Reality (Richard Sanderson song)

"Reality"
Single by Richard Sanderson
from the album La Boum
B-side "Gotta Get A Move On"
"Maybe You're Wrong" (1987 re-release)
Released 1980
Format
Recorded 1980 at Barclay Studios, Paris, France
Genre Soft rock
Length 4:47 (Album version)
3:58 (Radio edit)
Label
Writer(s)
Producer(s) Pierre Richard Muller
1987 re-release
Audio sample
file info · help
Music video
"Reality" on YouTube

"Reality" is a song performed by English singer Richard Sanderson. It was released in 1980 as an original soundtrack to the popular 1980 French film La Boum, which starred French actress Sophie Marceau (who later starred in most popular films such as Academy Award-winning Braveheart and James Bond franchise The World Is Not Enough). It was also served as theme song to 2011 Korean film Sunny.

Musically, Reality is a ballad, sometimes called an adult-contemporary song, and consists of synthesizers and guitar riffs which cause it to be classified under the soft-rock genre. It was composed by Vladimir Cosma, written by Jeff Jordan and produced by Pierre Richard Muller. Between 1980 and 1982, then to 1987 for its re-release, it became a successful major hit in Europe and Asia, topping the charts in fifteen countries including Germany, France, Italy, Austria, Finland and Switzerland and was able to sell more than eight million copies worldwide, making it one of the best-selling singles of all time.[1][2] This song lead Richard Sanderson to stardom which he made more hits with Cosma such as Your Eyes, She's a Lady, and Sun.

Reality was a very popular song in the 1980s, also becoming a popular slow dance hymn. Since its release, the song has been covered many times by various artists, including a Spanish version of the song (Mi realidad). On DSDS, the German edition of American Idol, the song has been sung multiple times. In the film La Boum, it also appeared frequently (usually during the actors' romantic scenes) as the film's main theme song. In the film's 1982 sequel La Boum 2, the main song was changed to Your Eyes, performed by Cook da Books. Because Reality has the same Key in Go On Forever (another song played in the last part of the film, from the La Boum soundtrack which was sung by Sanderson and Chantal Curtis), both songs are musically linked at the end of the film.

The La Boum soundtrack album which features the song Reality was made available on iTunes in 2009 by Larghetto.[3]

Versions

Throughout the 1980s, Reality became an instant hit in some countries in Europe, Japan, South Korea, Hong Kong and the Philippines. Due to its remaining popularity, the single was ended to release various editions until now. Some of them were remixed or mashed-up, and released on any Sanderson's compilation albums or played on any radio airplays worldwide.

Single

The Single version of the song omitted some verses on the second repetition of the chorus (Maybe my foolishness is past, and maybe now at last, I see how the real thing can be), and ends with a fade effect. This edition can be found on the singles published between 1980 and 1987, normally with another song from the series La Boum, (the original came with Gotta Get A Move On (instrumental) by Karoline Krüger, although some singles came with I Can't Swim, Swingin' Around, etc.) and on The Best of Richard Sanderson.

Album

The album version of the song has the omitted lines and ends with a defined musical melody. This is the most common version. It can be found on La Boum Original Soundtrack (old & new edition and English edition), Sanderson's studio album Reality and his further compilation albums.

Instrumental

There's an instrumental version which appears in Sanderson's singles and in the new edition of La Boum Original Soundtrack, that doesn't have Sanderson's voice, but a synth sound replacing it, and has a different never-seen guitar solo. It also appeared on The Best of Richard Sanderson

Extended

There's an extended edition of the song in Sanderson's singles which duration is about 8 minutes, that repeats the verses and the chorus, and even the guitar solo three times. It appears on The Best of Richard Sanderson.

The Special Mix

Finally, there's a version called The Special Mix. It is a mix between the Album version and the Instrumental version. It appears on some Sanderson's EPs and on his further compilation albums.

2009

In 2009, Cosma and Sanderson made a new version of the song, this time it is an orchestra style, instead of synthesized sounds that even replaced the guitar solo perfectly. Sanderson recorded his voice again for this version, except for the first verses.

2010

There's also a 2010 version of the song with new synthesized sounds, made by Sanderson, which can be bought at Amazon.

Instrumental or orchestral versions of the song by Vladimir Cosma

In the film, the song main melody appears repeatedly with different sounds. Here are the songs that have the main melody and appear on the new edition of La Boum Soundtrack.

Chart performance

Weekly charts

Chart (1981—1987) Peak
position
Austria (Ö3 Austria Top 40)[4] 1
Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders)[5] 16
France (SNEP)[6] 1
Germany (Media Control Charts)[7] 1
Italy (AFI)[8] 1
Japan (Oricon)[9] 11
Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade)[10] 1

Sales and certifications

Region Certification Sales/shipments
France (SNEP)[11] Platinum 1,225,000[12]

xunspecified figures based on certification alone

Chart procession and succession

Preceded by
"Couleur Menthe a L'eau" by Eddy Mitchell		 French Top 100 Best Sold Singles Chart number-one single
23 January — 19 March 1981 (8 weeks) 		Succeeded by
"Stop the Cavalry" by Jona Lewie
Preceded by
"Showing Out (Get Fresh at the Weekend)" by Mel and Kim		 German Top 100 Singles Chart number-one single
6 February — 12 March 1987 (5 weeks) 		Succeeded by
"Stay" by Pierre Cosso & Bonnie Bianco
Preceded by
"C'est La Vie" by Robbie Nevil		 Swiss Singles Top 75 Chart number-one single
22 February — 4 April 1987 (6 weeks) 		Succeeded by
"Respectable (Mel and Kim song)" by Mel and Kim

See also

References

Notes

External links