Xanadu (soundtrack)

Xanadu
Soundtrack album by Olivia Newton-John and Electric Light Orchestra
Released August 1980
Recorded 1980
Studio Musicland Studios, Munich, Germany
Genre Pop, pop rock, disco, traditional pop, arena rock
Length 41:34
Label Jet Records (UK)
MCA Records (US)
Producer Jeff Lynne, John Farrar
Electric Light Orchestra chronology
A Box of Their Best
(1980)		 Xanadu
(1980)		 Four Light Years
(1980)
Olivia Newton-John chronology
Totally Hot
(1978)		 Xanadu
(1980)		 Physical
(1981)
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic[1]
Smash Hits6/10[2]

Xanadu is the soundtrack of the 1980 musical film of the same name, featuring the Australian singer Olivia Newton-John and the British group Electric Light Orchestra (ELO).

The original LP release featured on side one the songs of Newton-John, and on side two the songs of ELO. In 2008 the soundtrack album was digitally remastered as a bonus CD as part of the film's DVD release entitled Xanadu - Magical Musical Edition.

Although the film was a critical and commercial disappointment,[3] the soundtrack was a worldwide success and received positive reviews from music critics going double platinum in the US and Canada. The hit singles "Magic" and "Xanadu", peaked at number one in the United States and United Kingdom, respectively. Both singles also went to number one in the Netherlands and Italy, respectively. It was the 5th most popular US soundtrack in 1981.[4]

Background

The soundtrack featured songs on side one by the film's star, Olivia Newton-John, written by her long-time producer, John Farrar. The songs on side two were written and performed by ELO. The title track which closed side two featured Newton-John as lead vocalist.

The Newton-John side also featured Cliff Richard, The Tubes and Gene Kelly.

At the time of the album's release, Olivia Newton-John was signed to MCA Records, while ELO were signed to Jet Records. A compromise was worked out between the two companies in that the album was released on MCA in the US and Canada, and on Jet in the rest of the world.

Track listing

Side one (Olivia Newton-John)

All songs on side one written by John Farrar.

  1. "Magic" – 4:31
  2. "Suddenly" – 4:02
    Duet with Cliff Richard
  3. "Dancin'" – 5:17
    Duet with The Tubes
  4. "Suspended in Time" – 3:55
  5. "Whenever You're Away from Me" – 4:22
    Duet with Gene Kelly
Side two (Electric Light Orchestra)

All songs on side two written by Jeff Lynne.

  1. "I'm Alive" – 3:46
  2. "The Fall" – 3:34
  3. "Don't Walk Away" – 4:48
  4. "All Over the World" – 4:04
  5. "Xanadu" – 3:28
    Duet with Olivia Newton-John

Charts and certifications

Weekly charts

Chart (1980) Peak
position
Australian Albums (Kent Music Report)[5] 1
Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria)[6] 1
Canada Top Albums/CDs (RPM)[7] 4
Dutch Albums (MegaCharts)[8] 1
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[9] 1
New Zealand Albums (RMNZ)[10] 8
Norwegian Albums (VG-lista)[11] 1
Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan)[12] 1
UK Albums (OCC)[13] 2
US Billboard 200[14] 4
US CashBox 1
US Record World 1

Certifications and sales

Region Certification Certified units/Sales
Canada (Music Canada)[15] 2× Platinum 200,000^
Germany (BVMI)[16] Gold 250,000^
Hong Kong (IFPI Hong Kong)[17] Platinum 20,000*
New Zealand (RMNZ)[18] Platinum 15,000^
United Kingdom (BPI)[19] Gold 100,000^
United States (RIAA)[20] 2× Platinum 2,000,000^

*sales figures based on certification alone
^shipments figures based on certification alone

Singles

List of singles, with selected chart positions, showing year released
Title Year Peak chart positions
AUS AUT
[6]		 CAN NL GER IRL NZ SWE UK US
"I'm Alive" (performed by Electric Light Orchestra) 1980 27 — 7 38 16 10 32 — 20 16[lower-alpha 1]
"Magic" (performed by Olivia Newton-John) 4 20 1 13 36 — 4 12 32 1
"Xanadu" (performed by Newton-John and ELO) 2 1 6 1 1 1 8 3 1 8
"All Over the World" (performed by ELO) 78 — 3 10 28 12 — — 11 13
"Suddenly" (performed by Newton-John and Cliff Richard) 37 — 60 — — 6 30 — 15 20
"Don't Walk Away" (performed by ELO) — — — — 52 7 — — 21 —
"—" denotes releases that did not chart or were not released.

Electric Light Orchestra personnel
Additional personnel

Olivia Newton-John personnel
Additional personnel
  • Cliff Richard - co-lead vocals on "Suddenly"
  • Fee Waybill - co-lead vocals on "Dancin'"
  • Roger Steen - guitars on "Dancin'"
  • Bill Spooner - guitars on "Dancin'"
  • Michael Cotten - synthesizer on "Dancin'"
  • Gene Kelly - co-lead vocals on "Whenever You're Away From Me"
  • Lou Halmy - whistling on "Whenever You're Away From Me"
  • Strings arranged and conducted by Richard Hewson
  • David J. Holman - engineer and mixer

  1. ↑ Single awarded gold record in the US from the RIAA

References

  1. ↑ Xanadu at AllMusic
  2. ↑ Starr, Red. "Albums". Smash Hits (7–20 August 1980): 28.
  3. ↑ Ewbank, Tim. Olivia: The Biography of Olivia Newton-John Hachette UK, 2008. Retrieved January 14, 2016.
  4. ↑ Casey Kasem's American Top 40 - The Top 100 of 1981 from 26 December 1981
  5. ↑ Ryan, Gavin (2011). Australia's Music Charts 1988–2010. Mt. Martha, VIC, Australia: Moonlight Publishing.
  6. 1 2 "Austriancharts.at – Soundtrack / Electric Light Orchestra & Olivia Newton-John – Xanadu" (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved 8 October 2016.
  7. ↑ "Top RPM Albums: Issue 0254." RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved July 28, 2013.
  8. ↑ "Dutchcharts.nl – Soundtrack / Electric Light Orchestra & Olivia Newton-John – Xanadu" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 8 October 2016.
  9. ↑ "Offiziellecharts.de – Soundtrack / Electric Light Orchestra & Olivia Newton-John – Xanadu" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved 8 October 2016.
  10. ↑ "Charts.org.nz – Soundtrack / Electric Light Orchestra & Olivia Newton-John – Xanadu". Hung Medien. Retrieved 8 October 2016.
  11. ↑ "Norwegiancharts.com – Soundtrack / Electric Light Orchestra & Olivia Newton-John – Xanadu". Hung Medien. Retrieved 8 October 2016.
  12. ↑ "Swedishcharts.com – Soundtrack / Electric Light Orchestra & Olivia Newton-John – Xanadu". Hung Medien. Retrieved 8 October 2016.
  13. ↑ "Original Soundtrack | Artist | Official Charts". UK Albums Chart Retrieved May 21, 2016.
  14. ↑ "Electric Light Orchestra – Chart history" Billboard 200 for Electric Light Orchestra. Retrieved 8 October 2016.
  15. ↑ "Canadian album certifications – Olivia Newton-John – Xanadu". Music Canada.
  16. ↑ "Gold-/Platin-Datenbank (Elec.Light Orchestra und O. Newton-John; 'Xanadu')" (in German). Bundesverband Musikindustrie.
  17. ↑ "IFPIHK Gold Disc Award − 1981". IFPI Hong Kong.
  18. ↑ "New Zealand album certifications – Olivia Newton-John – Xanadu". Recorded Music NZ.
  19. ↑ "British album certifications – Olivia Newton-John – Xanadu". British Phonographic Industry. Enter Xanadu in the field Keywords. Select Title in the field Search by. Select album in the field By Format. Select Gold in the field By Award. Click Search
  20. ↑ "American album certifications – Olivia Newton-John – Xanadu". Recording Industry Association of America. If necessary, click Advanced, then click Format, then select Album, then click SEARCH
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