Winner of the Tony Award for best musical in 1961, the original Broadway cast of Bye Bye Birdie included Chita Rivera and Dick Van Dyke.  The story was inspired by the phenomenon of Elvis Presley and his draft notice into the Army in 1957.

There are 26 tracks on this album: Tracks 1-13 contain the background tracks and guide vocals; tracks 14-26 contain the background tracks alone. This album is a re-recording in the original show key and show tempo featuring live musicians.