Some time in the eighties, Liza Minnelli became one of those performers defined by impressionists. When people think of Ed Sullivan these days, a lot of them think of Will Jordan doing Ed or some other comic doing Will Jordan doing Ed. When they think of Tom Snyder, many folks think of Dan Aykroyd's savage mimicking. When they think of Elvis, they often think of any of the 87,461 people currently making a living imitating The King and replicating his excesses. And Liza? They probably think of any number of drag queens out there who exaggerate her mannerisms to MAD Magazine scale. Ms. Minnelli's tendency to live up to the caricature and to engage in tabloid fodder marriages have not helped us to keep the genuine article in focus. It's easy to forget she was a great musical comedy performer.
The newly-reissued Liza With a Z is one good reminder. Another is our link today — a six minute number that Liza did at a 1992 Carnegie Hall celebration of Stephen Sondheim. Abetted by the great pianist Billy Stritch and a bevy of comely dancers, Ms. Minnelli offered a nice but slightly unorthodox rendition of "Back in Business," a number Sondheim wrote for the 1990 Dick Tracy movie starring Warren Beatty. Here it is. Let the good times roll…
