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February 20, 2012
Job, the Musical
Joseph, with his Technicolor coat and his rags-to-riches story, seems like the ideal protagonist for a musical. An exotic setting! Family drama! And a great tear-jerker ending!
The story of Job might make a great musical, too--for an audience of masochists or depressives. The biblical story is about an ordinary man caught in an argument between Godand Satan, both of them playing with his fate like a toy. At the beginning, Job is a good guy, has faith in God, a beautiful wife, ten kids, and a healthy career. By the end, his possessions are gone, his children are dead, and Job is driven to "curse the day he was born."
The Sussex, England-based band The Indelicates took this depressing tale as a challenge. From it, they composed their 2009 concept album The Book of Job: The Musical, an honest-to-goodness, 16-song CD. The songs--which range from folk-rock and country to out-and-out balladeering--tell Job's story without ever losing their pop-song sensibility. Even in pieces like "God Speaks to Satan" and "Mrs. Job's Lament," Job's travails are balanced with sympathy and humor.
Is the story of Job a parable? Is it moralistic, or is it horribly unjust? The Indelicates avoid asking the big questions directly, instead preferring to let the story speak for itself…and telling it as it's never been told before.
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