The Wavelength
Monday April 1st, 2024 with Joe Reilly
Tonight we feature Jesus Christ Superstar - the original 1970 recording - in its entirety!
Back in 1970-71 Jesus Christ Superstar was seen as a scandalous representation of Jesus Christ. It caused an uproar and the BBC banned songs from it because it was seen as blasphemous. 50 years later it seems quite tame. Tonight we listen to the entire rock opera - the version that was released in late 1970 and went on to dominate the album charts in 1971 - in fact it was the top selling album of 1971 and narrowly edged out Carole King's Tapestry that year. It's pretty funky at times, a bit psychedelic and certainly corny in some parts - but it was groundbreaking in its day. It's interesting to note that Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice orchestrated the recording of this album because nobody wanted to mount it as a musical production. After the album roared up the charts, plenty of producers came knocking and the musical was eventually presented all over the planet. In 1973, Canadian Norman Jewison created a movie with the music. The movie has its moments, but overall has some major flaws - not the least being the flat characterization of Jesus from the actor Ted Neeley. Ian Gillan of Deep Purple fame had passed on the movie role after doing a great job on the album, because he wanted to be out touring with his band.
The cast featured on this recording is as follows (in order of appearance):
Judas Iscariot - Murray Head
Jesus Christ - Ian Gillan
Mary Magdalene - Yvonne Elliman
Priest - Paul Raven
Caiaphas, High Priest - Victor Brox
Annas - Brian Keith
Simon Zealotes - John Gustafson
Pontius Pilate - Barry Dennen
Maid by the Fire - Annette Brox
Peter - Paul Davis
King Herod - Mike d'Abo
Enjoy!
| Jesus Christ Slim Cessna's Auto Club - SCAC 102 An Introduction for Young and Old Europe |
| Overture The Original Cast - Jesus Christ Superstar (Original Recording) |
| Heaven On Their Minds The Original Cast - Jesus Christ Superstar (Original Recording) |
| What's The Buzz/Strange Thing Mystifying The Original Cast - Jesus Christ Superstar (Original Recording) |
| Everything's Alright The Original Cast - Jesus Christ Superstar (Original Recording) |
| This Jesus Must Die The Original Cast - Jesus Christ Superstar (Original Recording) |
| Hosanna The Original Cast - Jesus Christ Superstar (Original Recording) |
| Simon Zealotes/Poor Jerusalem The Original Cast - Jesus Christ Superstar (Original Recording) |
| Pilate's Dream The Original Cast - Jesus Christ Superstar (Original Recording) |
| The Temple The Original Cast - Jesus Christ Superstar (Original Recording) |
| Everything's Alright The Original Cast - Jesus Christ Superstar (Original Recording) |
| I Don't Know How To Love Him The Original Cast - Jesus Christ Superstar (Original Recording) |
| Damned For All Time/Blood Money The Original Cast - Jesus Christ Superstar (Original Recording) |
| The World Without Us Pierre-Yves Martel - Weird Studies: Music From The Podcast 
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| Reflection 1 Louis-Etienne Santais - Reflection 1
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| The Last Supper The Original Cast - Jesus Christ Superstar (Original Recording) |
| Gethsemane (I Only Want To Say) The Original Cast - Jesus Christ Superstar (Original Recording) |
| The Arrest The Original Cast - Jesus Christ Superstar (Original Recording) |
| Peter's Denial The Original Cast - Jesus Christ Superstar (Original Recording) |
| Pilate and Christ The Original Cast - Jesus Christ Superstar (Original Recording) |
| King Herod's Song (Try It And See) The Original Cast - Jesus Christ Superstar (Original Recording) |
| Judas's Death The Original Cast - Jesus Christ Superstar (Original Recording) |
| Trial Before Pilate (including The 39 Lashes) The Original Cast - Jesus Christ Superstar (Original Recording) |
| Superstar The Original Cast - Jesus Christ Superstar (Original Recording) |
| Crucifixion The Original Cast - Jesus Christ Superstar (Original Recording) |
| John Nineteen Forty-One The Original Cast - Jesus Christ Superstar (Original Recording) |
| Our Side Has To Win (For D.H) Godspeed You! Black Emperor - G_d’s Pee AT STATE’S END!
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| In A Desert Tough Age - Which Way Am I?
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Good god, is that Brian Keith from Family Affair?
9:23 PM, April 1st, 2024