This Is One Of The Most Difficult Songs To Sing! But It Is Arguably One Of The Most Dramatic Show Stoppers Ever Written!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

                                   You've all heard the story, darlings, how so knocked out I was by "RAGS" when I saw it on Broadway, with its legendary Original Cast, that, at Intermission, I was phoning friends to get down  to see it back in 1986, , because I knew it was too dark a show to run very long.  But the score........oh, my God!

                                    Then, two years later, for a performance I was doing, I wrote Charles Strouse, who not only gave me the music, he met with me and worked on it!  The performance came off, but I was not satisfied, because "RAGS" is one of the most difficult songs to sing, and you will find out why. I extracted every ounce of dramatic essence I could from it, but, not being a woman, though a tenor, I could not get the highs as good as any woman who sings it, and this is why it is so difficult. Also, try finding the breath to get out, "And it's rags to wear, and it's rags to buy, and it's rags, to wash, and hang out to dry, like old flags!," as though all in one breath.  I mean, how is it done?

                                     But I have seen it done.  Nevertheless it is great to watch and listen to.  The hackles rise on the back of your neck at the music, and, by the end, you dissolve in tears.

                                       Erin Elizabeth Eichhorn is the last one I heard do it, last year, in Beautiful Soup's superb treatment of it, which created some controversy on here, because I merely happened to suggest that the actor playing Avram could do some work to improve his performance. Shows are frozen, but, with the exception of Ethel Merman, every performer, every performance, wants to work to make it better than before. Oh, well!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

                                         But, what am I waiting for? You have got to hear "RAGS," a song, like "At The Ballet," which is far from upbeat, but provides vocal challenges for me to work on, and which I am emotionally drawn to.

                                          Now, here are Dick Latessa and Judy Kuhn, doing the song--or a version of it, at the 1987 TONY Awards.  I say version, because Judy messes up, and the song is cut. But you get the dramatic essence, and Judy's vocal delivery which, no matter how hard I worked I just could not approach it to my satisfaction. Not all women's songs should be sung by only women--even Neil Diamond did "I Dreamed A Dream"--but I am almost convinced "RAGS" should only be sung by a woman.

click here for Seth rudetsky deconstructing "rags"

How I wanted to get Seth and his deconstruction on here!  But, if you click to this link, it should take you to the video of Seth, and you can hear the song in its entirety, smoothly mixed out.  Plus Seth's spot on analysis, especially on the vocal changes, which demonstrate, why, I say, this song is so difficult to sing.

"Open your eyes," darlings!!!!!!!! http://www.masterworksbroadway.com/videos/27923/seth-rudetsky-deconstructs-rags-from-rags