"Beyond Your Wildest Dreams" is a ballad written by British hitmaking team

Stock Aitken & Waterman Stock Aitken Waterman (abbreviated as SAW) are an English songwriting and record production trio consisting of Mike Stock, Matt Aitken, and Pete Waterman. The trio had great success from the mid-1980s through the early 1990s. SAW is considered ...

, which was recorded by three of their artists,

Lonnie Gordon Lonnie Gordon (born November 8, 1965, Philadelphia) is an American female dance, pop and Contemporary R&B, R&B singer and songwriter. She scored several record chart, chart hit record, hits during the 1990s, most notably for her 1990 United King ...

Sybil Sibyls were oracular women believed to possess prophetic powers in ancient Greece. Sybil or Sibyl may also refer to: Films * ''Sybil'' (1921 film) * ''Sybil'' (1976 film), a film starring Sally Field * ''Sybil'' (2007 film), a remake of the 19 ...

, and Nancy Davis. The songwriters have cited this song as one of the best they ever wrote, and were dissatisfied with its poor chart performance. Gordon and Sybil's versions were released as singles.

Lonnie Gordon version

The song was written for American singer-songwriter

, and was released as the follow-up to her breakthrough top 10 hit "

Happenin' All Over Again "Happenin' All Over Again" is a song written and produced by Stock Aitken & Waterman for American singer Lonnie Gordon's first album, '' If I Have to Stand Alone'' (1990). It was released as the album's second single on January 15, 1990, and reac ...

". Initially the follow-up single was going to be another song, the uptempo "How Could He Do This To Me", however disagreements with the label led to a change of the single choice and "Beyond Your Wildest Dreams" was released instead. These disagreements created a delay on the release of the single and it was finally released in August 1990, seven months after "Happenin' All Over Again" had entered the UK charts. The song peaked at number 48 on the

UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...

. Reasons for this failure may have been the long gap between singles, which may have died off public interest in Gordon, and also the fact that she released a ballad, when the public was expecting a song more in the vein of her first hit. "Beyond Your Wildest Dreams" was later included on Gordon's 1991 debut album, ''

If I Have to Stand Alone ''If I Have to Stand Alone'' is the debut album by Hi-NRG and house singer Lonnie Gordon, released in 1990 on Supreme Records. It includes Gordon's breakthrough hit "Happenin' All Over Again", which was a top 10 hit in the UK and Ireland. However ...

'', in an extended version.

Critical reception

Pan-European magazine ''

Music & Media ''Music & Media'' was a pan-European magazine for radio, music and entertainment. It was published for the first time in 1984 as ''Eurotipsheet'', but in 1986 it changed name to ''Music & Media''. It was originally based in Amsterdam, but later ...

'' commented, "...this

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...

-born singer has now teamed-up with the

SAW A saw is a tool consisting of a tough blade, wire, or chain with a hard toothed edge. It is used to cut through material, very often wood, though sometimes metal or stone. The cut is made by placing the toothed edge against the material and mo ...

production team. The result is excellent. A smooth soul/pop record that gives Gordon's excellent voice every chance to shine. Reminiscent of SAW's

Donna Summer LaDonna Adrian Gaines (December 31, 1948May 17, 2012), known professionally as Donna Summer, was an American singer and songwriter. She gained prominence during the disco era of the 1970s and became known as the " Queen of Disco", while her mus ...

collaboration." David Giles from ''

Music Week ''Music Week'' is a trade publication for the UK record industry distributed via a website and a monthly print magazine. It is published by Future. History Founded in 1959 as '' Record Retailer'', it relaunched on 18 March 1972 as ''Music W ...

'' wrote, "Follow-up to her top five hit

, but a distinct shift in style for the SAW production team moving away from the

Hi-NRG Hi-NRG (pronounced "high energy") is a genre of uptempo disco or electronic dance music (EDM) that originated in the United States during the late 1970s and early 1980s. As a music genre, typified by fast tempo, staccato hi-hat rhythms (and the ...

field towards a mellower, laid-back soulful feel."

Track listing

* CD single (French) #"Beyond Your Wildest Dreams" 6:48 #"Beyond Your Wildest Dreams" (senza voce) 3:48 #"Beyond Your Wildest Dreams" 3:15

Charts

Sybil version

American artist

worked with Mike Stock and Pete Waterman in 1993 (by that time, Matt Aitken had left the trio), and had two top 10 hits with a cover of "

The Love I Lost "The Love I Lost" is a song by American R&B group Harold Melvin & the Blue Notes. Originally written as a ballad by Philly soul songwriters Kenny Gamble and Leon Huff, the song was transformed into a disco song and features drummer Earl Young. I ...

" and the Stock/Waterman original "

When I'm Good and Ready "When I'm Good and Ready" is a song by American R&B and pop singer-songwriter Sybil, released on March 8, 1993 as the first single from her fifth album, ''Good 'N' Ready'' (1993). Written and produced by Stock/Waterman, it also features backi ...

". Her cover of "Beyond Your Wildest Dreams" was chosen as the third single off her fifth album, ''

Good 'N' Ready ''Good 'N' Ready'' is an album by American singer Sybil, released in 1993. It includes the singles " The Love I Lost" ( UK No. 3), "When I'm Good and Ready" (UK No. 5), "Beyond Your Wildest Dreams" (UK No. 41) and "Stronger Together" (UK No. 41 ...

'' (1993), and was released in June 1993. It charted higher than the original version, but it only managed a number-41 peak on the UK Singles Chart. Later in 1993, Sybil released the album in the United States, retitled ''

Doin' It Now! ''Doin' It Now!'' is the fourth studio album by American singer Sybil, released in 1993. Background For this album, Sybil worked with different producers, including Mike Stock and Pete Waterman, Denise Rich, Prince Charles Alexander and others ...

'' and featuring a different track listing from the ''Good 'N' Ready'' album, omitting some tracks and adding new ones. Although "Beyond Your Wildest Dreams" was not included on the ''Doin' It Now!'' album, it was released as the second single off it in September 1993. The US single version is a very different hip-hop styled remix with a male rapper. The song peaked at number 90 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart. It also charted on the

Bubbling Under R&B/Hip-Hop Singles The Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart ranks the most popular R&B and hip hop songs in the United States and is published weekly by ''Billboard''. Rankings are based on a measure of radio airplay, sales data, and streaming activity. The chart had 100 p ...

chart. Sybil filmed video clips for both versions of the song.

Critical reception

Larry Flick Larry Flick is an American journalist, former dance music columnist, single reviewer, and Senior Talent Editor for ''Billboard'' magazine, where he worked for 14 years. Now he produces and hosts Sirius XM radio shows. Flick started in the music ...

from ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

'' wrote, "British pop hit has been added to Sybil's current '' Doin' It Now'' opus. Percolating pop/dance ditty glides along at a friendly pace, with a silky vocal, rousing hand-claps, and appropriate hip-hop beat flavors." Alan Jones from ''

'' rated it four out of five, adding, "After her two club hits, Sybil drops a few bpms to forge an attractive shuffle beat for this remake of the song first recorded by

. A majestic performance ensures that this will be yet another hit." James Hamilton from the magazine's ''RM'' Dance Update described it as "pleasant classy".

Charts

References

{{Authority control 1990 singles 1993 singles Lonnie Gordon songs Sybil (singer) songs Song recordings produced by Stock Aitken Waterman Songs written by Pete Waterman Songs written by Matt Aitken Songs written by Mike Stock (musician) 1990 songs Pete Waterman Entertainment singles Supreme Records singles Pop ballads