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1977:
Starting
Here, Starting Now at the
Barbarann Theatre
Which came first, the show
or the song? In a bit of a twist, Barbra's recordings of three
Richard Maltby, Jr. and David Shire songs actually preceded the
show in which they were eventually featured. Years after these
ballads first appeared on Streisand albums, they were
incorporated into a 1977 New York musical review called
"Starting Here, Starting Now."
"Starting Here, Starting Now" was produced off-Broadway at the
Barbarann Theatre. The show lasted for 120 performances and
starred Loni Ackerman, Margery Cohen and George Lee Andrews in
the principal roles. The show is essentially a review exploring
love and relationships. Little dialogue is spoken between songs.
The original New York production featured only three cast
members who performed to a back-up of just three musicians.
David Shire (music) and Richard Maltby, Jr. (lyrics) wrote the
musical review. Many of the show's numbers were taken from
Maltby and Shire's trunk of miscellaneous songs that they had
written throughout the years, some from their failed musicals,
and others never before produced on stage. The composers chose
to weave their "lost" songs into a new romantically themed
musical. "Starting Here, Starting Now" was the first theatrical
success for Maltby and Shire, with the show's cast album
receiving a Grammy Award. A successful production made its way
to London in 1993, and subsequent productions have been
re-mounted throughout the years.
The
greatest journey heaven
can allow
. .
.
 Barbra Streisand
recorded three songs written by Maltby and
Shire that were later incorporated into the score of "Starting
Here, Starting Now." Barbra discovered the subtle number,
"Autumn" way back in 1964 and included it on her album,
"People." It was one of the earliest songs written by the
composers while they were attending classes together at Yale.
The ballad,
"Starting Here, Starting Now" was, of course, most
recently performed by Barbra during her 2006 and 2007
concert tour (right). She thrilled audiences in the US, Canada and
all across Europe with the song she first made popular on
her 1966 television special, "Color Me Barbra."
Barbra also performed the ballad at the legendary 1972
McGovern benefit in Los Angeles and was included in her
"Live Concert at the Forum" album.
The Barbra connection
to this particular ballad is even more amazing when you
consider its provenance: it was written in 1965 while
composer David Shire served as Barbra's assistant
conductor during the Broadway run of "Funny Girl." It is
unclear whether "Starting Here, Starting Now" was written
with Barbra in mind, but knowing the composer personally
probably had something to do with Barbra's decision to
include it in her television special.
The third
Streisand recording to eventually make it into the show
"Starting Here, Starting Now" was an unlikely candidate. It's
"What About Today?" from Barbra's 1969 album of the same name.
Barbra included it on her LP because the lyrics fit the
album's theme of social awareness. Both music and lyrics were
written by Shire. In the revue, the message of "What About
Today?" has no specific social commentary. As performed on
stage, the number is a lament about the frustration of
relationships that require time and patience to develop.
Barbra
Streisand recorded two additional Shire and Maltby
compositions, neither of which were included in their review.
"The Morning After" appears on Barbra's "What About Today?"
album. "No More Songs for Me" can be heard on the "My Name Is
Barbra, Two..." album.
"My Favorite Songs"
During her appearance at The Actors Studio in
2003, James Lipton asked Barbra what her favorite
signature song was. Barbra couldn't narrow the field
down to just one, but instead, listed half a dozen.
Surprisingly, one Maltby and Shire song made it onto
Barbra's list of her top six "signature songs."
According to Barbra, they are:
"Happy Days Are Here Again"
(J. Yellen, M. Ager)
"The Way We Were"
(M. Hamlisch, M. and A. Bergman)
"People"
(J. Styne, R. Merrill)
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"Evergreen"
(B. Streisand, P. Williams)
"Since I Fell For You"
(B. Johnson)
"No More Songs For Me"
(R. Maltby, D. Shire)
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David Shire
 As
was mentioned, David Shire wrote the music for the ballad,
"Starting Here, Starting Now" while serving as the assistant
conductor during Barbra Streisand's run in "Funny Girl" on
Broadway. But that was not the end of the Streisand-Shire
connection.
In addition to recording several of his
compositions, Barbra worked with David Shire on two of
her television specials: "Color Me Barbra" and "The Belle of
14th Street." For both shows, Shire was the associate musical
director.
In 1972, Shire served as Barbra's musical conductor at the legendary
"3/4 McGovern" benefit in Los Angeles. Barbra's performance that
evening was later released as her "Live Concert at the Forum" album.
In 1995, Barbra once again called upon David Shire for a very
special project. Shire was hired by Barwood productions
to compose the original music for the landmark television
movie, "Serving in Silence."
Incidentally, David Shire's former wife is the Academy Award
nominated actress, Talia Shire.
Richard Maltby, Jr.
Richard Maltby, Jr. also has an extensive show business
résumé. He was the lyricist for several Broadway shows,
including 1991's "Nick and Nora." He is credited for the
lyrics of "Miss Saigon," having adapted Alain Boubil's French
libretto for the English version of the production. He
directed several Broadway shows, including "Fosse" and Andrew
Lloyd Webber's "Song and Dance." Maltby won a Tony award in
1978 for directing "Ain't Misbehavin'," the Fats Waller
musical revue that included the number, "Keepin' Out of
Mischief Now." Barbra, of course, recorded this tune years
earlier on her first album.
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