John Waters
' engaging 1988 film
Hairspray
received a
musical comedy
makeover in 2002 that became a bona fide Broadway hit. The original cast album immediately reveals the foundation of the show's success through its winning combination of clever lyrics by
Scott Wittman
and
Marc Shaiman
, a bouncy
rock & roll
sound courtesy of composer
, and dynamic performances by the entire cast. Composer
Shaiman
, who also composed the music for another genuinely funny (movie)
musical
,
South Park: Bigger, Longer and Uncut
, gives his music a boundless energy that works both as knowing '60s pastiche and solidly effective
scoring. As heroine
Tracy Turnblad
Marissa Jaret Winokur
's bubbly vocals light up numbers like the opening
"Good Morning, Baltimore"
"I Can Hear the Bells,"
while
Linda Hart
gives a sneeringly funny performance of
"Miss Baltimore Crabs."
Other standout numbers include the
Dick Latessa
Harvey Fierstein
duet
"(You're) Timeless to Me"
and the penultimate number,
"Cooties"
(which boasts lyrics like: "Grew up in a cootie zoo/I bet her two-ton mama's/Got 'em too!"). It's fun, it's catchy, it's funny -- it's one of the best comic
albums since
Little Shop of Horrors
. Oh, and make sure not to skip the bonus track. ~ Neil Shurley