Jesus Christ Superstar (album) - Composition

music.wikisort.org - Composition

Jesus Christ Superstar is a 1970 album musical by Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice, on which the 1971 rock opera of the same name was based. Initially unable to get backing for a stage production, the composers released it as an album, the success of which led to stage productions. The album musical is a musical dramatisation of the last week of the life of Jesus Christ, beginning with his entry into Jerusalem and ending with the Crucifixion. It was originally banned by the BBC on grounds of being "sacrilegious".[3][4] By 1983, the album had sold over seven million copies worldwide.[5]

Jesus Christ Superstar

Original UK cover

Studio album by

various artists

Released

27 October 1970

Recorded

10 October 1969 ("Superstar" single)
1970 in Olympic Studios, London

Genre

Art rock, progressive rock

Length

86:56

Label

Decca/MCA/Decca Broadway

Producer

Tim Rice, Andrew Lloyd Webber

Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice chronology

Jesus Christ Superstar
(1970)

Evita
(1976)

Singles from Jesus Christ Superstar

"Superstar"
Released: 21 November 1969
"I Don't Know How to Love Him"
Released: 13 May 1971

Alternative cover

US edition cover, May 1971

Professional ratings
Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[1]
Christgau's Record Guide	C−[2]

Composition

The album's story is based in large part on the Synoptic Gospels and Fulton J. Sheen's Life of Christ, which compares and calibrates all four Gospels. However, greater emphasis is placed on the interpersonal relationships of the major characters, in particular, Jesus, Judas and Mary Magdalene, relationships that are not described in depth in the Gospels.

Lyricist Rice said he took inspiration from the Bob Dylan song "With God on Our Side".[6]

"Herod's Song" is a lyrical rewrite of "Try It and See", previously written by Lloyd Webber and Rice as a proposed British entry into the 1969 Eurovision Song Contest to be sung by Lulu, then recorded and released as a single by Rita Pavone. The writers had also included it (as "Those Saladin Days") in an aborted show called Come Back Richard Your Country Needs You.

The melody of "I Don't Know How to Love Him" also predates Jesus Christ Superstar; it was rewritten from a 1968 Lloyd Webber/Rice collaboration titled "Kansas Morning".

Recording

For the recording, Lloyd Webber and Rice drew personnel from both musical theatre (Murray Head had just left the West End production of Hair) and the British rock scene (Ian Gillan had only recently become the singer of Deep Purple). Many of the primary musicians—guitarists Neil Hubbard and Henry McCullough, bassist Alan Spenner, and drummer Bruce Rowland—came from Joe Cocker's backing group The Grease Band. Saxophonist Chris Mercer had also played with Hubbard in Juicy Lucy.

Release

The first piece of Superstar released was the title song, as a single in November 1969 backed with the instrumental "John Nineteen Forty-One" (see John 19:41). The full album followed almost a year later.

The album topped the U.S. Billboard Top LP's chart in both February and May 1971[7] and ranked number one in the year-end chart ahead of Carole King's massive hit Tapestry.[8] It also served as a launching pad for numerous stage productions on Broadway and in the West End. The original 1970 boxed-set issue of this two-record set was packaged in the U.S. with a special thin brown cardboard outer box ("The Brown Album")[9] which contained the two vinyl records and a 28-page libretto.

Track listing

All compositions written by Tim Rice (lyrics and book) and Andrew Lloyd Webber (music).

Side one
No.	Title	Length
1.	"Overture"	4:00
2.	"Heaven on Their Minds"	4:23
3.	"What's the Buzz/Strange Thing Mystifying"	4:13
4.	"Everything's Alright"	4:36
5.	"This Jesus Must Die"	5:11

Side two
No.	Title	Length
1.	"Hosanna"	2:09
2.	"Simon Zealotes/Poor Jerusalem"	4:49
3.	"Pilate's Dream"	1:28
4.	"The Temple"	4:43
5.	"Everything's Alright (reprise)"	0:34
6.	"I Don't Know How to Love Him"	3:41
7.	"Damned for All Time/Blood Money"	4:36

Side three
No.	Title	Length
1.	"The Last Supper"	7:10
2.	"Gethsemane (I Only Want to Say)"	5:33
3.	"The Arrest"	3:24
4.	"Peter's Denial"	1:27
5.	"Pilate and Christ"	2:46
6.	"King Herod's Song"	3:02

Side four
No.	Title	Length
1.	"Judas' Death"	4:17
2.	"Trial Before Pilate (Including the 39 Lashes)"	5:13
3.	"Superstar"	4:16
4.	"The Crucifixion"	4:04
5.	"John Nineteen Forty-One"	2:10

Credits

Main players[10]

Ian Gillan – Jesus Christ
Murray Head – Judas Iscariot
Yvonne Elliman – Mary Magdalene
Victor Brox – Caiaphas, High Priest
Barry Dennen – Pontius Pilate

Supporting players

Brian Keith – Annas
John Gustafson – Simon Zealotes
Paul Davis – Peter
Mike d'Abo – King Herod

Other players

Annette Brox – Maid by the Fire
Paul Raven – Priest
P. P. Arnold, Tony Ashton, Tim Rice, Peter Barnfeather, Madeline Bell, Brian Bennett, Lesley Duncan, Kay Garner, Barbara Kay, Neil Lancaster, Alan M. O'Duffy, Terry Saunders – Background vocals
Choir conducted by Geoffrey Mitchell
Children's choir conducted by Alan Doggett on "Overture"
The Trinidad Singers, under the leadership of Horace James, on "Superstar"

Musicians

Neil Hubbard – electric guitar
Henry McCullough – electric guitar, acoustic guitar
Alan Spenner – bass guitar
Chris Mercer – tenor sax
J. Peter Robinson – piano, electric piano, organ, positive organ
Bruce Rowland – drums, percussion

Other musicians

Norman Cave, Karl Jenkins – piano
Mick Weaver – piano, organ
Andrew Lloyd Webber – piano, organ, Moog synthesizer
Mike Vickers – Moog synthesizer
Alan Doggett – principal Conductor, Moog synthesizer
Strings of the City of London Ensemble
Clive Hicks, Chris Spedding, Louis Stewart, Steve Vaughan – guitar
Jeff Clyne, Peter Morgan, Alan Weighall – bass guitar
Harold Beckett, Les Condon, Ian Hamer, Kenny Wheeler – trumpet
Anthony Brooke, Joseph Castaldini – bassoon
Andrew McGavin, Douglas Moore, James Brown, Jim Buck Sr., Jim Buck Jr., John Burdon – horns
Keith Christie, Frank Jones, Anthony Moore – trombone
Ian Herbert – clarinet
Chris Taylor, Brian Warren – flute
Bill LeSage, John Marshall – drums

Production

Alan O'Duffy – chief engineer

Reissue

Original Concept Recording. Jesus Christ Superstar – A Rock Opera. Universal City, California: MCA Records Inc. [USA], ©1993 (released 24 SEP 1996). Cat. No. MCAD2-11542 [2 CDs], UPC 008811154226
(N.B.: Black title on front and back cover; gold 'angels' logo; gold lettering on the spine. Depending on the retailer, an outer sticker may state that the album was 'Digitally Remastered [Complete on 2 CDs]' and/or 'Original Artwork and Libretto'. This information is not found on the inner packaging.)

Charts

Weekly charts

Chart (1970–71)	Peak position
Australian Kent Music Report[11]	6
Austrian Albums Chart[12]	4
Canadian RPM Albums Chart[13]	1
Dutch Albums Chart[14]	10
Norwegian Albums Chart[15]	3
UK Albums Chart[16]	23
US Billboard 200[7]	1
West German Media Control Albums Chart[17]	11

Year-end charts

Chart (1971)	Position
Australian Albums Chart[11]	4
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[18]	20
US Billboard Pop Albums[8]	1

Certifications and sales


Region	Certification	Certified units/sales
Canada (Music Canada)[19]	Gold	350,000[20]
France	—	60,000[21]
Israel	—	2,500[22]
Italy	—	100,000[23]
Netherlands (NVPI)[24]	Gold	250,000[25]
South Africa (SARI)[26]	Gold	12,500[26]
Sweden	—	90,000[27]
United Kingdom (BPI)[28] 1970 release	Gold	180,000[29]
United States (RIAA)[30]	Gold	4,500,000[29]
Summaries
North America 1970-1972	—	3,500,000[31]
Worldwide	—	7,000,000[5]

References

Jesus Christ Superstar > Album Overview at AllMusic. Retrieved 28 September 2006.
Christgau, Robert (1981). "Consumer Guide '70s: J". Christgau's Record Guide: Rock Albums of the Seventies. Ticknor and Fields. ISBN 089919026X. Retrieved 27 February 2019 – via robertchristgau.com.
"... the BBC banned it, they banned this record, because they thought it was sacrilegious."—Ted Neeley, in conversation with Norman Jewison "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 17 July 2011. Retrieved 27 November 2009.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
Autobiography of Norman Jewison
Ochs, Ed (29 January 1983). "Geffen Sizzles While Biz Drizzles: Broadway is Next Stage for Pop's Top Composers". Billboard. Vol. 95, no. 4. p. B-4. ISSN 0006-2510.
Winston, Kimberly (30 March 2018). "The 'Splainer: The stormy, surprising history of Jesus Christ Superstar". Washington, D.C.: Religion News Service. Retrieved 30 March 2018.
"Allmusic: Jesus Christ Superstar: Charts & Awards: Billboard Albums". AllMusic. Retrieved 1 May 2013.
1971 Year-end Albums—The Billboard Pop Albums. 25 December 1971. Retrieved 3 October 2011.
"Jesus Christ Superstar 50 Years On" by Paul Beutel, The Austin Chronicle, 7 October 2019
"Original Concept Recording (1970) – Jesus Christ Superstar, recording information, Jesus Christ Superstar Zone (reference for this and subsequent sections)
Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992. St Ives, NSW: Australian Chart Book. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
"Musical / Andrew Lloyd Webber – Jesus Christ Superstar: A Rock Opera – austriancharts.at". Retrieved 3 May 2013.
"Top Albums/CDs – Volume 15, No. 3". RPM. 6 March 1971. Retrieved 5 May 2013.
"dutchcharts.nl Musical / Andrew Lloyd Webber – Jesus Christ Superstar: A Rock Opera" (ASP). Hung Medien (in Dutch). MegaCharts. Retrieved 1 May 2012.
"norwegiancharts.com Musical / Andrew Lloyd Webber – Jesus Christ Superstar: A Rock Opera" (ASP). Retrieved 1 May 2012.
"Album Search Official Charts". UK Albums Chart. Archived from the original on 21 March 2014. Retrieved 1 May 2013.
"Album Search: Musical / Andrew Lloyd Webber – Jesus Christ Superstar: A Rock Opera" (ASP) (in German). Media Control. Retrieved 1 May 2013.^{[dead link]}
"Top 100 Album-Jahrescharts" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. 1972. Archived from the original on 9 May 2015. Retrieved 2 April 2022.
"Canadian album certifications – Original Soundtrack – Jesus Christ Superstar - Ost". Music Canada.
"Superstar Gets Gold". Billboard. 29 September 1973. p. 47. Retrieved 3 December 2019.
"From the Music Capitols of the World - London" (PDF). Billboard. 6 October 1973. p. 82. Retrieved 11 May 2022 – via World Radio History.
"From the Music Capitols of the World - Tel Aviv" (PDF). Billboard. 4 September 1971. p. 41. Retrieved 11 May 2022 – via World Radio History.
"CBS-Sugar Sees Sweet Picture in Economy Despite Economy Sag". Billboard. 6 July 1974. p. 38. Retrieved 3 December 2019.
""Jesus" Goes Gold" (PDF). Cashbox. 7 December 1974. p. 48 – via American Radio History.
"From The Music Capitols of the World - Amsterdam" (PDF). Billboard. 21 August 1976. p. 50. Retrieved 3 December 2019 – via American Radio History.
"'Superstar' SA Gold" (PDF). Cash Box. 10 July 1971. p. 39. Retrieved 11 May 2022 – via World Radio History.
"From The Music Capitols of the World - Stockholm" (PDF). Billboard. 10 June 1972. p. 50. Retrieved 3 December 2019 – via American Radio History.
"British album certifications – Soundtrack – Jesus Christ Superstar (Original Cast)". British Phonographic Industry.
"'Christ' New Champ" (PDF). Billboard. 21 October 1978. p. 76. Retrieved 11 May 2022 – via World Radio History.
"American album certifications – Soundtrack – Jesus Christ Superstar (Original Cast)". Recording Industry Association of America.
""Superstar" Film Israeli Locale". Billboard. 6 May 1972. p. 84. Retrieved 3 December 2019.

External links

jesuschristsuperstar.com: The Album
Jesus Christ Superstar at Discogs (list of releases)

v t e Billboard Year-End number one albums
1956–1975	1956: Calypso – Harry Belafonte 1957: Music from My Fair Lady – Original Cast 1958: Music from My Fair Lady – Original Cast 1959: The Music from Peter Gunn – Henry Mancini 1960: Music from The Sound of Music – Original Cast 1961: Camelot – Original Cast 1962: West Side Story – Soundtrack 1963: West Side Story – Soundtrack 1964: Music from Hello, Dolly! – Original Cast 1965: Mary Poppins: Original Cast Soundtrack – Soundtrack 1966: Whipped Cream & Other Delights – Herb Alpert & the Tijuana Brass 1967: More of the Monkees – The Monkees 1968: Are You Experienced – The Jimi Hendrix Experience 1969: In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida – Iron Butterfly 1970: Bridge over Troubled Water – Simon & Garfunkel 1971: Jesus Christ Superstar – Soundtrack 1972: Harvest – Neil Young 1973: The World Is a Ghetto – War 1974: Goodbye Yellow Brick Road – Elton John 1975: Greatest Hits – Elton John
1976–2000	1976: Frampton Comes Alive! – Peter Frampton 1977: Rumours – Fleetwood Mac 1978: Saturday Night Fever – Soundtrack 1979: 52nd Street – Billy Joel 1980: The Wall – Pink Floyd 1981: Hi Infidelity – REO Speedwagon 1982: Asia – Asia 1983: Thriller – Michael Jackson 1984: Thriller – Michael Jackson 1985: Born in the U.S.A. – Bruce Springsteen 1986: Whitney Houston – Whitney Houston 1987: Slippery When Wet – Bon Jovi 1988: Faith – George Michael 1989: Don't Be Cruel – Bobby Brown 1990: Janet Jackson's Rhythm Nation 1814 – Janet Jackson 1991: Mariah Carey – Mariah Carey 1992: Ropin' the Wind – Garth Brooks 1993: The Bodyguard – Soundtrack 1994: The Sign – Ace of Base 1995: Cracked Rear View – Hootie & the Blowfish 1996: Jagged Little Pill – Alanis Morissette 1997: Spice – Spice Girls 1998: Titanic: Music from the Motion Picture – James Horner 1999: Millennium – Backstreet Boys 2000: No Strings Attached – NSYNC
2001–present	2001: 1 – The Beatles 2002: The Eminem Show – Eminem 2003: Get Rich or Die Tryin' – 50 Cent 2004: Confessions – Usher 2005: The Massacre – 50 Cent 2006: Some Hearts – Carrie Underwood 2007: Daughtry – Daughtry 2008: As I Am – Alicia Keys 2009: Fearless – Taylor Swift 2010: I Dreamed a Dream – Susan Boyle 2011: 21 – Adele 2012: 21 – Adele 2013: The 20/20 Experience – Justin Timberlake 2014: Frozen – Soundtrack 2015: 1989 – Taylor Swift 2016: 25 – Adele 2017: Damn – Kendrick Lamar 2018: Reputation – Taylor Swift 2019: When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go? – Billie Eilish 2020: Hollywood's Bleeding – Post Malone 2021: Dangerous: The Double Album – Morgan Wallen

v t e Jesus Christ Superstar
Music by Andrew Lloyd Webber Book and Lyrics by Tim Rice
Songs	"Everything's Alright" "This Jesus Must Die" "I Don't Know How to Love Him" "Superstar"
Versions	Concept album Film
Cast recordings	1972 and 1992 Australian cast 1972 Swedish cast 1996 London cast
Related	Jesus Christ Superstar Live in Concert (2018) Superstar

v t e Musicals by Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice
Musicals	The Likes of Us Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat Jesus Christ Superstar (rock opera) Evita Cricket The Wizard of Oz (additional music and lyrics)
Films	Jesus Christ Superstar Evita Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat
Albums	Jesus Christ Superstar Evita (1976 concept album) Evita (1996 film soundtrack)
Songs	"Any Dream Will Do" "Close Every Door" "Everything's Alright" "This Jesus Must Die" "I Don't Know How to Love Him" "Superstar" "Oh What a Circus" "Another Suitcase in Another Hall" "Don't Cry for Me Argentina" "You Must Love Me"
Related television	Any Dream Will Do Superstar When Joseph Met Maria

v t e Andrew Lloyd Webber
Accolades
Musicals	Jesus Christ Superstar Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat Evita Tell Me on a Sunday Cats Song and Dance Starlight Express Cricket The Phantom of the Opera Aspects of Love Sunset Boulevard By Jeeves (aka Jeeves) Whistle Down the Wind The Beautiful Game (aka The Boys in the Photograph) The Woman in White The Likes of Us Love Never Dies The Wizard of Oz Stephen Ward School of Rock Cinderella
Songs	"Any Dream Will Do" "Close Every Door" "Everything's Alright" "This Jesus Must Die" "I Don't Know How to Love Him" "Superstar" "Oh What a Circus" "Another Suitcase in Another Hall" "Don't Cry for Me Argentina" "You Must Love Me" "Take That Look Off Your Face" "Unexpected Song" "Memory" "Pie Jesu" "The Phantom of the Opera" "The Music of the Night" "All I Ask of You" "Anything But Lonely" "Tetris" "As If We Never Said Goodbye" "The Perfect Year" "No Matter What" "It's My Time" "'Til I Hear You Sing" "Beautiful Ghosts"
Albums	Jesus Christ Superstar Evita Variations Cats The Premiere Collection The Premiere Collection Encore The Collection Now & Forever
Other compositions	Requiem Watership Down
Film adaptations	Jesus Christ Superstar Evita Cats (1998) Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat The Phantom of the Opera The Phantom of the Opera at the Royal Albert Hall Jesus Christ Superstar Live in Concert Cats (2019)
Family	William Lloyd Webber (father) Julian Lloyd Webber (brother) Imogen Lloyd Webber (daughter) Sarah Brightman (second wife) Madeleine Gurdon (third wife) Jiaxin Cheng (sister-in-law)
Company	Really Useful Group

v t e Tim Rice
Accolades
Theatre	The Likes of Us (1965/2005) Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat (1968) Jesus Christ Superstar (1971) Evita (1976) Blondel / Lute! (1983) Chess (1984) Cricket (1986) Tycoon (1992) Beauty and the Beast (1994) Heathcliff (1995) The Lion King (1997) King David (1997) Aida (1998) Disney's Aladdin: A Musical Spectacular (2003) Aladdin (2011) The Wizard of Oz (2011) From Here to Eternity (2013)
Albums	Jesus Christ Superstar (1970) 1984 (1981) Cost of Living (1983) Aladdin (1992) The Lion King (1994) Beauty and the Beast (2017) Aladdin (2019) The Lion King (2019)
Films	Jesus Christ Superstar (1973) Aladdin (1992) The Lion King (1994) Evita (1996) Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat (1999) The Road to El Dorado (2000) The Nutcracker in 3D (2010) Jock the Hero Dog (2011) Beauty and the Beast (2017) Jesus Christ Superstar Live in Concert (2018) Aladdin (2019) The Lion King (2019)
Songs	"Any Dream Will Do" "Close Every Door" "Everything's Alright" "This Jesus Must Die" "I Don't Know How to Love Him" "Superstar" "Oh What a Circus" "Another Suitcase in Another Hall" "Don't Cry for Me Argentina" "A Winter's Tale" "All Time High" "The Golden Boy" "One Jump Ahead" "A Whole New World" "Prince Ali" "Circle of Life" "I Just Can't Wait to Be King" "Be Prepared" "Hakuna Matata" "Can You Feel the Love Tonight" "The Madness of King Scar" "You Must Love Me" "If I Can't Love Her" "A Change in Me" "How Does a Moment Last Forever" "Days in the Sun" "Evermore"
Other works	The Guinness Book of British Hit Singles (1977) Friday Night, Saturday Morning (1979) Sixty-Six Books (2011)
Related articles	Elton John Andrew Lloyd Webber Alan Menken Elaine Paige

На других языках

- [en] Jesus Christ Superstar (album)

[ru] Иисус Христос — суперзвезда (альбом)

Иисус Христос — суперзвезда (англ. Jesus Christ Superstar) — рок-опера Эндрю Ллойда Уэббера и Тима Райса, вышедшая в 1970 году.

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