Banjos Over Broadway

Broadway isn’t Bean Blossom, so you shouldn’t expect the resurrection of Bill Monroe on The Great White Way. Though Bright Star (out digitally on April 29 and May 27 on CD) has occasionally been tagged as a bluegrass musical, the first theatrical collaboration by Steve Martin and Edie Brickell (neither of whom perform) won’t necessarily connect with fans of either or with bluegrass aficionados. Instead, based on its five recent Tony nominations, it fairs better with those who love the hokier conventions of Broadway musicals, the sing-alongs, reprises, sweet sentimentality and heart-tugging balladry. The original cast soundtrack is flawlessly executed, and will doubtless make a fine souvenir for those who want to take the theatrical production’s music home.  But the material has been constructed to tell a story, with the lyrics in particular not really capable of standing on their own as songcraft. The lyrics (mainly by Brickell) often sound forced in both rhyme and rhythm. Perhaps the worst offender is the awkwardly titled “Firmer Hand/Do Right,” in which Daddy Murphy admonishes daughter Alice, “Where, where, where’ve you been/You shoulda been here helpin’ in the kitchen.” The ensemble then choruses, “You’re the black sheep, a little lost lamb,” before Alice responds, “All you ever do is reprimand.” Only the comparatively subtle “Asheville” is a number you’d want to hear again independent of the musical.  The music itself (mainly by Martin) is sprightly throughout, tinged with Southern nostalgia, with “If You Knew My Story” offering a rousing introduction and the title number sustaining the momentum. But too much of this falls on the wrong side of the divide between folk and folksy.