Jump to content

Magic Touch (Mike Oldfield song)

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
"Magic Touch"
Single by Mike Oldfield
from the album Islands
ReleasedNovember 1987 (1987-11)[1]
Recordedcirca. 1987
GenrePop rock
Length4:04
LabelVirgin
Songwriter(s)Mike Oldfield
Producer(s)Mike Oldfield
Geoffrey Downes
Mike Oldfield singles chronology
"The Time Has Come"
(1987)
"Magic Touch"
(1987)
"Flying Start"
(1988)
United States release cover

"Magic Touch" is a single by musician Mike Oldfield, released in 1987 (see 1987 in music). It is from the album Islands.

Charts

[edit]

The song charted at number 10 on the US Billboard Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks Chart in January 1988.[2]

Chart (1988) Position
Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks 10

Release details

[edit]

It was only released in the USA, Germany and Australia. The music video for this single was directed by Alex Proyas and filmed at Mentmore Towers in Buckinghamshire. The video for the song was available on The Wind Chimes and Elements.

Vocalists

[edit]

The original mix features Max Bacon on lead vocals and John Payne on backing vocals. The version with Max Bacon does not appear on the European releases of the Islands album, due to Bacon still being under contract to Arista Records at the time.[3] However, Bacon's vocals do appear on the US album version, which was not released until 1988 in an attempt to capitalize on Bacon's familiarity to US audiences as the vocalist of GTR. The UK album version features Jim Price on vocals.

Artwork

[edit]

The single's artwork differed in the UK and US. The UK artwork showed Oldfield standing in front of a blue background, on which shadows of hands are present. The US artwork is in a similar style to the album cover, showing hands rising out of the ocean.

Track listing

[edit]
  1. "Magic Touch" (Original mix edit) – 4:04
  2. "Music for the Video Wall" – 4:34
  3. "Magic Touch" (Original mix) – 4:13

References

[edit]
  1. ^ "The Great Rock Discography". p. 604.
  2. ^ "Mike Oldfield Chart History". Billboard. Retrieved 7 February 2009.
  3. ^ "Mike Oldfield biography, page 4". The Official Mike Oldfield Information Service. Archived from the original on 6 April 2008. Retrieved 14 April 2008.