| The Boy Friend | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Cast recording by | ||||
| Released | 1954 | |||
| Genre | Show tune | |||
| Label | RCA | |||
| Julie Andrews chronology | ||||
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The Boy Friend is the original cast recording of the musical of the same name starring Julie Andrews, recorded during the original Broadway production. The Boy Friend is sets on the French Riviera, it follows Polly, an English heiress at a finishing school, who falls for Tony, a delivery boy. To avoid fortune hunters, Polly pretends to be a working girl—unaware that Tony is actually the missing son of wealthy Lord Brockhurst. [1] Written and composed by Sandy Wilson, the show began in London in 1953 with the Players' Club and later moved to the West End, where it opened on January 14, 1954. Following its success in the United Kingdom, the production was adapted for Broadway and opened at the Royale Theatre in New York. [2]
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Subsequent to the show's premiere, [3] the cast recorded the musical numbers on October 10, 1954. The recording was released by RCA Victor as a 12" LP under the catalog number LOC-1018. It was also distributed in a 45 rpm box set. RCA released the album in compact disc in 1989, following the increasing popularity of the format. [4] The recording captures selections performed by the Broadway cast and includes tracks such as "A Room in Bloomsbury" and "I Could Be Happy with You" and was released in monophonic sound. [5]
Upon its release, The Boy Friend was described as one of the most prominent musicals of the Broadway season, having achieved considerable attention both for its British origins and for its nostalgic take on 1920s musical styles. [6] In 2015, Él Records, a subsidiary of Cherry Red Records, included the three songs performed by Andrews on the CD Don't Go in the Lion's Cage Tonight/Broadway's Fair Julie (ACMEM287CD, 2015). [7]
