Xanadu (soundtrack)

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). It was released in June 1980 on MCA Records in the United States and July 1980 by Jet Records in the United Kingdom.[5] 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.

Xanadu
Soundtrack album by Olivia Newton-John and Electric Light Orchestra
Released	June 27, 1980
Recorded	1979-1980
Studio	Musicland Studios, Munich, West Germany, David J. Holman Studio, Los Angeles
Genre	Pop rock, disco
Length	41:34
Label	Jet, MCA
Producer	Jeff Lynne, John Farrar
Olivia Newton-John chronology
Totally Hot (1978) Xanadu (1980) Physical (1981)
Electric Light Orchestra chronology
A Box of Their Best (1980) Xanadu (1980) Four Light Years (1980)
Singles from Xanadu
"Magic" Released: 23 May 1980 "I'm Alive" Released: 24 May 1980 (UK) May 1980 (US) "Xanadu" Released: 6 June 1980 (UK) July 1980 (US) "All Over the World" Released: July 1980 (US) 2 August 1980 (UK) "Suddenly" Released: 24 October 1980 "Don't Walk Away" Released: 22 November 1980

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[1]
Encyclopedia of Popular Music	[2]
MusicHound	1.5/5[3]
Smash Hits	6/10[4]

Although the film was a critical and commercial disappointment,[6] 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.[7]

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

All tracks on Side One written by John Farrar.

Side One

No.	Title	Performer	Length
1.	"Magic"	Olivia Newton-John	4:31
2.	"Suddenly"	Olivia Newton-John with Cliff Richard	4:02
3.	"Dancin'"	Olivia Newton-John with the Tubes	5:17
4.	"Suspended in Time"	Olivia Newton-John	3:55
5.	"Whenever You're Away From Me"	Olivia Newton-John with Gene Kelly	4:22

All tracks on Side Two written by Jeff Lynne.

Side Two

No.	Title	Performer(s)	Length
6.	"I'm Alive"	Electric Light Orchestra	3:46
7.	"The Fall"	Electric Light Orchestra	3:34
8.	"Don't Walk Away"	Electric Light Orchestra	4:48
9.	"All Over the World"	Electric Light Orchestra	4:04
10.	"Xanadu"	Olivia Newton-John and Electric Light Orchestra	3:28
Total length:			41:34

Charts

Weekly charts Chart (1980) Peak position Australian Albums (Kent Music Report)[8] 1 Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria)[9] 1 Canada Top Albums/CDs (RPM)[10] 4 Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)[11] 1 German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[12] 1 Italian Albums Chart[13] 10 New Zealand Albums (RMNZ)[14] 8 Norwegian Albums (VG-lista)[15] 1 Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan)[16] 1 UK Albums (OCC)[17] 2 US Billboard 200[18] 4 US CashBox Top 100 Albums[19] 1 US Record World Albums[20] 1

Year-end charts Chart (1980) Position Australia (Kent Music Report)[21] 12 Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria)[22] 6 Dutch Albums (MegaCharts)[23] 23 Italian Albums Chart[13] 29

Certifications and sales

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Region	Certification	Certified units/sales
Australia (ARIA)[24]	Platinum	70,000^^
Canada (Music Canada)[25]	2× Platinum	200,000^^
Germany (BVMI)[26]	Gold	250,000^^
Hong Kong (IFPI Hong Kong)[27]	Platinum	20,000^*
Italy	—	100,000[28]
Japan	—	312,150[29]
New Zealand (RMNZ)[30]	Platinum	15,000^^
United Kingdom (BPI)[31]	Gold	100,000^^
United States (RIAA)[32]	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 [9]	CAN	NL	GER	IRL	NZ	SWE	UK	US
"I'm Alive" (performed by the 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 Olivia Newton-John and the Electric Light Orchestra)		2	1	6	1	1	1	8	3	1	8
"All Over the World" (performed by the Electric Light Orchestra)		78	—	3	10	28	12	—	—	11	13
"Suddenly" (performed by Olivia Newton-John and Cliff Richard)		37	—	60	—	—	6	30	—	15	20
"Don't Walk Away" (performed by the Electric Light Orchestra)		—	—	—	—	52	7	—	—	21	—
"—" denotes releases that did not chart or were not released.

Electric Light Orchestra personnel

Jeff Lynne – lead vocals (except on "Xanadu"), backing vocals, electric guitars, acoustic guitars, keyboards, synthesizers Bev Bevan – drums, percussion, tympani Richard Tandy – pianos, synthesizers, keyboards Kelly Groucutt – bass guitar, backing vocals

Additional personnel Olivia Newton-John – lead vocals on "Xanadu" James Newton-Howard - synthesizers on "Xanadu" Strings by Louis Clark Mack – engineer

Olivia Newton-John personnel

Olivia Newton-John – lead vocals, backing vocals John Farrar – electric guitars, synthesizers, backing vocals David Hungate – bass guitar on "Magic" and "Suspended in Time" David McDaniel – bass guitar on "Suddenly" Ed Greene – drums, percussion (except on "Magic") Carlos Vega – drums, percussion on "Magic" Jai Winding – electric piano on "Suddenly" Michael Boddicker – vocoder on "Suddenly"

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 Recorded and mixed at David J. Holman Studio in Laurel Canyon

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

References

1. Xanadu at AllMusic
2. Larkin, Colin (ed.) (2011). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music (5th edn). London: Omnibus Press. p. 915. ISBN 978-0-85712-595-8.CS1 maint: extra text: authors list (link)
3. Graff, Gary; Durchholz, Daniel (eds) (1999). MusicHound Rock: The Essential Album Guide. Farmington Hills, MI: Visible Ink Press. p. 813. ISBN 1-57859-061-2.CS1 maint: extra text: authors list (link)
4. Starr, Red (7–20 August 1980). "Albums". Smash Hits. p. 28.
5. "Jeff Lynne Song Database - Olivia Newton-John & Electric Light Orchestra - Xanadu song analysis". www.jefflynnesongs.com. Retrieved 22 June 2018. - the U.S. MCA release was MCA 6100, and the U.K. Jet release was JET LX 526
6. Ewbank, Tim. Olivia: The Biography of Olivia Newton-John Hachette UK, 2008. Retrieved 14 January 2016.
7. Casey Kasem's American Top 40 - The Top 100 of 1981 from 26 December 1981
8. Ryan, Gavin (2011). Australia's Music Charts 1988–2010. Mt. Martha, VIC, Australia: Moonlight Publishing.
9. "Austriancharts.at – Soundtrack / Electric Light Orchestra & Olivia Newton-John – Xanadu" (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved 8 October 2016.
10. "Top RPM Albums: Issue 0254". RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved 28 July 2013.
11. "Dutchcharts.nl – Soundtrack / Electric Light Orchestra & Olivia Newton-John – Xanadu" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 8 October 2016.
12. "Offiziellecharts.de – Soundtrack / Electric Light Orchestra & Olivia Newton-John – Xanadu" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved 8 October 2016.
13. "Hit Parade Italia - Gli album più venduti del 1980" (in Italian). hitparadeitalia.it. Retrieved 8 October 2016.
14. "Charts.nz – Soundtrack / Electric Light Orchestra & Olivia Newton-John – Xanadu". Hung Medien. Retrieved 8 October 2016.
15. "Norwegiancharts.com – Soundtrack / Electric Light Orchestra & Olivia Newton-John – Xanadu". Hung Medien. Retrieved 8 October 2016.
16. "Swedishcharts.com – Soundtrack / Electric Light Orchestra & Olivia Newton-John – Xanadu". Hung Medien. Retrieved 8 October 2016.
17. "Original Soundtrack | Artist | Official Charts". UK Albums Chart. Retrieved 21 May 2016.
18. "Electric Light Orchestra Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved 8 October 2016.
19. "CashBox Top 100 Albums" (PDF). CashBox. Vol. XLII #23. United States. 18 October 1980. p. 50. Retrieved 28 December 2020.
20. "Record World Albums" (PDF). Record World. United States. 27 September 1980. p. 32. Retrieved 28 December 2020.
21. Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 (illustrated ed.). St Ives, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book. p. 432. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
22. "Jahreshitparade Alben 1980" (in German). Austrian Charts Portal. Hung Medien. Retrieved 31 December 2017.
23. "Jaaroverzichten – Album 1980" (in Dutch). MegaCharts Website. Hung Medien. Retrieved 31 December 2017.
24. "Magic Moment". Billboard. 27 September 1980. p. 56. Retrieved 13 May 2020 – via Google Books.
25. "Canadian album certifications – Olivia Newton-John – Xanadu". Music Canada.
26. "Gold-/Platin-Datenbank (Elec.Light Orchestra und O. Newton-John; 'Xanadu')" (in German). Bundesverband Musikindustrie.
27. "IFPIHK Gold Disc Award − 1981". IFPI Hong Kong.
28. Caroli, Daniele (13 June 1981). "International - CBS-Dischi Distrib Center Bows" (PDF). Billboard. p. 66. Retrieved 11 December 2019 – via American Radio History.
29. Okamoto, Satoshi (2006). Oricon Album Chart Book: Complete Edition 1970–2005. Roppongi, Tokyo: Oricon Entertainment. p. 349. ISBN 4-87131-077-9.
30. "New Zealand album certifications – Olivia Newton-John – Xanadu". Recorded Music NZ.
31. "British album certifications – Olivia Newton-John – Xanadu". British Phonographic Industry. Select albums in the Format field. Select Gold in the Certification field. Type Xanadu in the "Search BPI Awards" field and then press Enter.
32. "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.