Grease (1978 soundtrack) explained

Grease: The Original Soundtrack from the Motion Picture
Type:Soundtrack
Artist:Various Artists
Cover:GreaseOST.jpg
Released:April 14, 1978[1]
Recorded:1977–1978
Studio:Filmways/Wally Heider Recording Studios, Los Angeles, California; United Western Studios, Los Angeles, California; Hollywood Sound Recorders, Los Angeles, California; Criteria Studios, Miami, Florida
Length:63:14
Label:RSO
Producer:
Chronology:Olivia Newton-John albums
Prev Title:Olivia Newton-John's Greatest Hits
Prev Year:1977
Next Title:Totally Hot
Next Year:1978

Grease: The Original Soundtrack from the Motion Picture is the original motion picture soundtrack for the 1978 film Grease. It was originally released by RSO Records and subsequently re-issued by Polydor Records between 1984 and 1991. It has sold over 30 million copies worldwide, making it one of the best-selling albums of all time, also ranking amongst the biggest selling soundtrack albums of all time.[2] The song "You're the One That I Want" was a U.S. and UK No. 1 for stars John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John.

Besides performers John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John, the album also featured songs by rock and roll revival group Sha Na Na as well as the hit song "Grease", a tune written by Barry Gibb (of the Bee Gees) and sung by Frankie Valli (of The Four Seasons) that was an additional U.S. No. 1.

Background

The soundtrack was released on April 14, 1978, two months ahead of the film's release.[1] As with most musicals of the period, the vocal takes recorded for the album release–and in some cases the instrumental background as well–do not lock to picture but were recorded during entirely different soundtrack sessions often months prior or subsequent to the performances used for lip sync in the film.

The cover gives credit to, and prominently features, the two stars of the film—John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John—although they only appear on seven of the 24 tracks. Sha Na Na performed many of the 1950s numbers in the film, the recordings of which also appear on the soundtrack. Stockard Channing sings lead on two of the tracks; the two tracks remain her only significant contribution to recorded popular music to date. The title track is featured twice on the soundtrack and performed by Frankie Valli, who had no other connection with the film.

The entirety of the score written by Jim Jacobs and Warren Casey for the Broadway musical was included on the soundtrack and/or in the film, with the exception of two songs: "Shakin' at the High School Hop" (originally composed to open Act II of the musical) and "All Choked Up" (the song originally written into the spot where the film used "You're the One that I Want") were both left out of both the film and the soundtrack. Not all of the songs were included in the film; songs cut from the film were performed on the soundtrack by Louis St. Louis and Cidny (then Cindy) Bullens or converted to instrumentals. Songs in the musical that were not performed by Rizzo, Danny, Sandy, the Teen Angel, or Johnny Casino & the Gamblers were given to those characters or to St. Louis and Bullens; these included Sandy's original feature number "It's Raining on Prom Night" (given to Bullens and used as a jukebox background song), Marty's "Freddy, My Love" (given to Bullens), Doody's "Those Magic Changes" (given to Johnny Casino & the Gamblers), Kenickie's "Greased Lightnin'" (given to Danny), and both of the songs originally attributed to a character named Roger that was written out of the film, "Mooning" and "Rock'n'Roll Party Queen" (both given to St. Louis; "Mooning" was replaced in function in the film by the 1930s standard "Blue Moon," performed by the Gamblers). Rizzo's 11 o'clock number "There Are Worse Things I Could Do" was only kept in the film at Channing's fervent insistence, as she felt the song (and the storyline behind it) was necessary to prevent Rizzo from becoming a one-dimensional caricature.[3]

The most successful songs from the soundtrack were written specifically for the film. They included the Billboard number-one hits "Grease", "You're the One That I Want" and the Academy Award-nominated "Hopelessly Devoted to You".[4] In the UK, the album proved even more successful where "You're the One That I Want" and "Summer Nights" (a song carried over from the original musical) reached No.1 for nine and seven weeks respectively, while "Grease", "Hopelessly Devoted to You" and "Sandy" all became top three hits.[5] [6] [7] [8] The soundtrack album hit the top of the charts in the US during the summer of 1978, replacing The Rolling Stones' Some Girls. In the UK, it remained at the top of the charts for 13 consecutive weeks.[9] As of 2011, "You're the One That I Want" and "Summer Nights" are still among the 20 best-selling singles of all time in the UK (at Nos. 6 and 19 respectively).[10] "Greased Lightnin'," another carryover from the stage version, was also released as a single, reaching the top 20 in the UK but narrowly missing the top 40 in the U.S. in part because of the lyrical content not being permitted on U.S. radio.

Two of the bass players who recorded on the Grease soundtrack were members of Toto. One of these, David Hungate, also performed on Newton-John's album Totally Hot with Toto guitarist Steve Lukather. Other musicians on the soundtrack had previously worked with Elton John, Steely Dan, Bee Gees and others. The Grease album, as well as the soundtrack for the film, were recorded and mixed by David J. Holman.

The album has sold over 6.1 million copies in the U.S. in the SoundScan era (beginning 1991) in addition to the 8 million shipped in the years 1978–1984.[11] [12]

Reception

In their review, Billboard stated that "RSO follows its record breaking Saturday Night Fever soundtrack with another apparent smash film track. The double pocket set contains 24 cuts of original Broadway material as well as sew material written specifically for this contemporized version. Olivia Newton-John and John Travolta shine with their best vocal efforts, especially Newton-John on the rapidly rising single "You're The One That I Want."" [13]

Cashbox noted that "the former Broadway hit sounds like a winner on vinyl, too. With great vocals from stars Olivia Newton-John and John Travolta and help from Sha-Na-Na, Frankie Valli and Peter Frampton, this 2- LP set should slide to the top of the pop chart. One hit single is already out, and more will follow."[14]

Stephen Thomas Erlewine of AllMusic retrospectively rated the soundtrack four-and-a-half stars. He stated that "the originals hold up better than the '50s tunes" due in large part to Sha Na Na's workmanlike performances of the latter. Erlewine added however that the original songs "are so giddily enjoyable that everything works". He also said that "the sleek pop production the movie's soundtrack boasts and the cast's enthusiastic performances go a long way in making this Grease the definitive Grease." The album was nominated for Album of the Year at the 21st Annual Grammy Awards.[15]

Track listing

All tracks written by Jim Jacobs and Warren Casey, except where noted.

CD release

The CD of the soundtrack has been released twice in the US. In April 1991 it was released through Polydor Records as a single disc replicating the sequence of the original 1978 RSO LP. In September 2003 it was released by PolyGram as a 2-CD digitally-remastered "Deluxe Edition" containing additional tracks. As with the LP and single-disc CD, the songs are not presented in the order replicating their appearances in the movie.

40th anniversary vinyl reissue

In August 2018, Polydor reissued the vinyl album to celebrate its original release in 1978. Released on 180g vinyl and mastered in half speed, it was the first time since its original release that it had used the original RSO record label in the artwork. No information was provided on who or where the record was half speed mastered.

Performers

Vocalists

Musicians

James Getzoff

Production

[16]

Charts

Weekly charts

Chart (1978–79)Peak
position
Australian Albums (Kent Music Report)[17] 1
French Albums (IFOP)[18] 1
Italian Albums (Musica e dischi)[19] 1
Japanese Albums (Oricon)[20] 1
Portuguese Albums (Musica & Som)[21] 3
US Cash Box Top Albums[22] 1
Chart (1991–99)Peak
position
UK Compilation Albums (OCC)[23] 2
Chart (2002–2022)Peak
position
UK Compilation Albums (OCC)[24] 2

Year-end charts

Chart (1978)Position
Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria)[25] 5
Canada Top Albums/CDs (RPM)[26] 4
Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)[27] 2
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[28] 12
New Zealand Albums (RMNZ)[29] 2
Chart (1979)Position
Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria)[30] 11
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[31] 27
US Billboard 200[32] 20
Chart (1991)Position
Australian Albums (ARIA)[33] 9
Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)[34] 3
Chart (1998)Position
Australian Albums (ARIA)[35] 25
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[36] 57
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)[37] 57
French Albums (SNEP)[38] 68

See also

Notes and References

  1. Fong-Torres . Ben . Ben Fong-Torres . October 5, 1978 . Al Coury Owns Number One . . Straight Arrow Publishers, Inc. . 275 . 40 .
  2. News: 'Grease': How A Nostalgic Soundtrack Became A Timeless 30-Million-Selling Smash. Yahoo!. August 9, 2022. August 14, 2022. Paul. Sexton. August 11, 2022. https://web.archive.org/web/20220811032427/https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/grease-nostalgic-soundtrack-became-timeless-131643770.html. live.
  3. https://abcnews.go.com/amp/Entertainment/grease-facts/story?id=36550893 7 'Grease' Facts You May Not Have Known
  4. Allmusic - US charts
  5. Web site: John Travolta & Olivia Newton-John - Full Official Chart History. Official Charts Company. 19 January 2016.
  6. Web site: Frankie Valli - Full Official Chart History. Official Charts Company. 19 January 2016.
  7. Web site: Olivia Newton-John - Full Official Chart History. Official Charts Company. 19 January 2016.
  8. Web site: John Travolta - Full Official Chart History. Official Charts Company. 19 January 2016.
  9. Book: Churchill. Michael. British Albums Chart - All Time Top 1000. 23 September 2013. Lulu.com. London. 9781291569773. 105. 19 January 2016.
  10. Web site: BBC Radio 2 - UK's Million Sellers with Tony Blackburn. BBC.
  11. United States. album. Grease. Soundtrack. Platinum. 8.
  12. News: On the Set of Fox's 'Grease: Live!'. Logan Hill. Billboard. January 28, 2016. March 22, 2024.
  13. Top Album Picks. Billboard. 6 May 1978 . 90 . August 11, 2024.
  14. Album Reviews. Cash Box. 6 May 1978 . 20 . August 11, 2024.
  15. Web site: Louis St. Louis . GRAMMY.com . 18 February 2019 . en . 15 February 2019.
  16. Web site: Grease [The Soundtrack from the Motion Picture]]. AllMusic.
  17. Book: Kent, David. Australian Chart Book 1970 - 1992. David Kent (historian). Australian Chart Book. St Ives, NSW. 1993. 0-646-11917-6. 282.
  18. Hits of the World. March 10, 1979. Billboard. January 25, 2022. 90.
  19. Book: Racca, Guido. M&D Borsa Album 1964–2019. it. 2019. Amazon Digital Services LLC - Kdp Print Us . 9781094705002.
  20. Book: Okamoto, Satoshi. Oricon Album Chart Book: Complete Edition 1970–2005. Oricon Entertainment. Roppongi, Tokyo. 2006. 4-87131-077-9. 349.
  21. Hits of the World. December 23, 1978. Billboard. November 9, 2021. 183.
  22. Web site: Cash Box Top Albums. Cash Box. August 14, 2022.
  23. Web site: Official Compilations Chart . Official Charts Company . 2024-07-02.
  24. Web site: Official Compilations Chart . Official Charts Company . 2024-07-02.
  25. Web site: Jahreshitparade 1978. Hung Medien. de. January 25, 2022.
  26. Web site: Top 100 Albums of '78 . RPM. 17 July 2013 . Library and Archives Canada. January 25, 2022.
  27. Web site: Dutch charts jaaroverzichten 1978. Dutch Charts. nl. January 25, 2022.
  28. Web site: Top 100 Album-Jahrescharts. GfK Entertainment Charts. de. January 25, 2022.
  29. Web site: Top Selling Albums of 1978 — The Official New Zealand Music Chart. Recorded Music New Zealand. January 25, 2022.
  30. Web site: Jahreshitparade 1979. Hung Medien. de. January 25, 2022.
  31. Web site: Top 100 Album-Jahrescharts. GfK Entertainment Charts. de. January 25, 2022.
  32. Billboard 200 Albums - Year-End. Billboard. January 25, 2022. dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20210819142333/https://www.billboard.com/charts/year-end/1979/top-billboard-200-albums. August 19, 2021.
  33. Web site: End of Year Charts – Top 50 Albums 1991. Australian Recording Industry Association. January 25, 2022.
  34. Web site: Dutch charts jaaroverzichten 1991. Dutch Charts. nl. January 25, 2022.
  35. Web site: End of Year Charts – Top 100 Albums 1998. Australian Recording Industry Association. January 25, 2022.
  36. Web site: Jaaroverzichten 1998. Ultratop. nl. January 25, 2022.
  37. Web site: Rapports annuels 1998. Ultratop. fr. January 25, 2022.
  38. Web site: Top Albums de l'année. SNEP. fr. January 25, 2022.