Jesus Christ Superstar, The Original Album....

[Duncan Glenday]

I watched the whole thing. It was good, but not great.

Stage production:
Very interesting, imaginative, but over-done IMO. Less would have been more. I liked the fact that the musicians were often on stage, among the actors in the crowd scenes. I hated the excessive dancing. Too many people dancing, for reasons that had little to do with the story line.. But that's just me - I'm not a fan of stage dancing in that way. The final act was stunning. Over-the-top, but very impressive.

Make-up and costumes:
Interesting (if over-done) approach, bringing the general theme down to modern day street-level - which is often a cop-out if you don't have the budget or the skills to do proper period costumes. It was over-done, IMO. And there were too many multi-tattooed, weird haircut types - they tried too hard to garner street creds, which actually lacked credibility.

Casting:
All very Hollywood and politically correct. (Female disciples?)

Music:
Very good. I appreciated the fact that in general, they kept the music (and the vocals, to the extent possible given the singers' capabilities) very close to the original recording, rather than putting their own spin on it. That would have ruined the whole thing. It was interesting to note that instead of staying 100% true to the recording, they included the (very) few verses that were in the original stage show, but were cut from the original recording. Similarly, I was glad that they included a song that was in the stage show but had to be cut from the recording. And I was relieved that they mostly managed to escape the horrific American trend of vocal embellishment and trills, again, keeping it close to the original.

JC:
John Legend was very good but far from great. Enunciated the wrong words, couldn't come close to Ian Gillan's range and fluffed it when he tried, and when he dropped a few octaves instead, he lost the emphasis needed. Still - it may be unfair to compare him (or anyone) to Gillan. But IMO, Legend wasn't well cast. I thought he lacked stage "presence", and the lighting and the camera angles were the only things that kept him in focus.

Mary:
Didn't have the musicality or the range of Yvonne Elliman (sp?) - but then again, Elliman's a hard act to follow. She was good, but not great.

Judas:
Excellent. I think the music producers misguided him in a few areas, but that guy is very good.

Pilate:
Fairly good.

Herod:
Good, but it was too staged as an "Alice Cooper hero-worship" event. Still, he did a good job,

Caiaphas:
Dunno who that guy was (I Googled him, but had never heard of him) - but he was excellent in that role.

General impression:
It was worth watching, and I think it was far better than any of the other big live stage productions that have been televised in recent years (Annie, Rocky Horror, etc.) On balance there were more good points than bad and I'm I glad I watched it. But I won't buy the CD, nor will I watch it again.

[strawberrybrick]

I made my kids watch it, it was pretty good, but I though that Pilate's vocal performance could have been stronger ("Die if you want to, you misguided Martyr") and they added something with Mary and Peter (before Judas's death). Overall it was pretty good, very "industrial" looking. My kids were surprised that I could sing almost every lyric.

This album was released in 1970 and I remember it as a young adult. Along with Life Of Brian years later, these absolutely made me question the point of religion. But I did love this album for the music (really, it's a great record), and it's version of the Jesus story, one that has a "human" and "modern" spin on it.

[Duncan Glenday]

...and they added something with Mary and Peter (before Judas's death)...

Yes...

Music:
Very good. I appreciated the fact that in general, they kept the music (and the vocals, to the extent possible given the singers' capabilities) very close to the original recording, rather than putting their own spin on it. That would have ruined the whole thing. It was interesting to note that instead of staying 100% true to the recording, they included the (very) few verses that were in the original stage show, but were cut from the original recording. Similarly, I was glad that they included a song that was in the stage show but had to be cut from the recording. And I was relieved that they mostly managed to escape the horrific American trend of vocal embellishment and trills, again, keeping it close to the original.

This song was written as part of the original, but had to be cut . The vinyl albums were crammed as it was, and quite a few verses from songs - and this whole track - had to be cut. But it was in the original London stage production, which I saw in the '70s.

[DocProgger]

Are you guys talking about "Could We Start Again Please"? That was in the movie version, but I couldn't remember if that was added for the movie or if it was an original tune not on the original album for some reason.

[Dave (in MA)]

The only way I would have watched, but that's just me.

[taliesin]

I enjoyed the broadcast but as others noted all the ads (and there were many) really killed the momentum - it completely lost the gathering sense of doom that should be there.

I thought Judas was really good as well as Mary - really the two standout performances for me. Legend was okay but i agree doesn't have the range of Gillan (who does?) and isn't a great actor. He was good but not much more for me. Alice Cooper was weak - he moved like an old man and didn't really dig in to a character who should really be a showstopper.

I liked the staging and didn't mind the crowd reactions but won't watch another of the live shows they're doing with all the breaks.

[spellbound]

I watched last night's Jesus Christ TV Star. It wasn't terrible, wasn't great. My wife wanted to see it, and I think we both were mainly watching to see Alice Cooper. Besides him, John Legend was the only cast member I recognized. I was pretty sure one of the guitarists was The Edge, but they never named the musicians in the credits (or on imdb), that I noticed. I agree with much of Duncan's synopsis, above, particularly:

Caiaphas:
Dunno who that guy was (I Googled him, but had never heard of him) - but he was excellent in that role.

General impression:
It was worth watching, and I think it was far better than any of the other big live stage productions that have been televised in recent years (Annie, Rocky Horror, etc.) On balance there were more good points than bad and I'm I glad I watched it. But I won't buy the CD, nor will I watch it again.

[Moribund]

I consider myself an expert on JCSS, at the very least. I could sing every word. I know every note. I've listened to the original album thousands of times.

I watched the concert last night. Here are my thoughts (all just my opinions).

The staging was outstanding.
The music/orchestra and featured musicians were outstanding.
The chorus was excellent.
The dancing was also excellent.
The audience was ultra annoying.
The commercials were a necessary evil that killed any momentum.

Jesus (Legend) was uneven. Good in spots, failed to nail things in other spots, was weak where he needed to be strongest ("Gethsemane (I Only Wanted to Say)"), he totally played it too softly and without the necessary passion. Plus they changed the greatest line Tim Rice ever wrote to something I missed. The line is: "God, thy will is hard, but you hold every card" dumb asses. He was stronger the rest of the way until they rushed The Crucifixion.

Sara Bareilles as Mary Magdalene was eh. Weak. Nothing special.

Brandon Victor Dixon as Judas Iscariot had a poor interpretation of "Heaven on Their Minds" to open the show after the terrific Overture. The song needs high energy and Brandon played it too mellow. He improved as the show went on and nailed the title song. I wish he showed that much passion in the first song (which is one of my favorites).

Annas and Caiaphas were both very good in their performances. Bordering on excellent.

Alice Cooper is an old man and did a pretty good job as Herod.

Ben Daniels as Pontius Pilate was very good. He downplayed his first song (Pilate's Dream) which is one way to interpret it, but thereafter he excelled.

The final song, the instrumental to close out the show (John Nineteen: Forty One) was stirring. A beautiful way to end things.

[NeonKnight]

Caught most of the live performance last night and enjoyed it for the most part. I did not like the contemporary clothes either, thought that was nearly insulting to the audience. What, no one would like it if the clothes were too old?

Surprised to see Alice there, but pleased.

The final image, with the cross receding into the backlit "cross-walls", was absolutely stunning.

[DocProgger]

I agree the crucifixion scene was staged well as far as the cross image, but fell way short in depicting what was going on around the cross. I didn't see Mary M or the apostles at all near the cross, it seemed like it was just a bunch of generic dancers from the JC Superstar number just left standing there. No Roman soldiers near either lifting up a sponge of vinegar etc. Those lack of details decreases the emotional impact.

Also, for someone who didn't ever see JCS or know the Passion well, they might have not understood where Judas went in what was supposed to be the hanging scene. That was done very obliquely, probably out of concern of being too offensive to a TV audience.

[Duncan Glenday]

I agree the crucifixtion scene was staged well as far as the cross image, but fell way short in depicting what was going on around the cross. I didn't see Mary M or the apostles at all near the cross, it seemed like it was just a bunch of generic dancers from the JC Superstar number just left standing there. No Roman soldiers near either lifting up a sponge of vinegar etc. Those lack of details decreases the emotional impact.

Also, for someone who didn't ever see JCS or know the Passion well, they might have not understood where Judas went in what was supposed to be the hanging scene. That was done very obliquely, probably out of concern of being too offensive to a TV audience.

Good comments - and I agree.

Are you guys talking about "Could We Start Again Please"? That was in the movie version, but I couldn't remember if that was added for the movie or if it was an original tune not on the original album for some reason.

Yes - the Mary and Simon (or was it Peter?) duet.

[The Dark Elf]

The televised concert show was good, but not great. Ten observations:

1) Musicians and the orchestra were great. They nailed it almost every turn. In fact, the music was better than the singing overall.
2) Mary Magdalene - tepid.
3) John Legend/Jesus - lacked the vocal range and had to go falsetto in certain instances when his voice lacked the power to really supply emotional emphasis.
4) Judas - again, the lack of emotion and vocal firepower robbed his overall performance. The fellow can sing, but he learned nothing from Murray Head or Tony-award winning Ben Vereen. I guess I'm spoiled.
5) Simon Zealotes - I didn't appreciate the Guns 'n' Roses version of the song. Not at all.
6) Caiaphas - best rendition of any character in the play. Dude has some basso pipes.
7) Alice Cooper/Herod - Campy as all hell. I loved it.
8) Pilate - Good but not great. He was definitely straining throughout the "Trial Before Pilate".
9) Scenery and production was top notch. The props work and the wall during the crucifixion scene, with the orchestra playing "John Nineteen: Forty-One", was amazing.
10) I give it a 6.5 rating out of 10. Good, and welcomed from a nostalgic point of view, but I question some of the singers chosen.

[rickm]

...
I did find the crowd to be pretty annoying. American audiences don't know when to stop making noise.

I thought exactly the same (ridiculous), making noise and cheering for every move the singers were making.

Interestingly, just by coincidence I saw in Seattle (In Tacoma) the same show on a little theater on Saturday night. The same modern staged show but in low scale of course. I was surprised when I saw the same on TV yesterday night. On Saturday's show, when Jesus is in the table sharing the wine and bread one of his disciples took a selfie. Another scene is Jesus being taken by police officers.
Not sure how much of a great idea is this contemporary staged show.

[rdclark]

I thought exactly the same (ridiculous), making noise and cheering for every move the singers were making.

Concert audiences can by definition cheer only for what they can appreciate in common, and that is generally the performance of a trick. Hitting a high note, holding it a long time, playing the most notes in the least time during a guitar solo, paying something they recognize. I see this at nearly every concert I attend these days, in almost every genre. This JCS/TV audience was encouraged to act like a rock concert audience, and so they did.

The essence of JCS is that it's "contemporary," and demands to be re-staged whenever it's revived. This production was successful, I thought, in achieving its goals -- but those goals included conforming the show to 21st-Century American television celebrity-centric music-competition reality-show values.

[flowerking]

The televised concert show was good, but not great. Ten observations:

1) Musicians and the orchestra were great. They nailed it almost every turn. In fact, the music was better than the singing overall.
2) Mary Magdalene - tepid.
3) John Legend/Jesus - lacked the vocal range and had to go falsetto in certain instances when his voice lacked the power to really supply emotional emphasis.
4) Judas - again, the lack of emotion and vocal firepower robbed his overall performance. The fellow can sing, but he learned nothing from Murray Head or Tony-award winning Ben Vereen. I guess I'm spoiled.
5) Simon Zealotes - I didn't appreciate the Guns 'n' Roses version of the song. Not at all.
6) Caiaphas - best rendition of any character in the play. Dude has some basso pipes.
7) Alice Cooper/Herod - Campy as all hell. I loved it.
8) Pilate - Good but not great. He was definitely straining throughout the "Trial Before Pilate".
9) Scenery and production was top notch. The props work and the wall during the crucifixion scene, with the orchestra playing "John Nineteen: Forty-One", was amazing.
10) I give it a 6.5 rating out of 10. Good, and welcomed from a nostalgic point of view, but I question some of the singers chosen.

You nailed almost every one of these, especially 1, 3, 5, 8 and 9. I liked Mary Magdalene, thought she did as well if not better than Yvonne Elliman and I thought the guy who did Judas did a very god job vocally, but like you said, not a great acting job. Its a shame about what they did with Simon Zealotes, his song is one of my favorites but this version was just blah. Alice Cooper - nice seeing him but could have picked someone better. I'd give it a 6 out of 10, docked a point because of the needless audience noise which really was annoying throughout the first quarter of the play. Something I really liked was seeing band members actually on stage and walking around. One thing I didn't like was the emphasis of the metal guitar playing.

But I will say this. I think it took guts for NBC to air this live. I have to wonder if viewers realized they were hearing a lot of 7/8 and some 5/4 time signatures.

[Sturgeon's Lawyer]

Casting:
All very Hollywood and politically correct. (Female disciples?)

Ummm... yes. Not female apostles (pace Dan Brown's conspiracy theories), but there were definitely female disciples. Few by name, but there are few non-apostolic disciples named in the Gospels. Among the female disciples mentioned are Mary and Martha, Mary Magdalene, and the Samaritan Woman.

[SteveSly]

I did not see the whole thing, but have watched bits and pieces on Youtube (I had to catch Alice at least). Does anyone know who was in the onstage band? They were very good, but I have not found anywhere that the musicians were listed.

[EdWiser]

Watched on my TiVo auto skip is nice what commercials [emoji3] thought it was the of these live musicals on tv. While some singers where over their head it is not uncommon in this type of musical when high profile singer or actor is more important than how well they will play the role. It was enjoyable I was glad they updated the arrangements.
So what would you choose as the next musical to be done live on tv.
I would love to see Tommy done like this.

[Wah3]

From Bustle

Wondering who those amazing musicians roaming the stage or providing the rockin' score accompaniment were? According to the credits, the orchestra included these individuals: Alden Banta, Jarvis Benson, Ravi Best, Andrew Borkowski, Sara Cyrus, Ian Donald, Rachel Drehmann, Bruce Dukov, Gina Dyches, Shawn Edmonds, Aaron Heck, Jason Jackson, Patrice Jackson-Tilghman, Ally Jenkins, Juliette Jones, Dillon Kondor, Christiana Liberis, Edwin Livingston, Todd Low, Stephanie Matthews, Jessie Montgomery, Rolando Matthias-Matos, Tom Murray, Jannina Norpoth, Yumi Oshima, Ina Paris, Tim Quick, Matt Rohde, Adele Stein, Jamey Tate, Brian Taylor, and Alex Weill.

Next TV musical? Id like to see the Broadway Tommy. And how about Lifehouse

[Duncan Glenday]

...
I would love to see Tommy done like this.

(I'm bilingual - I can speak emoticon)

[JKL2000]

I like Legend and Sarah B generally.

Who are they?

[DocProgger]

Who are they?

Nick Faldo's children.

[Guitarplyrjvb]

Listening to Gethsamane as part of my annual immersion in this record. What a great performance by Ian Gillan! Great songwriting by a pair of songwriters that were less than 22 years old at the time. Damned for All Time and Judas' Death and any number of the other performances are sublime. Murray Head is a wonder.

Here's a couple of links:

A rare promotional recording from Belgian TV of Gillan "singing" Gethsamane:



Another promotional video featuring Murray Head singing "Superstar".

[SunRunner2]

^^^

Ah, yes, Murray Head from "One Night In Bangkok" fame. What an outstanding song it is.

One night in Bangkok and the world's your oyster
The bars are temples but their pearls ain't free
You'll find a god in every golden cloister
And if you're lucky, then the god's a she
I can feel an angel sliding up to me

[Duncan Glenday]

^^^

Ah, yes, Murray Head from "One Night In Bangkok" fame. What an outstanding song it is.

One night in Bangkok and the world's your oyster
The bars are temples but their pearls ain't free
You'll find a god in every golden cloister
And if you're lucky, then the god's a she
I can feel an angel sliding up to me

Which leads to an interesting, if off-topic, conversation that might be best handled in a separate thread:

What are your thoughts on the "CHESS" album, that came out some time after JCSS? I think it's one of the most underrated released of the era.

Music by the 2 guys from Abba, lyrics by Tim Rice, and inspiration from Gilbert and Sullivan, IMO.

I spun it a few weeks ago, and still have the earworms!