Olivia Newton-John - Magic

The year I graduated from high school. God I'm old!

Love that song.

I saw Xanadu at the cinema 7x that summer; it opened in 2nd run cinemas.

I can't believe Xanadu didn't get a single Best Song Oscar nom. That's ridiculous!

r4

I agree, the music is great

Have to believe we are MAGIC. Nothin’ can stand in our way.

I’ll be godamned you. I’ll be godamned you

“Fool Country” the b-side is 50% great (the first half) and 50% shit (the second half).

John Farrar, the songwriter of many of Olivia's greatest hits, devised such unusual melodies and chords! Along with those in "Magic," I think the chord changes in "A Little More Love" and "Make A Move On Me" are strikingly original.

Alison Goldfrapp and Will Gregory are similarly inventive with Goldfrapp's songwriting. I'm always excited for whatever they do next.

R8, I didn't know Farrar did those three - although now that you mention it, there are similarities. A very large vocal range needed for those melodies.

Magic still lives up to its name.

Live performance.

I was 10 when Xanadu came out. I had the single for Magic (and LOVED the B-side Fool Country.) My father gave me a choice, you can see the movie OR I'll buy you the soundtrack album.

I chose the album.

This was the right choice. When I saw the movie later, I thought it was laughably bad, even at 11 or 12.

I still view it as one of the best soundtracks from a terrible movie.

Xanadu and Friday the 13th. What a summer.

And The Shining, R13.

It’s a yacht rock staple. John Lennon said he liked Magic and the ELO songs from Xanadu in one of his last interviews. Suddenly is great too.!

R4 the songs nominated that year were actually good. On The Road Again, 9 to 5, People Alone, Out Here On My Own and the winner Fame. The Academy was in this phase in the late 70s and early 80s when they were nominating popular good songs AND tripe. I always thought it was a travesty Barry Gibb couldn’t get one nomination between the songs for Saturday Night Fever and Grease.

[quote]John Farrar, the songwriter of many of Olivia's greatest hits, devised such unusual melodies and chords

R8 Landslide is perhaps the best example of this. Not an easy song to sing.

R16, the Saturday Night Fever songs weren't nominated because it was determined at the time that they weren't actually written directly for the film. Seems kind of crazy. But they weren't eligible for Oscar consideration otherwise I think they would've won an Oscar for How Deep Is Your Love or Staying Alive.

Nothing on Xanadu is "yacht rock". Different genre altogether.

Or If I Can't Have You or Best Original Song Score or something. They really should've given the Bee Gees something.

Same year they snubbed New York, New York.

From Wikipedia:

[quote]The Bee Gees had originally written and recorded five of the songs used in the film – "Stayin' Alive", "Night Fever", "How Deep Is Your Love", "More Than a Woman" (performed in the film in two different versions – one version by Tavares, and another by the Bee Gees) and "If I Can't Have You" (performed in the movie by Yvonne Elliman) as part of a regular album. They had no idea at the time they would be making a soundtrack and said that they basically lost an album in the process.

That's why it wasn't eligible. It was originally their next studio album.

I have the whole soundtrack download onto my iPhone - every track is great.

The film itself it shitty fun.

R22 thank you. I had forgotten that. Grease should’ve definitely been nominated for original song then the next year. Instead a stupid song from a Lassie film got in.

“Magic” is a yacht rock staple on Sirius.

Well, whatever lazy shit does the programming at Sirius is not the last word on genres of music. Magic is clearly for roller skating not yachting.

r26 is NOT having "yacht rock" for "Magic"!

He has stated his boundaries!!

I always think "Landslide" should have been a hit if only because it's so incredibly campy (the video has lots of Matt Lattanzi sweaty beefcake, but it makes no sense). Its sheer oddness prevented it from becoming one.

It must have been a really hard song to learn.

Is it true or is it legend Matt Lattanzi had a gay brother who did porn under the name Chris Thompson?

R28, I remember when Physical came out there was a TV special with a "video" like that for most of the songs at the album. Most of them are cheesy nonsense like that one. I remember watching it when I was 12 and loving it.

I loved Landslide, and also Silvery Rain, Falling, Recovery, and Carried away. It doesn't make any sense to me that none of the other songs from the album did well on the charts.

R30 the second single from the Physical album was “Make A Move On Me” which made it to #5 on the hot 100

I prefer "Make a Move On Me" to "Physical". Maybe because "Physical" has been played to death but "Make a Move on Me" is exuberant pop!!

I love the Xanadu soundtrack. It's a shame the movie is shit because the music is so good.

Twist of Fate was her best 80s song.

Great underrated singlesof the 80's written by Elton John. They played this all the time I@ Revolver in West Hollywood

^ Someone inevitably posts that in every Olivia thread. I don't get it. The song is mediocre at best.

R28 Landslide was intended to be the album's lead single, before they found Physical. Also, Carried Away would be the fourth single, but MCA cancelled it after Landslide's underperformance.

A great version of the song

I love The Rumour album. Besides the great title track, the 2nd single is really nice too (and Olivia slaps her husband in the music video!).

OMG. Looks like ONJ is not on Spotify so her songs on the Xanadu OST aren’t available except for the title track which is shared with ELO.

^^ Does anyone know the story?

It's a real shame that ONJ never seems to recall anything interesting about the filming or music of Xanadu. This long interview is with one of the dancers from the movie and she has loads of personal anecdotes, photos and information about the film, specifically the dancing. A real treasure for Xanadu fans.

R39 R40 Since the release of the Physical deluxe edition last year, her albums are being released on streaming services. Most of her catalog is there now, with a few expections, like her Xanadu songs and her debut album (which will have a deluxe edition released new month).

ONJ has died! Heartbroken! My day was filled with thoughts about her today.

RIP Olivia

Love this song. RIP.

The Datalounge curse strikes again. OP did a thread on her, a week later she is dead.

RIP Olivia.

Oh great!

Magic is possibly the best song ever. I will even sign this.

Xanadu opened on this day in 1980

8/8/80

OMG!. Oliva Newton John died on 8/8/2022.

Her name has 16 letters = two "8"s in a row!

All the obits are talking about Grease, giving short shrift to the country/pop career she built and enjoyed on her own and describing Xanadu as a flop. Xanadu!

This thread started last week when Olivia was still among us... 🥲

Olivia talking to a British Journalist about the success of the music from the Xanadu soundtrack. Magic was #1 on the US charts and Xanadu was #1 on the UK charts.

42 years ago today - August 10, 1980.

RIP my sweet idol

[quote]The year I graduated from high school. God I'm old!

Yes, you are! You’re the same age as my mom!

Can you tell me what instrument makes that bell sound for the main riff? .

Her teeth were kind of perfect.

I wonder how often Landslide made it into her live sets. I like it fine but as commented earlier it must have been a pain in the ass to sing. Consolation for it not doing well as a single.

I've always loved the sound of the Xanadu singles, in addition to Olivia's vocals. They are very atmospheric.

Roller skating was big then. Roller disco, sweat bands and satin jackets. Year I started high school. I'm old. Magic is a great song. Even better than Pilot's Magic(1975) and Steve Miller Band's Abracadabra.

Here's Landslide live.

R60 This must the only recorded performance of this song that she wasn't lipsyncing. Landslide wasn't even included on the tour video recording, despite being a single.

R57 Olivia never sang it after her 1982, as far as I know.

Answering my own question at R55, the riff is a guitar. .

Sounded like cowbell to me.

I saw Xanadu I believe it was was during summer at an UES theater with my beloved aunt Marian the year I was 10. I was enchanted by the movie and as we left the mostly empty theater who should be walking out with us but the movie critic Gene Shalit . My aunt of course sidled up to him and said slyly “so ? “ he just looked at her and chuckled to the effect of he thought it was shit. Afterwards she took be to The brasserie where we would get burgers and frozen strawberry daiquiris (with liquor mind you) I miss her and those days so much and I still think of her every time I hear Xanadu .

I was staying with my aunt and uncle for part of the summer in 1980 in NJ (grew up in FL) and I was supposed to stay through Aug 15 but I was getting homesick after a few weeks, so I decided to come home a week early. My older cousin (who was an adult) and his girlfriend said- Oh, we were going to take you into the city to see Xanadu this weekend. I had gotten soundtrack in May and already knew all the songs by heart and had been looking forward to seeing the movie for months. But I wanted to go home, and I thought- well, I can just see it when I get home, because it was opening the day after I got back.

So I flew home early, got myself all prepared to see the movie that weekend, and.... it did not open in our shitty, podunk Florida town for two more weeks. I had to wait TWO WEEKS to see Xanadu, when if I'd have stayed put, I could have already seen it. Oh, I was livid.

When it finally opened, my friend's mom dropped us off at the theater to see it, but she was late doing it and the matinee had sold out. I remember my friend saying he was going to call his mom to come back and get us and me (at 10 years old) throwing the biggest MARY fit and saying we were buying tickets to the next show and WAITING! I was not leaving until I saw Xanadu, and that is exactly what we did, and I loved every fucking frame of it (except for the stupid Don Bluth animation, which I still think should have been cut).