Name: In The Heights (Original Broadway Cast Recording) by Lin-manuel Miranda
Brand: Lin-Manuel Miranda
SKU: 791558888737
Price: 9.9 USD
Availability: OnlineOnly
Rating: 3 (189 reviews)

ALBUM

The heights referred to in the title of the Broadway musical In the Heights is Washington Heights, a neighborhood in Upper Manhattan adjacent to the George Washington Bridge largely occupied by working-class Hispanics, many of them from the Dominican Republic and other islands in the Caribbean. Lin-Manuel Miranda, who stars in the show and is also given a credit for conceiving it as well as writing the songs, clearly knows the neighborhood intimately. When, at one point, a character reminisces about the subway trains, the IRT 1 and 9, that serviced the area, his character, Usnavi, quickly points out that the 9 has been discontinued. Usnavi, the owner of a bodega (a small grocery) who dreams of returning to the Dominican Republic, is not only knowledgeable about local transportation. In the introductory song "In the Heights," as he introduces the many other characters in this ensemble piece, rapping over salsa music, he uses words such as "exacerbated" and at one point, speaking of the high temperature, notes, "It's gotten too darn hot like my man Cole Porter said." Usnavi is, in other words, a bit too well educated to be what he claims, and the mixture of closely observed street life with erudition is typical of the show's writing, just as Miranda's music, while infused with Latin and hip-hop elements, is also informed by contemporary show music writing. There's no doubt he's familiar with Stephen Sondheim as well as Jonathan Larson, whose Rent is a major influence, even if it's about an entirely different neighborhood of Manhattan. Like Rent, In the Heights follows the lives of a group of characters whose aspirations and experiences have something of a soap opera quality, though the intention is to provide a panoramic view of a bustling community. There is the sense of that neighborhood's falling apart: several of the characters want to leave, others are being forced out. (At one point, Usnavi predicts that in five years the whole city will consist of nothing but rich people and hipsters, a forecast people have been making for a century or so.) But while they're still on the hot streets, they sing and dance and interact with each other, and Miranda has captured their stories well. The large cast, also including Mandy Gonzalez, Karen Olivo, and Olga Merediz in principal roles, does well by the score on this double-CD cast album, which runs 89 minutes. ~ William Ruhlmann

1. In the Heights

by Lin-manuel Miranda, 'in The Heights' Original Broadway Company

Primary Artist: Lin-manuel Miranda
'in The Heights' Original Broadway Company; Main Performer
Composer: Lin-manuel Miranda; Composer
Vocals: 'in The Heights' Original Broadway Company
Lin-manuel Miranda; Performer
Producer: Kurt Deutsch
Andrés Levin
Lin-manuel Miranda
Joel Moss
Alex Lacamoire
Bill Sherman; Production

2. Breathe

by 'in The Heights' Original Broadway Company, Mandy Gonzalez

Primary Artist: Mandy Gonzalez
'in The Heights' Original Broadway Company; Main Performer
Composer: Lin-manuel Miranda; Composer
Vocals: 'in The Heights' Original Broadway Company
Mandy Gonzalez; Performer
Producer: Kurt Deutsch
Andrés Levin
Lin-manuel Miranda
Joel Moss
Alex Lacamoire
Bill Sherman; Production

3. Benny's Dispatch

by Christopher Jackson, Mandy Gonzalez

Primary Artist: Mandy Gonzalez
Christopher Jackson; Main Performer
Composer: Lin-manuel Miranda; Composer
Vocals: Mandy Gonzalez
Christopher Jackson; Performer
Producer: Kurt Deutsch
Andrés Levin
Lin-manuel Miranda
Joel Moss
Alex Lacamoire
Bill Sherman; Production

4. It Won't Be Long Now

by Karen Olivo, Lin-manuel Miranda, Robin De Jesús

Primary Artist: Karen Olivo
Lin-manuel Miranda
Robin De Jesús; Main Performer
Composer: Lin-manuel Miranda; Composer
Vocals: Robin De Jesús
Karen Olivo
Lin-manuel Miranda; Performer
Producer: Kurt Deutsch
Andrés Levin
Lin-manuel Miranda
Joel Moss
Alex Lacamoire
Bill Sherman; Production

5. Inútil

by Carlos Gomez

Primary Artist: Carlos Gomez; Main Performer
Composer: Lin-manuel Miranda; Composer
Vocals: Carlos Gomez; Performer
Producer: Kurt Deutsch
Andrés Levin
Lin-manuel Miranda
Alex Lacamoire
Bill Sherman
Joel Moss; Production

6. No Me Diga

by Andrea Burns, Janet Dacal, Karen Olivo, Mandy Gonzalez

Primary Artist: Andrea Burns
Mandy Gonzalez
Karen Olivo
Janet Dacal; Main Performer
Composer: Lin-manuel Miranda; Composer
Vocals: Mandy Gonzalez
Karen Olivo
Janet Dacal
Andrea Burns; Performer
Producer: Kurt Deutsch
Andrés Levin
Lin-manuel Miranda
Joel Moss
Alex Lacamoire
Bill Sherman; Production

7. 96,000

by Lin-manuel Miranda, Christopher Jackson, Robin De Jesús, Seth Stewart, Janet Dacal, Andrea Burns

Primary Artist: Andrea Burns
Christopher Jackson
Lin-manuel Miranda
Janet Dacal
Robin De Jesús
Seth Stewart; Main Performer
Composer: Lin-manuel Miranda; Composer
Vocals: Karen Olivo
Lin-manuel Miranda
Christopher Jackson
Robin De Jesús
Seth Stewart
Andrea Burns
'in The Heights' Original Broadway Company
Janet Dacal; Performer
Producer: Andrés Levin
Kurt Deutsch
Lin-manuel Miranda
Bill Sherman
Alex Lacamoire
Joel Moss; Production

8. Paciencia Y Fe

by Olga Merediz, 'in The Heights' Original Broadway Company

Primary Artist: Olga Merediz
'in The Heights' Original Broadway Company; Main Performer
Composer: Lin-manuel Miranda; Composer
Vocals: 'in The Heights' Original Broadway Company
Olga Merediz; Performer
Producer: Kurt Deutsch
Andrés Levin
Lin-manuel Miranda
Joel Moss
Alex Lacamoire
Bill Sherman; Production

9. When You're Home

by Mandy Gonzalez, Christopher Jackson, 'in The Heights' Original Broadway Company

Primary Artist: Mandy Gonzalez
Christopher Jackson
'in The Heights' Original Broadway Company; Main Performer
Composer: Lin-manuel Miranda; Composer
Vocals: 'in The Heights' Original Broadway Company
Mandy Gonzalez
Christopher Jackson; Performer
Producer: Kurt Deutsch
Andrés Levin
Lin-manuel Miranda
Joel Moss
Alex Lacamoire
Bill Sherman; Production

10. Piragua

by Eliseo Román

Primary Artist: Eliseo Roman; Main Performer
Composer: Lin-manuel Miranda; Composer
Vocals: Eliseo Román; Performer
Producer: Kurt Deutsch
Andrés Levin
Lin-manuel Miranda
Alex Lacamoire
Bill Sherman
Joel Moss; Production

11. The Club

by 'in The Heights' Original Broadway Company

Primary Artist: 'in The Heights' Original Broadway Company; Main Performer
Composer: Lin-manuel Miranda; Composer
Vocals: 'in The Heights' Original Broadway Company; Performer
Producer: Joel Moss
Andrés Levin
Kurt Deutsch
Lin-manuel Miranda
Alex Lacamoire
Bill Sherman; Production

12. Blackout

by 'in The Heights' Original Broadway Company

Primary Artist: 'in The Heights' Original Broadway Company; Main Performer
Composer: Lin-manuel Miranda; Composer
Vocals: 'in The Heights' Original Broadway Company; Performer
Producer: Kurt Deutsch
Andrés Levin
Lin-manuel Miranda
Alex Lacamoire
Bill Sherman
Joel Moss; Production

13. Sunrise

by Mandy Gonzalez, Christopher Jackson, 'in The Heights' Original Broadway Company

Primary Artist: Mandy Gonzalez
Christopher Jackson
'in The Heights' Original Broadway Company; Main Performer
Composer: Lin-manuel Miranda; Composer
Vocals: Mandy Gonzalez
Lin-manuel Miranda
Christopher Jackson
'in The Heights' Original Broadway Company; Performer
Producer: Andrés Levin
Kurt Deutsch
Joel Moss
Bill Sherman
Alex Lacamoire; Production

14. Hundreds of Stories

by Lin-manuel Miranda, Olga Merediz

Primary Artist: Olga Merediz
Lin-manuel Miranda; Main Performer
Composer: Lin-manuel Miranda; Composer
Vocals: Olga Merediz
Lin-manuel Miranda; Performer
Producer: Kurt Deutsch
Andrés Levin
Lin-manuel Miranda
Joel Moss
Alex Lacamoire
Bill Sherman; Production

15. Enough

by Priscilla Lopez

Primary Artist: Priscilla Lopez; Main Performer
Vocals: Lin-manuel Miranda
Priscilla Lopez; Performer
Composer: Lin-manuel Miranda; Composer
Producer: Bill Sherman
Alex Lacamoire
Joel Moss
Andrés Levin
Kurt Deutsch
Lin-manuel Miranda; Production

16. Carnaval Del Barrio

by Andrea Burns

Primary Artist: Andrea Burns; Main Performer
Composer: Lin-manuel Miranda; Composer
Vocals: Andrea Burns; Performer
Producer: Kurt Deutsch
Andrés Levin
Lin-manuel Miranda
Alex Lacamoire
Bill Sherman
Joel Moss; Production

17. Atención

by Carlos Gomez

Primary Artist: Carlos Gomez; Main Performer
Composer: Lin-manuel Miranda; Composer
Vocals: Carlos Gomez; Performer
Producer: Kurt Deutsch
Andrés Levin
Lin-manuel Miranda
Alex Lacamoire
Bill Sherman
Joel Moss; Production

18. Alabanza

by Lin-manuel Miranda, Mandy Gonzalez, 'in The Heights' Original Broadway Company

Primary Artist: Mandy Gonzalez
Lin-manuel Miranda
'in The Heights' Original Broadway Company; Main Performer
Composer: Lin-manuel Miranda; Composer
Vocals: 'in The Heights' Original Broadway Company
Mandy Gonzalez
Lin-manuel Miranda; Performer
Producer: Kurt Deutsch
Andrés Levin
Lin-manuel Miranda
Joel Moss
Alex Lacamoire
Bill Sherman; Production

19. Everything I Know

by Mandy Gonzalez

Primary Artist: Mandy Gonzalez; Main Performer
Composer: Lin-manuel Miranda; Composer
Vocals: Mandy Gonzalez
Lin-manuel Miranda; Performer
Producer: Andrés Levin
Kurt Deutsch
Bill Sherman
Joel Moss; Production

20. Piragua (Reprise)

by Eliseo Román

Primary Artist: Eliseo Roman; Main Performer
Composer: Lin-manuel Miranda; Composer
Vocals: Eliseo Román; Performer
Producer: Kurt Deutsch
Andrés Levin
Lin-manuel Miranda
Alex Lacamoire
Bill Sherman
Joel Moss; Production

21. Champagne

by Lin-manuel Miranda, Karen Olivo

Primary Artist: Karen Olivo
Lin-manuel Miranda; Main Performer
Composer: Lin-manuel Miranda; Composer
Vocals: Karen Olivo
Lin-manuel Miranda; Performer
Producer: Kurt Deutsch
Andrés Levin
Lin-manuel Miranda
Joel Moss
Alex Lacamoire
Bill Sherman; Production

22. When the Sun Goes Down

by Mandy Gonzalez, Christopher Jackson

Primary Artist: Mandy Gonzalez
Christopher Jackson; Main Performer
Composer: Lin-manuel Miranda; Composer
Vocals: Mandy Gonzalez
Lin-manuel Miranda
Christopher Jackson; Performer
Producer: Andrés Levin
Kurt Deutsch
Joel Moss
Bill Sherman
Alex Lacamoire; Production

23. Finale

by Doreen Montalvo, Lin-manuel Miranda, 'in The Heights' Original Broadway Company

Primary Artist: Lin-manuel Miranda
Doreen Montalvo
'in The Heights' Original Broadway Company; Main Performer
Composer: Lin-manuel Miranda; Composer
Vocals: 'in The Heights' Original Broadway Company
Doreen Montalvo
Lin-manuel Miranda; Performer
Producer: Kurt Deutsch
Andrés Levin
Lin-manuel Miranda
Joel Moss
Alex Lacamoire
Bill Sherman; Production

24. In the Heights (Radio Edit)

by Lin-manuel Miranda, 'in The Heights' Original Broadway Company

Vocals: Lin-manuel Miranda
'in The Heights' Original Broadway Company; Performer
Primary Artist: Lin-manuel Miranda
'in The Heights' Original Broadway Company; Main Performer
Producer: Andrés Levin
Kurt Deutsch; Production

25. It Won't Be Long Now (Radio Edit)

by Karen Olivo, Lin-manuel Miranda, Robin De Jesús

Vocals: Lin-manuel Miranda
Karen Olivo
Robin De Jesús; Performer
Primary Artist: Karen Olivo
Lin-manuel Miranda
Robin De Jesús; Main Performer
Producer: Andrés Levin
Kurt Deutsch; Production

26. 96,000 (Radio Edit)

by Lin-manuel Miranda, Christopher Jackson, Robin De Jesús, Seth Stewart, Janet Dacal, Andrea Burns

Vocals: Robin De Jesús
Seth Stewart
Andrea Burns
Christopher Jackson
Lin-manuel Miranda
Karen Olivo
Janet Dacal
'in The Heights' Original Broadway Company; Performer
Primary Artist: Andrea Burns
Christopher Jackson
Lin-manuel Miranda
Janet Dacal
Robin De Jesús
Seth Stewart; Main Performer
Producer: Andrés Levin
Kurt Deutsch; Production

27. When You're Home (Radio Edit)

by Mandy Gonzalez, Christopher Jackson, 'in The Heights' Original Broadway Company

Vocals: Christopher Jackson
Mandy Gonzalez
'in The Heights' Original Broadway Company; Performer
Primary Artist: Mandy Gonzalez
Christopher Jackson
'in The Heights' Original Broadway Company; Main Performer
Producer: Andrés Levin
Kurt Deutsch; Production