There was much merriment in Harrison's work, much hummable song and rollicking dance; but there were also dark, questing rivers of chant, machinelike ostinatos, erupting dissonances, enveloping silences.
"The song is about how a girl really wants crazy wild sex but doesn't say it -- positing that age-old problem where men think no means yes into a catchy, hummable song".
Hummable songs may trump a simple sentimental plot like that of "Edward Scissorhands".
Directed by David Petrarca, the show features eminently hummable songs by Robert and Willie Reale and enchanting sets by Adrianne Lobel (daughter of Arnold).
In fact, I can name at least three hummable songs from virtually every Sondheim show, without even going to my record collection.
Yet when you hear many of the numbers in this revue, you're struck by how they've penetrated and stuck in your consciousness in ways deeper than merely hummable songs allow.
In the first triptych Ms. Stenn's "Mirah" and "Mirah #3," set to eminently hummable songs by Mirah and the Spectratone International, bookend Mr. Munisteri's "Mirah #2," to Jay Weissman's industrial, sci-fi sound design.
The jazz-lite that characterised Frank had been supplanted by sparky R&B, immediately hummable songs and, crucially, the performance of a lifetime from Winehouse, who sang as if her heart were damaged beyond repair.
This intoxicating production, which features a charming supporting cast led by Michael McKean, allows grown-up audiences the rare chance to witness a bona fide adult love affair translated into hummable songs and sprightly dance (2 30).
But Mr. Rouse's new disc treads lightly, using gentle grooves (some inspired by old soul and soft-rock) to propel airy, hummable songs that are almost -- but not quite -- as slight as they first seem.
The last-mentioned can be determined according to a complex formula that takes into account such qualities as mystery (Raftery prefers second-tier songs–stay away from "Let it Be" and "Satisfaction," he pleads), diversity (avoid repetitive choruses) and absurdity (go for quirky, hummable songs over soul-searching lyrics).
