These are frightening times, and we all must take necessary precautions as we social distance and self-isolate. That being said, you deserve a break every now and then. Welcome to Playbill's Daily Distraction.
Day 39: GUH-ROOOOOOOW
As you're washing your hands today, you could sing "Happy Birthday" to Barbra Streisand twice to reach the desired 20-second duration. Alternatively, you could hold Babs' final note in "Make Our Garden Grow" once. Your pick.
Yes, the Candide song was part of another Daily Distraction earlier this week—celebrating another Barb(a)ra, even—but there's no way we weren't going to revisit this clip to celebrate Babs' big day.
The rendition comes from the recording sessions for her 26th (!!) studio album Back to Broadway. The album was released in 1993, but the sessions dated back to 1988. Ultimately, the song didn't make the final track list, but videos have since surfaced of her various takes, each containing a sustained note finale that's equally bizarre, impressive, and entertaining.
This particular clip is somehow her fifth take of the number, and while it's not the mostly widely spread version, it does feature my favorite flourish: making the last "grow" two syllables, flipping from G# to a C# held long enough to make any aspiring Elle Woods jealous.
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