Ted Neeley

Teddie Joe "Ted" Neeley (born September 20, 1943) is an American singer, actor, musician, composer, and record producer. He is known for portraying the title role in Jesus Christ Superstar (1973), a role for which he was nominated for two Golden Globe Awards and has reprised numerous times. Neeley considers himself a baritone, and is known for his extremely wide vocal range and rock screams—notably the G above high C (G5) in "Gethsemane (I Only Want to Say)" from Jesus Christ Superstar. Early life and career Neeley was born in Ranger, Texas. He signed his first record deal in 1965, at age 22, with Capitol Records. He and his group, The Teddy Neeley Five, recorded an album titled Teddy Neeley. They played the club circuit for years, and their name (on a marquee) appeared in the pilot episode of Dragnet 1967. In 1968, Neeley starred in the Los Angeles productions of Larry Norman's rock musicals Alison and Birthday for Shakespeare, with Norman and Richard Hatch. Then, in 1969, Neeley played the lead role of Claude in both the New York and Los Angeles productions of Hair. He also appeared on the controversial, unaired episode of The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour that prompted CBS to cancel the series. Jesus Christ Superstar