What was the Rock opera first staged in 1970 by Andrew Lloyd Webber?

Answer 1

Jesus Christ, Superstar!- by Andrew Lloyd Weber is generally considered the first so-called Rock Opera. Circa l97l. another one, also with religious trappings, but not so well known to posterity was the Survival Of St. Joan. which was performed around the same time, by a group called Smoke Rise. It got very bad reviews as it was on some extremely slippery theological ground- Once a Knight evidentally WAS enogh, and I don"t even think there was a(cast album) for that one. Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat was another 70"s Rock Opera with a religious orientation, the Old Testament Joseph, not the New Testament one. The term Rock Opera is no longer used, but was applied to the three I mentioned.

ADDITIONS/CORRECTIONS TO ABOVE RESPONDER'S POST

The first response to this question offers some correct and interesting information about some of the early examples of "rock opera;" however, it invites clarification about what constitutes genuine rock opera and requires correction regarding the name of the first recognized rock opera.

The first short-form rock opera is generally cited as "A Quick One While He's Away," a nine-minute suite of thematically related songs by British rock band The Who from the 1966 album A Quick One. The Who's Pete Townshend would go on to conceive the double-album-length rock opera Tommy, released in 1969. It is commonly cited, though incorrectly, as the first full-length rock opera. Granted, it is the best known of the early examples of the form, but Tommy was preceded by two single-length works. The least known, The Story of Simon Simopath, was written and recorded by the first known band to record under the name Nirvana (beating Kurt Cobain and company to the moniker by well over a decade. An amicable settlement was made to a lawsuit initiated by the original band against the far better known progenitors of the Seattle "grunge-rock" movement.)

The English band The Pretty Things released S.F. Sorrowin 1968, several months prior to Tommy. Many cite it as a masterpiece of "psychedelic pop," in part due to audio effects that were innovative at the time of its creation. It was engineered by Norman Smith, who had also worked with The Beatles (Sergeant Pepper's Lonely Hearts' Club Band) and Pink Floyd (Piper at the Gates of Dawn)--bands both known for moving beyond the familiar limits of pop music production practices. But S.F. Sorrow survives the psychedelic era that bore it due to finely crafted songs that, despite some progressive arrangements and instrumentation, hold fast to a rock music foundation (unlike the lightweight, chamber-music-influenced Simon Simopath which preceded it).

Tommy, which was in 1969 touted as the first rock opera, attained massive success, and with it the false title of "first rock opera" (which helped it overshadow The Kinks' thematically linked album, Arthur, also released in 1969). It can be convincingly argued that Webber and Rice's Jesus Christ Superstar, released in 1970, was initially presented as a "rock" recording--rather than a stage musical--due to the success of Tommy and the public clamor for more of the same. Webber and Rice had already written two musicals and staged one, Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat. The two dabbled in pop music but were influenced by the traditional stage musical format, in which Jesus Christ Superstar was initially conceived. Once it hit the Broadway stage, it was billed, more correctly, as a rock musical (and even then, one diluted by orchestration and elements of the traditional musical theater). Never again would Webber and Rice tread this close to rock sounds, confirming their intentions to focus their efforts on the Broadway crowd. The distinction between "rock opera" and "rock musical" is one of both intention and aesthetic. A rock or pop musical is conceived around a story (sometimes drawn from an existing book or actual person) intended for dramatic presentation by actors and/or singers, likely with a grounding in traditional vocal performance and theater. Its appeal is directed toward the theatergoer. Rock operas, meanwhile, are typically based on an original story and conceived for performance by musicians playing instruments predominantly associated with rock (guitars, keyboards, drums). In live performance, these works may utilize theatrical devices but are staged as elaborate rock concerts (such as 1975's The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway, created by the Peter Gabriel-led version of the English art-rock band Genesis).

The line has at times been blurred, as with progressive rock keyboardist Rick Wakeman's 1975 conceptual album and production-heavy stage outing, The Myths and Legends of King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table. Wakeman used two choirs, an orchestra and ice skaters to augment his classical-influenced rock creation, skewing more closely to the theatrical tradition despite aiming the work at rock consumers (and reportedly going bankrupt in the process due to the expense of the extravagant show). Similarly maligned by followers of standard-issue rock but embraced by many for its sophistication is Jeff Wayne's 1978 multi-artist, art-rock treatment of H.G. Wells' War of the Worlds, which is being staged internationally as of this writing (in 2009).

The golden era of the rock opera dwindled as the 1970s came to a close, though bands continue to bill occasional works under the name "rock opera." More common (both prior to and after the rise of rock operas) are "concept albums," which explore a theme over the course of an album without necessarily creating a clear, linear story line or narrative. The linking thread might be as simple as a particular musical style (i.e. soul pioneer Ray Charles' early 1960s foray into country & western music), a mood (a worthy example being Frank Sinatra's low-key 1955 package In the Wee Small Hours) or a loosely-based, recurring lyrical theme such as those used by theatrical rock performer Alice Cooper on the early 1970s releases Killer and School's Out.

The Beatles' Sergeant Pepper album (1967) is frequently cited as the first definitive rock concept album, in this case, linking an unrelated series of songs via a thematic conceit--a fictional band. This launched a new way of thinking about how the 30-odd minutes on a long-playing record could be utilized. Other early concept albums include The Moody Blues' 1967 release, Days of Future Passed, and The Zombies' critically lauded 1968 effort (1969 in the U.S.) Odessey and Oracle. Whether a work is a concept album or a full-fledged rock opera is a somewhat subjective matter; Pink Floyd's 1973 opus Dark Side of the Moon, as well as the band's two subsequent albums (Animals; Wish You Were Here), would be considered concept albums, while Floyd's arguably more theatrical 1979 tour de force, The Wall, is generally thought of as a rock opera. The only definite commonalities between the rock opera, rock musical and the concept album are: their intent to present a unified theme; the certainty that some will disagree regarding which is which; and the fact that none of them are over until "the fat lady sings."

Answer 2

In 1968, Rice and Lloyd Webber were commissioned to write a piece for the Colet Court preparatory school which resulted in Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, a retelling of the biblical story of Joseph in which Lloyd Webber and Rice humorously pastiche a number of musical styles such as Elvis-style rock'n'roll, Calypso and Country Music. Joseph began life as a short cantata that gained some recognition on its second staging with a favourable review in The Times. For its subsequent performances, Rice and Lloyd Webber revised the show and added new songs to expand it to a more substantial length. This culminated in a two-hour long production being staged in the West End on the back of the success of Jesus Christ Superstar.

In 1969 Rice and Lloyd Webber wrote a song for the Eurovision Song Contest called "Try It and See," which was not selected. With rewritten lyrics it became "King Herod's Song" in their third musical, Jesus Christ Superstar (1970).

Answer 3

Andrew Lloyd Webber's first collaboration with lyricist Tim Rice was The Likes of Us, a musical based on the true story of Thomas John Barnardo. It was written in 1965, but first performed in 2005.

In 1968, Rice and Lloyd Webber were commissioned to write a piece for Colet Court which resulted in Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, a retelling of the biblical story of Joseph.

In 1969 Rice and Lloyd Webber "King Herod's Song" in their third musical, Jesus Christ Superstar.

Lloyd Webber collaborated with Rice once again to write Evita (1976 in London/1979 in U.S.), . The song "Don't Cry for Me Argentina" became a hit single .

Answer 4

It was Jesus Christ Superstar. It was released as an album in 1970, followed by a Broadway production in 1971, and a West End production subsequent to that.

Answer 5

there were several, Godspell, Tommy and Hair also Jesus Christ, superstar