LPCDreissues: Looking forward to the past

A screen adaptation of one of the biggest Broadway hits of the era, Du Barry Was A Lady did much to launch the careers of burgeoning screen stars Lucille Ball, Red Skelton, and Gene Kelly. It received enthusiastic reviews upon its 1943 release and became another box office success for M-G-M producer Arthur Freed. The stage version of Du Barry paired Ethel Merman with composer Cole Porter for the third time since 1934. But in Hollywood, Merman's leading role was given to a newly red-headed Lucille Ball and most of Porter's score was dropped for songs written by studio employees Burton Lane, Roger Edens, Lew Brown, and Ralph Freed (Porter's "Do I Love You?" "Katie Went To Haiti," and "Friendship" were retained, while several other numbers survived as part of the underscore). Tommy Dorsey And His Orchestra were added as part of M-G-M's mandate to involve big bands as often as possible. Roy Del Ruth directed, Charles Walters choreographed, and Red Skelton, fresh from his triumphant debut as Judy Garland's leading man in For Me And My Gal, played the comic lead opposite Ball. Gene Kelly and Virginia O'Brien completed the story's satirical love quadrangle. While some tracks have appeared on compilation albums, this Turner/Rhino Handmade release of Du Barry Was A Lady represents the first complete soundtrack release. Bonus selections include the Tommy Dorsey outtake "Melody In A" and the Roger Eden choral routine "The Royal Tasters," in addition to five supplemental selections from the musical comedy Meet The People, starring Lucille Ball and featuring sublime vocal arrangements by the inimitable Kay Thompson. Du Barry Was A Lady is available as an individually numbered limited edition of 2,500 copies.
TRACK LISTING MAIN TITLE (1:58) DuBARRY WAS A LADY (4:26) NIGHTCLUB MEDLEY (4:40) THE OXFORD BOYS MEDLEY (2:56) MEDLEY: I’M GETTING SENTIMENTAL OVER YOU/WE’LL GET IT (4:13) WHEN LOVE BECKONED (ON 52ND STREET) (1:37) DO I LOVE YOU? (4:10) DO I LOVE YOU? (2:34) SALOME (3:16) I LOVE AN ESQUIRE GIRL (4:43) MEDLEY: FRIENDSHIP/DO I LOVE YOU/BUT IN THE MORNING, NO (2:49) LADIES OF THE BATH (1:30) KATIE WENT TO HAITI (3:51) MADAME, I LOVE YOUR CREPES SUZETTE (2:38) SONG OF REBELLION (3:42) FRIENDSHIP (2:54) ROYAL TASTERS (1:14) MELODY IN A (1:59) MAIN TITLE (MEET THE PEOPLE/IN TIMES LIKE THESE) (2:38) IN TIMES LIKE THESE (4:01) THANK YOU, COLUMBUS (2:36) HEAVE HO, LET THE WIND BLOW (3:56) MEET THE PEOPLE/NEW YORK PRODUCTION NUMBER (8:41)