So why is the Jesus Christ Superstar soundtrack on this best 1,000 albums ever thing?
Let me start off by stating that I’ve never really considered myself a “musicals person.” However, there are notable exceptions:
Joss Whedon-related musicals stuff
Setting aside the ehhh… issues with Joss Whedon personally, there’s no doubt that he is a master craftsman of throwing genres in a blender and divining some pretty wonderful concoctions. Two of them are musicals:
- Buffy the Vampire Slayer – Once More With Feeling Soundtrack – #271 of best 1,000 albums ever
- Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog (Motion Picture Soundtrack) – #691
(Some) rock operas
The Who’s Tommy (#398) is an incredible and strange concept album-meets-rock opera that was turned into a rather good musical production, which I saw on Broadway when I was a kid. More recently, my wife and I are big fans of the movie musical, Rock of Ages, which has a ton of fun musical-izing 1980s rock culture.
(Very specific actual musical) musicals
I finally caught The Book of Mormon several years ago on Broadway, and it absolutely blew my mind. Not only was it deeply hilarious (because it’s by the South Park guys, I expected this) but I did not expect to enjoy the music and the singing and the dancing as much as I did.
One final anecdote (if you can handle it)
I recently wrote about my deeply embarrassing experience auditioning for a high school musical in the best 1,000 albums ever installment for Led Zeppelin I (#161).
So, maybe I kind of am a musicals person?
Now, let me also state that I’m not religious. Like, at all. So my immense love and appreciation for the Jesus Christ Superstar soundtrack has absolutely nothing to do with religion.
I have no idea how I even got ahold of the album (this was pre-Internet streaming days, kids) but I do know that “somehow” I wound up with a copy of it on cassette. Out of curiosity, I threw it on one day and was immediately transfixed by how unusual and… funky it is.
Funky, tripped-out, psychedelic rock that’s the story of Jesus’ final days and doings? All of a sudden, I was all in on this thing.
I also want to make an important distinction: I’ve checked out other recordings of the Jesus Christ Superstar soundtrack over the years, and none of them hold a candle to the 1970 original studio recording. The best way I can explain why is that the other ones sound more musical-y and less rock opera-y to me.
I love playing the entire hour and a half recording straight through, but jumping in with the second track, “Heaven On Their Minds,” (and skipping over the “Overture”) is perfectly acceptable.
The jittery funk guitar on this number is absolutely sizzling, and when the horns slam into place, it gets even hotter (oh, and then the organ too, praise be!).
Both the vocals and narrative of “Heaven On Their Minds” are super engaging. It starts off eerie and strange, then becomes both beautiful and pleading. And lyrically, we quickly understand that this is not the kind of story that would be told at a church – here is a guy (Judas, played by Murray Head) coming to terms with what he sees as a pending disaster involving a man he trusted and loved.
Listen, Jesus, I don’t like what I see
All I ask is that you listen to me
And remember
I’ve been your right hand man all along
You have set them all on fire
They think they’ve found the new Messiah
And they’ll hurt you when they find they’re wrong
Songs like “What’s the Buzz / Strange Thing Mystifying” are super catchy, funked-out hippie rock that also advance the story. And we get the introduction of Jesus, who not coincidentally plays a major role. He’s played by Ian Gillan of Deep Purple fame, a fact that I find endlessly cool and delightful.
Yvonne Elliman, who plays Mary Magdalene, has an achingly beautiful voice, which she gets to show off on “Everything’s Alright.”
One of my favorite songs, “Damned For All Time / Blood Money,” comes at the end of the first act. The first part is sort of glam rock-meets-proto-punk, and features Judas attempting to come to terms with his coming betrayal. And then “Blood Money” is dark and incredible, showcasing the Romans sweet-talking Judas into giving up his guy.
I find the wordplay here astonishing every time I get to this bit:
We have the papers, we need to arrest him
You know his movements, we know the law
To help with this matter won’t go unrewarded
We’ll pay you in silver, cash on the nail
We just need to know where the soldiers can find him
With no crowd around him, then we can’t fail
While the second act doesn’t have quite the punch of the first, it has multiple highpoints. My favorite song here is the jaunty and funny “King Herod’s Song (Try It And See),” featuring Mike D’Abo.
So if You are the Christ
You’re the great Jesus Christ
Prove to me that You’re no fool
Walk across my swimming pool
Pop culture stuff that has something to do with the Jesus Christ Superstar soundtrack
The iconic sketch comedy show, Mr. Show, does a weirdo 1990s-era grunge/hippie rock pastiche of Jesus Christ Superstar called Jeepers Creepers, featuring a young Jack Black(!) in addition to the Mr. Show tandem of David Cross and Bob Odenkirk (many years before his Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul era).
Also: Jeanne Tripplehorn as Mary!
Personal stuff that has something to do with the Jesus Christ Superstar soundtrack
I’ll point out that my man Lou and I are very similar in many respects, including that we are both not religious and generally not into musicals. When we discovered that we’re both massive fans of the Jesus Christ Superstar soundtrack, it was one of those hilariously awesome well of course we both dig that! moments.
Some stats & info about the Jesus Christ Superstar soundtrack
- What kind of musical stylings does this album represent? Musicals, Funk Rock, Psychedelic Rock, Rock Music
- Rolling Stone’s greatest 500 albums ranking – not ranked!
- All Music’s rating – not rated!
- When was the Jesus Christ Superstar released? 1970
- My ranking, the one you’re reading right now – #159 out of 1,000
The Jesus Christ Superstar soundtrack on Spotify
A lyrical snippet from the Jesus Christ Superstar soundtrack that’s evocative of the album in some way, maybe
But every word you say today gets twisted ’round some other way, and they’ll hurt you if they think you’ve lied.
What does the “best 1,000 albums ever” mean and why are you doing this?
Yeah, I know it’s audacious, a little crazy (okay, maybe a lot cray cray), bordering on criminal nerdery.
But here’s what it’s NOT: a definitive list of the Greatest Albums of All-Time. This is 100% my own personal super biased, incredibly subjective review of what my top 1,000 albums are, ranked in painstaking order over the course of doing research for nearly a year, Rob from High Fidelity style. Find out more about why I embarked on a best 1,000 albums ever project.