Song:By My Side
Album:Godspell: Original Off-Off-Broadway Cast
Though I'm sure you have heard of the musical Godspell, the origins of the show are unusual. It started as a student project at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh written by John-Michael Tebelak. The cast were drama students and most of the songs were written by Duane Bolick. After Godspell was performed locally, actor and Carnegie Mellon alumnus Charles Haid brought the show to producer Edgar Lansbury to turn it into a Broadway musical. The first thing Lansbury did was hire Stephen Schwartz to overhaul the music. He scrapped all of Bolick's songs. The only song from the original show to remain was By My Side written by Peggy Gordon who also appeared in the show. The Carnegie Mellon students were still the cast. So Peggy performed her own song. Of course Godspell was a big success and was even turned into a film. And of course the show is still performed today. Some of the original cast were in the film. But Peggy got tonsillitis and was unable to do the movie. Like most of the cast, Peggy was an amateur and she didn't continue in show business. At least she still earns royalties from By My Side. Here's Peggy Gordon performing By My Side on the CBS show Camera Three 1971.
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