Friends and Colleagues Help James Naughton Celebrate the Release of His New CD

On Monday evening, October 7, actor-singer James Naughton celebrated the release of It’s About Time, his new CD on the DRG label, at a reception held at the Angus McIddoe restaurant on West 44th Street.

Among those in attendance were Naughton’s wife Pam and the couple’s son and daughter, Greg and Keira Naughton, along with John Oddo (producer and arranger of the CD), Julie Halston (currently appearing in The Butter and Egg Man), pals Lea DeLaria and Jesse Tyler Ferguson (who co-starred in the Public Theater revival of On the Town), and Norbert Leo Butz (The Last Five Years, Thou Shalt Not).

Naughton won Tony Awards for his performances in Chicago and City of Angels. Earlier, he appeared on Broadway in I Love My Wife, and he has made highly successful concert appearances at the Manhattan Theater Club, at the Promenade Theater, and on tour. Most recently, in Westport, Connecticut, Naughton directed a production of Thornton Wilder’s Our Town — starring his friend Paul Newman — that is slated for Broadway later this season.

Newman contributed notes to the CD booklet of Naughton’s new album, which was officially released on October 8. The disc contains 15 tracks and includes such songs as “Any Place I Hang My Hat is Home,” “I Concentrate on You,” “On the Sunny Side of the Street,” “My Attorney, Bernie,” “Here’s That Rainy Day,” and “September of My Years.”