Wicked (musical album)

Wicked
Soundtrack album by Wicked Cast
Released	December 16, 2003
Recorded	November 10, 2003
Genre	Showtunes
Length	71:17
Label	Decca Broadway
Producer	Stephen Schwartz

Wicked is a cast recording containing the majority of the songs from the Tony Award-winning Broadway musical Wicked, with music and lyrics by composer Stephen Schwartz and a book by writer Winnie Holzman. Released on December 16, 2003 by Decca Broadway both in physical and digital releases. The former contains a foreword and a short synopsis, provided by Gregory Maguire, who wrote the 1995 novel on which the musical is based, in addition to lyrics to those songs included.

Composer and lyricist of Wicked, Stephen Schwartz, produced the album aided by Frank Filipetti, Jill Dell'Abate, Jason Spears, Justin Shturtz, Jason Stasium and Ted Jensen. The original cast album of Wicked was recorded on November 10, 2003, with the full cast and orchestra, at then-Right Track Studios and mastered at Sterling Sound in New York City.

The cast recording has received positive reviews and has received substantial commercial success. It received the 2005 Grammy Award for Best Musical Show Album in 2005 and although initially peaking at number 125 on the Billboard 200 in 2003,^[1] has since reached the new peak of 77 in 2011. The album was certified platinum on November 30, 2006 by the RIAA, but has since been certified double platinum, four years later, on November 8, 2010.^[2]

Track listing

All songs written and composed by Stephen Schwartz. 

No.	Title	Performer(s)	Length
1.	"No One Mourns the Wicked"	Kristin Chenoweth, Sean McCourt, Cristy Candler, Jan Neuberger, Ensemble	6:40
2.	"Dear Old Shiz"	Kristin Chenoweth, Ensemble	1:26
3.	"The Wizard and I"	Idina Menzel, Carole Shelley	5:09
4.	"What is this Feeling?"	Kristin Chenoweth, Idina Menzel, Ensemble	3:32
5.	"Something Bad"	William Youmans, Idina Menzel	1:39
6.	"Dancing Through Life"	Norbert Leo Butz, Kristin Chenoweth, Christopher Fitzgerald, Michelle Federer, Idina Menzel, Ensemble	7:37
7.	"Popular"	Kristin Chenoweth	3:44
8.	"I'm Not that Girl"	Idina Menzel	2:58
9.	"One Short Day"	Kristin Chenoweth, Idina Menzel, Ensemble	3:03
10.	"A Sentimental Man"	Joel Grey	1:15
11.	"Defying Gravity"	Idina Menzel, Kristin Chenoweth, Ensemble	5:53
12.	"Thank Goodness"	Kristin Chenoweth, Carole Shelley, Ensemble	6:22
13.	"Wonderful"	Joel Grey, Idina Menzel	4:57
14.	"I'm Not that Girl (reprise)"	Kristin Chenoweth	0:49
15.	"As Long as You're Mine"	Idina Menzel, Norbert Leo Butz	3:45
16.	"No Good Deed"	Idina Menzel	3:31
17.	"March of the Witch Hunters"	Christopher Fitzgerald, Ensemble	1:30
18.	"For Good"	Idina Menzel, Kristin Chenoweth	5:06
19.	"Finale"	Kristin Chenoweth, Idina Menzel, Ensemble	1:41

Notes

• The reprise of "No One Mourns the Wicked" is attached to the beginning of "Thank Goodness".
• "The Wicked Witch of the East", sung by Nessarose, Elphaba, and Boq, is a missing song from the album. Producers deemed too difficult to arrange for the album and thought the song would give too much of the plot away to an audience who had never seen Wicked before.
• Short reprises of "The Wizard and I" and "A Sentimental Man", that appear in Act I and II respectively, are not included.

Fifth annniversary special edition

A fifth anniversary special edition of the original Broadway cast recording was released on October 28, 2008,^[3] with a bonus CD including tracks "Dancing Through Life", "Popular", "As Long as You're Mine" and "No Good Deed" from the Japanese and German cast recordings of Wicked, "I'm Not that Girl" by Kerry Ellis, "Making Good" – a song that never made the final show – by Stephanie J. Block, Menzel's dance mix of "Defying Gravity" and "For Good" sung by LeAnn Rimes and Delta Goodrem.^[4]

Track listing

No.	Title	Performer(s)	Length
1.	"For Good"	LeAnn Rimes & Delta Goodrem	4:15
2.	"I'm Not that Girl"	Kerry Ellis	3:49
3.	"Making Good"	Stephanie J. Block & Stephen Schwartz	4:00
4.	"Solang Ich Dich Hab" (German: "As Long as You're Mine")	Willemijn Verkaik & Mark Seibert	3:47
5.	"Gutes Tun" (German: "No Good Deed")	Willemijm Verkaik	3:33
6.	"Jinnsei Wo Odori-Akase" (Japanese: "Dancing Through Life")	Li Tao & Company	7:37
7.	"Popyuraa" (Japanese: "Popular")	Miyuki Numao	3:45
8.	"Defying Gravity" (Dance Mix - Tracy Young Flying Monkey Radio Mix)	Idina Menzel	3:44

Singles

In 2007, Idina Menzel re-recorded "Defying Gravity" as a solo version and released it as a single.

Kerry Ellis recorded rock versions of the songs "Defying Gravity" and "I'm Not That Girl" for her 2008 album Wicked in Rock, produced by Queen's guitarist, Brian May.

Julia Murney recorded "I'm Not That Girl" for her album, I'm Not Waiting (2006). She recorded this particular song because she deemed it one song of the entire musical "that had nothing to do with flying or wizards".^[5]

References

1. ^ "Wicked: A New Musical (Original Broadway Cast Recording) - Original Broadway Cast". Neilsen SoundScan. http://www.billboard.com/album/original-broadway-cast-recording/wicked/609747. Retrieved July 18, 2010. 
2. ^ "WICKED Cast Album Goes Double Platinum". BroadwayWorld.com. 8 November 2010. http://broadwayworld.com/article/WICKED_Cast_Album_Goes_Double_Platinum_20101108. Retrieved 11 November 2010. 
3. ^ "'Wicked' Music" musicalschwartz.com, accessed August 29, 2011
4. ^ Gans, Andrew (2008-09-26). "Anniversary Edition of Wicked CD to Feature Bonus Tracks by Rimes, Goodrem and Menzel". Playbill. http://www.playbill.com/news/article/121808.html. Retrieved 2008-09-28. 
5. ^ Gans, Andrew."Diva Talk: Chatting with Wicked's Julia Murney Plus News of Peters and Skinner" playbill.com, March 17, 2006