Saw her perform this at Chicago’s Gold Star Sardine Bar in the mid-80s. The stage was only a step up from us, and barely big enough for Ms. Wilson, Mr. Roy and the piano. She was a couple of feet away from me. She signed my Sondheim CD after removing her high heels and relieving her bunions. A few years later she was nursing a drink downstairs at Eighty-Eights in the Village and we talked for a bit. Then we went upstairs to hear…I don’t recall! She was gracious to a fault.
I worked with Julie in the original London production of South Pacific. Not only is she a great artist, but the most generous and lovely person you could ever meet.
As a youngster I had the pleasure of getting to see 👀 and meet the great Julie Wilson.! She and I spoke about one of the good movies 🎬 she was in, " This Could Be The Night !" What a lovely and talented lady the great Julie Wilson was .
She knocks this song outta the park but then she's not just singing it, she lived it. Having seen her in The Strange One (1957) where she played a peroxide blonde and here in her "natural" color (jet black after 60?) I think that she could identify. First you're another sloe-eyed vamp, then someone's mother (Holt McCallany), then you're camp (shortly after I saw her at The Russian Tea Room I met her on the street in tennis shoes with her shopping bags. She may be gone but in other ways she'll always still be here.
I interviewed her once. A classy, honest lady, not to mention a great talent who represented an era. This rendition proves all that, plus the iron fist in a velvet glove.
Oh my God. I don't know how I could have missed this. Ms. Wilson GETS - and GIVES - every lyric. This is now possibly my favorite rendition of the song on TH-cam (okay, next to the original by Yvonne de Carlo and Ann Miller's epic version). When she launched into "Lord knows, at least I've been there" (the correct lyric to the song), I just had to burst in spontaneous applause in my room. Brava, Julie Wilson
After watching the many versions on youtube of this, I keep coming back to Julie Wilson. The hardness is just right, which is coming from her, personally. The heartbreak, she got it just right. The finish is a standing ovation.
Having seen her perform this live on numerous occasion and having seen our beloved late Elaine Stritch live, also, I can't help but feel that Ms. Wilson "nailed it" on all levels. This should be considered the ultimate version.
To turn a cliche into something paint-fresh, takes artistry, for sure. But it also needs the alchemical ingredient of truth. SS - my beloved professor at Oxford - puts this rendition at the very top. (He does the same, you see.)
May I ask who is SS? Is that Mr. Sondheim himself? If he regarded this as one of the top renditions of his song, I am even more in awe of Ms. Wilson. Thank you.
I agree with ondinaprod. self-congratulation ? no it is self-consolation, reminding yourself of the essentials: your existence ! Hard to digest for money & success minded people of course. we're all going back to a state where we came from, but everything will be recycled and there is definitely no hell to chuck us into. Count on that!
My favorite rendition of I'm Still Here -- trumping Carol Burnett (who I adore), Eartha Kitt and Elaine Paige. (To compare Elaine Stritch, whose version I adore, to Julie Wilson, is apples and oranges.) I love Wilson's maturity, her gravitas and the joy she puts across.
You know--it could be two things at once. (Sondheim excels at ambivalence & dual meanings). Sondheim has written that he imagined Carlotta as somewhat self-dramatizing. At the same time, the pain in the lyrics is undeniable. And there's a kind of victory in surviving it.
She also clearly made it out of Jay Edgar Hoover, and if you can get throught that, you can get through anything!! She's knows. She was there! Magnificent.
@stevevandien I'm not agree at all: these lyrics enclose a truly deep pain. If you had not suffered this way, and you had not searched for an inside cure, you can't understand the importance of this composition. Independently of your simpathy or not towards the composer himself, it has trascended because of the inner force that it gives you when you feel that you are nothing. Greetings.
Saw her perform this at Chicago’s Gold Star Sardine Bar in the mid-80s. The stage was only a step up from us, and barely big enough for Ms. Wilson, Mr. Roy and the piano. She was a couple of feet away from me. She signed my Sondheim CD after removing her high heels and relieving her bunions. A few years later she was nursing a drink downstairs at Eighty-Eights in the Village and we talked for a bit. Then we went upstairs to hear…I don’t recall! She was gracious to a fault.
Was there too at the Gold Star in Chicago to see Julie Wilson do her Sondheim album. My buddy and I were sophomores at Northwestern.
A beauty to the end. Excellent delivery!!!
Still the best version. Real. Authentic. Raw and stripped down. What a great talent she was!
A nigh-perfect rendition of the song. And she's got a lot of competition. Brava, Julie Wilson!
THE BEST VERSION OF THIS CLASSIC I'VE EVER HEAR!!!!! BRAVO, MISS WILSON!!!!
I worked with Julie in the original London production of South Pacific. Not only is she a great artist, but the most generous and lovely person you could ever meet.
She made it to 90! Good for her. She has left us a great recording legacy.
I'd love to know how her Nellie compared to Mary Martin's!
As a youngster I had the pleasure of getting to see 👀 and meet the great Julie Wilson.! She and I spoke about one of the good movies 🎬 she was in, " This Could Be The Night !" What a lovely and talented lady the great Julie Wilson was .
I've heard this song done by at least a hundred other performers, but this is the first time I've actually believed the performance! Amazing!!
Wow, she does this song with real strength. Terrific. She's a real beauty as well.
one of the best versions of this song !
She knocks this song outta the park but then she's not just singing it, she lived it. Having seen her in The Strange One (1957) where she played a peroxide blonde and here in her "natural" color (jet black after 60?) I think that she could identify. First you're another sloe-eyed vamp, then someone's mother (Holt McCallany), then you're camp (shortly after I saw her at The Russian Tea Room I met her on the street in tennis shoes with her shopping bags. She may be gone but in other ways she'll always still be here.
It's like the song was written just for her. Honesty, guts and all heart. Brava, Julie!
I interviewed her once. A classy, honest lady, not to mention a great talent who represented an era. This rendition proves all that, plus the iron fist in a velvet glove.
I want to be like her when I grow up! So beautiful and the absolute best in the business wow!🌟❤
Oh my God. I don't know how I could have missed this. Ms. Wilson GETS - and GIVES - every lyric. This is now possibly my favorite rendition of the song on TH-cam (okay, next to the original by Yvonne de Carlo and Ann Miller's epic version). When she launched into "Lord knows, at least I've been there" (the correct lyric to the song), I just had to burst in spontaneous applause in my room. Brava, Julie Wilson
Oh wow. That was spectacular. I think that topples Stritch’s version for the best interpretation. I’m speechless.
After watching the many versions on youtube of this, I keep coming back to Julie Wilson. The hardness is just right, which is coming from her, personally. The heartbreak, she got it just right. The finish is a standing ovation.
Brigid I never saw this until now. A truly heartfelt performance.
Saw her in Provincetown early 80's at the Pilgrim House. The most memorable evening of my life. All Sondheim program. Simply superb!
the definitive version of this song ive always felt - god bless the old PBS - wonderful
RIP Julie… and thank you
Awesome and totally believable and well phrased interpolated top notes and flow. so chic and stylish and on the money.
Masterfully uplifting !!! Julie !!!!!!.....
one of the best cabaret singers, ever
LEGEND
I saw Julie Wilson do her Sondheim set at the Algonquin in 1985 and her "Not While I'm Around" still haunts me.
Nobody, and I mean NOBODY, can interpret a song with more emotion and sincerity than Miss Wilson could.
I love all the verses in this song. It's such a joy to discover them from different performances. Julie Wilson is really wonderful here.
She, Julie, was truly one of a kind woman....thanks Julie..."for being here"
She's one of the absolute best cabaret performers EVER! Thank you so much for putting this here so people can enjoy it.
Having seen her perform this live on numerous occasion and having seen our beloved late Elaine Stritch live, also, I can't help but feel that Ms. Wilson "nailed it" on all levels. This should be considered the ultimate version.
A terrific performance!
Definitive song stylist and she'd still here.
As enchanting and entertaining as ever!
Julie's son Holt McCallany brought me here! She is fabulous :)
The great Julie Wilson!
Wonderful. And I love Yvonne De Carlo on the original cast recording. She was also one helluva trooper.
I feel her the most.....she makes me happy and said.....like family
To my understanding, Julie Wilson played both Phyllis and Carlotta at different points of the 1973 Follies Stock Tour.
"Whatever happened to her?"
Hysterical and perfect.
She brought it home.
Wow! gabrsh
Thanks so much. I saw the original production, and have heard this song sung by so many.
Julie Wilson is the best.
she is pure magic
I love Julie Wilson--thanks for posting!
To turn a cliche into something paint-fresh, takes artistry, for sure. But it also needs the alchemical ingredient of truth. SS - my beloved professor at Oxford - puts this rendition at the very top. (He does the same, you see.)
May I ask who is SS? Is that Mr. Sondheim himself? If he regarded this as one of the top renditions of his song, I am even more in awe of Ms. Wilson. Thank you.
my FAVORITE performance of this.
I agree with ondinaprod.
self-congratulation ? no it is self-consolation, reminding yourself of the essentials: your existence !
Hard to digest for money & success minded people of course. we're all going back to a state where we came from, but everything will be recycled and there is definitely no hell to chuck us into. Count on that!
at different times they came to my house for dinner... and I played for Julie while she sang "God Bless the Child"
My favorite rendition of I'm Still Here -- trumping Carol Burnett (who I adore), Eartha Kitt and Elaine Paige. (To compare Elaine Stritch, whose version I adore, to Julie Wilson, is apples and oranges.) I love Wilson's maturity, her gravitas and the joy she puts across.
Curious if Stritch considered Wilson competition? She claimed to love talent but ?
Classy and Sassy. Great song interpretation.
EVERYTHING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
This is a wee bit beautiful. God bless. x
Incredible talent~! RIP dear one~
You know--it could be two things at once. (Sondheim excels at ambivalence & dual meanings). Sondheim has written that he imagined Carlotta as somewhat self-dramatizing. At the same time, the pain in the lyrics is undeniable. And there's a kind of victory in surviving it.
great song fab performance period!
Marvelous
We. Love you, Julie!!!!!!!!
Amazing.
She also clearly made it out of Jay Edgar Hoover, and if you can get throught that, you can get through anything!! She's knows. She was there! Magnificent.
God speed songstress.. God speed.
Powerful!!
Diva
Divine
Marvelous
@stevevandien I'm not agree at all: these lyrics enclose a truly deep pain. If you had not suffered this way, and you had not searched for an inside cure, you can't understand the importance of this composition. Independently of your simpathy or not towards the composer himself, it has trascended because of the inner force that it gives you when you feel that you are nothing. Greetings.
Great !
The bomb!
Super!!
Brava! Equal to Elaine Stritch’s gold standard rendition!
Lyrics!!!!! Wow.
Stage presence is dead on.
Does anyone know what she's referring to in the intro as she dusts the mic off? This has to be ten years before 9/11...
This is probably mid-80's. I had the same question.
Sorry happy and sad
Meant to say happy and sad