John Mottola, from the Deep Purple podcast, asked me to give this album a listen. I did, for the first time. Let’s see what I think and what John taught me about the band and their second studio album. This is the first of a 4 part series because that’s just what happens when John comes to visit.
Link to video episode on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wiMWribpSjg
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We haven’t found out. Roger said it was Blackmore’s song name, so that he didn’t know; he seemed to remember a king Alerik from English history, but was uncertain. Another possible source is the Michael Moorcook-books, as I seem to have read a suggestion about Elric (the one with the sword named Stormbringer, y’know)’s father being called Alerik, i.e. the Son of Alerik is Elric himself. But this is highly unverified.
From an email from Paul Mann
Cosmic Jazz
Demo from “Perfect Strangers” sessions. Was available on “Blackmore By Request” bootleg that circulated in the early 1990s.
‘Fire Ice and Dynamite was a movie project that was offered to us. Jon and Ian Paice were not in the States at the time and weren’t interested. Ritchie wanted to do it so we used a riff idea of his that the band didn’t want, Joe wrote some words and I constructed it in the studio, playing keyboards and drum machine. It was at a bad time in the band’s history and we were probably at our most dysfunctional. I haven’t heard it in decades but I don’t think it is any good.'”
Jon Lord was on tour in Europe with “Rock’n’Blues Olympic Circus” with Chris Farlowe, Roger Chapman, Tony Ashton, Pete York.
Roger allegedly programmed the drums, maybe using drum samples of Ian Paice playing.
Comments about the show? Things you’d like us to cover? We’d love to hear from you. Send us an email at info@deeppurplepodcast.com or @ us on Twitter, Facebook, or Instagram.
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Kev Roberts & his wonderful children: Matthew, Gareth, and Sarah
Apple Podcasts Reviews:
Frozen Bruise – USA – 5 Stars!
Love this Podcast!
Back in 1974 when I was 13 years old I was at a friend’s house shooting pool when he played the album Burn. I was hooked, and they became my favorite band. So I have been a fan for 48 years. My wife has told me she’s going to play Smoke on the Water at my funeral. I really enjoy the fact that Nathan and John are musicians and are able to explain things like how something is being played, how it is recorded, or how difficult it is to play a particular song or part, etc. For so many years I felt like I was the only person who liked Deep Purple. back in the stone age when I was in high school, I had friends who wanted to ride around in my car with me. They knew that there was price to pay if they did—they had to listen to Deep Purple! So glad that this podcast exists. I really enjoy listening to Nathan and John, they sound like two guys that I could really enjoy hanging out with. Great job, great conversation, lots of humor, all while listening to Deep Purple—5 stars!!!
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Nate guest hosts on upcoming episode of “Gain it for Riffs”
Apple Podcasts Reviews
2020-08-11
Willy P65 – 5 Stars!
From Great Britain!
Think you know all about Deep Purple? Think again!
These guys (host, Nate Beaudry and “sidekick/wing-man” John Mottola) come at the catalogue, history and appreciation of Deep Purple from a very different place than I do. Being Americans, a decade or so younger than me, and predominantly Coverdale/Mk.3/Mk.4 fans, this 50-something Brit, most fond of all the Gillan eras, does find himself raising an eyebrow at their outlook on a regular basis. But for every opinion I disagree with (nothing wrong with that!), or incorrect fact (few and far between really – and the guys don’t profess to be experts, just passionate fans) there are 4,5, or 6, nuggets of information that I wasn’t aware of, plenty of nods of shared appreciation for Deep Purple’s brilliance, and tons of minutiae around the product, people, and places related to the wider DP family output. They’re like a couple of buddies I’ve never met (Perfect Strangers, if you will) that I thoroughly enjoy spending time with, shooting the breeze over our mutual passion.
Comments about the show? Things you’d like us to cover? We’d love to hear from you. Send us an email at info@deeppurplepodcast.com or @ us on Twitter, Facebook, or Instagram.
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New Apple Podcasts Review – FROM OTHER COUNTRIES!!!
This week, a review from Germany:
FIVE STARS!
Georg DP , 07.01.2021
Highway Star
This podcast is truly amazing. Since I have been a Deep Purple fan since 1978 I thought there could be little more to learn about the band and the extended Deep Purple family. Yet these guys have proved me wrong. The great stories and details they come up with every show are just crazy. It is wonderful to be part of a world spanning group of Purple nerds that understand your peculiar affection and even share it. Thank you so much guys!
Thank you to all the listeners that we don’t hear from!
A Word from Our Sponsor:
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Extra Special Mail Bag Unboxing from listener Norman Weichselbaum!
Listener Mail/Comments
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Mike Hurst says he’d always loved the song “Wild Thing” but he didn’t think the Troggs’ version was sexy. He thought Jimi Hendrix did a great version and wanted to do it in yet a different way.
Would the song be sexier if sung by a woman?
He says he didn’t want it to be sung he wanted it to be “massaged.”
Mike called up Ray Fenwick to work on the arrangement, then they needed to find a singer.
Mike doesn’t remember who suggested the name of Helen Caunt. She’d previously worked for Rod Stewart but was better known for being a Penthouse Pet.
Ray brought in Mo Foster and they got to work on the song with Henry Spinetti on drums and Mike Hurst and Ray Fenwick on backing vocals.
Hurst wanted it to be slow and funky with “splashes of sex.”
Eventually he told Caunt to breathe all the way through it.
Alan Hawkshaw was brought in to play keyboards and finish up the track.
They recorded “Fancy” as an instrumental B-side for the single.
They had a single and now needed to sell it. With a Penthouse Pet as a singer it didn’t seem to be too difficult as they put her on the cover partially nude during a photo shoot.
The single was put out in April of 1973. It didn’t do much in the UK but it was released in the US where it made it to number 7 in the charts.
Mike Hurst says: “By this time, and with the success int he USA, Helen had got herself a new manager, her boyfriend. That was two strikes against her, she had to go.”
They auditioned a bunch of different singers and felt like they weren’t going to come up with a suitable replacement until they came across Annie Kavanagh. She had previously worked with Steely Dan and been in the Australian stage production of Jesus Christ Superstar.
Alias used by Ray Fenwick while he was in Fancy. Couldn’t find any explanation as to why. I thought maybe it was for contractual reasons or something. I reached out to Ray for clarification and here’s what he sent me:
“Hi Nate…Good to hear from you.Answers to your questions. Marlon came from a leather jacket I had made…it had a white leather logo script on the back , reading .. MARLON..homage to Brando. Why? Who knows!”
He also did a single “Let’s Go to the Disco” with “Broken Man” as the B-side released in 1974 on Purple Records co-written and co-produced with Roger Glover.
This will be included on an upcoming Anthology released in April – Ray Fenwick “Playing Through The Changes” a 61-track covering 60 years in Ray Fenwick’s music career.
Coming on Singsong Music: https://singsongmusic.com/
Worked with a lot of bands including Nirvana (no, not that Nirvana, the one from the 60s), Hardin/York, Cat Stevens, Ray Fenwick’s “Queen of the Night,” P.P. Arnold, Samantha Fox.
Chip Taylor is the brother of Jon Voight and uncle of Angelina Jolie
Chip has almost 2000 entries on Discogs
First version of the songs was recorded by the Wild Ones
Chip Taylor says he wrote it in a matter of minutes for the band
English rock band The Troggs popularized the song releasing it in April of 1966
It was a surprise hit in the US peaking at #14 on the Billboard Hot 100.
Love For Sale (Hurst, Fenwick)
Move On (Hurst, Fenwick)
I Don’t Need Your Love (Hurst, Fenwick)
One Night (Dave Bartholomew & Pearl King)
Songwriting team behind
Released “One Night” in 1956 recorded by Smiley Lewis
Dave Bartholomew wrote a lot of songs for Fats Domino
Pearl King was his wife and has a ton of credits as a song writer
Side Two:
Touch Me (Hurst, Fenwick)
Released as a single in the US and was in the top 20 within a month.
U.S. Surprise (Hurst, Fenwick)
Between The Devil And Me (Hurst, Fenwick)
I’m A Woman (Jerry Lieber & Mike Stoller)
Feel Good (Hurst, Fenwick)
Has been sampled over 100 times including by the Beastie Boys on the song “3-Minute Rule” off of their album “Paul’s Boutique” and “Unite” on “Hello Nasty.” Also on “Fuck Tha Police” by N.W.A.
Fancy: The Complete Recordings booklet notes by Michael Hurst and Mo Foster
Listener Mail/Comments
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They talk to each other, yet somehow I always feel part of the conversation! Love learning more about DP (and the family of bands) but it’s the fun atmosphere that draws you in.
Jeff Breis’s Pick of the Week!
Black Sabbath Born Again 1983 Tour Book!
The Albums:
The Doors – Waiting For The Sun – 3rd Studio Album
Side One:
Hello, I Love You
Love Street
Not to Touch the Earth
Summer’s Almost Gone
Wintertime Love
The Unknown Soldier
Side Two:
Spanish Caravan
My Wild Love
We Could BE So Good Together
Yes, the River Knows
Five to One
Deep Purple – Shades of Deep Purple – 1st Studio Album
Side One:
And the Address
Hush
One More Rainy Day
Prelude: Happiness/I’m So Glad
Side Two:
Mandrake Root
Help!
Love Help Me
Hey Joe
Listener Mail/Comments
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1982’s Live Evil album interestingly created a lot of bad blood between Dio and the band and caused him to leave.
They considered Samson’s Nicky Moore, Robert Plant, David Coverdale, and Michael Bolton.
The classic story goes that Gillan and Iommi were drinking and got loaded and Gillan had agreed to join Black Sabbath.
In actuality Don Arden had suggested Gillan who got together with Iommi and Butler to discuss. Of course there were pints involved and the trio allegedly holed up in this pub for about twelve hours.
Gillan says his manager, Phil Banfield, called him the next day when he heard about it extremely upset that he’d made this decision without consulting him. Gillan claims that when he heard this he had no memory of having agreeing to join Sabbath.
The members of Gillan, most notably John McCoy and Colin Towns, were not pleased with this. Gillan had taken a few months off due to vocal nodes. Gillan says he encouraged the band members not to wait for him while he healed up and to pursue other projects.
Gillan was upset because in the press he’d been accused of faking the vocal nodes to break up the band.
Gillan was hesitant but his manager convinced him to do it.
Ward had become sober and remained sober throughout most of the sessions.
The original intention was to create a supergroup.
Martin Popoff says in his book, Born Again! Black Sabbath in the Eighties and Nineties, that Iommi had only briefly considered hanging up the Black Sabbath name.
There was apparently a lot of reverence for the idea of Sabbath returning to an all British lineup once again.
During initial rehearsals Gillan didn’t sing because of the vocal nodes.
Geezer says during rehearsals Gillan lived in a tent on his own and had a boat nearby to go sailing. One reason was to stand guard of his golf clubs that were in a separate tent.
Did work for Ozzy, Motorhead, and Girlschool.Album cover put together by Kerrang! Magazine’s Steve “Krusher” Joule who had put together “Diary of a Madman” and “Bark at the Moon.”
Joule says he tossed four ideas for covers for this album. Some even accused him of sabotaging the Sabbath album cover in a conspiracy involving Sharon.
Butler: “Oh I hate the album cover! I mean I saw it, and I thought oh man give me a break!”
Gillan: “The first time I saw the album cover I puked.”
Iommi: “When you see the cover you know we’re not talking about born again Christians!”
Gillan allegedly through a box of 25 of the albums out a window in protest.
Joule says about Gillan’s “puked” commentary that he had the same reaction to most of Gillan’s album covers over the years.
In a Kerrang! it took second place behind Scorpions’ “Love Drive” in their “10 Worst Album Sleeves in Metal/Hard Rock.”
Despite all the negative said about it the album cover was approved by Iommi.
In Ozzy’s Book “I am Ozzy” he says that Don Arden, who was very hostile toward Sharon and Ozzy” often told the Osbournes that their children resemble the Born Again cover.
Steve Joule says he was asked to do the album cover while working on OZzy material. He claims to have submitted three “ridiculous and obviously” designs, collect his free beers and move on.
Steve Joule says the 1968 “Mind Alive” magazine was purchased for him by his parents as a child to “further [his] education.”
He says he photocopied the picture, overexposed it, added “the most outrageous color combination that cid could buy,” then added the nails, horns, and sat back and laughed.
Joule says Iommi loved it, Geezer looked at it and sait, “It’s shit, but it’s fucking great!”
Technician [Equipment & Guitar Technician] – Peter Restey
Credited as being a personal technician to Black Sabbath.
The Mix
After Gillan laid down the vocals he went on holiday for about six months and returned to the finished albums. Gillan said that Geezer went in and ruined the mix.
Geezer says he was the one saying it sounded awful. Geezer complained it was too bassy Geezer says, “I got sick of telling everyone that it didn’t sound right. When I was proved right, Gillan came back and said, ‘What the hell is wrong with this?’ A lot of people blamed me because I was the one who was there at the time.”
Geezer says that Black was in charge of the mix but he was taking too much input from everyone and ultimately it should have been just him in charge of the mix.
Bill complained saying that he “hated that they gave it an ‘80s sound.” He says this dates the album, particularly his drum sound.
Tony said that they were in Europe touring when it came out and by the time they heard it had hit #4 on the charts already. They were disappointed saying it was all distorted and that no one had okay’d the pressing for the record. Iommi said that someone had the lacquers, and they were left for too long and went off and that affected the sound. So the tapes sounded good but the vinyl sounded awful.
Tony also said that Gillan had blown out a couple of tweets in the playback monitors.
One thing is clear, the band was sort of checked out when the project was complete and didn’t see it through until the end.
Album Tracks:
All songs credited to Iommi, Butler, Ward, Gillan, except where noted.
Side One:
Trashed
Song about Ian crashing BIll’s car. He got drunk and decided to drive Bill’s car around the go-cart track at Richard Branson’s house where they were recording. Allegedly the car was totalled and even caught on fire.
The “Peter” mentioned in the song was Pete Restey, the guitar technician.
The car, a Ford Granada, was apparently a rental that had just been picked up that day. Each of the band members had gotten Bill hadn’t even driven it yet.
Pete had taken Bill’s new car to the pub and Gillan took his boat. They drank a lot and Gillan requested one of the two bottles of Jose Cuervo Gold that the woman at the pub said had been there for 30 years. Ian had one bottle, Pete had the other.
They then met back up at the Manor. Pete started doing laps on the go-cart track then Ian said he wanted a try. The car flipped up onto its roof inspiring the line “The ground was in my sky.” They stopped short of going right into an old abandoned swimming pool.
Pete says, “the pool was filled with old tires and debris and stuff — we never would have been able to open the doors for us to get out. We would have drowned probably.”
While upside down the gas tank had been torn and was running into the car. Gillan had a lit cigarette hanging out of his mouth. Pete said the gasoline actually leaked down his face onto the cigarette and put it out.
Trashed was released as a single but did not chart.
Tipper Gore cited this song as an example of a song that glorified drug and alcohol abuse.
Stonehenge
They used a metal plate that they hit and lowered into water to change the pitch.
Disturbing the Priest
“Disturbing the Priest” was written after a rehearsal space – set up by Iommi in a small building near a local church – received noise complaints from the resident priests.[4] “We wanted this effect on ‘Disturbing the Priest’,” recalled the guitarist, “and Bill got this big bucket of water and he got this anvil. It was really heavy, and he’d got it hanging on a piece of rope and lower it in to get this effect: hit it and lower it in, and then lift it out again. It was a great effect, but it took hours to do.”[11]
Only track that had lyrics written by Geezer.
Gillan says that while they were tracking vocals he noticed the vicar from the church was in the control room. He was telling them that they had choir practice and the music was very loud and they couldn’t concentrate on their pitching.
The priest was asking that they close the doors but Gillan told him that on the days they had choir practice that they wouldn’t record out of respect.
They then went to the pub with the vicar and had beers that evening. Gillan told the guys about the encounter and Geezer wrote the lyrics.
Funny enough this would become an example of how Black Sabbath was satanic.
The Dark
Zero the Hero
Often cited as the inspiration to “Paradise City.”
One of Bill Ward’s favorites.
Side Two:
Digital Bitch
Gillan says this is about a person in real life but won’t say who.
Born Again
Bill Ward says he went to the studio to watch Gillan write this. He says he loves the process of writing lyrics and had a lot of fun watching the process.
Gillan says the song is about finding himself centered after being out of balance.
Hot Line (Iommi/Buttler/Gillan)
Keep It Warm (Iommi/Buttler/Gillan)
“I saw Ian go into the studio one day,” Ward recalled, “and I was fortunate and honoured, actually, to be part of a session. I watched him lay tracks on ‘Keep It Warm’… I felt like Ian was Ian in that song… I watched this incredible transformation of this man that really, I felt, delicately put lyrics together. It made sense. I thought he did an excellent job. And I really dig that song too.”
Schroer, Ron (October 1996). “Bill Ward and the Hand of Doom – Part III: Disturbing the Peace”. Southern Cross (Sabbath fanzine) #18. p. 24.
Reception and Review
It’s rumored that there were up to five additional tracks written for use on Born Again.
Born Again was released in August 1983[1] and was a commercial success. It was the highest charting Black Sabbath album in the United Kingdom since Sabbath Bloody Sabbath (1973) and became an American Top 40 hit.[27] Despite this, it became the first Black Sabbath album to not have any RIAA certification in the US.
Met a lot of criticism
Bill Ward left the band immediately after recording and did not tour. He’d fallen off the wagon and allegedly the temptation presented by Gillan’s heavy drinking was too much for him to be around.
Geezer left the band after the tour.
Reached number 4 in the UK charts, top 40 in the US
Gillan recalls enjoying doing the old Ozzy tunes but didn’t feel comfortable singing the Dio tracks.
Ozzy Osbourne said: “Born Again is the best is the best thing I’ve heard from Sabbath since the original group broke up.”
In 1992, Ian Gillan told director Martin Baker, “I was the worst singer Black Sabbath ever had. It was totally, totally incompatible with any music they’d ever done. I didn’t wear leathers, I wasn’t of that image…I think the fans probably were in a total state of confusion.” In 1992, Iommi admitted to Guitar World, “Ian is a great singer, but he’s from a completely different background, and it was difficult for him to come in and sing Sabbath material.”
When the band heard the final product, they were horrified at the muffled mix. In his autobiography, Iommi explains that Gillan inadvertently blew a couple of tweeters in the studio speakers by playing the backing tracks too loud and nobody noticed. “We just thought it was a bit of a funny sound, but it went very wrong somewhere between the mix and the mastering and the pressing of that album…the sound was really dull and muffly. I didn’t know about it, because we were already out on tour in Europe. By the time we heard the album, it was out and in the charts, but the sound was awful.”
Gillan: “But by God, we had a good year…And the songs, I think, were quite good.”
The ensuing tour and live shenanigans are entirely too much to get into and perhaps will be revisited on a future episode . . .
Comments about the show? Things you’d like us to cover? We’d love to hear from you. Send us an email at info@deeppurplepodcast.com or @ us on Twitter, Facebook, or Instagram.
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Webber said he’d seen Judy Garland in a movie called “I Could Go on Singing” which was also the title song. He said there was a line about “When the cows come home.” The director was Ronnie Neame, a friend of Webber’s Auntie Vi. He decided to play a song to the director that he thought was better. The music ended up becoming “I Don’t Know How To Love Him.”
This melody had been used before from a 1968 song by Webber/Rice called “Kansas Morning.” The song was never recorded.
Album Tracks:
LP 2
Side One:
The Last Supper
Gethsemane (I Only Want To Say)
First done as an orchestral B-side to the “Superstar Single.”
“Gethsemane” was among the last songs to be recorded. Lloyd-Webber says Gillan was wiped out after singing the song. This was also a highlight for Webber.
YouTube video promo?
The Arrest
Peter’s Denial
Pilate And Christ
King Herod’s Song (Try It And See)
This song was written prior to JCSS as the song “Try It and See” by Webber/Rice. It was going to be an entry into the 1969 Eurovision Song Contest to be sung by the artist Lulu. The plan was also to release it as a single sung by Rita Pavone. They had also used this song called “Those Saladin Days” in a show called “Come Back Richard Your country Needs You,” a musical project that never was completed.
Since it had been rejected for the Eurovision song Contest in these days it was published by Norrie Paramour. IN Lloyd Webber’s biography: “This led to a confusing credit in the booklet of the US album version . . . which in turn led a few people to mistakenly think Tim and I had not written one of its biggest moments.”
One of the last bits recorded was “King Herrod’s Song.” The decision to make it so upbeat was that it was in between Gethsemane and Judas’s death and they wanted to have something a little more upbeat to break things up.
In Lloyd-Webber’s biography he talks about the recording: “Alan and Bruce took things into their own hands and played syncopations that defied gravity. Afterwards I wrote them all out, but although I’ve got rock sections to replicate what they did, it never sounded quite the same.”
Webber says they finally did a perfect take with the orchestra when Alan O’Duffy said he hadn’t put tape into the machine. Webber lost it and they did another take that ended up being perfect as well.
When all the orchestra had left they listened back and found that it had accidentally been recorded twice.
Upon hearing the final single the folks at the record company were thrilled.
The last items to be recorded were the orchestra and choirs were overdubbed.
The mixing was extremely challenging with Alan O’Duffy having to commit a huge amount of complicated mixing moves to memory. There were imperfections but they left a lot of them in. Andrew Lloyd-Webber says if you listen right before the two big “Superstar” chords in the overture you can hear Alan Dogget counting “one, two, three four.”
Brian Brolly arranged a listening session for the British MCA/Universal executives at Advision Studios located in London. Lloyd-Webber says some of them were grumpy and asked how long it was and if there was a pee break. After the playback there was a long silence and someone said, “There’s not a lot here for Ruby Murray.” Ruby Murray was an Irish ballad singer who was popular in the fifties but whose last hit had been in 1959.
Brian Brolly loved it and suggested they add “Superstar” to the title as it was originally supposed to be called simply “Jesus Christ.”
They then had a meeting to discuss a contract problem due to some legal wording. The meeting luckily went off well and Lloyd-Webber got back the entire theater and film rights to the musical.
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Amazon music just launched a podcast feature. You can follow us here.
Apple Podcasts Review:
ElectricEye87, 09/10/2020 – FIVE STARS
Let’s Go Space Talkin’
I rate this podcast 5 Ritchie Blackmore floppy hats. Never thought I’d enjoy listening to a podcast where guys talk over songs I love, but here I am. Extremely informative, a solid blend of humor and content, and the guys are very easy to listen to. When listening to Whoosh! for the first time, I even found myself thinking about what they might have to say about it when their review dropped. It’s perfect aside from the occasional swear word. I would expect that kind of language at Denny’s, but NOT HERE! Other than that, all I hear is burn.
They decided a good move would be to get a leading clergyman to endorse the single. They found Martin Sullivan at St. Paul’s Cathedral. He wrote, “There are some people who may be shocked by this record. I ask them to listen to it and think again. It is a desperate cry. Who are you, Jesus Christ? Is the urgent enquiry and a very proper one at that.”
Sullivan also offered up St. Paul’s Cathedral for the premiere if and when Jesus Christ Superstar was finished.
The single was released and they did a late night show, David Frost’s Saturday ITV.
The Daily Express had gotten quotes that they were looking to cast John Lennon as Jesus. This was untrue as they hadn’t even gotten a complete script to cast anyone yet.
The budget to record the album was £20,000/$25,580 (£318,000/$406,726 in today’s money).
Most of the melodies and themes were completed in January. Side 1 is dated February 21 with side four dated March 4.
In December of ‘69 there was a note that Mary Magdelne’s first song should be in 5/4.
They began to seek out vocalists. They wanted a well known name as Jesus.
Their first pick for Jesus was Colin Blunstone, the lead singer of the Zombies. Rod Argent, a member of the Zombies would be involved in the recording.
Andrew Lloyd-Webber had been invited to Royal Albert Hall to see Jon Lord’s Concerto for Group and Orchestra. Malcolm Arnold had been a friend of Lloyd-Webber’s father.
Lloyd-Webber says in his biography, after meeting Tony Edwards: “I found the music bland, so I droned on about how daring it was to fuse a rock group with an orchestra.” He found out that Deep Purple was taking a heavier direction moving forward and he mentioned something about Jesus Christ Superstar to Tony Edwards.
Lloyd-Webber says a few months later that he got a call saying Deep Purple had a new singer and asked if he and Tim would like to go listen to him. We know this is inaccurate as Gillan would have been the singer at the Concerto.
They played Gillan’s rough tapes and he heard Gilaln’s scream and thought that he had found his Jesus. He said after hearing Gillan he went back and rewrote the moment Jesus confronts the moneylenders.
When Murray and Gillan were cast Webber began working on solidifying the band. Since Joe Cocker was on a break he was able to get Alan Spenner an dBruce Rowland for bass and drums. He spoke to Clapton’s manager to get try to get Eric Clapton on lead guitar but was unable to secure him. Therefore he reverted to Henry McCulloguh from the Grease Band. Chris Mercer of Juicy Lucy as the sax and another guitarist, Neil Hubbard, also from Juicy Lucy.
Someone played Quatermass for Webber and he was keen to get Peter Robinson into the band as well. They also took John Gustafson from Quatermass in the role of Simon.
Most of the songs came about the first time around except “I Don’t Know How To Love Him.” Originally they’d had Annabel Leventon to play Mary. She had been in Hair with Murray Head. They recorded with her and said it was good but wasn’t quite what they were looking for.
There was a jazz singer performing at the Pheasantry in Chelsea who Don Norman, who was working as their manager, wanted to pitch as Pilate. While they weren’t sold on the singer there was another performer that night that caught their eye: Yvonne Elliman.
They wanted someone very theatrical to be Pilate and pitched it to Barry Dennen. Barry’s agent arranged a meeting and he agreed to record the album.
Tim was friends with Mike d’Abo who had recently become singer of Manred Mann. And with that, filling in with some MCA employed artists their casting was complete.
When they were looking for a singer for their single of “Superstar” Tim’s first thought was Murray Head. He was skeptical but having recently been dropped by EMI he gave it a chance but hadn’t yet committed to the full project. It was Murray who suggested the musicians that were the core of the group to play on the JCSS album.
She was discovered by Andrew Lloyd Webber when singing at The Phesantry night club in Chelsea. He walked up to her and said “I’ve Found My Mary.”
They struggled with “I Don’t KNow How to Love HIm” saying it wasn’t interesting. They found an early “positive” organ which had a flutey sound and got Peter Robinson into “Bach mode.” They’d heard Yvonne Ellimon sing simply playing an acoustic at the Pheasantry and decided to go with that sound along with the “snuffly organ.”
She would go on to join Eric Clapton’s live band before having a solo career.
She went on to sing on Jon Lord’s Gemini Suite.
Was one of the backup singers on Clapton’s “I Shot The Sheriff.”
Had her biggest hits in Disco including the #1 “If I Can’t Have You.”
UK progressive band. Formed in 1964 as “Satan’s Disciples” by Alan Cowderoy and Paul Davis. In 1968 renamed as Gracious or Gracious! Disbanded in ca. 1971 after Lipson’s and Kitcat’s departure. In these times they recorded 3 albums, including one unreleased in 1968 and one released two years after band’s split.
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