Only a few selections from the complete album are included on this page. While they are representative of the range of musical styles comprising the production, it is highly recommended to enjoy the entire album when you get the chance.
Overture, Andre Previn conducting, The original motion picture soundtrack recording, 1973 UMG Recordings, Inc., A Geffen Records Release
The Overture
This is a stunning introduction to the major music themes throughout the production: the worrisome grumblings of the religious leaders, the drama of Christ’s trial before Pilate, the gruesomeness of Jesus being flogged while in Pilate’s custody, Pilate’s final sentence condemning Jesus to die, the major three chord theme of Superstar, and the haunting, sorrowful music of the Crucifixion.
Superstar, Andre Previn conducting, The original motion picture soundtrack recording, 1973 UMG Recordings, Inc., A Geffen Records Release
Superstar
This is the hit single in 1969 that spring-boarded the whole process. Judas directly confronts Jesus, asking what he was all about, why he chose such a time and place to bring his message, and if he accepted what people were saying about him and his ministry. It did not do well in the British pop rock world but went to the top of the charts in the United States. The remaining tracks of the album were produced shortly after. The theater productions, then the movie, were based on the LP album.
Heaven on Their Minds
Here Judas sings about his concern for the movement that Jesus is leading and fears that it is getting out of control. Rice has Judas make the claim he is Jesus’s “right hand man” and feels he knows what is best for the group in the long run.
What’s the Buzz
Jesus interacts with the oftentimes clueless disciples as they struggle to understand what Jesus is teaching (almost always needing an interpretation of the parables) and how it relates to them.
Strange Thing Mystifying
Judas is disgusted by Mary’s adoration and attention towards Jesus, particularly after she anoints him with an expensive perfume. The disciples defend Jesus, Judas maintains his critical attitude.
Hosanna
Jesus triumphantly enters Jerusalem and is greeted as if he were royalty by many people of the city. He rides in on a young donkey and palms are laid before his path. He does not discourage this adoration, but the religious leaders are carefully watching and plotting their course of action.
Pilate’s Dream, Andre Previn conducting, The original motion picture soundtrack recording, 1973 UMG Recordings, Inc., A Geffen Records Release
Pilate’s Dream
A haunting composition in which Pilate describes a dream he experienced about Jesus before he was brought before him. It does not adhere to the Biblical account; Pilate’s wife, Procula is the one who had the nightmare and warns Pilate to have nothing to do with the man.
This Jesus Must Die
This song relates the conference of the Jewish leaders of the time expressing their fear of Jesus’s popularity and how stirred up the crowd following him had become. They come to the conclusion that to save the miserable position the Jews were in at the hands of the Roman government that he ultimately had to die.
Gethsemane
Jesus in the Garden before his arrest. His ponderous agony, doubt, fear, and ultimate resolution are poured into these words and music. “Rice, for some unexplained reason, said he wasn’t happy with the lyric and did a last-minute rewrite in the studio. If anything, he made it more shattering, more breathtaking.” (Nassour, 89)
Could We Start Again, Please
This is a lovely, poignant plea to stop the troubling turn of events after Jesus’s arrest. Mary Magdalene leads the disciples in their deepest wish.
King Herod’s Song
The puppet king named Herod received Jesus after Pilate’s mockery and brutality. Herod only seems interested in seeing if this Jesus lives up to the reputation he has heard about. Jesus is not interested in humoring this disgusting figure and Herod loses patience in the end, sending him back to the Roman governor, Pilate.
The Crucifixion
The music mirrors the gruesome details of the Crucifixion narrative, and gives the listener a glimpse into what the disciples and Jesus’s mother would have heard and felt. Jesus’s last words are also interwoven into the track.
John Nineteen : 41
“Now there was a garden in the place where he was crucified, and in the garden there was a new tomb in which no one had ever been laid.”
This was how the original album, stage production, and movie ended. Like it or not, this is the ending the artists chose. It is a beautiful piece of music, and always fills me with the emotions common to all who have lost someone dear to them.
Jesus Christ Superstar 