Could It Be Magic

"Could It Be Magic"
Single by Barry Manilow
from the album Barry Manilow
Released	June 1975
Format	7" single
Recorded	1973
Genre	Pop
Length	6:50 4:14 (edit)
Label	Arista
Writer(s)	Barry Manilow, Adrienne Anderson
Producer(s)	Barry Manilow, Ron Dante
Barry Manilow singles chronology
"It's a Miracle" (1975) "Could It Be Magic" (1975) "I Write the Songs" (1975)

"Could It Be Magic" is a song with lyrics written by Adrienne Anderson and music composed by Barry Manilow, based on chord and melodical progressions of Frédéric Chopin's Prelude in C Minor, Opus 28, Number 20. Initially released in 1971, it was later rerecorded, given an album release in 1973 and a single release in 1975. This became one of Manilow's first hits. The song has been covered by a number of other artists over the years, most successfully by Donna Summer in 1976 and by Take That in 1992.

Barry Manilow version

As Manilow had only composed or arranged commercial jingles up to that point, he was unproven as a pop-song arranger and was therefore not permitted to arrange the original backing track himself upon its first release in 1971, (see composer's autobiography Sweet Life) Instead, this early version of the song was produced under the hand of Tony Orlando and recorded by Featherbed, a "ghost" group consisting of session musicians.

Originally released on the Bell Records label, the composer hated the Tony Orlando arrangement so severely (see Sweet Life) that, as he says in numerous subsequent interviews, he was appreciative of the fact that the song went nowhere on the charts.

However he has been quoted in recent years as having somewhat softened his opinion of the track, saying it's "kind of catchy."

Featuring a bubblegum pop beat, cowbells and a Knock Three Times feel, the chorus is the same, however the original verse lyrics have nothing to do with the hit version released in 1973.

That year, Manilow would come to be signed to Bell Records in his own right, immediately after which a completely reworked version with Manilow's own arrangement was included on his debut album, Barry Manilow released that fall.

Six months later, former Columbia Records president Clive Davis would take over Bell Records and merge it into Arista with all the other Columbia Pictures-owned labels such as Amy Mala Colpix and Colgems to name a few.

Most of the artists at Bell were dropped during the merger, but due to the song's popularity, Manilow was brought over to Arista in the spring of 1974 and Could It Be Magic was released as a single a year later - a full two years after it had been originally recorded, where it reached #6 in the United States.

The lyric "Sweet Melissa" is a tribute to singer Melissa Manchester, Manilow's then-Arista label-mate.

The song was remixed in 1993 using the original orchestration of brass and strings combined with new drums, bass and synthesizers, and was included on the album Greatest 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 performance

Weekly singles charts

Chart (1975)	Peak position
Canadian RPM Adult Contemporary	3
Canadian RPM Top Singles	4
Ireland	18
UK	25
US Billboard Hot 100	6
US Cash Box Top 100	7
US Billboard Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks	4

Year-end charts

Chart (1975)	Position
Canada	41
US Billboard	37
US Cashbox	36

Donna Summer version

"Could It Be Magic"
Dutch 7-inch vinyl single
Single by Donna Summer
from the album A Love Trilogy
B-side	Whispering Waves
Released	January 11, 1976
Format	7" single
Genre	Disco
Length	5:19
Label	Oasis (U.S./Canada) GTO (U.K.) Atlantic (France/Germany) Groovy (Netherlands) Durium (Italy)
Producer(s)	Giorgio Moroder, Pete Bellotte
Donna Summer singles chronology
"Love to Love You Baby" (1975) "Could It Be Magic" (1976) "Try Me, I Know We Can Make It" (1976)

Just one year after Manilow's original version was released as a single, American singer Donna Summer recorded a disco version of the track and included it on her third studio album, Love Trilogy, and took it to number three on the US Dance chart in 1976. The song also entered the UK singles chart where it stayed for seven weeks (peak point #40)

Track listing

U.S. 7" single (Oasis OC 405) / Canada 7" single (Oasis OC 405X)

1. "Could It Be Magic" (3:15)
2. "Whispering Waves" (4:50)

U.K. 7" single (GTO GT 60)

1. "Could It Be Magic" (3:15)
2. "Whispering Waves" (?)

Germany 7" single (Atlantic ATL 10 775)

1. "Could It Be Magic" (5:20)
2. "Come With Me" (4:20)

Netherlands 7" single (Groovy GR 1219)

1. "Could It Be Magic" (3:15)
2. "Whispering Waves" (4:50)

France 7" single (Atlantic 10.770)

1. "Could It Be Magic" (4:13)
2. "Whispering Waves" (4:15)

Italy 7" single (Durium DE 2873)

1. "Could It Be Magic" (3:15)
2. "Whispering Waves" (3:35)

Charts

Chart (1976)	Peak position
Austrian Singles Chart	14
Dutch GfK chart	5
Dutch Top 40	2
German Singles Chart	23
UK Singles Chart	40
U.S. Billboard Hot Soul Singles	21
U.S. Billboard Hot 100	52
U.S. Billboard Hot Dance Club Play	3

Take That version

"Could It Be Magic"
File:Take that could it be magic uk cd single.jpg UK Maxi-CD cover
Single by Take That
from the album Take That & Party
Released	November 30, 1992
Format	7" single, 12" maxi single, CD single, Cassette single
Genre	Pop
Length	4:28 (Album Version)
Label	RCA
Producer(s)	The Rapino Brothers
Take That singles chronology
"A Million Love Songs" (1992) "Could It Be Magic" (1992) "Why Can't I Wake Up With You" (1993)

Produced and remixed by The Rapino Brothers, English boy band Take That released their cover version, based on Donna Summer/Giorgio Moroder's up-tempo arrangement of the track, on November 30, 1992 as the final single from their debut album Take That & Party. The song does not appear on the cassette version of the album but was issued as a cassette single. It peaked at number three on the UK Singles Chart and was featured in that year's Only Fools and Horses Christmas special "Mother Nature's Son" in the background of one of the scenes.

The song won Best British Single at the 1993 Brit Awards.

During The Ultimate Tour in 2006, former member Robbie Williams appeared on a hologram with a pre-recorded section of his vocals. Gary Barlow sings lead vocals since Take That's reformation.

The song has received a Silver sales status certification and sold over 325,000 copies sold in the UK.

Despite its success, Take That's version of "Could It Be Magic" was voted in a poll as one of the worst songs in the history of recorded sound.

Music video

The music video shows a young woman leaving a garage before the lights are turned back on and Take That perform the song with many other dancers. The music video was filmed at Bray Studios, Water Oakley, Windsor, Berkshire in 1992.

Track listings

UK 12" vinyl (74321 12313 1)(Limited Edition w/ poster sleeve)

1. Deep In Rapino's Club Mix - 5:56
2. Take That Club Megamix - 7:03
3. Mr. F. Mix - 6:18

UK 7" vinyl (74321 12313 7)

1. Rapino Radio Mix - 3:30
2. Take That Radio Megamix - 4:38

UK cassette (74321 12313 4)

1. Rapino Radio Mix - 3:30
2. Take That Radio Megamix - 4:38

UK CD single (74321 12313 2)

1. Rapino Radio Mix - 3:30
2. Deep In Rapino's Club Mix - 5:56
3. Acapella - 3:12
4. Ciao Baby Mix - 7:19
5. Rapino Dub - 3:44
6. Paparazzo Mix - 5:27
7. Deep In Rapino's Dub - 5:57
8. Club Rapino Mix - 3:43

EU CD single (74321 12735 2)

1. Rapino Radio Mix - 3:30
2. Deep In Rapino's Club Mix - 5:56
3. Ciao Baby Mix - 7:19
4. Paparazzo Mix - 5:27

Japanese CD single (TAKE8)

1. Rapino Radio Mix - 3:30
2. Take That Radio Megamix - 4:38

Charts

Chart (1992–93)	Peak position
Australia (ARIA Charts)	30
Belgium (Ultratop 50) (Flanders)	8
Belgium (Ultratop 50) (Wallonia)	9
Europe (Eurochart Hot 100)	9
France (SNEP)	42
Germany (Media Control AG)	37
Ireland (IRMA)	3
Sweden (Sverigetopplistan)	30
UK Singles (Official Charts Company)	3

Year-end chart (1992)	Position
UK Singles (Official Charts Company)	37
Year-end chart (1993)	Position
Belgian (Flanders) Singles Chart	67
Europe (Eurochart Hot 100)	83

Certifications

Country	Certification	Date	Sales certified
UK	Silver	1 January 1993	200,000

Other official versions

• Album Version (4:28)
• Live Version (5:34)

Abigail version

"Could It Be Magic"
Single by Abigail
from the album Feel Good
B-side	This Is A Dream
Released	1993
Format	12" maxi single
Genre	Hi-NRG
Length	6:21
Label	Klone Records
Abigail singles chronology
"I Feel You" (1992) "Could It Be Magic" (1993) "Constant Craving" (1993)

This single was only available as a 12" Single. The B-side, "This Is A Dream" is a high upbeat dance music with the lyrics "This Is A Dream" will appear every so often in the song.

Other notable versions

• The Shirelles also recorded a version that was released on a bootleg album in the late 1970s.

• A jazz version of the tune was arranged into a trio setting by Filipino pianist/arranger Bobby Enriquez, then performed during a summer tour of Japan in 1982. A recording of the piece is on the album, "Bobby Enriquez: Live! In Tokyo." GNP Crescendo GNPD-2161

• A house remix of the song appears as the penultimate track on Hed Kandi: Disco Heaven 01.05, credited to "Andrea T. Mendoza & Tibet feat. Ife Corcoran".

• In 1993 British top-producer Trevor Horn remixed the song with Barry Manilow, who re-recorded his vocals. The release was only available on promo-12" ARISTA-COULD1993

• The song was recorded in Dutch by the singer Rob de Nijs, called Ontmoeting. The text was written by his former wife Belinda Meulendijk, and was released as a single in 1986. It was taken from the album Vrije val.

• The Dutch group Lucifer also recorded the track in 1975, even before Donna Summer recorded hers. This version does not contain the Chopin-preludium, but instead has a falset-ladyvoice from Margriet Eshuys and mandolines.

• It was covered by The Puppini Sisters on their album The Rise and Fall of Ruby Woo.

• French singer Alain Chamfort released a French-language version of the song under the title "le temps qui court" in 1975.

• Chamfort's version was later covered by boy band Alliage in 1997. Their version peaked at number 13 in France and number 32 in Belgium (Wallonia). This version was covered by Les Enfoirés in 2006, reaching number four in France, number two in Belgium (Wallonia) and number 19 in Switzerland.

• In 2007, Lazlo Bane covered the song on the album Guilty Pleasures.

• Donald Braswell II recorded this song on his 2007 album New Chapter.

• Regine Velasquez performed the song for her live album, Regine Live: Songbird Sings the Classics.

• Leona Lewis, Eoghan Quigg, Joe McElderry and Mary Byrne performed this song on the third, fifth, sixth and seventh series of The X Factor's British version, respectively. Lewis and McElderry eventually won their respective series.

• Color Theory released a synthpop version of the song, along with a remix of by Norwegian producer Lyder Janøy, on his EP "Adjustments Pt. 2" in 2014.

• In 2013, Barry Manilow performed his piano ballad version of the song for BBC Children in Need Rocks. After the first chorus, Manilow shouted "Come on then fellas!" and was joined by Robbie Williams and Gary Barlow of Take That. Together, they performed the up-tempo arrangement of the song, featuring Williams and Barlow on lead vocals for the verse. Manilow sung lead vocals on the chorus, with Williams and Barlow on backing vocals. It was the first time in 19 years that Williams and Barlow had performed the song together.

External links

• Lyrics of this song at MetroLyrics