Rock Quesiton

[King Stevos]

Posted: 10/18/03 at 3:08am

I was reading through a book on rock musicals...and I was wondering how Grease is constituted as a rock musical? Did they just need to fill pages, or is it really a rock show?

STEVOs

[Timmerbo]

Posted: 10/18/03 at 4:11am

Grease is constituted as a rock show because it features rock music. At least, any production of it worth its salt does. I've heard recordings that really bastardized the music.

It is set in 1959 during the heydey of early rock 'n' roll and the score is written to be played by a rock band (guitar, bass, sax, drums, piano, maybe a few other instruments).

NOTE: The movie's status as a rock musical is somewhat more quetionable in that the songs that were added for the movie are, well, not rock 'n' roll. You've got 'Hopelessly Devoted to You' (a lousy ballad of a pop song written for Olivia Newton-John that even features a country-esque steel guitar), the best-forgotten 'Sandy', and 'You're the One That I Want', which has a funky bassline and comes across as an out of place dance tune. And don't even mention the disco-tinged theme. What were they thinking? (Well, obviously they were trying to sell records...)

I'm not saying that 'Grease' is a terrible film, it has some merits. But they are pretty few and far between. I find it to be really overrated. I think the stage show is much better and true to the concept of the rock musical (in that it actually contains ROCK music).

Anyway, yeah, Grease is a rock show. Sorry for the ineloquence, but it's late.