REVIEWS

***** ESSENTIAL **** GREAT FOR THE COLLECTION *** WORTHWHILE ** FOR COMPLETISTS ONLY * PASS IT ON

VARIOUS ARTISTS

JESUS CHRIST SUPERSTAR: 50TH ANNIVERSARY DELUXE EDITION

Decca/UMe (3-CD Set)

*****

For once, the Brits got it wrong. When the original studio cast version of Jesus Christ Superstar was first released in the U.K. in 1970, it was met with, in composer Andrew Lloyd-Webber’s recollection, “polite indifference.” It was the U.S. that made Superstar a phenomenon. The U.S. record company even came up with a better cover design, the two angels facing each other in a horseshoe deemed by Lloyd-Webber as “the first mega logo in musical theatre history.”

And that’s the logo you’ll find on the slipcase of this set, which features a remastered version of the album on two discs, with a bonus disc of extras. Superstar has never sounded better; the remastering brings a new clarity to the work. Even if you’ve committed every nuance of the music to memory, you’ll hear new things in this version, so if you’re not interested in springing for the deluxe set, it’s still well worth buying the 2-CD edition.

The bonus tracks include previously unreleased guide vocals, single mixes and an open-ended interview for radio DJs to make it seem like Lloyd-Webber and lyricist Tim Rice were actually in the studio with them. As the oral history in the booklet reveals, there are no outtakes because the opera was recorded with dispatch. Mike d’Abo recorded the jocular “King Herod’s Song” in two takes. Deep Purple’s Ian Gillan, as Jesus, recorded all his parts in three hours. The booklet’s history offers a good behind-the-scenes look at how the opera came together, the care taken with the casting, and great bits of trivia (“Superstar” was added to the show’s title after Rice saw an ad proclaiming Tom Jones “The World’s No. 1 Superstar”).

Because the show’s since been performed in innumerable incarnations, people may have forgotten how extraordinary the original studio cast recording really is. In this writer’s view, no Jesus ever surpassed Gillan’s performance, or had the anguished gravitas of Murray Head’s Judas (at least Yvonne Elliman, as Mary Magdalene, made it to the movie version). This expertly crafted, well-paced work was built to last, and is as enthralling today as when it was first released a half century ago. (Also available in 2-LP and 2-CD editions.)

— Gillian G. Gaar

OASIS

KNEBWORTH 1996

Big Brother Recordings Ltd. (CD, LP, Blu-ray)

*****

This outstanding concert film and soundtrack album captures the Mancunian rockers Oasis at the apex of their career, their two nights of concerts at England’s Knebworth Park on August 10th and 11th, 1996 at which they performed before a combined total of over 250,000 people.

The film was directed by Jake Scott. It covers both nights at Knebworth. Voiceover interviews with the band members and fans that were at the shows told the story over the visuals of events before, during and after the shows. Audio of part of an interview that Noel Gallagher did with the DJ Jo Whiley for BBC Radio 1 on the second night at Knebworth was also used. In addition to the scenes of the performances by Oasis (lead vocalist Liam Gallagher, guitarist/vocalist Noel Gallagher, guitarist Paul “Bonehead” Arthurs, bassist Paul “Guigsy” McGuigan and drummer Alan White), the film also shows a small bit of the ecstatic set by support act The