I Don't Know How To Love Him Lyrics – Jesus Christ Superstar

Song Overview

Personal Review

I Don’t Know How to Love Him drifts in like a confession whispered into the dark: strings sigh, a lone flute hovers, and Mary Magdalene — voiced by Yvonne Elliman — wrestles with feelings she has no roadmap for. The Lyrics feel tender yet disarming; they unwrap her defenses one syllable at a time.

One listen and the paradox is clear: it is at once a torch-ballad and a theological quandary, a gentle folk waltz that crackles with rock-opera electricity. I remember hearing it the first time on a scratchy vinyl copy of Jesus Christ Superstar — A Rock Opera; the hush in the room was almost reverent.

Song Meaning and Annotations

The track glides in 6/8 time, a lilting folk-rock pulse that lets every doubt surface. Mary Magdalene’s opening admission —

“I don’t know how to love him”

Throughout the Lyrics, she tries to de-mythologize Jesus:

“He’s a man, he’s just a man.”

The internal debate sharpens when she wonders,

“Should I bring him down? Should I scream and shout?”

Rice wrote the lyric in a single sitting, chasing the uneasy hush lingering after Gethsemane. Elliman nailed her vocal in one take at Olympic Studios, puzzled at first because she thought she was portraying Jesus’s mother, not a woman grappling with forbidden affection.

Verse Highlights

Verse 1

The first stanza sets up the identity crisis: she has changed “in these past few days.” Annotation #2 links this to the Gnostic Gospel of Mary, where salvation hinges on turning inward.

Chorus

The chorus circles the same unresolved question — a musical spiral mirroring emotional stasis. When the orchestration blooms on “He scares me so,” the strings tremble, hinting at both desire and dread.

Key Facts

• Featured: Yvonne Elliman as Mary Magdalene
• Producers: Andrew Lloyd Webber & Tim Rice
• Composer: Andrew Lloyd Webber
• Lyricist: Tim Rice
• Release Date (single): March 1971
• Genre: Folk-rock ballad; rock-opera torch song
• Length: 3 minutes 36 seconds
• Label: Decca / MCA
• Mood: reflective, vulnerable, devotional
• Instruments: acoustic guitar, strings, flute, French horn, drum kit, bass
• Track #: 11 on Jesus Christ Superstar — A Rock Opera
• Language: English
• Poetic meter: flexible iambic phrases riding a 6/8 sway
• © 1970 MCA Music Ltd. / © 1971 Decca Records

Songs Exploring Themes of Devotion

First, “Nothing Compares 2 U” by Sinéad O’Connor shows love in the aftermath of loss, melody stripped bare compared with the orchestral swirl of I Don’t Know How to Love Him. While Mary wonders how to love, Sinéad wonders how to endure love’s absence.

Meanwhile, Leonard Cohen’s “Suzanne” blurs spiritual and romantic longing. Cohen’s whispered delivery contrasts Elliman’s crystalline belt, but both tracks place a sacred figure on a fragile human pedestal.

In contrast, “Like a Prayer” by Madonna drapes devotion in arena-pop muscle. Madonna embraces the blurring; Mary Magdalene resists it, pleading for a rulebook that never arrives.

Questions and Answers

Why did two versions chart at the same time?

When Helen Reddy’s cover began climbing U.S. radio playlists, Decca rushed Elliman’s original onto the market, resulting in a rare chart duel.

Which version charted higher?

Reddy peaked at No. 13 on the Billboard Hot 100, while Elliman reached No. 28.

Is the melody borrowed from classical music?

The central motif resembles a passage from Mendelssohn’s Violin Concerto, though Webber has never confirmed a direct lift.

Where else has Elliman performed the song?

She reprised it on Broadway (1971) and in Norman Jewison’s 1973 film adaptation, later revisiting it in concert revivals.

Did the song receive any certifications?

Helen Reddy’s single sold over half a million copies in the U.S., earning gold status, while Elliman’s version became a perennial catalogue seller rather than a certified smash.

Awards and Chart Positions

Elliman’s single climbed to No. 28 on the Billboard Hot 100, No. 47 on the UK chart, and later No. 21 in Italy.