Addendum R Us

For those who care about such, and full accuracy, I realized something else I should have added to my analysis of the four versions of "Hello, Dolly!" and have added it back into the piece.  It's a second reason why Ethel Merman's rendition may be trumped a bit by the other three.  In addition to what I wrote -- that she's likely the best to have seen live, rather than just on a recording  -- there's this:

It's that this isn’t The Best song for Ethel Merman.  It’s an amazing song for the character of Dolly, but it’s as much a chorus number.  Far better for Merman were probably, “So Long, Dearie,” “Before the Parade Passes By” and “I Put My Hand In.” I suspect she blew the bejeepers out the theater on those.