The recording took place during some of the shows of the tour titled Liza, which consisted of 24 shows held at the Winter Garden Theatre, located at 1634 Broadway in the heart of Manhattan, New York City.[2]
The LP was released in April 1974, and the promotion included full-page advertisements in American magazines, such as Billboard magazine.[3]
Due to contractual conflicts, the album was withdrawn from circulation shortly afterward because it included songs from the film Cabaret, whose soundtrack was still in the market.[4] Thus, it became a rare - and even considered lost - title in Liza's discography.[4] Eleven of the fourteen tracks from the soundtrack appeared on the compilation Cabaret... And All That Jazz: The Liza Minnelli Anthology, released by the Salvo label.[5]
In 2012, Masterworks Broadway released the album in its entirety on CD and digital download, marking the first time the performance was officially available in these formats.[6] Three live bonus tracks were also part of the re-release, including "You and I" by Stevie Wonder and the classics "It Had to Be You" and "My Shining Hour."[7][8][9]
Regarding the show, the singer said, "The thing about doing a show like 'Liza' is that every song means something... Fred and John were so brilliant in constructing the show, plus I had Marvin, so we tried all kinds of vocals and finally got what you hear on the album, and thank God it worked! You keep trying, and you're not satisfied with anything less than the best."[2]
In the selection of tracks included in the set list, Minnelli sings re-creations of her already classic songs, such as the pot-pourri from Cabaret, as well as songs from the Great American Songbook, like "Shine On Harvest Moon."[11] Regarding the inclusion of older songs, some sung by her mother, she said, "For me, there are no new or old songs. There's just good music and good lyrics. In general, I choose songs for my repertoire more for the words than for the melody. And I don't look for just beautiful words. I like lyrics that tell a story, if possible with a beginning, middle, and end. Those are the songs that best reflect the yearnings and feelings of the audience, the ones that capture their attention the most because they are part of everyone's life."[12]
The reviews from the music critics were mostly positive.
William Ruhlmann of the website AllMusic rated it three and a half stars out of five,[16] and wrote that the album brings "a typically effective live performance by Minnelli and clearly just a memory of the actual show that could only be completed by seeing and hearing her."[16]
The reviewer from Billboard magazine praised the repertoire and Minnelli's interpretations, selecting "Exactly Like Me," "Natural Man," "I Can See Clearly Now," and "Cabaret" as the highlights.[15]
Commercial performance
Commercially, it spent four weeks on the Billboard 200 chart in the United States.[17] It debuted at number 188 on May 18, 1974,[18] and reached its peak at number 150 on June 1, 1974.[19]
With the 2012 re-release, the album reappeared on the Billboard Top Cast Album chart, reaching number 5 on May 26, 2012.[20] The following week, it remained in the same position, marking its last appearance on the chart.[21]
Track listing
No.
Title
Writer(s)
Producer(s)
Length
1.
"Overture: "Liza with a 'Z'" / "Ring Them Bells" / "I Can See Clearly Now" / "Maybe This Time" / "Cabaret""
