also enjoy this rendition by Amanda Palmer (hey, I was at that show.)
12. Caroline, or Change - Lot's Wife (Tony Kushner/Jeanine Tesori). Hers is one of the most indelible performances I've ever seen.
11. Fiddler On the Roof - Tradition (Jerry Bock/Sheldon Harnick).
10. Singin' In the Rain - Make 'Em Laugh (Arthur Freed/Nacio Herb Brown).
9. American Idiot - Letterbomb (Green Day). Although I do love the show versions of 21 Guns, Favorite Son, and Homecoming, too (I've listened to the Broadway versions more often than their album counterparts). [I don't care if it is kinda sorta a jukebox. The new orchestrations, reworkings of Favorite Son and Too Much Too Soon (b-sides), the mashup of Last of the American Girls/She's a Rebel, and the addition of When It's Time, mean it stands on its own, to me.]
8. Chicago - All That Jazz (Kander/Ebb). (And here's a partial clip from the Tonys, because it gives you Ann Reinking, too. Did you know she once did a version? She did. )
7. Company - Marry Me a Little (Sondheim). I listen to Getting Married Today about as often (here have Madeline Kahn's version. And Katie Finneran's.) But man. Raúl Esparza as Bobby. That was some seriously brilliant casting.
6. Show Boat - Old Man River (this is the 1951 version) (Jerome Kern and Oscar Hammerstein).
5. Cabaret - I Don't Care Much (Kander/Ebb). But here, have Mein Herr, too.
4. Evita - Oh, What a Circus (starts at 8:07) (or Lament or Requiem for Evita) (Andrew Lloyd Webber/Tim Rice). Oh man. There are SO many songs I adore in this one. My brother picked A New Argentina (partial), which is also amazing. Waltz for Eva and Che is my current favorite because I just love their interacting and their dance. I listen to Buenos Aires when traveling. The Money Kept Rolling In (this one was worn out on our VHS in high school. Eva!), and Another Suitcase in Another Hall are also great. But I have to pick one of the ones with that swelling orchestra.
3. Hedwig and the Angry Inch - Midnight Radio (Stephen Trask).
2. 1776 - Momma Look Sharp (Sherman Edwards). Don't get me wrong, I love Cool, Cool, Considerate Men and Sit Down, John, but this is one of the most beautiful songs in all of Broadway.
1. RENT - Another Day (Jonathan Larson). I mean, duh.
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