Musical Theater "Book Songs" Appreciation Thread

Cafe Society
1

The songs that can stand alone as “breakaway hits” are the ones that really get noticed from Broadway musicals: Tomorrow (Annie), Memory (Cats), The Impossible Dream (Man of La Mancha), Til There Was You (The Music Man), though there are a few exceptions (Don’t Cry for Me Argentina from EVITA and The Rain In Spain from My Fair Lady come to mind). Unfortunately most of the “book songs” (i.e. those that are too in context with the play to stand alone and serve mainly as exposition/plot advancement to live independently of the plot) are forgotten and only known by musical theater qu… buffs. It’s a shame, because some of them are as good as or better than the breakaway hits.

So to help make amends, what are some of your favorite “book songs”? Some of my pics:
Poor Jud is Daid from OKLAHOMA

He Plays the Violin from 1776
Cool Considerate Men from 1776

The Night that Goldman Spoke at Union Square from RAGTIME
Crime of the Century from RAGTIME

Heaven On Their Minds from JESUS CHRIST SUPERSTAR

American Dream from MISS SAIGON

The Blame from Titanic

Missing Oakley from Fair & Tender Ladies

I Used to be the King from The Producers

He Lives In You from The Lion King

Your turn.

2

I’ve always liked two in Les Miserables:

The Confrontation (between Javert and Valjean) and Fantine’s Arrest.

3

Ooh- I forgot Confrontation and it’s one of my favorites. “You know nothing of Javert, I was born inside a jail…” is such a great and telling line.

4

Gethsesame (I Only Want To Say) from Superstar.

  • Close Every Door* from Joseph.

One “book song” that had huge success is One Night in Bangkok from “Chess.” Odd that it was cut from the recent Swedish production!