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8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
The Before and After Review, January 14, 2005
In October 1981, Olivia Newton-John released "Physical"
BEFORE:
The poster-girl of sweet wholesome pop music, Olivia began changing her image in Grease and the "Totally Hot" album which followed suit. She also had appeared in the movie Xanadu, which flopped but had a hit soundtrack. This was to be her first studio album in three years.
AFTER:
The title track was a #1 hit for ten weeks (making it the #1 song of the 1980's), the album went double platinum and peaked at #6. The album had another top five hit with "Make A Move On Me". Olivia was on top of the world at the moment. Hosting SNL, preparing to open Koala Blue, and embarking on a wildly successful 1982 tour. This was the peak of Olivia's popularity.
While Physical, the track, has been overplayed to the extent that the song is a caricature instead of an actual record, the album as a whole retains as the strongest album of Livvy's career.
1. Landslide (5/5) is the perfect leadoff single. The song is fast, dancy and sets the pace for the record.
2. Stranger's Touch (5/5) is even better (a shame it wound up on a b-side). The sexiest moment off the album.
3. Make A Move On Me (5/5) is a classic and is catchy as hell. The video was terrible but the song makes up for it.
4. Falling (5/5) is a beautiful acoustic haunting ballad about falling in love.
5. Love Make Me Strong (3.5/5) is a good song but probably the worst track.
6. Physical (5/5), what needs to be said about it? everyone knows this song.
7. Silvery Rain (5/5). Olivia was caring about the environment back when most of the "environmentalist" rock stars weren't even signed yet. The song rocks and is one of the best of the album. Starts out like a mellow 70's ONJ rock song and then becomes a rocker during the chorus. Even though Cliff Richard did the song a decade before Livvy, you can tell she deeply cares about the lyrics.
8. Carried Away (4.5/5). A pretty Gibb ballad that was originally written but then rejected for Barbra Streisand's "Guilty" album, and it probably wouldn't have fit there because it's structured a little too much like "Woman In Love". A soothing upbeat early 80's ballad you could listen to in the tub.
9. Recovery (4/5) kinda reminds me of "(Want You) Back In My Life" by The Carpenters. Kind of a tropical sounding sound with very audible John Farrar background vocals.
10. The Promise (4.5/5). Another environmentalist ballad. Very beautiful and Olivia sings about her love for dolphins (you can hear dolphins in the background). A beautiful song.
I would love Universal to remaster this (I know there's an import) and add some bonus tracks from the period... I heard Olivia recorded a demo of "I Paralyse" around this album, which ended up being recorded by Cher the next year (which was produced by Farrar too)
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11 of 12 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Once you press play, you can't press stop., October 9, 1999
By A Customer
There's something intriging about PHYSICAL, that hasn't occured before or since. The music isn't as mellow or goregous as her early country records(1971-1975),nor is it as production heavy or deep as her mid seventies albums, but it is unbeatable. "Landslide" is fantastic, after hearing it the first tie, I had to play it again. "Straner's Touch" is good. "Make A Move On Me" is a classic, a terific dance number with fantastic vocals. "Falling" cools things down, but fits in with the rest of the music. "Love Make Me Strong" is breath-taking, bring the music back to uptempo. "Physical" Olivia's biggest single, spending 10 weeks at #1, is another classic. "Silvery Rain" is outstanding, you can almost hear the raindrops. Olivia's voice glides gracefully in the verses, but at the refrain she gives us her rock voice, and it's a delight. "Carried Away" is beautiful, with gorgeous vocal harmonies. "Recovery" is stunning. "The Promise" brings the album to a thoughtful and meaningful close. PHYSICAL is one of the best Olivia albums, in terms of consisitency, song selection and variety. She gives us the right amount of fast and slow songs, and goregous vocal harmonies, clever arrangements, and great songs. After buying PHYSICAL, I just had to hear TOTALLY HOT, but thanks to MCA, I had to buy an import copy. The two records blend together perfectly, it would be nice if TOTALY HOT was available just as easily. PHYSICAL is sure to please. Once I press play, I won't get up and hit stop until the last note of "The Promise". PHYSICAL is that good.
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6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Olivia's "Physical" : The One That You Want, October 24, 2000
"Physical" is a solid state of the art pop album that found Newton-John at the pinnacle of her commerical stride. The collection contains an even mix of ballads and uptempto songs that appeal to the masses (it sold over 2 million copies.) The title track muscled it's way to #1 and with incredible stamina remained there an outstanding 10 weeks. It remains one of the most popular pop tunes of all time and the top single of the 1980's! Produced by John Farrar (who wrote the majority of Livvy's hits), this collection opens with the pulsating beats of the electric track "Landslide," glides into "Stranger's Touch" which highlights Olivia's beguiling vocals. "Make A Move On Me" is a formulac, tongue in cheek, upbeat dance number that also ignited the pop charts(#5). This is followed by a ballad done in the classic Newton-John vein, "Falling." This segues beautifully into the upbeat and inspirational "Love Make Me Strong," in which the singer elicits a confident and self assured delivery. The title track simply rocks, with attitude! "Silvery Rain" serves as an environmental plea in which Olivia addresses the issues of pollution. It's a uptempto number with a message. "Carried Away" contains some lovely harmonies inspired by its writer, Barry Gibb of the Bee Gees. "Recovery" is the consummate breakup song. The album quietly concludes with Olivia's self-penned, heartfelt composition, "The Promise {The Dolphin Song}," The album is accompanied with a full length collection of music videos that cover the entire album and includes several bonus tracks: ("A Little More Love," "Magic," "Hopelessly Devoted To You"). Olivia was the first recipient of a Grammy award for Best Video Performance in 1981. Filled with colorful sets and elaborate costumes, the video is the ultimate visual companion to the album.
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