Following in the footsteps of Duncan Sheik and Spring Awakening, L.A.’s Stew (who’s released albums both solo and with his band, The Negro Problem) made the transition from the pop-rock scene to Broadway in 2008. The show for which he wrote the book and score, [title]Passing Strange[/title], was not as commercially successful as Spring Awakening, but from a musical point of view, it’s an even better, very funny, wildly inventive gem about shaping your identity. Backed by a rocking quartet that includes co-composer Heidi Rodewald on bass, Stew himself acts/sings the narrator, leading us through the coming of age of his hero, Youth (Daniel Breaker), from Southern California to Amsterdam to Berlin and back. Recorded live, this album captures the score’s energy and depth. The songs can be hard-hitting ("Merci Beaucoup, M. Godard," "Berlin: A Black Hole with Taxis"), but Stew writes particularly lovely ballads, like the heartbreaking "Arlington Hill," "Keys," "Come Down Now" and "Work the Wound," which gains power as it builds up to an angry climax. This is a great score that deserves to be heard.

1. Prologue (We Might Play All Night) - Stew 2:40
2. Baptist Fashion Show - Stew, Eisa Davis, Daniel Breaker 2:33
3. Church Blues Revelation/Freight Train - Stew, Chad Goodridge, Ensemble 3:03
4. Arlington Hill - Stew 3:18
5. Sole Brother - Daniel Breaker, Rebecca Naomi Jones 1:02
6. Must Have Been High - Stew 3:41
7. Mom Song - Eisa Davis, Stew, Ensemble 2:31
8. Merci Beaucoup, M. Godard - Stew, de'Adre Aziza, Rebecca Naomi Jones 2:19
9. Amsterdam - Stew, Daniel Breaker, Rebecca Naomi Jones, de'Adre Aziza, Colman Domingo, Chad Goodridge 4:47
10. Keys (Marianna) - de'Adre Aziza, Daniel Breaker, Stew 3:23
11. Keys (It's Alright) - Stew 3:25
12. We Just Had Sex - de'Adre Aziza, Rebecca Naomi Jones, Daniel Breaker 1:50
13. Stoned - Daniel Breaker, Eisa Davis, Stew 3:40
14. Berlin: A Black Hole With Taxis - Stew 0:50
15. May Day (There's a Riot Goin' Down) - Stew, Ensemble 1:25
16. What's Inside Is Just A Lie/And Now I'm Ready To Explode - Colman Domingo, Daniel Breaker, Stew 3:26
17. Identity - Daniel Breaker 3:41
18. The Black One - Stew, Daniel Breaker 2:46
19. Come Down Now - Rebecca Naomi Jones, Heidi Rodewald, Stew 3:25
20. Youth's Unfinished Song - Daniel Breaker 1:05
21. Work The Wound - Stew 3:06
22. Passing Phase - Daniel Breaker, Stew 3:59
23. Cue Music - Eisa Davis, Stew 1:19
24. Love Like That - Stew, Heidi Rodewald 2:35

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00199PPRE/?tag=imwan-20

Saw a clip from this on the Tonys (introduced by Counting Crows' Adam Duritz) and was really intrigued. Might be worth listening to.

Josh

Thanks for posting this Linda. I can't speak enthusiastically enough about this release.
However, I'm a long time Stew and Negro Problem fan, and I think he is one of the greatest living songwriters/musicians.
When he was living in Los Angeles, I saw him play no less than 125 times.

However, if you live in New York, go see Passing Strange now. It's closing July 20.
I wasn't able to make it to New York as I had wished, but I did see an early version of this in Berkeley, and I knew this show would have legs. However, I never dreamed that Stew would actually end up on Broadway.