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Physical

 
Album Review: Physical

Review

"Physical" became such a monster hit -- not just a hit, but a pop-culture phenomenon that was impossible to escape -- that it became difficult to view its accompanying album as anything other than a conduit for the single. The thing was, Physical was a damn good record, in many ways one of Olivia Newton-John's very best. Picking up where Totally Hot and Xanadu left off, Physical skillfully balances catchy yet mellow dance cuts with immaculately crafted adult contemporary pop and ballads. The title track, of course, is the best example of the dance side, but "Landslide," "Make a Move on Me," and "Promise (Dolphin Song)" illustrate that Physical wasn't a one-hit record at all -- if anything, they hold up better than the big hit. There is some filler here -- none of her records were free from that curse -- but it's well-made filler and helps make Physical one of the most enjoyable albums of her career. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Music Guide

Tracks

Track TitleComposersPerformersTime
Landslide John Farrar Olivia Newton-John (4:20)
Stranger's Touch (Lyrics) John Farrar, Steve Kipner Olivia Newton-John (3:44)
Make a Move on Me (Lyrics) John Farrar, Tom Snow Olivia Newton-John (3:12)
Falling John Farrar Olivia Newton-John (3:43)
Love Make Me Strong (Lyrics) Terry Britten Olivia Newton-John (3:07)
Physical (Lyrics) Steve Kipner, Terry Shaddick Olivia Newton-John (3:41)
Silvery Rain Hank Marvin Olivia Newton-John (3:38)
Carried Away (Lyrics) Barry Gibb, Albhy Galuten Olivia Newton-John (3:43)
Recovery (Lyrics) John Farrar, Tom Snow Olivia Newton-John (4:16)
The Promise (The Dolphin Song) Olivia Newton-John Olivia Newton-John (4:34)

Credits

Olivia Newton-John (Vocals), Olivia Newton-John (Main Performer), Victor Feldman (Percussion), John Farrar (Bass), John Farrar (Guitar), John Farrar (Vocals), John Farrar (Producer), Steve Kipner (?), Tom Snow (Synthesizer), Michael Boddicker (Synthesizer), Lenny Castro (Percussion), Bill Cuomo (Synthesizer), Gary Herbig (Horn), John Hobbs (Synthesizer), John Hobbs (Keyboards), David J. Holman (Engineer), Carlos Vega (Percussion), Carlos Vega (Drums), William Bowden (Engineer), Herb Ritts (Photography), George Osaki (Art Direction), George Osaki (Cover Design)
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Wikipedia: Physical (Olivia Newton-John album)
Top
Physical
Studio album by Olivia Newton-John
Released October 1981
Recorded 1981
Genre Pop
Adult contemporary
Length 38:46
Label MCA
Producer John Farrar
Professional reviews
Olivia Newton-John chronology
Xanadu
(1980)
Physical
(1981)
Olivia's Greatest Hits Vol. 2
(1982)
Singles from Physical
  1. "Physical"
    Released: 1981
  2. "Make A Move On Me"
    Released: 1982
  3. "Landslide"
    Released: 1982

Physical is an album by the Australian singer Olivia Newton-John, released in 1981.

Contents

Chart Success

It was certified double platinum, peaking at No. 6 on the Billboard albums chart. This was also Newton-John's first and only album to chart R&B, peaking at No. 32. With country music completely overlooked for this album, this unsurprisingly became Newton-John's first studio album not to chart country since her 1971 debut, If Not for You.
Physical is the best selling album by a female Australian singer, selling 10,000,000 copies worldwide.

Singles

The title track was Newton-John's biggest pop single ever spending 10 weeks atop Billboard's Hot 100. Physical tied Debby Boone's You Light Up My Life as the then longest running No.1 on the Billboard Hot 100 by a female artist. (Whitney Houston broke the record when I Will Always Love You spent 14 weeks atop the Hot 100). Physical also peaked at No. 29 AC and No. 28 R&B (her only entry on the R&B singles chart). The album also yielded the singles Make A Move On Me (No. 5 - Pop, No. 6 - AC) and Landslide (No. 52 - Pop).

Track listing

All tracks composed by John Farrar; except where indicated

Side A

  1. "Landslide" – 4:21
  2. "Stranger's Touch" (Farrar, Steve Kipner) – 3:48
  3. "Make a Move on Me" (Farrar, Tom Snow) – 3:15
  4. "Falling" – 3:43
  5. "Love Make Me Strong" (Terry Britten, Sue Shifrin) – 3:06

Side B

  1. "Physical" (Steve Kipner, Terry Shaddick) – 3:44
  2. "Silvery Rain" (Hank Marvin) – 3:38
  3. "Carried Away" (Barry Gibb, Albhy Galuten) – 3:46
  4. "Recovery" (Farrar, Tom Snow) – 4:17
  5. "Promise (The Dolphin Song)" (Olivia Newton-John) – 4:39

Musician

Credit

Charts

Album - Billboard (North America)

Year Chart Position
1981 Pop Albums 6
1981 Black Albums 32

Singles - Billboard (North America)

Year Single Chart Position
1981 "Physical" Pop Singles 1 (10 weeks)
1981 "Physical" Adult Contemporary 29
1982 "Physical" Black Singles 28
1982 "Physical" Club Play Singles 22
1982 "Make A Move On Me" Pop Singles 5
1982 "Make A Move On Me" Adult Contemporary 6
1982 "Landslide" Pop Singles 52

 
 

 

Copyrights:

Album Review. Copyright © 2009 All Media Guide, LLC. Content provided by All Music Guide ®, a trademark of All Media Guide, LLC. All rights reserved.  Read more
Wikipedia. This article is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Physical (Olivia Newton-John album)" Read more