"Starmaker" is a song written by Bruce Roberts and

Carole Bayer Carole is a feminine given name (see Carl (name), Carl for more information) and occasionally a surname. Carole may refer to: Given name *Carole B. Balin (born 1964), American Reform rabbi, professor of Jewish history *Carole Bayer Sager (born 19 ...

Sager for Roberts' self-titled album in 1977. It was later popularized in 1982 as the second single by

The Kids from "Fame" The Kids from "Fame" was the group name of several cast members from the American TV series '' Fame'' who had a number of hit singles and albums at the height of the show's success in the United Kingdom. This success culminated in tours of Britain, ...

, the recording group of the ''Fame'' TV series based on the 1980 film of the same name.

released five albums and five singles in the UK between 1982 and 1983 with music featured in the TV show. The group's self-titled debut album was released in July 1982 which topped the

UK Albums Chart The Official Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales and (from March 2015) audio streaming in the United Kingdom. It was published for the first time on 22 July 1956 and is compiled every week by the Official Charts C ...

for twelve weeks. Their debut single "Hi Fidelity" was released and this reached number 5 while their second single "Starmaker" entered the UK charts at number 38, then stayed on the charts for 10 weeks peaking at number 3, the highest charting of

's singles. In 1983 the song reached fifth place in the Dutch chart, with nine weeks in total. In the United States, WIFI -AM- Philadelphia deemed it a Playlist Top Add-on. According to ''

The Radio Times ''Radio Times'' (currently styled as ''RadioTimes'') is a British weekly listings magazine devoted to television and radio programme schedules, with other features such as interviews, film reviews and lifestyle items. Founded in May 1923 by J ...

'', the scene has added poignancy due to the fact that actor Michael Thoma was nearing the end of his battle against cancer. The cast performed the song at the 21 October 1982 episode of ''

Top of the Pops ''Top of the Pops'' (''TOTP'') is a British Record chart, music chart television programme, made by the BBC and originally broadcast weekly between 1January 1964 and 30 July 2006. The programme was the world's longest-running weekly music show ...

'', and included it as the fifth track in their The Kids from Fame Live! concert and album in 1983. In 2003, some of the cast members were reunited by the

BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board ex ...

for a special programme, in which the group performed "Starmaker" to a piano arrangement by

Lee Curreri Leonard Charles "Lee" Curreri (born January 4, 1961) is an American actor and musician, most known for his work in the film, '' Fame'' (1980) and its television spinoff, '' Fame'' (1982–1987). Life and work Curreri was born in New York City, in ...

who played Bruno Martelli in the series. The song has also been covered in

Paul Anka Paul Albert Anka (born July 30, 1941) is a Canadian-American singer, songwriter and actor. He is best known for his signature hit songs including " Diana", " Lonely Boy", "Put Your Head on My Shoulder", and " (You're) Having My Baby". Anka also ...

's 1978 album ''Listen to Your Heart''

Judy Collins Judith Marjorie Collins (born May 1, 1939) is an American singer-songwriter and musician with a career spanning seven decades. An Academy Award-nominated documentary director and a Grammy Award-winning recording artist, she is known for her ec ...

' 1979 album ''

Hard Times for Lovers ''Hard Times for Lovers'' is the twelfth studio album by American singer and songwriter Judy Collins, released by Elektra Records in 1979. This was Collins' first new recording since ''Bread and Roses'' in 1976; it earned some extra publicity ...

'', and Lindsay Shawn & Maxdown's 2014 album, ''Vintage Ballads''.

References

{{Reflist 1977 songs 1982 singles Bruce Roberts (singer) songs