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30 Dec 03 - 03:44 AM (#1082185) Subject: Lyr Req: Sweeny Todd the Barber From: Son of the Mill I heard this music hall song many years go. One line I remember is : And many a poor young orphan lad, The first square meal he`s ever had. A hot meat pie made out of his dad. From Sweeny Todd the barber. |
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30 Dec 03 - 03:55 AM (#1082187) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Sweeny Todd the Barber From: GUEST,MCP It's in the DT: Sweeney Todd The Barber. Mick |
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30 Dec 03 - 05:19 AM (#1082208) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Sweeny Todd the Barber From: Liz the Squeak Slight amendment - my book has 'by gum he were better than the plague' rather than play. Makes more sense. LTS |
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30 Dec 03 - 09:09 AM (#1082302) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Sweeny Todd the Barber From: Charley Noble I was always disappointed that this song wasn't used in the Broadway musical version of Sweeny Todd. Charley Noble |
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30 Dec 03 - 02:15 PM (#1082556) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Sweeny Todd the Barber From: Herga Kitty Re plague and play - I thought it was play, because Sweeney Todd was classed as melodrama not classic theatre. Hopefully, Dave Bryant (who sings the song, (melo)dramatically) will add his twopenn'orth soon.... Kitty |
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30 Dec 03 - 02:17 PM (#1082557) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Sweeny Todd the Barber From: Herga Kitty I've just realised - I wonder if play got corrupted to plague by the 'gor blimey immediately following? Kitty |
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30 Dec 03 - 02:28 PM (#1082569) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Sweeny Todd the Barber From: Clinton Hammond Attend the tale of Sweeny todd He served a dark and a vengeful god He shaved the faces of gentlemen Who never thereafter were heard from again Did Sweeny Todd The Demon Barber of Fleet Street! The ONLY musical I can even stomach any more... man, I'd kill for it on DVD! :-) |
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30 Dec 03 - 02:43 PM (#1082592) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Sweeny Todd the Barber From: Joe Offer I'd like to have that DVD, too, Clinton. Sweet old Angela Lansbury made a perfect cook/wife in the version I saw. Hmmm. Looks like we're missing a tune in the DT entry. If you can transcribe a tune for us, e-mail it to me. Thanks. -Joe Offer- joe@mudcat.org |
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30 Dec 03 - 02:57 PM (#1082598) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Sweeny Todd the Barber From: Clinton Hammond Unfortunaly alll I find on Amazon is a newer version, which gets great reviews, but doens have AL in it... Link Here |
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30 Dec 03 - 07:18 PM (#1082798) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Sweeny Todd the Barber From: Liz the Squeak Well I always assumed it was plague because, like Sweeney, it killed off a lot of the population. My version never had any 'gor blimeys' in it. LTS |
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30 Dec 03 - 10:29 PM (#1082916) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Sweeny Todd the Barber From: Naemanson If anyone finds the DVD with Lansbury in it run, do not walk, to the nearest keyboard and let us know the details so we can buy it. I saw this done live at Bowdoin College in Maine during their summer theater series. Even without AL it was great. They started the play with two grave diggers burying a corpse. That wasn't in the AL version but it certainly set the tone. |
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30 Dec 03 - 10:52 PM (#1082932) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Sweeny Todd the Barber From: Q (Frank Staplin) VHS Copies of the tour production with Lansbury sell for about US$60. As far as I know, it hasn't been transferred to DVD. |
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31 Dec 03 - 04:50 AM (#1082997) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Sweeny Todd the Barber From: Gurney The version as I learned it was mostly monologue with a sung chorus, and the line in question is "My God, he was worser than the plague! Gor blimey," although I sing "By gum" and "Cor blimey" because I am a bit leery about gratituous blasphemy, and some nice people get really upset about it. |
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31 Dec 03 - 05:52 PM (#1083499) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Sweeny Todd the Barber From: McGrath of Harlow "Gor" is blasphemous and "Cor" isn't - I'd say they are completely equivalent to each other. "Play" fits the melodramatic quality of the song much better. I think thta;s what Dave Bryant sings but of course "...play, Gor Blimey" and "...plague, Gor Blimey" sound indistinguishable. "Better than a play" is a very common expression to describe some notable event in real life. "Better than the plague" is not an expression which is heard very often. |
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31 Dec 03 - 10:47 PM (#1083658) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Sweeny Todd the Barber From: Charley Noble I heard a rendition of "Sweeny Todd" out in the midwest from Barry O'Neil back around 1970, and it had to be committed to memory. I'm sure I heard "play" originally and then changed it to "plague" because it seemed to make more sense. It was one of my favorite renditions for the annual food co-op benefit, along with "When the Vegetables had Their Spree." Cheerily, Charley Noble |
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01 Jan 04 - 02:31 AM (#1083726) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Sweeny Todd the Barber From: Gurney No, McGrath, "My God" is blasphemous, to those of a religeous bent, although it is in common usage as an exclamation today. 'Gor(Cor)Blimey' is, as you obviously know, a corruption of "God Blind Me," but a lawyer would have a case..... |
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01 Jan 04 - 06:08 AM (#1083768) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Sweeny Todd the Barber From: Herga Kitty The words in the DT version mentioned by MCP support play rather than plague - not just in that line but in the following lines which also end "ay": Sweeney Todd the Barber, by God he were better than the play, Sweeney Todd the Barber, "I'll polish 'em off" he used to say. Sweeney Todd the Barber, by God he were better than the play, Sweeney Todd the Barber, they buried him underneath the clay. Kitty |
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01 Jan 04 - 05:24 PM (#1084137) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Sweeny Todd the Barber From: Son of the Mill Thanks one and all. Liz I rember it as by gum, just like you. It was a favorate for everyone to join in, like hissing when his name was mentioned, calling out Police & Hurrah. Cheers Mal |
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02 Jan 04 - 08:54 AM (#1084498) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Sweeny Todd the Barber From: Charley Noble Mal- We never shouted "hurrah"; it was always "huzah!" BG Charley Noble |
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02 Jan 04 - 04:37 PM (#1084801) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Sweeny Todd the Barber From: Stilly River Sage Terry Gross replayed a 1988 interview with Stephen Sondheim today on Fresh Air and they spoke about his motivations for some of the changes in the story. I saw Angela Lansbury in Sweeney Todd when I lived in New York, one of the few musicals I went to (couldn't afford 'em!). In 1982 I saw the full play, with Lansbury, broadcast on PBS. I suspect that is the source of the VCR mentioned above. This audio CD looks like the one I saw, with Lansbury and Len Cariou, and only about $30. No tax and free shipping from Amazon! The broadcast version still had Lansbury, but Sweeney Todd was being played by George Hearne. SRS |
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03 Jan 04 - 01:21 PM (#1085285) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Sweeny Todd the Barber From: McGrath of Harlow But "Gor"= "Cor". If anyone objects to one they are inconsistant if they do not have the same objection to the other. I'd have little regard to for either - though I'd be in agreement with them in finding "God Blind Me" as such objectionable. As they say, be careful what you wish for, you might get it... All kinds of innocuous phrases are adjusted versions of things that people might quite reasonably find offensive, but it's not, in my view, at all reasonable to object to them on that ground. That kind of linguistic development is very useful - lots of rhyming slang is like that. (And more often than not people don't even think of it as rhyming slang at all - "berk" from "Berkshire hunt", for example.) |
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28 May 04 - 05:12 PM (#1196199) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Sweeny Todd the Barber From: GUEST,Tom Denney - Austin, Texas After MUCH struggling to distinguish Holloway's words, I am convinced that it's "By gum 'e were better (th)an the plague," which fits into the whole scenario better. |
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28 May 04 - 07:03 PM (#1196273) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Sweeny Todd the Barber From: Snuffy Brenda & Dave4Guild do this - see them at Bishops Castle Folk Weekend 11-13 June |
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29 May 04 - 02:08 AM (#1196482) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Sweeny Todd the Barber From: M.Ted If you liked Sweeny Todd, Clint Hammond, you'll love Sondheim's "Assassins", which features all most all of the Presidential assassins, from Charlie Guiteau on, and even features the real song that Guiteau sang on the gallows--Squeaky Fromme and Sarah Jane Moore have a duet-- |
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29 May 04 - 12:09 PM (#1196523) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Sweeny Todd the Barber From: Flash Company I always did it as 'By gum, he were better than a play!', thought that was what Stanley H sang. FC |
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29 May 04 - 04:43 PM (#1196699) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Sweeny Todd the Barber From: Uncle_DaveO Amazon has two DVD versions, one of the actual productin (with Lansbury) and one a concert version. The one with Lansbury is found HERE Price is $17.49 US, as I recall. Happy listening. Dave Oesterreich |
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29 May 04 - 05:01 PM (#1196711) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Sweeny Todd the Barber From: Mark Clark If you buy the DVD, buy it through this link. It's set up to credit Mudcat with the purchase and it won't cost you any more. - Mark |
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30 May 04 - 01:07 AM (#1196926) Subject: ADD: Figaro Todd (John Forster) From: GUEST,Billy Sorry for a bit of thread creep, but John Forster made an hilarious recording of "Figaro Todd" on his album "Helium". Featuring the "Barber of Seville" opera but incorporating the story of Sweeny Todd and sound effects (e.g. gunshots, explosions and the "zeet! zeet! zeet! zeet! zeet!" violins from the "Psycho" soundtrack) he mixes the two stories into one and wipes out several pretentious performers in the process. Kinda like Tom Lehrer wielding a stilletto blade. This site has an MP3 download of the song. FIGARO TODD (John Forster) This is the tale of a barber, This barber was rather odd. His Christian name was Figaro. His family name was Todd. He serviced his regular clients With true dispatch and skill. This is the tale of Figaro Todd, The Demon Barber of Seville. Count Almaviva had no life. He tried to boink the barber's wife. So when 'twas time to trim his mop Figaro took a whole lot of the top. Then Cherubino, horny youth, Called Figaro to pull his tooth. But Todd got in a jealous huff And pulled a bunch of unrelated stuff. Figaro clip, Figaro snip. Figaro slice, Figaro dice. Figaro chop, Figaro lop. Figaro hack, Figaro whack, Just unbridle all that homocidal rage. A couple blocks from Figgie's shop Lived Don Giovanni, famous fop. The cad came in with two days' beard. When Todd was done two weeks worth disappeared. Outside a bullring down the road Carmen caught a dasty code. She called for leeching, which was dumb. [Figaro!] He leeched the mezzo straight to kingdom come. With every slash, every cut, [Figaro!] He was getting revenge, revenge for what? [Figaro!] Maybe a snub deep in his past. [Figaro!] Maybe they always chose him last. [Ahhhhh!] Nobody knew, hadn't a clue. It's simply what Demon Barbers do. They clip and they rip And they slash and they bash They sever and shatter and batter and mangle and maim. Don Miguel, the Demon Barber of Castile, Heard of Figaro's success and couldn't deal. He packed his razors, shouting "Vengeance will be mine." But by now, Todd had set off on a journey down the Rhine. Those Rhinemaids' singing made him sick. A depth charge shut them up real quick. Then the high point of the week-- Eight Valkyries mit plastique. The barber switched on A&E And saw Three Tenors, count 'em, Three. He did his thing and when 'twas done He'd reduced the tenor count to less than one. John Denver caught the barber's eye. (Heave your cleaver high, Figgie.) He lowered his Rocky Mountain High. (Yanni, too, must die, Figgie.) And Yanni at the Acropolis (Phony phony man.) Another one whose work we'd never miss. Figaro biff! Figaro boom! George Winston! Figaro bang! Figaro zoom! Zamfir! Figaro wham! Figaro blam! Kenny G! Figaro klonk! Figaro bonk! Michael Bolton! Figaro mutilate, Figaro lacerate, Figaro sever and mangle and maim. Figaro, oh what a wonderful game, Oh, what a wonderful wonderful game. Figaro whack 'em and Figaro hack 'em and Figaro stack 'em and Figaro Slit 'em and split 'em and pit 'em and hit 'em and Slit 'em and split 'em and pit 'em and hit 'em again. Stab 'em and slab 'em and Maul 'em and haul 'em and Claw 'em and saw 'em and Snip 'em and Clip 'em and grip 'em and rip 'em and whip 'em and Sever and shatter and batter and mangle and maim. Puncture rupture sunder and kill, Demon Barber (whht) Barber of Seville. Hatcheta hatcheta hatcheta hatcheta hatcheta Butchery butchery butchery butchery Barber of Seville. |
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30 May 04 - 10:39 AM (#1197084) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Sweeny Todd the Barber From: Flash Company Bravo Bravissimo Billy, love that. FC |
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30 May 04 - 11:18 AM (#1197090) Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Sweeny Todd the Barber From: novice This is the version I know, I think it's from the musical show: Attend the tale of Sweeney Todd His skin was pale and his eye was odd He shaved the faces of gentlemen Who never therafter were heard of again He trod a path that few have trod, did Sweeney Todd The demon barber of Fleet Street He kept a shop in London town Of fancy clients and good renown And what if none of there souls were saved They went to their maker impeccably shaved By Sweeney, by Sweeney Todd The demon barber of Fleet Street Swing your razor wide, Sweeney, hold it to the skies Freely flows the blood of those who moralise His needs were few, his room was bare A lavabo and a fancy chair A mug of suds and a leather strop An apron, a towel, a pail and a mop For neatness he deserves a nod, Does Sweeney Todd The demon barber of Fleet Street In conspicuous Sweeney was Quick and quiet and clean 'e was Back of his smile, under his word Sweeney heard music that nobody heard Sweeney pondered and Sweeney planned Like a perfect machine 'e planned Sweeney was smooth, Sweeney was subtle Sweeney would blink and rats would scuttle Sweeney, Sweeney, Sweeney, Sweeney Attend the tale of Sweeney Todd He served a dark and a hungry God To seek revenge may lead to Hell, But everyone does it, and seldom as well As Sweeney, as Sweeney Todd The demon barber of Fleet.....Street. |