Maniac (song)
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| "Maniac" | ||
|---|---|---|
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| Single by Michael Sembello | ||
| from the album Flashdance Original Soundtrack | ||
| Released | 1983 | |
| Genre | Dance | |
| Length | 4:12 | |
| Label | EMI | |
| Writer(s) | Dennis Matkosky and Michael Sembello | |
| Producer(s) | Phil Ramone | |
| Chart positions | ||
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Contents |
[edit] Song information
The song was used in the 1983 film Flashdance and was inspired by the 1980 horror film Maniac. The film Maniac was about a serial killer who stalks his victims in New York City. The song's performer and co-writer Michael Sembello recalls that an early version of the chorus was:
- He's a maniac, maniac that's for sure,
- He will kill your cat and nail him to the door.
At the suggestion of the record's producer Phil Ramone, the lyrics were rewritten to describe a girl with a passion for dancing. The lyrics became:
- She's a maniac, maniac on the floor
- And she's dancing like she's never danced before.
Maniac appears early on in Flashdance and is used as the backing track of a montage sequence showing Alex (Jennifer Beals) training hard in her converted warehouse.
The song was included in Flashdance after Sembello's wife sent a tape to executives at Paramount Pictures who were looking for music to use in the film.
- Michael Sembello - Maniac (file info) — play in browser (beta)
- listen to a clip from the track.
- Problems listening to the file? See media help.
[edit] Charts and awards
Maniac reached number one in the Billboard Hot 100 in September 1983, and is one of the highest grossing songs ever written for a film. The Original Soundtrack of Flashdance won the 1984 Grammy Award for Best Album of Original Score Written for A Motion Picture or a Television Special.
The song was nominated for an Academy Award, but was disqualified since the original version had not been written for the film. Michael Sembello states on the website Songfacts that the decision "pisses me off to this day." Another song from the film, Flashdance... What a Feeling performed by Irene Cara, won the Academy Award for Best Original Song in 1984.
[edit] Appearances in popular culture
- The song was sung by Groundskeeper Willie in Simpsoncalifragilisticexpialad'ohcious, a 1997 episode of The Simpsons.
- In the Family Guy episode The King Is Dead broadcast in 2000, Peter tells Dianne Simmons that her character is "Just a still town girl on a Saturday night, lookin' for the fight of her life", the opening line of the song Maniac. The costumes and dancing in the episode also parody the film.
- The song was used in the dance-off between Stifler and Bear in the 2003 film American Pie 3.
- Chris Farley sang the song in the 1995 film Tommy Boy while being hosed down by Rob Schneider, after becoming covered in mud due to an errant attempt at cow-tipping.
- The French avant-garde metal duo Carnival in Coal included a cover of the song on their album French Cancan.
[edit] See also
[edit] External links
| Preceded by "Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This)" by The Eurythmics |
Billboard Hot 100 number one single September 10, 1983- September 17, 1983 |
Succeeded by "Tell Her About It" by Billy Joel |
