Concept Album. I'm not a big fan of these albums that feature pop stars. I feel that they don't give you a very good feel of the story. However, they do give you some feel for the music, even if it usually sounds more "produced" than a cast album would. So, I do tend to buy these albums before a show has come out, but not once a cast album has been released. If you're a big fan of the show and are curious, go ahead and buy it, but my advice is skip it in favour of the cast recording. The most interesting parts to me here are the song "The Messenger", and the alternate lyrics for "Enchantment Passing Through", as well as the orchestral finale.

Original Broadway Cast Recording. This is a CD that I listen to quite a bit, because, say what you will about Elton John, he writes catchy music that's fun to listen to. :-) I also *love* Tim Rice's lyrics, and the cast on this CD makes it a pleasure to listen to every time. Sheri Rene Scott and Heather Headley are especially great. "My Strongest Suit" was on repeat for quite a while when I first got the CD, and "Written in the Stars" has become a perennial favourite. There are a couple of songs that I tend to skip (mostly Zoser's numbers), but overall I really enjoy it!

Original Netherlands Cast Recording. This is a really great companion to the Broadway cast recording. The quality of this recording is certainly equal to, if not actually surpassing the Broadway one in a few areas. The cast is really great, especially Antje Monteiro as Amneris. Bastiaan Ragas as Radames actually sounds a lot like Adam Pascal would if he were singing in Dutch. :-) And Chaira Borderslee is wonderful as Aida. I can't comment on how accurate the translation is, but it sounds good to me, because they have translated it so that the emphasis is on the same syllables as it is on the English version, which is not always easy to do! If you're a fan of this show, you won't regret getting this album.

Original German Cast Recording. If the songs are any indication, the German version of this show is a little different from the Broadway one. Michael Kunze did the translations, and they are in most cases not a literal translation - which is fine by me, as long as it works! And they do sound very good with the music. Maricel is a great Amneris, and Florence Kasumba does a nice job as Aida, though she's definitely not my favourite in the role. Mathias Edenborn is okay as Radames, and Kristian Vetter is excellent as Zoser. The orchestrations unfortunately seem a bit lacking in a few places. Overall, it's a very decent recording, but falls short of both the Broadway and Dutch recordings on my list.