Throughout five or six New York show-going trips, I somehow always by-passed Smokey Joe's Cafe. I guess it didn't seem like a Broadway show to me: Two plotless hours of folks singing songs penned by Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller, the most successful composers of Top 40 tunes, this side of Lennon and McCartney. Having now repeatedly viewed the video of the final New York performance, I'm kinda sorry I didn't see it on stage, as God intended. The singers are all terrific and the line-up of songs leaves you marveling at the composers' track record. There are 38 numbers in the show and all but a few are comfortably familiar to anyone who's ever spent more than a few hours listening to a Golden Oldies radio station and — in most cases — more enjoyable than even the "hit" versions. You can order a copy of this from the Movies Unlimited folks by clicking here.
If you buy a copy of the DVD, VHS or CD, do yourself a favor and don't look at the track listing before playing the thing. You'll sit there amazed, going, "They wrote that, too?" You'll also wish that more shows would be videotaped for commercial release.
Most Broadway productions of the last few decades have been recorded but only for historical reference — so that, for example, directors of revivals can see what was done by their predecessors. Those tapes — shot inexpensively and with an assurance to performers and Actors Equity that they are not for the public — probably serve their purpose. But that purpose would be even better-served, and we could also enjoy the work if Broadway shows would and could record a video as routinely and effortlessly as they do a cast album/CD.