"Impossible" | ||||
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Single by Captain Hollywood Project | ||||
from the album Love Is Not Sex | ||||
Released | 1 October 1993 | |||
Length | 4:14 | |||
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Songwriter(s) |
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Captain Hollywood Project singles chronology | ||||
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Music video | ||||
"Impossible" on YouTube |
"Impossible" is a song by German musician Captain Hollywood Project. It was released in October 1993 by labels Blow Up and Intercord as the fourth single from his debut album, Love Is Not Sex (1993), and features vocals by American singer Kim Sanders. The song was co-written by Nosie Katzmann and Tony Dawson-Harrison (real name of Captain Hollywood), and became a notable hit in several countries. But like "All I Want", it achieved moderate success in comparison with the two previous Captain Hollywood Project's singles, "More and More" and "Only with You". A music video was produced to promote the single, featuring Petra Spiegl instead of Sanders.
In his review of the Love Is Not Sex album, Larry Flick from Billboard wrote that "Impossible" "is another study in contrasts, as [Captain] Hollywood ponders the darkness of greed and power, amid a flurry of active, rave-flavored synth-beats. It is during this particular track that he best exhibits the poise and command of rhyme needed to resurrect the dormant hip-house movement." [1] In his weekly UK chart commentary, James Masterton described it as "Euro-disco in the Culture Beat mould". [2]
James Hamilton from Music Week's RM Dance Update viewed it as a "girl wailed gruffy rapped cheesy typical German techno-pop bounder". [3] Tony Cross from Smash Hits praised the track, giving it four out of five. He wrote, "Front man Tony Dawson-Harrison [...] has come up with a monster dance hit that's impossible not to shake down to. It has the Euro flavour of hits like Culture Beat's "Mr Vain" (which Tony had a hand in) with a powered-up rap beginning. Then it grows to its hypnotic vocal chant — "I find you're a little impossible" - which is packed full of attitude. Expect it to chart very high." [4]
"Impossible" was a notable hit on the charts in Europe, entering the top 10 in Denmark (9), [5] Finland (6), [6] Portugal (3), [7] Spain (9), [8] and Sweden (4), [9] as well as on MTV's European Top 20. Additionally, the single was a top-20 hit in Austria (15), Germany (12), Lithuania, the Netherlands (14) and Switzerland (18). On the Eurochart Hot 100, "Impossible" debuted at number 37 in November 1993, after charting in Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands, Spain and Switzerland. [10] It peaked at number 20 in December, [11] as well as number three on the European Dance Radio Chart. [12] In the United Kingdom, the single reached number 29 in its first week at the UK Singles Chart, on 6 February, [13] but fared better on the UK Music Week Dance Singles chart, peaking at number 14. [14] Outside Europe, "Impossible" was a top-10 hit in Israel, peaking at number nine.
The music video for "Impossible" was directed by Apollon [15] and did for unknown reasons not feature Kim Sanders, but German singer Petra Spiegl. The video was later made available on Altra Moda Music's official YouTube channel in 2017, having generated almost ten million views as of early 2024. [16]
Weekly charts
| Year-end charts
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Region | Date | Format(s) | Label(s) |
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Europe | 1 October 1993 | — |
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United Kingdom [31] | 24 January 1994 |
| Pulse-8 |
"No Limit" is a song recorded by Belgian/Dutch Eurodance group 2 Unlimited, released in January 1993 by Byte, ZYX and PWL. It was their fifth single in total and the first to be released from their second album, No Limits! (1993). Co-written by the group's Ray Slijngaard and Anita Dels, the song became one of their most commercially successful singles, especially in Europe, reaching the number-one spot in 35 countries and the top 10 in several others. Like previous releases, the UK version of the single removed all of the raps from Slijngaard, leaving just Dels' vocals. One word from the rap was kept, the word 'Techno' which was looped and repeated during the middle of the song, turning the line into "Techno! Techno! Techno! Techno!" and giving the song an extra vocal hook. Its accompanying music video was directed by Nick Burgess-Jones and received heavy rotation on MTV Europe.
"What Is Love" is a song by Trinidadian-German singer Haddaway, released as his debut single from his debut album, The Album (1993). The song, both written and produced by Dee Dee Halligan and Karin Hartmann-Eisenblätter, was released by Coconut Records in January 1993. It was a hit across Europe, becoming a number-one single in at least 13 countries and reaching number two in Germany, Sweden and the United Kingdom. Outside Europe, the single peaked at number 11 in the United States, number 12 in Australia, number 17 in Canada, and number 48 in New Zealand.
"Another Night" is a song by German Eurodance and pop music project Real McCoy. The single is featured on their hit album Another Night (1995), which was the American release of the project's second album, Space Invaders. The song was written and produced in Germany by Juergen Wind and Frank Hassas (Quickmix) in 1993 under the producer team name Freshline.
"Let the Beat Control Your Body" is a song by Belgian/Dutch Eurodance band 2 Unlimited. It was released in January 1994 by Byte, ZYX and PWL as the fifth and final single from the band's second album, No Limits (1993). The album version is largely instrumental and contains just a few spoken words from bandmembers Ray Slijngaard and Anita Doth. The single version contains full verses rapped by Slijngaard and a new chorus sung by Doth, which were co-written by them both. The song enjoyed chart success in many European countries, peaking at number two in the Netherlands and within the top 10 in Belgium, Finland, France, Germany, Ireland, Spain and the United Kingdom. It was nominated in the category for Best Song on MTV Awards. Nigel Simpkiss directed the music video for "Let the Beat Control Your Body", which received heavy rotation on both MTV Europe and VIVA.
"Tribal Dance" is a song by Belgian/Dutch Eurodance band 2 Unlimited. It was released in April 1993 by Byte, Zyx and PWL from the band's second album, No Limits! (1993). The UK release omits the main rap but leaves in more vocals from band member Ray Slijngaard than any of their previous releases. The single experienced chart success in several countries, topping the charts in Finland, Israel, Portugal and Spain. In North America, the song reached number one on the Canadian RPM Dance/Urban chart, while peaking at number seven on the US Billboard Hot Dance Club Play chart. The single's music video was directed by Nick Burgess-Jones and filmed in London, depicting the band performing in a jungle setting.
"Maximum Overdrive" is a song by Belgian-Dutch Eurodance band 2 Unlimited, released in November 1993 by Byte, ZYX and PWL as the fourth single from their second album, No Limits! (1993). The song was written by band members Ray Slijngaard and Anita Dels with Phil Wilde and Filip Martens, while Wilde produced it with Jean-Paul De Coster. The UK release was the first UK single to maintain all the rap lyrics from Ray used in the European release. "Maximum Overdrive" reached number 15 on the UK Singles Chart, and was also a number-one hit in Finland and on the European Dance Radio Chart by Music & Media. Its accompanying music video was directed by David Betteridge and filmed in London.
"The Real Thing" is a song by English singer-songwriter Tony Di Bart, released in 1993 and re-released in March 1994 by Cleveland City Blues. Co-written by Di Bart, the song topped both the UK Singles Chart following its 1994 re-release and became a top-20 hit in Belgium, France, Ireland, and Spain the same year. In 1996, it was included on Di Bart's only album, Falling for You.
"More and More" is a song by German Eurodance music project Captain Hollywood Project. It was released in July 1992 as the first single from their first album, Love Is Not Sex (1993). The song reached No. 1 in Germany and was a top-five hit in Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Israel, Italy, Norway, Sweden and Switzerland. It also found success in Australia and North America, peaking at No. 15 in Canada, No. 17 in the United States, and No. 43 in Australia. Overall, the single has sold over seven million units worldwide.
"Only With You" is a song recorded by German musician known under the pseudonym of Captain Hollywood Project. It was released in December 1992 as the second single from his debut album, Love Is Not Sex (1993). The single features vocals by German singer Nina Gerhard and was successful on the charts, peaking within the top 10 in at least 12 countries, and reaching number two in both Finland and Portugal. It was released at the end of 1992 and several remixes were also added on a new CD maxi two months after.
"All I Want" is a song recorded by the German musician known under the pseudonym of Captain Hollywood Project, released in May 1993 by labels Blow Up and Intercord as the third single from his debut album, Love Is Not Sex (1993). The song features vocals by Petra Spiegl and was co-written by Nosie Katzmann and Tony Dawson-Harrison. It was a hit in several countries, but achieved a minor success in comparison with the project's two previous singles, "More and More" and "Only with You". The single peaked at number two in Portugal and on the Canadian RPM Dance/Urban chart, and number 22 on the Eurochart Hot 100.
"Flying High" is a song by German musician known under the pseudonym of Captain Hollywood Project, released in November 1994 as the first single from his second album, Animals or Human (1995). Vocals are by Lori Glori, but uncredited. It is a fast and strong Eurodance song, it achieved moderate success in several countries. A second CD maxi composed of two new remixes was launched in February 1995. Its music video was directed by Rainer Thieding. Ten years later, in 2005, a new remix of "Flying High" was released, reaching the Top 20 on European club charts.
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"Joy" is the debut single by British house music studio project Staxx, assembled by producers Simon Thorne and Tom Jones. It was released in 1993 and features singer Carol Leeming, becoming a number-one hit on both the Billboard Hot Dance Club Play chart and the Canadian RPM Dance/Urban chart. On the UK Singles Chart, it peaked at number 25. The music video for the song was directed by British director Lindy Heymann, featuring Leeming and two female dancers performing in an empty swimming pool.
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