©Playbill

Producer Steven Epstein 'Swing!'-s Over to Record Cast Album
By Murdoch McBride
December 17, 1999

Grammy Award winning producer Steven Epstein supervised the recording of the original cast recording for Swing! on Dec. 13 in New York City. The show opened Dec. 9 at the St. James Theatre.Grammy Award winning producer Steven Epstein supervised the recording of the original cast recording for Swing! on Dec. 13 in New York City. The show opened Dec. 9 at the St. James Theatre.

In the past six years, Epstein has won four Grammy Awards. Three Grammy's were given to him as producer of the year in the classical category and a fourth was presented in recognition of producing the best classical album of the year.

The Swing! cast recording is scheduled to hit the stores Jan. 25.

Featured on the album are the Gotham City Gates, comprising former members of the Blues Jumpers, Illinois Jacquet and Lionel Hampton. The Gotham City Gates perform onstage as part of the Swing! production.

Swing's musical director is Jonathan Smith. He studied with jazz patriarch Ellis Marsalis in New Orleans and has played with big bands since he was 14. Smith has been the musical director for many Off Broadway shows.

The original cast recording of Swing! will be featured at sonyclassical.com where sound clips, track listings, cover art and further information on the recording will be available.

As reported earlier, the song list for the production of Swing! currently includes:

* "It Don't Mean a Thing if It Ain't Got that Swing" by Duke Ellington * "Airmail Special"/"Jersey Bounce" /"Opus One" "Airmail Special" by Benny Goodman, James R. Mundy, Charles Christian * "Jersey Bounce" by B. Plater, T. Bradshaw, E. Johnson, B. Feyhe and D. Ellington * "Opus One" by Don George, Johnny Hodges and Harry James * "Jumpin' at the Woodside" by William "Count" Basie * "Bounce Me Brother (with a Solid Four)" by Don Raye, Hughie Prince * "Two and Four"* by Ann Hampton Callaway * "Hit Me with a High Note and Watch me Bounce" by Don George, Duke Ellington * "Throw that Girl Around"* by Everett Bradley, Ilene Reid, Michael Heitzman * "Show Me What You Got"* by Everett Bradley, Jonathan Smith * "Bli Blip" by Duke Ellington, Sid Kuller * "Rhythm" by Casey MacGill * "Blues in the Night" by Harold Arlen, Johnny Mercer * "Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy" by Don Raye, Hughie Prince USO Section featuring: * "GI Jive" by Johnny Mercer * "String of Pearls" by Edgar DeLange, Jerry Gray * "Gal in Kalamazoo" by Mack Gordon, Harry Warren * "Candy" by Mack David, Joan Whitney, Alex C. Kramer * "I'm Gonna Love You Tonight" by Casey MacGill, Jack Murphy, * "I'll Be Seeing You" by Irving Kahal, Sammy Fain * "In the Mood" by Joe Garland * "Don't Sit Under the Apple Tree" by Lew Brown, Stept and Charles Tobias * "Swing Brother Swing" by Walter Bishop, Lewis Raymond and Clarence Williams * "Caravan" by Duke Ellington and Juan Tizol * "Harlem Nocturne" by Earl H. Hagen and Dick Rogers * "Dancers in Love" by Duke Ellington * "Take Me Back to Tulsa"/"Stay All Night" by James Robert Wills, Tommy Duncan * "Boogie Woogie Country" by Jack Murphy, Jonathan Smith * "All of Me"/"I Won't Dance" * "All of Me" by Seymour Simons and Gerald Marks * "I Won't Dance" by Jerome Kern and Oscar Hammerstein II * "Bill's Bounce" by Bill Elliott * "Cry Me a River" by Arthur Hamilton * "Kitchen Mechanics Night Out," Lyrics: Paul Kelly, Casey MacGill, Lynne Taylor-Corbett; Music: Casey MacGill, Jonathan Smith * "Shout and Feel It" By William "Count" Basie * "Stompin' at the Savoy" by Benny Goodman, Edgar M. Sampson, Chick Webb, Andy Razaf; additional lyrics and arrangement by Ann Hampton Callaway Finale: * "Sing, Sing, Sing" by Louis Prima, Andy Razaf, L. Berry * "It Don't Mean a Thing (If it Ain't Got that Swing)" by Duke Ellington * "Swing Brother Swing" by Walter Bishop, Lewis Raymond, Clarence Williams.

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