The Phantom of the Opera (song)

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"The Phantom of the Opera" is a song from the 1986 stage musical of the same name. It was composed by Andrew Lloyd Webber, with lyrics written by Charles Hart and Richard Stilgoe, and additional lyrics by Mike Batt. [1] The song was originally recorded by Sarah Brightman and Steve Harley, which became a UK hit single in 1986, prior to the musical. In its theatrical debut, it was sung by Brightman and Michael Crawford in their roles as Christine Daaé and the Phantom.

Contents

Background

The song is performed in Act I after the song "Angel of Music" (The Mirror) and before "The Music of the Night" (and is reprised in Act Two at the end of the song "Notes/Twisted Every Way"). It takes place as the Phantom escorts Christine by boat to his lair beneath the Opera Garnier. It is sung as a duet by Christine and the Phantom. At the end of the song, Christine sings her highest note in the show, an E6. In different shows, Sarah Brightman sings this song in different duets with other performers, Antonio Banderas, Chris Thompson, Alessandro Safina, Mario Frangoulis, Colm Wilkinson, Anthony Warlow, John Owen-Jones, Peter Jöback and Erkan Aki.

Sarah Brightman and Steve Harley version

"Ladies and Gentlemen, On this recording I have required that Sarah Brightman and Steve Harley perform the theme from the forthcoming musical, which I have instructed Andrew Lloyd Webber to write around my legend 'The Phantom of the Opera.' Your Obedient Servant, The Phantom". [19]

The 12" version of the single features a seven-minute extended remix of the song, as well as the standard version. [20] [21] Following the original mini CD release of the single in Japan, it was re-issued there again in 1992 on the same format. [22] [23]

Brightman and Harley's version of the song would later appear on the 1994 compilation The Very Best of Andrew Lloyd Webber, [24] as well as on another Lloyd Webber compilation, titled Gold – The Definitive Hit Singles Collection, released in 2001. [25]

Music video

Directed by Ken Russell, the music video for the single also acted as promotion for the upcoming musical. [13] After the chart success of the single, Lloyd Webber wanted to further promote the musical, and the resultant video took a week to shoot. [26] In his book Phallic Frenzy: Ken Russell and His Films, author Joseph Lanza felt the video "packs in the gist of the musical's message and story in just over four minutes." [4] In his interview with Number One, Harley spoke of Russell, describing him as "terribly friendly, though I must admit his work does give the impression that he lives on another planet!" [9]

The video starts with Brightman as Christine running to her dressing room. On her way there, Raoul gives her a purple flower bouquet, which she takes with her. In her dressing room, she finds a gift box from the Phantom (portrayed by Harley). She opens it and puts the veil inside on her head. Then, she enters the mirror, arriving in the Phantom's lair, with the Phantom standing across the other side of a lake. Christine crosses the lake on a boat that moves by itself. The closing segment features Christine performing on stage in front of an audience including Raoul. The Phantom, secretly spectating, cuts a rope backstage which causes the chandelier to crash on top of Raoul. The video ends with Christine screaming before blood red drips over and envelops the screen.

In the Behind the Mask documentary, Richard Stilgoe described the video as "wonderful, as over-the-top as you can get". Cameron Mackinstosh said: "Ken Russell came up with the most brilliant, outrageous video. It's fantastic fun, and completely over-the-top, which of course Andrew and I loved." [11] Harley told the Sandwell Evening Mail in 1986: "It took us four days and nights to shoot the video, and every minute of it was torment. It was hellishly uncomfortable. I had red hot lights under my feet and my mask kept slipping off. It was like walking blindly over a bed of coals." [27]

Critical reception

Upon its release, Malcolm Dome of Kerrang! called the track "strong Andrew Lloyd Webber stuff (orchestrally-orientated rock/pop)" and "interesting, even if the rock element isn't played up as much as I'd have liked". He added, "It's great to see Steve Harley back in action." [28] Karen Swayne of Number One was negative in her review, stating that Brightman and Harley, now "older and wiser", had "taken to more boring adult pursuits" by singing on the track, with the results being "unlistenable". [29] Tamsin Fontes of the Mid Sussex Times remarked that "La Brightman warbles shrilly like a demented canary and ageing Cockney Rebel, Steve Harley, finds a new vocation as the lovesick phantom". [30] The Middleton Guardian described the song as "opera meets rock" and "directionless hotch-potch with practically no pop appeal". [31] In the US, Bob Sawyer of The Valley Advocate gave the single four out of five stars. He noted Brightman's "wonderful set of pipes" and added that although Harley was "not as operatic" as Brightman, "his voice does blend nicely with hers". [32]

Track listing

7-inch single

  1. "The Phantom of the Opera" – 4:40
  2. "Overture – The Phantom of the Opera" – 2:10

7-inch Single (US release)

  1. "The Phantom of the Opera" – 4:40
  2. "The Phantom of the Opera" (Instrumental) – 2:10

12-inch single

  1. "The Phantom of the Opera" (Extended Version) – 7:09
  2. "The Phantom of the Opera" – 4:40
  3. "Overture – The Phantom of the Opera" – 2:10

12-inch single (Canadian promo)

  1. "The Phantom of the Opera" (Edited Version) – 3:44
  2. "The Phantom of the Opera" – 4:39

CD single (Japanese release)

  1. "The Phantom of the Opera" – 4:44
  2. "Overture – The Phantom of the Opera" – 2:13

Charts

"The Phantom of the Opera"
Sarah Brightman Steve Harley The Phantom of the Opera 1986 Single.jpg
Single by Sarah Brightman and Steve Harley
from the album The Phantom of the Opera
B-side "Overture – The Phantom of the Opera"
Released3 January 1986
Genre
Length4:38
Label Polydor Records
Songwriter(s) Andrew Lloyd Webber (music)
Richard Stilgoe (lyrics)
Charles Hart (lyrics)
Mike Batt (additional lyrics)
Producer(s) Mike Batt (producer)
Andrew Lloyd Webber (executive producer)
Sarah Brightmansingles chronology
"Pie Jesu"
(1985)		"The Phantom of the Opera"
(1986)		"All I Ask of You"
(1986)
Chart (1986)Peak
position
European Hot 100 Singles [33] 39
Irish Singles Chart [34] 11
UK Singles Chart (Official Charts Company) [3] 7

Plagiarism allegations

In 1990, the songwriter Ray Repp sued Lloyd Webber, saying he had plagiarised the "Phantom of the Opera" melody from his 1978 song "Till You". [35] Lloyd Webber denied this, saying he had taken parts from his own earlier work, "Close Every Door", and that both songs included elements of compositions by Bach, Grieg and Holst. The judge ruled in Lloyd Webber's favour in 1994. [35]

In 1992, the former Pink Floyd songwriter Roger Waters asserted that Lloyd Webber had plagiarised "The Phantom of the Opera" from a sequence of the 1971 Pink Floyd song "Echoes". He said: "It's the same time signature – it's 12/8 – and it's the same structure and it's the same notes and it's the same everything. It probably is actionable. It really is! But I think that life's too long to bother with suing Andrew fucking Lloyd Webber." [36]

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References

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  2. ↑ "New Singles". Music Week . 21–28 December 1985. p. 18. ISSN   0265-1548.
  3. 1 2 "Sarah Brightman & Steve Harley – full Official Chart History". Officialcharts.com. 20 May 2016. Retrieved 26 May 2016.
  4. 1 2 Lanza, Joseph (August 2007). Phallic Frenzy: Ken Russell and His Films – Joseph Lanza – Google Books. Chicago Review Press. ISBN   9781569764824 . Retrieved 26 May 2016.
  5. ↑ "Phantom frolic". New Musical Express. 8 February 1986.
  6. 1 2 Sky, Rick (3 February 1986). "Unmasked - the phantom rebel". Daily Star.
  7. ↑ "The Phantom Strikes Again – Bill Hagerty". Harleyfanzone.com. Archived from the original on 29 June 2016. Retrieved 26 May 2016.
  8. 1 2 "The Phantom of the Opera – Article With Lyrics". Harleyfanzone.com. Archived from the original on 1 July 2016. Retrieved 26 May 2016.
  9. 1 2 "Kniestedt.com/theatre". Kniestedt.com. Retrieved 26 May 2016.
  10. ↑ Steve Harley : Who Was That Masked Man Article & Picture(s): Amazon.co.uk: NewspaperClipping: Books. Amazon.co.uk. Retrieved 26 May 2016.
  11. 1 2 3 4 5 Behind the Mask: The Story of 'The Phantom of the Opera' – Steve Harley Interview – 2005 Documentary
  12. 1 2 Thomas, Angela (14 August 1986). "Steve Harley lays the ghost of the Phantom". The Stage.
  13. 1 2 "Rebel Thespian – Readers Letter Reply, Mojo '09". Harleyfanzone.com. Archived from the original on 1 July 2016. Retrieved 26 May 2016.
  14. ↑ "Sarah Brightman, Steve Harley – The Phantom Of The Opera at Discogs". Discogs.com. Retrieved 26 May 2016.
  15. ↑ "Sarah Brightman And Steve Harley Discography – All Countries". 45cat. Retrieved 26 May 2016.
  16. ↑ "Sarah Brightman, Steve Harley, Andrew Lloyd Webber – The Phantom Of The Opera (Vinyl) at Discogs". Discogs.com. Retrieved 26 May 2016.
  17. ↑ "Sarah Brightman, Steve Harley – The Phantom Of The Opera (Vinyl) at Discogs". Discogs.com. Retrieved 26 May 2016.
  18. ↑ "Sarah Brightman & Steve Harley, Andrew Lloyd Webber – The Phantom Of The Opera (Vinyl) at Discogs". Discogs.com. Retrieved 26 May 2016.
  19. ↑ "Sarah Brightman And Steve Harley – The Phantom Of The Opera / Overture The Phantom Of The Opera – Polydor – UK – POSP 800". 45cat. Retrieved 26 May 2016.
  20. ↑ "Sarah Brightman / Steve Harley – The Phantom Of The Opera (Vinyl) at Discogs". Discogs.com. Retrieved 26 May 2016.
  21. ↑ "Steve Harley With Sarah Brightman – The Phantom Of The Opera (Vinyl) at Discogs". Discogs.com. Retrieved 26 May 2016.
  22. ↑ "Sarah Brightman, Steve Harley – The Phantom Of The Opera (CD) at Discogs". Discogs.com. Retrieved 26 May 2016.
  23. ↑ "Sarah Brightman, Steve Harley – The Phantom Of The Opera (CD) at Discogs". Discogs.com. Retrieved 26 May 2016.
  24. ↑ "Various, Andrew Lloyd Webber – The Very Best Of Andrew Lloyd Webber (CD) at Discogs". Discogs.com. Retrieved 26 May 2016.
  25. ↑ "Andrew Lloyd Webber – Gold – The Definitive Hit Singles Collection at Discogs". Discogs.com. Retrieved 26 May 2016.
  26. ↑ "The Phantom of the Opera". 18 March 2004. Archived from the original on 18 March 2004. Retrieved 26 May 2016.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  27. ↑ Cole, Paul (5 February 1986). "The taming of Cockney rebel Steve". Sandwell Evening Mail.
  28. ↑ Dome, Malcolm (23 January 1986). "Short Kutz". Kerrang! . No. 112. p. 27. ISSN   0262-6624.
  29. ↑ Swayne, Karen (11 January 1986). "Singles". Number One . No. 134. p. 36.
  30. ↑ Fontes, Tamsin (10 January 1986). "Sounds Around: Reviews" . Mid Sussex Times . p. 8. Retrieved 11 April 2024– via British Newspaper Archive.
  31. ↑ "Pop: New Singles". Middleton Guardian. 3 January 1986. p. 13.
  32. ↑ Sawyer, Bob (26 February 1986). "Records: The Sawyer File". The Valley Advocate . p. 30.
  33. ↑ "European Hot 100 Singles" (PDF). Music & Media . Vol. 3, no. 6. 15 November 1986. p. 12. Retrieved 25 May 2020– via American Radio History.
  34. ↑ Jaclyn Ward. "The Irish Charts – All there is to know". Irishcharts.ie. Archived from the original on 2 June 2009. Retrieved 2016-05-26.
  35. 1 2 Smith, Dinitia (5 December 1996). "Who Copied Whom? Ruling Implies Neither". The New York Times. ISSN   0362-4331 . Retrieved 13 July 2019.
  36. ↑ "Who the hell does Roger Waters think he is?". Q . November 1992. Archived from the original on 22 October 2015. Retrieved 2009-11-20.
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