| "Could It Be Magic" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 One of side-A labels of the US single | ||||
| Single byBarry Manilow | ||||
| from the albumBarry Manilow | ||||
| A-side | "Cloudburst" (1973 solo version) | |||
| B-side |
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| Released |
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| Recorded | 1970, 1973, 1975 | |||
| Genre | Soft rock[1] | |||
| Length |
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| Label | ||||
| Songwriters |
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| Producers |
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| Barry Manilow singles chronology | ||||
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| Audio | ||||
| "Could It Be Magic" (1975 album version) by Barry Manilow onYouTube | ||||
| "Could It Be Magic" (1975 single edit) by Barry Manilow onYouTube | ||||
| Live video | ||||
| "Could It Be Magic" (2008, live from Ft. Lauderdale) by Barry Manilow onYouTube | ||||
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"Could It Be Magic" is a song written byAdrienne Anderson and composed by American singer-songwriterBarry Manilow, inspired byFrédéric Chopin'sPrelude in C minor,Opus 28, Number 20.
The song was initially released in 1971 byFeatherbed (a group of session musicians featuring Barry Manilow), produced and co-written byTony Orlando. It was later re-recorded as a Manilow solo track on his first album released in 1973 onBell Records. It was then reworked in 1975 and released as a single from hiseponymous album re-issued byArista Records. The 1975 release became Manilow's third hit after "Mandy" and "It's A Miracle".
The song has been recorded by a number of other artists over the years, most successfully byDonna Summer in 1976 and byTake That in 1992. The version by Take That won theBrit Award forBritish Single in1993.
Manilow wrote "Could It Be Magic" one night while he was living in a studio apartment on27th Street inManhattan. He had been playingChopin on the piano that afternoon, and the tune inspired by Chopin then came to him.[2] Manilow built the song by elaborating on part of Chopin'sPrelude Op. 28, No. 20, and the source of the inspiration is made explicit in Manilow's own recording, which quotes directly eightbars of Prelude No. 20 at the start, and ends the same way by returning to the Prelude.[3] The basic shape of the song is that of a single greatcrescendo;[4] as Manilow explained, he wanted the song to "build and build" likethe Beatles's "Hey Jude" "until you think you can't take it anymore. It should be a musical orgasm."[5]
Manilow sent a cassette tape of his tune to his collaboratorAdrienne Anderson, who responded enthusiastically to the song, as didTony Orlando,[2] vice-president ofColumbia/CBS Music, who also contributed lyrics to the version of the song he then produced for the Featherbed, which is significantly different from the solo version Manilow himself had envisioned.[2]
Barry Manilow was signed byTony Orlando toNew York City-basedBell Records in 1969,[6] and Orlando produced a few songs released under the name ofFeatherbed, a "ghost" group consisting of session musicians including Manilow. This ensemble had a minor success with "Amy" in 1971, a song written by Anderson and performed by Manilow.[7] Manilow at that stage had only composed or arranged commercial jingles, and the arrangement of the backing track for "Could It Be Magic" was left to Orlando after they had a discussion about the song's arrangement. Although Manilow had envisioned a song that builds up like "Hey Jude", Orlando produced and arranged it instead as an uptempobubblegum pop single with a dance beat and cowbells that more resembled Orlando's own "Knock Three Times".[8]
This early version of "Magic" was released as a song by Featherbed on the Bell Records label.[9][10] Manilow hated the Orlando arrangement in Featherbed's version so severely that, as he has said in numerous subsequent interviews, he was appreciative of the fact that the song went nowhere on the charts.[citation needed] However, he has been quoted in recent years as having somewhat softened his opinion of the track, saying it's "kind of catchy".[citation needed] Apart from the chorus, the lyrics of Featherbed's recording have nothing to do with the version Manilow himself recorded for his debut album in 1973 and in 1975.
Manilow co-produced a slower-tempo version of the song withRon Dante. Although the chorus of this version is similar to the Featherbed version, the rest of the lyrics are completely different. The "Sweet Melissa" in the lyrics is said to refer to singerMelissa Manchester, who was Manilow's label-mate and a back-up singer toBette Midler in the early 1970s.[3] It was released on his debut albumBarry Manilow in 1973, and it also served as the B-side to the single "Cloudburst".[11]
Six months later, former Columbia Records presidentClive Davis took over Bell Records and merged it intoArista with all the other Columbia Pictures-owned labels. Most of the artists at Bell were dropped during the merger, but Manilow was brought over to Arista in the spring of 1974. Due to the success of Manilow second albumBarry Manilow II, it was decided that Manilow's debut album would be re-released under the Arista label, to be retitledBarry Manilow I. Manilow and Dante reworked four songs in April 1975 for the re-release, including a slightly altered version of "Could It Be Magic",[12] co-arranged withJoe Renzetti.[13] Clive Davis heard the song and decided to release it as a single for the Arista re-release despite its length of nearly 7 minutes (most singles then were around 3 minutes long), reasoning that even if it failed to make an impact, people's attention would be diverted by Manilow's soon-to-be-releasedthird album.[12] To make the song radio-friendly, it was shortened to just over 4 minutes for its single release by cutting the bridge in half, deleting the first half of the second verse, and reducing the number of repeats in the final chorus.[14]
The single turned out to be successful, and it reached number 6 in theUnited States.[15]Cash Box said that "a glowing arrangement by Manilow and Ron Dante grace the familiar melody which is augmented with a strong, vocal interpretation by Manilow"[16]Record World said that "Chopin'sPrelude in C Minor gave Barry the original inspiration for this one" and that they expected it to go to the Top 10.[17]
The song also reached number 25 on the UK charts when it was issued as a single in 1978.
The song was again reworked in 1993 using the earlier orchestration of brass and strings, combining it with new drums, bass and synthesizers. This version was included on the albumGreatest Hits: The Platinum Collection. An extended remix of the 1993 version was issued as a promotional 12" single and included on the 12" single of "I'd Really Love to See You Tonight".
| Chart (1975) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Australia (Kent Music Report)[18] | 70 |
| Canada Top Singles (RPM)[19] | 4 |
| Canada Adult Contemporary (RPM)[20] | 3 |
| Ireland (IRMA)[21] | 18 |
| UK Singles (OCC)[22] | 25 |
| USBillboard Hot 100[23] | 6 |
| USAdult Contemporary (Billboard)[24] | 4 |
| USCash Box Top 100[25] | 7 |
| "Could It Be Magic" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 Side A of the Australian single | ||||
| Single byDonna Summer | ||||
| from the albumA Love Trilogy | ||||
| B-side | "Whispering Waves" | |||
| Released | January 11, 1976 | |||
| Studio | Musicland (Munich, Germany)[29] | |||
| Genre | Disco | |||
| Length | 3:15 (single edit) | |||
| Label | Oasis | |||
| Composers | Barry Manilow,Frédéric Chopin | |||
| Lyricist | Adrienne Anderson | |||
| Producers | Giorgio Moroder,Pete Bellotte | |||
| Donna Summer singles chronology | ||||
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| Audio | ||||
| "Prelude to Love" by Donna Summer onYouTube | ||||
| "Could It Be Magic" (album version) by Donna Summer onYouTube | ||||
| "Could It Be Magic" (single edit) by Donna Summer onYouTube | ||||
| Performance video | ||||
| "Could It Be Magic" (fromThe Midnight Special, 1976) by Donna Summer onYouTube | ||||
Just seven months after Manilow's original version was released as a single, American singerDonna Summer recorded a disco version of the track and included it on her third studio album,A Love Trilogy (1976), and took it to number three on the USBillboard Dance chart in 1976.[30] The song also entered theUK Singles Chart where it stayed for seven weeks (peak point No. 40). Summer changed the lyrics of "sweet Melissa" to "sweet Peter" as an ode to her boyfriend at the time, Peter Mühldorfer.
| Chart (1976–2012) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Austria (Ö3 Austria Top 40)[31] | 14 |
| Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders)[32] | 5 |
| Belgium (Ultratop 50 Wallonia)[33] | 4 |
| Canada Top Singles (RPM)[34] | 64 |
| France (SNEP)[35] | 105 |
| Italy (Musica e dischi)[36] | 6 |
| Netherlands (Dutch Top 40)[37] | 2 |
| Netherlands (Single Top 100)[38] | 5 |
| South Africa (Springbok)[39] | 10 |
| UK Singles (OCC)[40] | 40 |
| USBillboard Hot 100[41] | 52 |
| USAdult Contemporary (Billboard)[42] | 47 |
| USHot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs (Billboard)[43] | 21 |
| West Germany (GfK)[44] | 23 |
| Chart (1976) | Position |
|---|---|
| Belgium (Ultratop Flanders)[45] | 35 |
| Netherlands (Dutch Top 40)[46] | 14 |
| Netherlands (Single Top 100)[47] | 20 |
| Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
|---|---|---|
| Philippines (PARI)[48] | Platinum | 120,000[48] |
| "Could It Be Magic" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 UK Maxi-CD cover | ||||
| Single byTake That | ||||
| from the albumTake That & Party | ||||
| Released | November 30, 1992 (1992-11-30) | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 3:30 | |||
| Label | RCA | |||
| Songwriters |
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| Producers | ||||
| Take That singles chronology | ||||
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| Music video | ||||
| "Could It Be Magic" onYouTube | ||||
Produced byBilly Griffin andIan Levine andremixed bythe Rapino Brothers, English boy bandTake That released their cover version, based on Donna Summer/Giorgio Moroder's up-tempo arrangement of the track, on November 30, 1992, byRCA Records, as the finalsingle from their debut album,Take That & Party (1992). The song does not appear on thecassette version of the album but was issued as a cassette single. It peaked at number three on theUK Singles Chart and was featured in that year'sOnly Fools and Horses Christmas special "Mother Nature's Son" in the background of one of the scenes. The single reached the top 10 in Belgium, Ireland, Israel, Portugal, and the United Kingdom. On theEurochart Hot 100, "Could It Be Magic" peaked at number nine. Its music video was directed by Saffie Ashtiany. The song won Take That their first major award:Best British Single at the1993 Brit Awards.[51][52]
DuringThe Ultimate Tour in 2006, former memberRobbie Williams appeared on ahologram with a pre-recorded section of his vocals.[53]Gary Barlow has sung lead vocals since Take That's reformation.
The song has received a Silver sales status certification and has sold over 345,000 copies in the UK.
In his review of theTake That & Party album, Peter Fawthrop fromAllMusic wrote, "HearingRobbie Williams on the tracks here, especially his lead on the cover ofBarry Manilow's 'Could It Be Magic', brings back a feeling of lost innocence and a perspective on the changing of times."[54] In his weekly UK chart commentary,James Masterton said, "Cleverly they change it from aballad into a medium-tempopop/dance tune but although it is also fancied for Christmas No.1 it is just not as strong as songs like 'A Million Love Songs', their last hit which may well have been a better choice for a Christmas single."[49]David Bennun fromMelody Maker complimented its "all puppyish enthusiasm andNorthern Soul beats."[55] Alex Kadis fromSmash Hits named it a "spectacular stomperama".[56] AnotherSmash Hits editor,Sylvia Patterson, gave it two out of five, writing that "the That cannot sing like Barry Manilow".[57] Wayne Garcia fromSt. Petersburg Times named it the "low point" of the album, describing the song as "asynth-disco remake".[50]
A music video was produced to promote the single, directed by Saffie Ashtiany.[citation needed] It shows a young woman leaving a garage before the lights are turned back on and Take That perform the song with many other dancers. It was filmed at Bray Studios, Water Oakley, Windsor,Berkshire in 1992. David Bennun fromMelody Maker felt that Take That videos as "Could It Be Magic" "were perfect. The image, the moment, the feeling. The way the boys perform, delighted, for each other's delectation on "Could It Be Magic" before the necessary intrusion of the girls."[55]
Weekly charts[edit]
| Year-end charts[edit]
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| Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
|---|---|---|
| United Kingdom (BPI)[81] | Silver | 345,000[80] |
| Region | Date | Format(s) | Label(s) | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| United Kingdom | November 30, 1992 |
| RCA | [82] |
| Australia | February 21, 1993 |
| [83] |
