Touched by tragedy, conceived in confusion and delivered with dissent, there’s no possible reason that Wonderful Town should have lasted past opening night, yet alone become one of the classics of the musical theatre. Yet somehow it did and although a lot of people can take credit for its success – including star Rosalind Russell, director George Abbott and composer Leonard Bernstein – you really have to take your hat off to Betty Comden and Adolph Green, whose cheeky, chip-on-the shoulder humour was perfect for the project. When Wonderful Town finally opened on 25 February 1953, it received unanimous raves from the New York critics. Typical was this comment in the Daily News `one of the gayest, smartest shows of recent times´. Besides the original cast recording of Wonderful Town, which brings you Russell, Adams and the rest of the talented company, this album features Comden and Green performing eleven of their other lyrics.