The Tubes were formed in 1973 in Phoenix, Arizona by lead singer Fee Waybill (born John Waldo) and would eventually garner a reputation in the San Francisco area as a theatrical rock act a few years later. In 1975 they signed with A&M Records. Their self-titled debut album was produced by rock/blues legend Al Kooper and it contained their most popular song, the satirical White Punks On Dope. With the financial backing of a major label, The Tubes would tour extensively with an elaborate stage show with flashy costumes changes, enforced audience participation and an occasional on-stage bondage acts (especially during the early shows). Despite the press that was generated by the antics of their sold-out performances (some of which led to being banned in several venues during a tour of England, as well some arrests) and three more albums, strong album sales weren't happening. In response, the group announced that they were shifting their focus away from theatrics and more on the music. The result of this new direction was the recording new material for what was to have been called Suffer For Sound (the release was later blocked by A&M). Shortly after this occurred, The Tubes were notified by the Xanadu producers for the 80's band role. For once, the outlandish stage reputation worked in their favor.

During the production of Xanadu, Roger Ebert visited the set for an article on Gene Kelly. When Roger asked Greenwald what Xanadu was all about, Robert quickly described it was an "Art Deco Musical Fantasy". When asked if 'Xanadu' might be a "gigantic disco", Greenwald quickly denied it, "No! This is not a disco movie. The interior will be an Art Deco....ah, environment." Greenwald then offered his reason why musicals are popular again after years of neglect: "Several reasons. One is that the Broadway stage musical does not necessarily reach the same contemporary audience as popular recording artists do. Another is that since movie budgets in general are crazy these days, musicals aren't so prohibitive."

When Ebert finally got around to interview Kelly, he addressed the same musical revival question from his more experienced view. "One great reason was economics: You were gambling a great deal of money on untried material and untested songs. You need somebody like Olivia Newton-John, who has a certain return on her record sales, who is an important musical personage, who's known on television...." While touring the hollowed empty building of the Pan Pacific, Gene continues his theory. "There hasn't been the need for it: Starting with Elvis and his discovery of black music, the new musical trends have all been on records, not in the movies. Groups like the Beatles, that kind of young music predominates." He concludes, " That why I like Xanadu. It's the same kind of young music."

ABOVE: left to right; SFX man Robert Greenburg, director Robert Greenwald and producer Joel Silver on the XANADU set

It was roughly two months into principle photography that a series of major modifications to Xanadu's script were made. The basic plot remained, but characters, large bits of dialog and even major scenes were being revamped over and over again. According to an article on Joel Silver that appeared in Première magazine, there was an unconfirmed story that at one point, Silver locked Xanadu's screenwriters in their offices until they concocted a rewrite of the entire script. Naturally, rumors like this did little to dispel the scuttlebutt around Hollywood that the Xanadu project was on thin ice; the "weak script syndrome" ran rampant during this stage of production. Then, word got out that, for whatever reason, the director was dissatisfied with the music that was submitted by Jeff Lynne. He was told to re-record the songs again WITH the band members. It was also decided that the ELO crest would be used to help sell the soundtrack. Barry DeVorzon (best known for the 1976 instrumental top 40 hit 'Nadia's Theme') would later replace the bulk of Lynne's score, though Lynne's score can still be heard in the extended introduction to I'm Alive and the loud outré under the cast credits just before Xanadu is played over the ending credits. (#4) ...and to top it all off, the original release date for Xanadu was moved from December to August 1980. So, it seems that the film's production team was less than thrilled; these disruptive incidents undoubtedly influenced the mood and, possibly, the final result on the film. This didn't count a brief lawsuit over a "stolen" dance step that even included John Farrar. Undaunted, all those involved collectively kept their chins up and forged ahead to finish the film and soundtrack on time. With this finally accomplished, all that remained was to sell the film to the public. Whatever shortcomings Xanadu might be faulted for, certainly the publicity machinery was running on all cylinders...

Some early Xanadu publicity activities included the pairing of Olivia and Kelly to present an Oscar at the 1979 Academy Awards in April 1980. Olivia would grace the cover of People Magazine a short time later; the cover proclaimed "Roller Mania!". Although the film was never mentioned directly and other celebrities were featured, the fact that Olivia was presented so prominently in skates left little doubt that the article was, in a large part, at least an oblique plug for Xanadu. On that very same night that Olivia was giving an Oscar, her own TV special, Hollywood Nights, aired after the telecast. One part of the show presented a mock-on-the-scene news report featuring Ted Knight and Dick Clark, with mixed results. The rest of the show was pure music with Olivia singing duets with her Xanadu co-star Gene Kelly, Cliff Richard and Elton John (the later with Candle In The Wind). The last two segments of this special had Olivia singing Gimme Some Lovin' in various costume changes, including a Barbarella- and Dietrich-style outfits. The final number was the Eagles' Heartache Tonight which featured Andy Gibb, Tina Turner, Toni Tennile (of 'Capt. & Tennile' fame) and Karen Carpenter as co-vocalists-an AOR tune getting a variety show treatment. The show was a ratings smash, due in large part to it's being scheduled as the lead-in to the Oscar show in the east coast and follow-up on the west. The Xanadu publicity blitzkrieg was underway...

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