Lyricist Tim Rice discusses his long career and first big hit

The songwriter who has put words into the mouths of everyone from Elvis Presley and Bing Crosby to Madonna, is speaking up.

Lyricist Tim Rice has worked with Andrew Lloyd Webber, Elton John and the men behind ABBA, nabbing five Grammys, three Oscars, three Tonys and an Emmy along the way, in addition to a knighthood.

And while those things might make him, at 81, an icon, he puts it all in context.

“There’s an awful lot of luck involved,” Rice said in a Dec. 19 phone interview from his home in England.

Rice regrets that he will be unable to see the bang-up production of “Jesus Christ Superstar” at the Ordway, where it ends Dec. 28, but he’s hoping to take in a mirror version in the U.K.

Rice has a long affiliation with the state where his shows such as “The Lion King,” “Beauty and the Beast,” “Aladdin” and “Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat” are regularly produced. He launched two shows in Minneapolis — the world premiere of “The Lion King” and the national tour of “Aida.”

Additionally, he was close friends with the late Bobby Vee.

In his conversation with the Minnesota Star Tribune, Rice mused on his career, his works and his life, including some fun facts. The interview has been edited for clarity and brevity.

Q: How does one know that they want to grow up to write lyrics for musicals?

A: I never thought I would be doing this. I was going to be a rock star. When I was young, I did make a few demo tapes of myself singing, and I was really trying to sell my voice rather than the songs.

Q: But then you met Andrew Lloyd Webber.

A: I had written some songs that were recorded, and in those days getting something on record that meant a glimmering of merit. I had taken them to a book publisher who didn’t like them but who knew a young man I should meet. I was 19. Andrew was 17 and had a great enthusiasm for musical theater.

A: It was the show that got us launched. It’s not the first one we did, but the first one to be a success.

Q: Did you have any idea that it would be a hit?

A: Most people, myself included, have no idea how any of this is going to go. We knew it was the best that we could do but no theatrical producer wanted to stage it. Luckily, we managed to get a record deal and that made all the difference. It was the era when the album was the most important part of popular music. The album, sadly, is diminished and any living thing in my house could make one. My dog hasn’t yet but I wouldn’t be surprised if she made one soon.

Q: How did the album work?

A: It got popular in America and suddenly there was interest in staging it.

A: First, we have to have a great story. That’s the most important thing. Once you’ve got the story mapped out in scenes or songs, it doesn’t really matter which comes first. I would really rather work with a tune and the agreed story, with my lyrics being the final icing on the cake.

Q: “Superstar” was controversial in its heyday. What was your thinking?

A: You might say the book was written by Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. I wanted to tell the story from the perspective of someone who happened to be around at the time and did not believe that Jesus was God. That’s not to say Judas didn’t approve of Jesus. The Judas in “Superstar” thought Jesus was a very remarkable, very interesting and inspiring man. Eventually, he was led to betray him, then he began to think, “What if he’s God — have I killed God?” It’s a fascinating situation to observe but not necessarily a good one to be in.

Q: Did you draw on personal experience to sketch Judas?

A: I remember thinking, when I was about 15 at school, if I had been there in biblical times, what would I have thought. Is he God? He might be. We’re not trying to deny that possibility in “Superstar.” We’re just telling the story as seen through the eyes of Judas Iscariot.

A: I literally put myself in Judas’ situation, then everything followed quite easily. Obviously, you have to work out rhymes and scansion and things like that but once you’ve got the story and know what the song has to say, I wouldn’t say it’s easy but it’s clear what you need to do.

Q: But then you go from Judas to Eva Perón in “Evita”? That’s quite a leap.

A: I was genuinely intrigued by the story of Eva Perón, who was not a known figure in England but, of course, she was huge in South America. I suggested it to Andrew, and I think, like most people, he thought, what are you going on and on about.

Q: It had a similar trajectory as “Superstar”?

A: Yes, the record came out first and it has elements of rock as well as traditional theater. There’s a question sometimes whether the song is written as it is to be part of a story that helps a show or to stand alone. I think if you can do both at once, that’s ideal. “Don’t Cry for Me Argentina” is a very unlikely title or theme for a song but it worked as a pop record.

A: It doesn’t matter if you’re writing about a god-like figure or about an Argentine dictator’s wife or a warthog with wind problems, you have to make the character say or speak what they’re seeing and feeling in the present.

Astrological Sign: “Scorpio. I don’t know if it defines me or not. I basically think most astrology is a load of hogwash.”

Favorite exercise: Swimming.

Favorite dessert: “Apple crumble. I also like vanilla ice cream.”

Favorite type of pet: “Kirsty the boxer. She’s 6½.”

When: 1 p.m. Dec. 24, 7:30 p.m. Dec. 26, 2 & 7:30 p.m. Dec. 27, 1:30 & 7 p.m. Dec. 28.

Where: Ordway Center, 345 Washington St., St. Paul.