Waiting for a Star to Fall
| "Waiting for a Star to Fall" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Single by Boy Meets Girl | ||||
| from the album Reel Life | ||||
| A-side | "Waiting for a Star to Fall" | |||
| B-side | "No Apologies" | |||
| Released |
June 10, 1988 (U.S.) November 30, 1988 (UK) | |||
| Format | 7" single, 12" single, CD single | |||
| Recorded | 1988 | |||
| Genre | Pop | |||
| Length | 4:32 | |||
| Label | RCA | |||
| Songwriter(s) | Shannon Rubicam, George Merrill | |||
| Producer(s) | George Merrill, Arif Mardin & Thomas Hart | |||
| Boy Meets Girl singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
"Waiting for a Star to Fall" is a song released by the pop duo Boy Meets Girl in 1988. It was a worldwide hit and became their signature song.
Background
The song was inspired by an actual falling star that Shannon Rubicam had seen at one of Whitney Houston's concerts at the Greek Theatre. Initially, the duo did not consider recording it, and instead submitted the song to Clive Davis to consider including it on Houston's next album, but he rejected it, alleging that it did not suit her. The song was then offered to and recorded by Belinda Carlisle for her 1987 release, Heaven on Earth, at the insistence of her label, but Carlisle disliked it and refused to include it on the album. It has, however, circulated on an unofficial compilation of that album's outtakes.[1]
Release and reception
Merrill and Rubicam decided to record the song themselves for their second album Reel Life. Released as a single on June 10, 1988, the song became a hit in the United States, slowly climbing the charts and eventually reaching #1 on the Billboard Adult Contemporary Chart.[2] Released in the UK on November 30, 1988, the song reached number 9 in the UK charts during January 1989, having entered the chart in December 1988.[3] It also reached #35 on Australia's ARIA Charts in April 1989.
The song was used as the closing track to the 1990 movie Three Men and a Little Lady, and the single was re-released as a movie tie-in, with a new picture sleeve featuring the actors of the film. It peaked at #76 in the UK.
The video game Grand Theft Auto IV included the song in the playlist for the in-game radio station Vice City FM.[4]
Johnny Loftus of AllMusic remarked that the song was "just classic", and that "the urgency as it drives toward its chorus is a clinic for durable songwriting."[5]
Music video
The video for the song, directed by Australian director Claudia Castle, features scenes of Merrill and Rubicam singing the song on a beach and inside a house.[6] Also featured are scenes of a group of children playing with bubbles, one of whom is Merrill and Rubicam's daughter Hilary.
Personnel
- George Merrill: Lead vocals, Piano, Synthesizer, Bass guitar, Drum programming
- John Goux: Guitar
- Denny Fongheiser: Drums
- Michael Jochum: Additional Drums
- Andy Snitzer: Saxophone
- Shannon Rubicam, Susan Boyd: Vocals
- Joe Mardin: "Crowning Touch" (Synthesizer)
| "Star to Fall" | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Single by Cabin Crew | |
| Released | 2005 |
| Format | CD |
| Genre | Dance-pop, house |
| Songwriter(s) | Shannon Rubicam, George Merrill |
Covers and remixes
The song has been remixed three times, resulting each time in new interest in both the original and the Boy Meets Girl duo. The dance outfit Cabin Crew originally remixed the song as "Star to Fall" (a.k.a. "Star2Fall"), but were refused use of sample of the original lyrics by SonyBMG. Liking what Cabin Crew had done, however, George Merrill agreed to re-record the vocals for their version, so it may actually be counted as more of a cover than a remix. Cabin Crew's version made number 4 in the UK charts in March 2005. Meanwhile, SonyBMG had Sunset Strippers remix the original track under the title "Falling Stars," which was released a week after the Cabin Crew version, and made number 3 in the UK charts. This caused some confusion at the time, with two songs being released into the charts around the same time that sounded essentially the same.
The track "In My Arms" by electronic musician Mylo sampled the song and was featured on Mylo's album Destroy Rock & Roll. His version also sampled Kim Carnes's "Bette Davis Eyes," and it made #13 in the UK in 2005.
Dan Winter recorded another remix in 2007; his version is titled "Carry Your Heart."
Charts
| Chart (1988) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Canadian The Record Singles Chart[8] | 1 |
| UK Singles Chart[9] | 9 |
| U.S. Billboard Hot 100 | 5 |
| U.S. Radio & Records CHR/Pop Airplay Chart[10][11] | 7 |
| U.S. Billboard Adult Contemporary | 1 |
| New Zealand Singles Chart | 25 |
| Australian ARIA Singles Chart | 35 |
| Irish Singles Chart | 5 |
| German Singles Chart | 22 |
| Dutch Singles Chart | 62 |
| Chart (1991) | Peak position |
| UK Singles Chart[9] | 76 |
References
- ↑ Belinda Carlisle - Waiting for a Star To Fall. 2 March 2010 – via YouTube.
- ↑ "Boy Meets Girl Chart History". billboard.com. Retrieved 6 December 2009.
- ↑ "Boy Meets Girl UK Chart History". chartstats.com. Archived from the original on 23 July 2012. Retrieved 6 December 2009.
- ↑ VICE CITY FM: Boy Meets Girl - Waiting For A Star To Fall. 16 May 2010 – via YouTube.
- ↑ Johnny Loftus. "Reel Life – Boy Meets Girl – Review". Allmusic. Retrieved March 5, 2012.
- ↑ Boy Meets Girl - Waiting for a Star to Fall. 21 February 2014 – via YouTube.
- ↑ Boy Meets Girl- Reel Life LP (lists song-by-song personnel) @Discogs.com Retrieved 7-11-2014.
- ↑ "Canadian Singles Chart from Nanda Lwin; Top 40 Hits: The Essential Chart Guide (2000)"
- 1 2 Waiting for a Star to Fall UK Top 40 database. Accessed: September 27, 2009
- ↑ http://wweb.uta.edu/faculty/gghunt/charts/bmg.html
- ↑ http://wweb.uta.edu/faculty/gghunt/charts/Songruns/B/boymeetsgirlwaiting_for_a_star_to_fall.htm
External links
| Preceded by "Giving You the Best That I Got" by Anita Baker |
Billboard Adult Contemporary hart number-one single December 17, 1988 |
Succeeded by "Two Hearts" by Phil Collins |