Olivia Newton-John Single by Single Thread

Does anyone wonder what direction John Farrar would have taken with Olivia if he had stayed on as producer? The Rumour just needed more hit material there are some great songs but mostly just nice album cuts. If John was in a lull with songwriting for her I'm sure it would have come back eventually.

Oh and Get Out should have been deleted why that made it and not Winter Angel or It's Always Australia For Me is crazy.

 

It would sure be nice if we knew the story behind Olivia using a different producer. If John Farrar declined the invitation to produce Olivia's next album, it would be one thing, but if Olivia or MCA asked him to step out, it's a completely different story. Did he write some songs for Olivia's next album, and he (or the record company) thought they weren't good enough? Would he have stayed with a Soul Kiss-style production or tried something different?

I've wondered what The Rumour would sound like with the same songs, but produced by John Farrar. It would certainly have sounded different. A couple of the songs could have been improved with production more suited to Olivia's style. I feel like "Car Games" could have sounded like a track from Physical with John Farrar's production style. It's an interesting situation to think about.

 

While many of the songs off this album deal with different subject matter, I feel there are too many songs with too many issues. The album starts off with this great pop song and then it goes into tracks dealing with too many different issues.

 

Yes I agree. It's a bit heavy on issues. I'd have limited it to one "issues" song and stuck to pop for the rest. Especially when you are playing with someone elses money (MCA).

 

I don't think The Rumour fits in with the rest of the album. It screams damage control and I'm glad it's there. I agree that Shep's mix should have been pushed as it really gave the song the punch it needed.

I loved the special. I had to ask a friend and his family if I could watch it at their house because I didn't have HBO. They didn't understand the show and I'm guessing most of America reacted the same. Starting things with Tutta La Vita was a misstep for her here. Everyone in the room asked me what that meant. I think it caused an immediate disconnect for them. They no longer seemed interested.

Perhaps starting with It's Always Australia For Me would have set the stage of the show better here and end with the big party shown in Tutta La Vita. I love the show as is mind you. If I recall correctly, didn't The Rumour get shown after everything? If so, another misstep as you're losing viewers through the length of the show. Put the song upfront to get the max exposure.

 

i think i was introduced to INFY on the WOR-AM Sunday program of Billboard Easy Listening chart selections. i bought the single and was really impressed with "Let Me Be There" but so uninterested in her run of sappy ballad hits I missed the release of "Magic" and had to be clued in by a club DJ that he was playing it. Her soft-rockers "Physical" and "Heart Attack" were noted by me in a token way, so i probably over-responded to "Soul Kiss," just because it coincided with a big moment in my work life.

 

According to wiki, the Rumour single peaked at #17 on U.S. Billboard Hot Dance Music/Club Play. The 12" LP is really the winner here, all the other material on the album didn't match up with the single. I do really like Let's Talk About Tomorrow and Walk Through Fire. Car Games reminded me a bit of Driving Music from Soul Kiss. Her vocals on this album are just as good as Soul Kiss vocally she is all there .

 

The Rumour was a last minute addition to the album, much like "Soul Kiss" was to its album. That's how Winter Angel became a B Side - it got chopped to add it. Originally the set was going to be called "Love And Let Live" and even Casey Casem mentioned this as the title in one of his American Top 40 shows months before the album came out. I think Livvy coming back after a nearly three year break singing about the AIDS crisis would've fared worse even though I like the song. I've noticed that the video seems to be a bit higher budget than most on the special so they probably thought it would be a single one way or another. The album is like a collection of "Very Special Episodes" with all the different topics covered so I get why fans run cold on it but I think it was a strong return to form after the SK debacle. ONJ could've skipped rewriting "Driving Music" as "Car Games" though - I almost expected her next album to have covers of "GTO" and "Fun Fun Fun" on it. In retrospect, it would've been more exciting than the lullaby album....

"The Rumour" single itself was fantastic. The Pettibone remix put it over the top with me. The fans did at least show up to buy it as it managed to crack the top 40 sales chart in Billboard even though it stalled at #64 overall. I remember the initial radio adds being poor for it but I held out hope everyone would catch up. Sadly, it never happened. I don't think the song was helped though by Elton releasing "I Don't Wanna Go On With You Like That" which has a similar feel overall. Had each party spaced out their singles, I think "The Rumour" might have had a better shot at radio...

 

I've never seen the Aussie special but I have ordered the 2 disc DVD which I think includes the videos at least.

 

That's good but it's missing Click Go The Shears but seriously it's missing 2 other favorites videos of mine from Down Under, "Old Fashioned Man" (with a reference to Physical) and It's Always Australia For Me.

 

Is Old Fashioned Man an outtake from The Rumour?

 

I don't think you could call it an "outtake," as I don't think it was ever intended for the album. It's too tongue-in-cheek. I think it was done specifically to create some humor for the TV special. It would definitely be nice to have it as a bonus track on some release (without all the strange noises made by the guy in the video), though.

 

Agree, wish we had it without the nerdy guy noises. I even extracted the audio from this clip into an MP3 just because I like the way Olivia plays with her vocals on this one. It's the same for the 2 songs from AMFC which we had studio takes and not the actors overlays/noises.

 

Same thing here. I've put almost all of Olivia's songs from TV specials and movies into my iTunes library, despite some not being ideal listening experiences. Since most of these songs were pre-recorded, I imagine that nice clean studio versions of the songs sit in the vault and could be issued someday -- if Olivia wanted to, which she probably doesn't.

 

Here is the last U.S. single from The Rumour album. I actually purchased this mint 45 within the past few years, I had been looking forever for both the single and the pic sleeve together and finally found it.

1988
Can't We Talk It Over In Bed
Get Out (b side)

 

I like this song but don't think it's that strong for a single let alone radio. The b side was just the wrong choice and I feel shouldn't have even been on the album let alone a single b side. It's another issue song, just too many on the album.

There is one thing that has always bothered me about this song, Can't We Talk It Over In Bed, the drum beat....it sounds like a manufactured sound and not even a true drummer, there is no listings in the credits for this song for a drummer so it could very well be an electronic beat and not a true drummer, if so that bothers me more. The beat sound is not so bad on the LP vinyl or the 80's CD, but the recent 40th set CD and the Australasian Souvenir Set with this track are mastered so hot that the drum beat wears on my ears terribly, it ruins the song for me so loud. I like this pic sleeve!!

I'm so sad the 45 rpm's are over....

 

Quote:
Here is the last U.S. single from The Rumour album. I actually purchased this mint 45 within the past few years, I had been looking forever for both the single and the pic sleeve together and finally found it.

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This is a hard picture sleeve to find. It took me a long time before I found a copy - mine is actually a Canadian pressing, but the sleeve design is the exact same.

I'm sad about the end of 45s too!

 

Not my favorite song(s) from The Rumour, for sure. "Can't We Talk It Over in Bed" was sort of blah, and it didn't help that another artist released the same song as a single right around the same time Olivia did -- and his version was a lot more successful. His name was Grayson Hugh (I had to look that up, even though I own his single, too). Both sides of this single are sort of forgettable, which is not a good thing for a single to be. I don't dislike either of them, but they're at the bottom of my rankings for this album.

This would have been a good place of "An Old-Fashioned Man" to have made a b-side appearance. At least the hardcore fans would have bought the single to get the non-album track. As it was, I bought the single when it first came out, and thus had no trouble finding the sleeve, but I doubt this single sold very many copies. Looking at the charts, it seems Olivia's version of the song didn't chart anywhere, while Grayson Hugh's version made it to #19 on the Billboard Hot 100, and #9 on the AC chart (#4 in Australia, even).

This appears to be Olivia's last single for MCA, at least until she recorded the one album for MCA Nashville in 1998. However, it appears a couple more vinyl 7" singles were released in the U.S. -- @Song4U, this might be a new challenge for you. It looks like the remake of "I Honestly Love You" in 1998 was issued in the U.S. on a vinyl single, at least according to discogs, and also the single for "Back with a Heart." I've never seen either on vinyl, but supposedly they exist.

 

Yes, I knew that Back With A Heart MCA Nashville was the last US single 45 and I also knew about the IHLY 45 remix MCA Nashville as well so no challenge for me. I don't own either but I've seen them on e bay, in fact both are there now but I don't have much desire to purchase them.

 

I did like this song, which sticks out like a sore thumb on the album. Sonically it's very different, which I quite like. The drums are programmed and it suits this song. Would I have chosen it as a single? I think it was the only other choice. She sings it well, and had The Rumour hit, it may have gone top 40.

The writer, Sandy Linzer, has a very prestigious career and wrote/produced many songs for Odyssey, a great pop soul group who had a Uk #1 with Use It Up Wear It Out, which I think may have knocked Olivia off the top here.

I love the sleeve!

 

I really love Can't We Talk It Over In Bed. I think it's catchy as hell and is my favorite song off the album. I wished they had just taken the singles and created a new album for them. Love the sleeve too.

This guy had a single with it too. Olivia got first release rights.

 

Here is the next U.S. single from her studio album, Warm and Tender....

Oct 1989
Reach Out For Me
Maxi Single CD
1 Reach Out For Me (CHR Version #1) 4:20
2 Reach Out For Me (CHR Version #2 (Vocals & Strings Up)) 4:20
3 Reach Out For Me (AC Mix) 4:20
4 Reach Out For Me (LP Version) 5:54
5 Reach Out For Me (AC Instrumental With Background Vocals) 4:20





Billboard Warm and Tender LP Review Nov 11, 1989

 

Gavin Report Reach Out For Me Promo Single Ad Oct 13, 1989

 

There is no getting around this was a children's album yet I still think there are a few nice adult tracks to enjoy. I'm happy that Olivia was back with John Farrar but wished it had been a pop album. I like this single, a nice Burt Bacharach song, her vocals are classic Olivia light and airy feeling. I like the opening lyrics for the single, great writing and I think the cover is great for the occasion. What I don't like is how they bridged the Brahms intro into the single on the album and then tacked on the reprise at the end making it one long track.

 

I liked "Reach Out for Me," and it was one of my favorite tracks from the album from the first time I heard it. I'm a big Bacharach fan, so it was really nice to hear Olivia do a Bacharach song. Although the difference between the various remixes is subtle, I like these remixes better than the album version.

Despite being a children's album, Warm and Tender was obviously aiming for some radio play with this single. It's the most obvious song on the album to be released as a single. It made it to #32 on the Billboard Adult Contemporary chart, but the single didn't chart on any of the other charts.

The only commercial release of this single in the U.S. was on cassette. The CD single was promo only, and it appears that Australia was the only country to get a 7" vinyl single. The record industry was undergoing massive change by 1989, as vinyl sales were dropping dramatically, so I'm sure the record labels were scrambling to figure out what the future of "singles" would be. I always found cassette singles to be utterly pointless, so I only bought them if they were something really unusual. The lack of commercial vinyl and CD singles probably hurt sales of "Reach Out for Me" in the U.S., but Geffen Records didn't seem to be concerned about selling singles from this album.