Waiting for a Star to Fall

"Waiting for a Star to Fall" is a song released by the pop duo Boy Meets Girl in 1988. It was a worldwide hit and became their signature song. Since its release, it has been remixed and covered by many artists, including Cabin Crew and Sunset Strippers.

"Waiting for a Star to Fall"
Single by Boy Meets Girl
from the album Reel Life
B-side"No Apologies"
ReleasedJune 10, 1988
Format
Recorded1988
GenrePop
Length4:32
LabelRCA
Songwriter(s)Shannon Rubicam, George Merrill
Producer(s)Arif Mardin
Boy Meets Girl singles chronology
"Oh Girl"
(1985)		 "Waiting for a Star to Fall"
(1988)		 "Bring Down the Moon"
(1988)
Music video
"Waiting for a Star to Fall” on YouTube

Background

"Waiting for a Star to Fall" was written by Shannon Rubicam and George Merrill, and was inspired by an actual falling star that Rubicam had seen during a Whitney Houston concert at the Greek Theatre in Los Angeles. The duo did not initially consider recording the song themselves, instead submitting it to Houston's manager Clive Davis, in the hope that he would decide to use it on her next album. Even though Rubicam and Merrill had written Houston's previous hits "How Will I Know" and "I Wanna Dance with Somebody (Who Loves Me)", Davis rejected "Waiting for a Star to Fall", suggesting that it did not suit her.[1] The song was then offered to and recorded by Belinda Carlisle for her 1987 release Heaven on Earth, at the insistence of her label, but Carlisle disliked it and refused to include it on the album.[2] This version has, however, circulated on an unofficial compilation of that album's outtakes.[3]

The tenor saxophone solo on the Boy Meets Girl version was provided in a session recording early in the career of Andy Snitzer, who later found success as a solo artist.[4]

Release and reception

Merrill and Rubicam decided to record the song themselves for their second album Reel Life. Released as a single on June 10, 1988, it became a hit in the United States, slowly climbing the charts and eventually reaching number one on the Billboard Adult Contemporary Chart[5] and number five on the Billboard Hot 100.[6] Released in the United Kingdom on November 30, 1988, the song reached number nine on the UK charts during January 1989, having entered the chart in December 1988. It remains their sole top-40 hit in the UK.[7] It also reached number 35 on Australia's ARIA Charts in April 1989.

The song was used as the closing track to the 1990 movie Three Men and a Little Lady, and the single was re-released as a movie tie-in, with a new picture sleeve featuring the actors of the film. It peaked at number 76 in the UK.

The video game Grand Theft Auto IV included the song in the playlist for the in-game radio station Vice City FM.[8]

Johnny Loftus of AllMusic remarked that the song was "just classic", and that "the urgency as it drives toward its chorus is a clinic for durable songwriting."[9]

Music video

The video for the song, directed by Australian director Claudia Castle, features scenes of Merrill and Rubicam singing it on a beach and inside a house.[10] Also featured are scenes of a group of children playing with bubbles, including the couple's young daughter Hilary.[3]

Personnel
  • George Merrill: lead vocals, piano, synthesizer, bass guitar, drum programming
  • John Goux: guitar
  • Denny Fongheiser: drums
  • Michael Jochum: additional drums
  • Andy Snitzer: saxophone
  • Shannon Rubicam, Susan Boyd: vocals
  • Joe Mardin: synthesizer[11]

Charts and certifications

Covers and remixes
"Star to Fall"
Single by Cabin Crew
Released2005
Format12", CD
Length2:47 (radio edit)
LabelData, Ultra
Songwriter(s)Shannon Rubicam, George Merrill
Producer(s)Ben Garden, Rob Kittler
Cabin Crew singles chronology
"Star to Fall"
(2005)		 "Can't Stop It"
(2008)
"Falling Stars"
Single by Sunset Strippers
Released2005
Format12", CD
Length3:19
LabelKontor, Direction
Songwriter(s)Shannon Rubicam, George Merrill, Sunset Strippers

The song has been covered and remixed several times. The most commercially successful versions came in 2005, when Australian musical group Cabin Crew remixed the song as "Star to Fall" (or "Star2Fall") but were refused the sampling of the original lyrics by Sony BMG. Liking what Cabin Crew had done, however, George Merrill agreed to re-record the vocals. Cabin Crew's version peaked at number four on the UK Singles Chart in March 2005. Meanwhile, Sony BMG had British musical group Sunset Strippers remix the original track under the title "Falling Stars", which was released a week after the Cabin Crew version and reached number three on the UK Singles Chart.

Charts

Other covers
  • The track "In My Arms" by British electronic musician Mylo sampled the song and was featured on Mylo's album Destroy Rock & Roll. His version also sampled Kim Carnes' "Bette Davis Eyes" and made it to number 13 in the United Kingdom in 2005.
  • In 2007, German hardstyle musician Dan Winter recorded a remix titled "Carry Your Heart".
  • In 2012, Italian Melodic Rock band Lionville covered the song on their album Lionville II.
  • In December 2013, a folk cover of the song by Icelandic singer Yohanna surfaced on the Internet.[60]
  • In March 2014, a folk cover of the song by English singer Diana Vickers surfaced on the Internet.[61]
  • In September 2017, Australian singer George Maple interpolated the song as part of her single "Hero"[62]

References
  1. Spears, Steve (2017-09-15). "Why didn't anybody want to record 'Waiting For a Star to Fall?'". Tampa Bay Times. Retrieved 2019-08-07.
  2. Zimbio (June 14, 2013). "28 Musicians Who Turned Down Hit Songs". Business Insider. Retrieved August 7, 2019.
  3. Belinda Carlisle - Waiting for a Star To Fall. 2 March 2010 – via YouTube.
  4. "SmoothViews - Keeping Smooth Jazz in Sight". www.smoothviews.com.
  5. "Boy Meets Girl Chart History". billboard.com. Retrieved 6 December 2009.
  6. "Boy Meets Girl – Waiting for a Star to Fall – Chart History". Billboard. Retrieved July 3, 2018.
  7. "Boy Meets Girl Official Charts Company". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 6 December 2009.
  8. VICE CITY FM: Boy Meets Girl - Waiting For A Star To Fall. 16 May 2010 – via YouTube.
  9. Johnny Loftus. "Reel Life – Boy Meets Girl – Review". Allmusic. Retrieved March 5, 2012.
  10. Boy Meets Girl - Waiting for a Star to Fall. 21 February 2014 – via YouTube.
  11. Boy Meets Girl- Reel Life LP (lists song-by-song personnel) @Discogs.com Retrieved 7-11-2014.
  12. "Australian-charts.com – Boy Meets Girl – Waiting for a Star to Fall". ARIA Top 50 Singles. Retrieved June 18, 2019.
  13. "Ultratop.be – Boy Meets Girl – Waiting for a Star to Fall" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. Retrieved June 18, 2019.
  14. "RPM 100 Singles" (PDF). RPM. Vol. 49 no. 11. January 14, 1989. p. 6. Retrieved June 18, 2019.
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  16. "The Irish Charts – Search Results – Waiting for a Star to Fall". Irish Singles Chart.
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  23. "Waiting for a star to fall". wweb.uta.edu.
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  25. "Top 100 Singles of '88" (PDF). RPM. Vol. 49 no. 10. December 24, 1988. p. 9. Retrieved March 24, 2019.
  26. "Top Singles - Volume 51, No. 8, December 23, 1989". RPM. December 23, 1999. Retrieved November 22, 2017.
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  28. "Billboard Top 100 – 1989".
  29. "British single certifications – Boy Meets Girl – Waiting for a Star to Fall". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved October 11, 2018. Select singles in the Format field. Select Silver in the Certification field. Type Waiting for a Star to Fall in the "Search BPI Awards" field and then press Enter.
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  31. "Austriancharts.at – Cabin Crew – Star to Fall" (in German). Ö3 Austria Top 40. Retrieved October 11, 2018.
  32. "Ultratop.be – Cabin Crew – Star to Fall" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. Retrieved October 11, 2018.
  33. "Hits of the World – Eurocharts" (PDF). Billboard. Vol. 117 no. 12. March 19, 2005. p. 41. Retrieved April 4, 2020.
  34. "Cabin Crew: Star to Fall" (in Finnish). Musiikkituottajat – IFPI Finland. Retrieved October 11, 2018.
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  38. "Top 10 Dance Singles, Week Ending 3 March 2005". GfK Chart-Track. Retrieved June 18, 2019.
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  41. "Dutchcharts.nl – Cabin Crew – Star to Fall" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved October 11, 2018.
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  45. "Official Dance Singles Chart Top 40". Official Charts Company. Retrieved October 11, 2018.
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  52. "Hits of the World – Eurocharts" (PDF). Billboard. Vol. 117 no. 13. March 26, 2005. p. 37. Retrieved April 4, 2020.
  53. "Offiziellecharts.de – Sunset Strippers – Falling Stars (Waiting for a Star to Fall)". GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved October 11, 2018.
  54. "The Irish Charts – Search Results – Falling Stars". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved January 29, 2020.
  55. "Top 10 Dance Singles, Week Ending 10 March 2005". GfK Chart-Track. Retrieved June 18, 2019.
  56. "Official Scottish Singles Sales Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved October 11, 2018.
  57. "Swedishcharts.com – Sunset Strippers – Falling Stars (Waiting for a Star to Fall)". Singles Top 100. Retrieved October 11, 2018.
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  59. "Official Dance Singles Chart Top 40". Official Charts Company. Retrieved October 11, 2018.
  60. "Song "Waiting For A Star To Fall"". www.yohanna.de. Retrieved December 17, 2017.
  61. Jord C (March 20, 2014). "Diana Vickers - Waiting For a Star to Fall". Retrieved December 17, 2017.
  62. "George Maple - Hero (Official Video)" – via www.youtube.com.
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