"Unexpected Song" is a 1984 song from the musical ''

Song and Dance ''Song and Dance'' is a musical comprising two acts, one told entirely in "Song" and one entirely in " Dance", tied together by a unifying love story. The "Song" act is '' Tell Me on a Sunday'', with lyrics by Don Black and music by Andrew ...

'' originally sung (on Broadway) by

Bernadette Peters Bernadette Peters ( ''née'' Lazzara; born February 28, 1948) is an American actress, singer, and children's book author. Over a career spanning more than six decades, she has starred in musical theatre, television and film, performed in solo co ...

. The music was written by Andrew Lloyd Webber, with lyrics by Don Black. It is one of Lloyd Webber's most frequently performed compositions.

Background

The music for "Unexpected Song" originates from Lloyd Webber's instrumental album ''

Variations Variation or Variations may refer to: Science and mathematics * Variation (astronomy), any perturbation of the mean motion or orbit of a planet or satellite, particularly of the moon * Genetic variation, the difference in DNA among individua ...

'', much of which became the dance music in the second half of Lloyd Webber's musical ''Song and Dance''. Black wrote lyrics to one of the tracks, "Variation 5," which became "Unexpected Song." The song was released by

Marti Webb Marti Webb (born 13 December 1943) is an English actress and singer, who appeared on stage in '' Evita'', before starring in Andrew Lloyd Webber's one-woman show '' Tell Me on a Sunday'' in 1980. This included her biggest hit single, " Take T ...

and

Justin Hayward David Justin Hayward (born 14 October 1946) is an English musician best known as the lead singer, songwriter and guitarist of the rock band the Moody Blues. Hayward became the group's principal lead guitarist and vocalist over the 1967–1974 ...

as a duet in 1981. Later, Black wrote new lyrics to the melody and retitled the song "When You Want to Fall in Love." The original lyrics were re-instated when the show was re-written for Sarah Brightman's run. Brightman released the song as a single in 1984. "Unexpected Song" was later used in Lloyd Webber's and Black's reworking of the show, returning to the original album title of ''

Tell Me on a Sunday ''Tell Me on a Sunday'' is a musical with music by Andrew Lloyd Webber and lyrics by Don Black. A one-woman show, it has been performed by a number of female singers/actors, most notably Marti Webb and Bernadette Peters. A one-act song cycl ...

''.

Composition

"Unexpected Song" is a ballad.

Chart performance

Brightman's single peaked at #76 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 ...

Track listing

# "Unexpected Song" # "Come Back With the Same Look in Your Eyes"

Covers

on ''Song & Dance: Original Broadway Cast Recording'' (1985) *

Michael Crawford Michael Patrick Smith, (born 19 January 1942), known professionally as Michael Crawford, is an English tenor, actor and comedian. Crawford is best known for playing both the hapless Frank Spencer in the sitcom '' Some Mothers Do 'Ave 'Em'' a ...

, with the

London Symphony Orchestra The London Symphony Orchestra (LSO) is a British symphony orchestra based in London. Founded in 1904, the LSO is the oldest of London's symphony orchestras. The LSO was created by a group of players who left Henry Wood's Queen's Hall Orc ...

, on '' Songs from the Stage and Screen'' (1987) * Paul Jones on ''The Andrew Lloyd Webber Collection'' (1991) * Clare Burt on ''Aspects of Andrew Lloyd Webber Volume 2'' (1996) *

Michael Ball Michael Ashley Ball (born 27 June 1962) is an English singer, presenter and actor. He made his West End debut in 1985 playing Marius Pontmercy in the original London production of ''Les Misérables'', and went on to star in 1987 as Raoul in ...

on Julian Lloyd Webber's ''

Unexpected Songs ''Unexpected Songs'' is a 2006 album by Julian Lloyd Webber. Track listing # "Star of the County Down"/"Lady D'Arbanville" by Cat Stevens/Trad. arr. Chowhan # "Oblivion" by Ástor Piazzolla arr. Lenehan # "Marble Halls" by Michael Balfe # "Prelu ...

'' (2006) * Anthony Warlow on ''Best of Act One'' * Denise Van Outen on ''Tell Me On a Sunday'' (2006) *

Myrra Malmberg Anna Myrra Malmberg (born 20 December 1966) is a Swedish singer, songwriter, actress and photographer. Early life Anna Myrra Malmberg was born in the Stockholm suburb of Farsta,Sveriges befolkning 1980: ''Malmberg, Anna Margareta'' and spent ...

on ''Unexpected: Myrra Malmberg Sings Lloyd Webber'' (1997) *

Dave Willetts Dave Willetts (born 24 June 1952) is an English singer and actor known for having leading roles in West End musicals. Early life Born in Marston Green, Birmingham, in 1952 and then brought up in Acocks Green. He first went to Cottesbrooke ...

on ''The Musicals Unplugged'' (2003) *

Marie Osmond Olive Marie Osmond (born October 13, 1959) is an American singer, actress, television host, and a member of the show business family the Osmonds. Although she was never part of her family's singing group, she gained success as a country and pop ...

on ''Unexpected'' (2021)

References

1984 singles Songs from musicals Sarah Brightman songs Songs with music by Andrew Lloyd Webber Songs with lyrics by Don Black (lyricist) 1984 songs {{1980s-single-stub