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Track Listings
| 1. I Meant You No Harm | |||
| 2. Jimmy's Rap | |||
| 3. Move | |||
| 4. Fake Your Way To The Top | |||
| 5. Cadillac Car | |||
| 6. Steppin' To The Bad Side | |||
| 7. Love You I Do | |||
| 8. I Want You Baby | |||
| 9. Family | |||
| 10. Dreamgirls | |||
| 11. It's All Over | |||
| 12. And I Am Telling You I'm Not Going | |||
| 13. When I First Saw You | |||
| 14. Patience | |||
| 15. I Am Changing | |||
| 16. I Meant You No Harm/Jimmy's Rap | |||
| 17. One Night Only | |||
| 18. One Night Only | |||
| 19. Listen | |||
| 20. Hard To Say Goodbye | |||
See all 22 tracks on this disc
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Product Description
Review
Tracing the story of how, in the 60s, Berry Gordy transformed Detroit into a hit factory, this is explosive stuff. Musically, fictional girl-group trio, The Dreamettes, mirror the rise and fall of The Supremes, with Jennifer Hudson, Beyoncé Knowles, Anika Noni Rose, Jamie Foxx and Eddie Murphy performing the vocal duties. Murphy, singing the part of James 'Thunder' Early surprisingly holds his own (more of which later!), but it is American Idol finalist Hudson whose gospel inspired lungs pack the killer punch.
It's over 25 years old since the Dreamgirls debuted on Broadway. Although the material recalls the days before conveyor belt R&B, its familiar themes of love, longing and betrayal are as much influenced by Motown as by 70s dancefloor fillers ("Steppin' To the Bad Side" even has a touch of P-Funk about it).
Not that the songs written by Henry Krieger and Tom Eyen are flawless. The 20-track album contains a few duds, not least "I Want You Baby" - a slow-grinding, lyrical cliché. Nevertheless, the sheer strength and personality of Dreamgirls' vocalists compensate in compelling fashion.
Whereas Beyoncé wraps her polished urban licks superbly around 'Listen', Hudson's old school rawness and vulnerability is striking. Here is a singer who channels no-nonsense belters such as Etta James and Aretha Franklin to scary effect. Her contributions to the rollicking title track and opener "Move" are genuine showstoppers.
Most tracks on Dreamgirls are so fun that there's hardly a dull moment: "It's all over" - a poisonous domestic between the girls and their manager, Foxx - makes for great musical drama (Foxx is also impressive as he tips his hat to Lionel Richie on "When I First Saw You"). And although it's impossible not to think of Shrek's 'donkey' when Eddie Murphy sings lowdown and husky on "Cadillac Car", his Barry White meets James Brown style is - like the rest of this album - downright enjoyable. --Tom Barlow
Find more music at the BBC This link will take you off Amazon in a new window
Product Description
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Customer Reviews
Dreamgirls was a show on Broadway in the early 80s, which was very successful. It took another 25 years for them to make it into a film. The music is a mixture of 60s sweet soul and Broadway razzle dazzle, brought up to date with modern arrangements. It all really works for me.
Highlights are anything Jennifer Hudson sings, especially "And I'm Telling You I'm Not Going", a desperate and heart rending plea from someone about to lose everything. Her namesake Jennifer Holliday closed the first act with it on Broadway, and brought the house down every night for hundreds of performances. Ms Hudson is up to the challenge and richly deserves the praise the critics are lavishing upon her.
Beyonce also gives some top vocal performances. If she gets topped by Jennifer, that is what the story calls for. Who knew Eddie Murphy could sing? He's not half bad you know. Jamie Foxx is great here too.
As well as the songs The group and various solos sing, music is used to advance the narrative in places, with the characters singing to each other like an R&B opera! Those sequences are mostly on the CD too.
Some critics have said that there is too much music in the film. I just don't get that. It is like saying that there is too much chocolate and ice cream in a choc ice
I strongly advise you to check out the deluxe two disc version before buying this single disc version. You wont be disappointed if you do!
For anybody really into Dreamgirls, the recording of the music by the original Broadway cast is available on CD. Also there is a double CD called 'Dreamgirls In Concert', a recording of a charity revival of the show from 2002. That one has the music and all the dialogue from the show, most of which ended up in the film.
This disc is dead centre me, and I'll be playing it for a long time. Expect a bright future for Jennifer Hudson.
Highly recommened!
STD
I watch it time and time again. Bought the DVD. Love it.
and most of it tries too hard to justify itself and ends up too loud... Read more
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