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Twist of Fate (Olivia Newton-John song)

"Twist of Fate"
Single by Olivia Newton-John
from the album Two of a Kind
B-side
Released21 October 1983 (1983-10-21)
Recorded1983
Genre
Length
  • 3:44 (single/album version)
  • 5:34 (extended version)
Label
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)David Foster
Olivia Newton-John UK singles chronology
"Tied Up"
(1983) 		"Twist of Fate"
(1983) 		"Take a Chance"
(1984)
Olivia Newton-John US singles chronology
"Tied Up"
(1983) 		"Twist of Fate" / "Take a Chance"
(1983) 		"Livin' in Desperate Times"
(1984)
Music video
"Twist of Fate" on YouTube

"Twist of Fate" is a song recorded by British-Australian singer Olivia Newton-John for the soundtrack to the 1983 film Two of a Kind. Written by Peter Beckett and Steve Kipner and produced by David Foster, the song was released as the first single from the album on 21 October 1983. It reached the top five on the pop charts in Australia, Canada and the US.

Background and lyrics

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In 1978 John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John starred in Grease, a big-screen adaptation of the 1972 Broadway musical of the same name. Its success elicited offers to reunite them in another film; Travolta read the screenplay for Two of a Kind and persuaded Newton-John to star in it with him.[1] His character in the film is an unsuccessful inventor who has been unknowingly selected to determine the fate of humanity. After he attempts to rob a bank where the teller (Newton-John) gives him a bag full of deposit slips and keeps the money for herself, fate brings them together again in a fatal accident. They are brought back to life when the hands of time are turned back under the condition, unbeknownst to them, that the two make sacrifices for one another before a week has lapsed so that God does not destroy the human race. The song, which was written by Peter Beckett and Steve Kipner and produced by David Foster,[2] alludes to the wrongdoings of the characters but mostly centers around the fact that they get a second chance at life.

Commercial performance

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"Twist of Fate" made its debut on the Billboard Hot 100 in the issue of the magazine dated 5 November 1983 and peaked at number 5 during its 18 weeks there.[3] It also reached number 4 in Australia,[4] number 5 in Canada[5] and South Africa,[6] number 20 in Switzerland,[7] number 22 in New Zealand,[8] number 33 in Belgium,[9] number 42 in the Netherlands[10] and number 57 in the UK.[11] A 12-inch single with an extended version of the song got as high as number 51 on Billboard's Dance Club Songs chart in the US.[12]

A duet with Travolta from the film, "Take a Chance", was included as the B-side of the 7-inch single in the US, where it peaked at number 3 on Billboard's Adult Contemporary chart,[13] as well as in Canada, where it hit number 1 on the same chart in RPM magazine.[14]

Critical reception

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In their review of the single, the editors of Billboard magazine described it as "a strong dance-rocker that floats Newton-John's light voice over a booming, bass-heavy rhythm track."[15] Cash Box wrote that the song "shows an urgent David Foster production full of throbbing bass lines and multi-layered keyboard parts." They noted of Newton-John that "her full-throttled vocal performance bodes extremely well for a successful new beginning."[16] Robin Smith of Record Mirror, however, wrote, "Our Livvy's heart just isn't in this one."[17]

Music video

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In the music video for "Twist of Fate", Newton-John sings on a black soundstage surrounded by three raised jury boxes filled with people mostly shown in shadows. Scenes from the movie either start or end as still frames that are presented to the singer and the jury as large photographs. Travolta enters as she finishes the song. The video was directed by Brian Grant.[18]

"Twist of Fate" was listed on the reports that MTV provided to Billboard that indicated what videos were in rotation on the cable network and made its first appearance there in the 3 December 1983 issue, which indicated that it had been added to their playlist as of 21 November.[19]

A collection of videos for Newton-John's songs from Two of a Kind was also titled Twist of Fate. The collection was nominated for Best Video, Short Form at the 27th Annual Grammy Awards but lost to David Bowie's Jazzin' for Blue Jean.[20]

Appearances in other media

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In 2017, the song was featured in the second season of the Netflix series Stranger Things and included on the soundtrack album, Stranger Things: Music from the Netflix Original Series. The album was nominated for Best Compilation Soundtrack for Visual Media at the 61st Annual Grammy Awards.[21]

Track listing and formats

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All tracks produced by David Foster except "Coolin' Down" and "Jolene", produced by John Farrar.

  1. "Twist of Fate" (Beckett, Kipner) – 3:39
  2. "Coolin' Down" (Farrar)– 3:57
  1. "Twist of Fate"
  2. "Jolene" (Dolly Parton)
  1. "Twist of Fate" – 3:39
  2. "Take a Chance" (with John Travolta) (Foster, Steve Lukather, Olivia Newton-John) – 4:05
  1. "Twist of Fate (Extended Version)" – 5:18
  2. "Twist of Fate" – 3:39

Charts

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Certifications and sales

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Region Certification Certified units/sales
Canada (Music Canada)[28] Gold 50,000^

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

References

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  1. ^ "Two of a Kind". AFI Catalog of Feature Films. American Film Institute. Archived from the original on 30 November 2024. Retrieved 30 November 2024.
  2. ^ Two of a Kind: Music from the Original Motion Picture Soundtrack (Liner notes). Various artists. MCA Records. 1983. MCAD-11738.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  3. ^ a b "Olivia Newton-John Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved 20 November 2014.
  4. ^ a b Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970-1992 (illustrated ed.). St Ives, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book. p. 239. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
  5. ^ a b "Top RPM Singles: Issue 3034." RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved 14 December 2024.
  6. ^ a b "SA Charts 1965–March 1989". Rock.co.za. Retrieved 5 September 2018.
  7. ^ a b "Olivia Newton-John – Twist of Fate". Swiss Singles Chart. Retrieved 6 March 2016.
  8. ^ a b "Olivia Newton-John – Twist of Fate". Top 40 Singles. Retrieved 26 October 2013.
  9. ^ a b "Olivia Newton-John – Twist of Fate" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. Retrieved 6 March 2016.
  10. ^ a b "Olivia Newton-John – Twist of Fate" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved 6 March 2016.
  11. ^ a b "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 26 October 2013.
  12. ^ a b "Olivia Newton-John Chart History (Dance Club Songs)". Billboard.
  13. ^ "Olivia Newton-John > Biography, Music & News > Billboard". Billboard.com. Archived from the original on 6 December 2024. Retrieved 21 December 2024.
  14. ^ "Item: 7433 - Library and Archives Canada". Bac-lac.gc.ca. 17 July 2013. Retrieved 7 October 2022.
  15. ^ "Billboard's Top Single Picks > Pop > Olivia Newton-John—Twist of Fate" (PDF). Billboard. Vol. 95, no. 45. 5 November 1983. p. 71. ISSN 0006-2510. Retrieved 3 January 2025.
  16. ^ "Reviews > Singles > Feature Picks > Olivia Newton-John" (PDF). Cashbox. New York: Cash Box Publishing Co., Inc. 5 November 1983. p. 7. Retrieved 9 December 2024.
  17. ^ Smith, Robin (29 October 1983). "Olivia Newton-John: "Twist of Fate"". Record Mirror. p. 9. Retrieved 22 December 2024.
  18. ^ Grein, Paul (14 January 1984). "Vid Music Reviews > Olivia Newton-John, "Twist of Fate"" (PDF). Billboard. Vol. 96, no. 2. p. CES-38. ISSN 0006-2510.
  19. ^ "Video Music Programming" (PDF). Billboard. Vol. 95, no. 49. 3 December 1983. p. 29. ISSN 0006-2510. Retrieved 22 December 2024.
  20. ^ O'Neil 1999, p. 390.
  21. ^ Arcand, Rob (10 February 2019). "Grammys 2019 Winners: The Complete List (Updating Live)". Spin. Archived from the original on 11 February 2019.
  22. ^ "Cash Box Top 100 Singles" (PDF). Cashbox. New York: Cash Box Publishing Co., Inc. 14 January 1984. p. 4. Retrieved 16 December 2024.
  23. ^ "Kent Music Report No 548 – 31 December 1984 > National Top 100 Singles for 1984". Kent Music Report. Retrieved 23 January 2023 – via Imgur.com.
  24. ^ BigKev. "Forum – ARIA Charts: Special Occasion Charts – Top 100 End of Year AMR Charts – 1980s". Australian-charts.com. Hung Medien. Retrieved 22 January 2017.
  25. ^ "Top 100 Singles of 1984". RPM. 5 January 1985. p. 7.
  26. ^ "Talent Almanac 1985: Top Pop Singles". Billboard. 96 (51): TA-19. 22 December 1984.
  27. ^ "The CASH BOX Year-End Charts: 1984". Cash Box magazine. Archived from the original on 30 September 2012. Retrieved 14 December 2024.
  28. ^ "Canadian single certifications – Olivia Newton-John – Twist of Fate". Music Canada. Retrieved 15 April 2012.

Bibliography

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