My favorite song is memory sung by Elaine Page. Some people say that Betty Buckley's memory is the best, but Elaine Page's memory is the best because she sings beautifully while expressing Grizabella's heartbreaking cries even better! ! !
Non conosco Betty Buckley, ma questa Memory di Elaine Page mi fa venire i brividi perche esprime tutta la disperazione e la solitudine piena di rimpianti e di dolore della povera Grizabella abbandonata e rifiutata da tutti che ha perso tutto e a cui rimangono solo ricordi di un tempo bello che ormai fa solo male ricordare... e io ricordo il meraviglioso musical "Cats" da cui è tratta questa canzone, capace di toccare l'anima, che ho visto dal vivo e il cui punto più toccante e profondo è proprio la canzone Memory, ed è stata per me una delle emozioni più profonde che ho vissuto!
Paige really brings empathy to her character. You believe she has lived a hard life and wants nothing more than to be accepted. It's heartbreaking and beautiful!
"Touch me. It's so easy to leave me with my memories of my days in the sun. If you touch me, you'll understand what happiness is." I burst into tears every time I hear these words. It makes me think of all of the senior cats in shelters and on the street, looking for a home, but they're not usually everyone's first pick.
Some of you need to understand , that this isn't easy. Theatre isn't easy. Elaine Paige and Betty Buckley are two phenomenal actresses , they just have different approaches of the character. One may focus more on the acting , while the other focuses more on the singing. Their message is to simply deliver what the song is trying to say, & have you feel the emotion that comes with it. I'd like to see you stand on stage & try to even sing this song , while showing emotion.
+Anas Wakhani Unfortunately as a Musical Thetre major I must share that the crucible may take place at the technical delivery with the acting secondary. At this level of national spotlight/attention. Elaine paige was under fire was under pressure to deliver not as good but actually a Better performance then Betty Buckley. This is the case with any remake or reprisal. The production as a whole is under that same pressure as is the director. Elaine was under the shadow of Betty Buckleys dynamic technical powerhouse delivery. . Where Elaine Paige could not beat Betty she compensated with impressive dramatics. This may work for the lay theatre goer. But for those of us in the know it's all about who SANG it better not. elaine has a more proper operatic voice. Betty presented a rare legit built so stregthened it was delivered with operatic resonance. If we take her acting away Betty's vocals alone were bone chilling and emotionally devastating bringing the show to a halt.. Can we say the same if we take Elaine's acting away? Both are professionals in their owen right Legends if you will. But Betty Buckley has not been matched in her performance of memory by any. (not even my favorites Heather headley or Sara Brightman. Her voice was just right for the song. Kismet.
+Bryan Masters First of all, your degree or education in music does not mean that what you learn and think has to be more important. Music, films, all of the arts in fact, depend on the audience and what they think and not what a minority of lecturers, critics and students think! This was a musical where both acting and singing are judged by the audience and if the majority likes Elaine Paige who can both act the right way for the song, and also sing well, it does not matter whether Betty sings better. Secondly, for a music major that was an extremely stupid comment because Elaine Paige performed this song BEFORE Betty Buckley!
+Bryan Masters Cats was originally a West End (London) musical produced in 1981 and Elaine Paige was the first singer/actor to take the role of Grizabella. The Broadway production came one year later as a result of the success of the West End production and Betty Buckley was cast as Grizabella for Broadway. Elaine Paige has NEVER been under the shadow of Betty Buckley. She is more famous outside of America for this song and is almost synonymous with it. But, in any case, I do not think either actress would have been under any pressure and would hardly have viewed the other as competition. We are talking theater performances in the 1980s when there was no internet, smartphones or cable. Most of those who had seen the Broadway version had not seen the West End performance and vice versa. They were living in their own world thousands of miles apart. Thus, being under pressure or 'under fire' to perform better was out of question.
l have seen this performance many times and l still get goose bumps Everytime l hear her sing this song, especially when she stands up. Beautiful and heart-rending.
Thank You Elaine Paige. My late wife and I had the good fortune to see you perform as the featured artist on a cruise a few years back. I only got misty-eyed then, but now the tears flow as I listen to you alone.
An elite theatrical voice is 50% vocal talent and 50% emotion. Not everyone understands that. Elaine's ability to convey emotion is why she was at the top. The same goes for Michael Crawford.
CJ Mooney I agree Elaine is the best we have had for the last 40/50 years. Saw her in Evita/Cats /Chess. Michael i saw in Barnum/Phantom/Women in white.
Carol Wade how patronising do people like you sound 🙄 Yes Betty is great. We're watching Elaine here. Move along sweetheart. See...I can be patronising too 👌
I was lucky enough to see Elaine Paige play Norma Desmond in "Sunset Blvd" on Broadway in 1996...it was just simply stunning! Her "touch me" in this version always makes me well up... : )
I don't know, everyone always compared her version to Betty Buckley's, & they're just so different. Very different voices, & styles, & they sing it so differently. I think Elaine Paige sings it with a bit more anguish. Which I happen to prefer, but Betty Buckley has such a unique voice & hers is amazing too.
Buckler's version is pretty much what this song can be at its peak in term of singing. Paige mixed in touches for her performance. I find her version fit much better to character and the musical in its entirety. One is the definition of perfection while the other is the best performance for a musical. It was like comparing width with height. Surely they use similar unit but they aren't the same.
holy shiz. I have only heard others sing this and I was reading comments about how it was so amazing and people were crying and getting chills, and I was like sure thing. Then it came and suddenly I just burst into tears. Amazing
Oh my gosh she looks EXACTLY the same as the DVD! This is just like seeing my DVD live! (With a different singer as Jemima of course) I can't believe it! :D And I love the emotion she put into this particular performance! No one can sing Memory better than her. ;) And IMHO nobody can sing the bridge better than Helen Massey! (Jemima's overdub voice on the DVD)
That overdub on the DVD is dire! And there are plenty who sing this better than Elaine - although that doesn't change the fact that she sings this fantastically.
Amazing vocalists often don't make it in musical theatre. Because actors have to be able show a fragility within their vocals. A weakness. That's how they convey the emotion of the song. Elaine charms the audience as she sounds like she is truly living the moment. If she had flawless vocals nobody would believe that
***** I have and Elaine's version for me is still the best. Recently watched an awful piano version of this song by Betty Buckley (on you tube) awful !
I just heard an interview with Elaine in which she said Dame Judy Dench was to play this part but hurt her foot and ALW called her just a few days before the opening. This is the only song she does in the play. I never really realized that..I've never seen the play.
+leofurry Where's the love? It's right here! I have to say that Kimberely Partridge crams so much vocal detailing, nuance and charisma into her small part, that I might be more impressed with her than anyone else. She is definitely my favorite Jemima. What I can't wrap my head around is- where is she now? Where is her singing career? Did she decide she would rather pursue dance? I can't find any info on her at all beyond some movie that she starred in as a kid.
Elaine sings this just as well today! In her 2009 celebration of 40 years on stage, she really knocks it out of the part (a compliment). She is amazing, and singing for over 40 years. She still has it today. You should see & hear her sing "The Heart is Slow to Learn". She did that in a 2008 performance in China. Wow! What a performance that was! Checkout her other performances video clips. Very captivating!
Diane Ellis Elaine Paige has been the best of the last 40 years or so. The best since Ethel Mermon.I do love Nicole's version but I would love Sierra Borgess to have a go at this. She is wonderful.
Man! That is an INCREDIBLE performance!!! It literally gave me chills to hear Elaine sing this song with so much deep emotion! Even better than the widely-released video version! She masters the vocal art of hesitating at just the right moment for the heart-tugging impact she mesmerizes her audience with! Her voice is absolutely beautiful!!!
My mom speaks english and I asked ger to teach me to sing this song, I'm from Brazil and I love you Elaine Paige, you are my favorite singer in the hole world!!!! I love u I love u I love u !!!!
Bawling... Elaine Paige may come across as an abrasive person, arrogant to some...nd true to say she can't dance for shit however her voice and characterisation is incredible. And her face is AMAZING. One of the greats. "I must think of a new life" has me in bits every time. I ADORE her and always will.
I'm glad to hear you say this. This Jemima, Kimberely Partridge, has become my favorite. Kimberely packs so much vocal charisma and character into her few notes, I was totally floored. I'm surprised that she never had much of a career in singing. It seems like one could easily form a musical venture around her ... easily. I wonder if she was ever bothered that the 'other Jemima' (Veerle Casteleyn) seemed to be the most popular one? No question I prefer Kimberely's voice/artistry.
Perfeito. O que distingue artistas talentosos dos gênios é a perpetuidade de sua obra. Relembrando: "Cats é um musical composto por Andrew Lloyd Webber que teve sua estréia em Londres em 1981, mas que se consagrou por dezoito anos em cartaz na Broadway. Para realizar esse espetáculo, Llyod Weber musicou uma série de poemas de T. S. Eliot sobre gatos e acrescentou um roteiro, onde Memory foi uma das suas músicas de maior sucesso".
Elaine did much better here than she did in the film. I was never a big fan but now I am after this performance. Still...Betty Buckley All the Way!!! YEAH MISS COLLINS!!!
