"My talent is related to that of songwriters," Clifford Odets once wrote, and the new Broadway production of his The Country Girl , starring Morgan Freeman, illustrates the remark through the tunes that take us through the transitions of Mike Nichols' fluid production.

But it is not the obvious hits from the era (the play takes place in 1950, the year of its premiere) that waft from the radio beloved by Georgie Elgin, the long-suffering wife portrayed by Frances McDormand. Rather, we hear melodies that have receded from memory.