March 2022 at Musical Cyberspace is all about songs with people’s names in the title.

Written by Stephen Sondheim as the theme tune for Sweeney Todd, “The Ballad of Sweeney Todd” is a moody piece of work that establishes the milieu against which the action takes place. It’s also a great conceptual piece that tells the audience what the show will be about. While the song appears on most recordings of the show, the performance of the tune as captured by the original Broadway cast tops the bill. It’s truly effortless and organic and therefore, the one that is the most thrilling.

“The Ballad of Sweeney Todd” also has a number of reinterpretations, including Lea Delaria’s jazzy take on the number, Eleri Ward’s folk-indie interpretation and Dee Snyder’s thrilling metal adaptation of this piece. Take a scroll through the YouTube playlist below to enjoy a range of different iterations of the song.

Keen to share your thoughts on “The Ballad of Sweeney Todd?” What’s your favourite recording? Head on to the comment box at the end of this post.