On Saturday, October 1, I painted a kitchen. Fun, right? It took six hours which was way longer than I expected it to take. However, I did get some good alone time in which I was able to listen to music. Normally, my go-to music in this sort of situation is the Broadway cast recording of "Hamilton." I was just about to click play when I had the sudden realization: THERE ARE OTHER MUSICALS! I ended up listening to five albums all the way through - told you it took a long time - and now here I am to rank them because it sounds like a fun idea.
5. Book of Mormon
So, not all of these are "new" shows to me. I've actually seen "The Book of Mormon" and listened to the album a couple of times before. It's an amazing show, but it's definitely not my favorite because of some of the content. As a Christian, it made me a little uncomfortable, especially one song in particular (if you've seen or heard it, you'll know which one I'm talking about). But I love the beginning and end as well as the cast, so that's why I listened to it again.
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4. In the Heights
I liked this album a little bit more than "The Book of Mormon," but only because it didn't have the same offensive content. This was my first time listening to it and I really wanted to love it because Lin-Manuel Miranda. So I expected to love it. Instead, I was confused throughout most of it. Maybe my expectations were too high, but I just really didn't enjoy this one much. I'll probably try listening to it again soon to see if I end up liking it after all.
3. Rent
Confession Time: I've never seen "Rent" or even listened to it. Apparently, that's some huge shock to people. I just haven't had the time. I have (now) listened to the whole movie soundtrack, but besides "Seasons of Love" and "Take Me or Leave Me," it was a new experience. It also wasn't my favorite to listen to because I was confused and didn't really connect with any of it, but I appreciate each new song that I heard.
2. Newsies
This has an unfair advantage because I loved the show when I saw it and I have listened to the album so many times. It's just so good and it was still something that I listened to that day, so it qualifies for this list. I love how the story progresses and gets more intense through each song and it even has a happy ending. My favorite song is probably "Santa Fe" because it opens the show and it's so full of hope.
1. Waitress
Woah. This was the first album I listened to that day. And the sixth. And seventh. I technically had heard two of the songs before, but I had no idea what the show was about until I listened all the way through. Each song was so captivating and meaningful. Well, "Club Knocked Up" maybe isn't very "meaningful," but it fits in the show well and it's amusing. I can't decide which song is my favorite, but my top three are probably "What's Inside," "Opening Up," and "When He Sees Me."
I hope you enjoyed this list and I sincerely hope that you take the time to listen to all of the songs from all five shows. Sure, I wasn't a huge fan of all of them, but they're all good in their own way and you might have a different opinion than I do. Let me know what you think in the comments here or on the social media where you found this article. I hope you have a good day.
