1998 (Shirley performs this classic song from the musical, Chicago, on her TV Special)
ABOUT the Musical, Chicago:
Chicago is a Kander and Ebb musical set in Prohibition-era Chicago. The music is by John Kander with lyrics by Fred Ebb and a book by Ebb and Bob Fosse. The story is a satire on corruption in the administration of criminal justice, and the concept of the "celebrity criminal". The musical is based on a 1926 play of the same name by reporter Maurine Dallas Watkins about actual criminals and crimes she reported on.
The original Broadway production opened June 3, 1975 at the 46th Street Theatre and ran for 936 performances. Bob Fosse choreographed the original production, and his style is strongly identified with the show. Chicago's 1996 Broadway revival holds the record for the longest-running musical revival on Broadway (not counting the revue Oh! Calcutta!) and is Broadway's sixth longest-running show. As of January 12, 2010, it has played for more than 5,400 performances. The revival was followed by a production on London's West End theatre and several tours and international productions. An Academy Award-winning film version of the musical was released in 2002, directed by Rob Marshall and starring Catherine Zeta-Jones, Renee Zellweger, Richard Gere, and Queen Latifah.
The musical Chicago is based on a play of the same name by reporter Maurine Dallas Watkins, who was assigned to cover the 1924 trials of murderesses Beulah Annan and Belva Gaertner for the Chicago Tribune.
Annan, the model for the character of Roxie Hart, was 23 when she was accused of the April 3, 1924, murder of Harry Kalstedt. The Tribune reported that Annan played the foxtrot record "Hula Lou" over and over for two hours before calling her husband to say she killed a man who "tried to make love to her". She was found "not guilty" on May 25, 1924. Velma is based on Gaertner, who was a cabaret singer. The body of Walter Law was discovered slumped over the steering wheel of Gaertner's abandoned car on March 12, 1924. Two police officers testified that they had seen a woman getting into the car and shortly thereafter heard gunshots. A bottle of gin and an automatic pistol were found on the floor of the car. Gaertner was acquitted on June 6, 1924. Lawyers William Scott Stewart and W. W. O'Brien were models for a composite character in Chicago, "Billy Flynn"
The song "All That Jazz" - a number in homage to famous speakeasy owner Texas Guinan (Velma)
John Kander and Fred Ebb began work on the musical score, modeling each number on a traditional vaudeville number or a vaudeville performer. This format made explicit the show's comparison between "justice", "show-business", and contemporary society. Ebb and Fosse penned the book of the musical, with Fosse also directing and doing the choreography.
LYRICS:
Come on babe we're gonna paint the town
and all that jazz
I'm gonna rouge my knees
and roll my stockings down
and all that jazz
Start the car I know a whoopee spot
Where the gin is cold
but the piano's hot!
It's just a noisy hall
Where there's a nightly brawl
And all that jazz
Slick your hair
And wear your buckle shoes
And all that Jazz
I hear that Father Dipp is gonna blow the blues
And all that Jazz
Hold on, hon
We're gonna bunny hug
I bought some aspirin
Down at United Drug
I case you shake apart
And want a brand new start
With all that Jazz
Oh, you're gonna see your sheba shimmy shake
And all that jazz
Oh, she's gonna shimmy 'till her garters break
And all that jazz
Show her where to park her girdle
Oh, her mother's blood'd curdle
If she'd hear her baby's queer
For all that jazz
Find a flask
We're playing fast and loose
And all that jazz
Right up here
Is where I store the juice
And all that jazz
Come on, babe
We're gonna brush the sky
I bet you luck Lindy
Never flew so high
'Cause in the stratosphere
How could he lend an ear
to all that jazz?
No, I'm no one's wife
But, Oh, I love my life
And all
that
Jazz!
That Jazz!
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Shirley Bassey - I Want To Know What Love Isby sas90230551,295 views
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