Happy #SongLyricsSunday! It has been a rollercoaster these past couple of weeks. I first got a cold that then turn into COVID. I am getting better, just resting and watching the world go by in my apartment. Anyways, today’s #SLS prompt is to find a song that was turned down by recording artists that went on to become big hits. The song I picked is “Waiting For a Star to Fall” by 80s American pop music duo Boy Meets Girl. It was actually a song that I picked to be my favorite song in my yearbook (and I think I was the only student to pick an 80s song in the class of 2007).
But, did you know that “Waiting For a Star to Fall” was rejected not only one time but TWICE by female singers that were well-known in the late 80s. Let’s explore the song a little more and find out who rejects this hit tune.
Rejected, Rejected, Success!
“Waiting For a Star to Fall” was released and written by American pop-music duo Boy Meets Girl for their 1988 album Real Life. The duo consisted of keyboardist and vocalist George Merrill and singer Shannon Rubicam who wrote pretty big hits in the 80s. Remember Whitney Houston’s “How Will I Know” and “I Wanna Dance with Somebody (Who Loves Me)”? Yep, they wrote that.
The song was inspired by a real falling star that Rubicam saw at a Whitney Houston concert at the Greek Theatre in Los Angeles. That is who the duo pitched the song to first. They went to Clive Davis‘ office to see if he would include the track on her second album Whitney. Davis rejected it and said it didn’t fit her style. Then, the duo offered the song to Belinda Carlisle for her album Heaven on Earth. She hated the song and said no, This left the duo to release the song by themselves.
And, it was a hit! “Waiting For a Star to Fall” was number five on the US Billboard Hot 100 and a top ten hit in the UK, Ireland, and Canada. It was also used as the closing theme for the 1990 movie Three Men and a Little Lady. Since its release, it has been covered by many artists over the decades. Whitney and Belinda missed out on a great hit song!
I like the song as it’s very 80s, especially with the sax solo during the musical break. But, I really love the lyrics too because they are sweet. I wanted my boyfriend to sing this song to me in high school as it is just about the sweetest love you could ever find. How about you, what do you think about the song? Listen below and tell me in the comments!
The Rules for #SongLyricsSunday
(This challenge is currently hosted by the generous Jim Adams.)
Anyone can participate in #SongLyricsSunday, even if you aren’t a music blogger! If you want to participate, here are the rules:
- Post the lyrics to the song of your choice, whether it fits the theme or not.
- Please try to include the songwriter(s) – it’s a good idea to give credit where credit is due.
- Make sure you also credit the singer/band and if you desire you can provide a link to where you found the lyrics.
- Link to the YouTube video, or pull it into your post so others can listen to the song.
- Pingback to this post will eventually work, as long as you are being patient, but you can also place your link in the comments if you don’t like to wait.
- Read at least one other person’s blog, so we can all share new and fantastic music and create amazing new blogging friends in the process.
- Feel free to suggest future prompts.
- Have fun and enjoy the music.
