Land Of Make Believe
Encyclopedia
"The Land of Make Believe" is a 1981 single by British band Bucks Fizz
. It reached No.1 in the UK in early 1982 - the second single by the band to do so. The song was produced by Andy Hill
with music by Hill and lyrics by ex-King Crimson
member Peter Sinfield
. Despite the apparent sugar-coated style of the song, Sinfield later claimed it was a subtle attack on Margaret Thatcher
and her government's policy at the time. The song was later covered by allSTARS* for a 2002 single release.
Eurovision
winners Bucks Fizz, staying at the top for two weeks in January 1982. It remained on the charts for 16 weeks.
The song has a rocky edge, mixed with a spooky beginning, which entices the listener. The lyrics are based on a child's dream where ghostly voices lure the child outside to a world where everything is bright and happy, but the child resists. Characters, Superman
and Captain Kidd are referenced in the lyrics. The close of the song features a nursery rhyme narrated by Abby Kimber, who was the 11-year old daughter of an executive of RCA Records
and a member of the Minipops
. This was an original piece, penned by Sinfield, and read:
At the time, radio stations were instructed to fade the song before the narration.
The music video was filmed at White City, London
swimming baths and is a parody of many childhood stories. It begins in a black and white bedroom, with member Cheryl Baker
in bed waking up, and in a parody of The Wizard of Oz
the picture changes to colour, and Baker's clothes are transformed by a Fairy Godmother in the style of Cinderella
. She then walks from everyday life, through a gap into a winter wonderland and has to push her way through many fir trees, in a copy of "The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe
", before joining the rest of the band on stage. The remainder of the video consists of the group performing the song, intercut with brief fantastical scenes. The costumes the group wore in the video were subsequently used in television appearances for the song and many photo-shoots. Member Jay Aston
chose the outfits, with the female costumes from Kahn and Bell on London's King's Road
and the male costumes from Boy
. They cost between £50 and £120 each.. British disc jockey Mark Goodier
who became famous in the late 1980's features as an extra in the video.
The single was released in November 1981 and became a top 10 hit in December, being popular over Christmas and being placed at No.5 for the Christmas chart. The following week it was placed at No.2, behind The Human League
's "Don't You Want Me
", before finally taking over at No.1 in January. Critical reaction to the song was favourable with Record Mirror
stating: “Prejudices and preconceptions aside, it's an excellent record and a worthy successor to “Don't You Want Me” at the top.”
The song was later included on the group's second album, Are You Ready and was later released in a remixed form in 1991 as a bootleg single. A similar version of this was included on a compilation album
released in 2005, while a more recent remix of the song was featured on the group's 2008 album, The Lost Masters 2 - The Final Cut. The B-Side of the single was a balled, "Now You're Gone" featuring lead vocals by Cheryl Baker. The song features the chorus line; "It doesn't feel like Christmas now you're gone" and remains the only festive-themed song recorded by the group. An alternate ending to the song was featured as a hidden track on The Lost Masters 2 - The Final Cut.
"The Land of Make Believe" remains a firm fan favourite and reviews in the press at the time were positive with Smash Hits
calling the song "sheer genius" and more recently Q Magazine labelling the song "not half bad" and "an 80s classic". Members Bobby G
and Cheryl Baker
have both named it as the best of their own songs. The song became the biggest selling single by the group in the UK, outselling their Eurovision winner "Making Your Mind Up
", to finish as the 41st biggest seller of the 1980s in the UK. It also reached No.1 in The Netherlands and Ireland
, while in Germany
it also became their biggest selling single. The song became the group's debut single release in the US, but was unsuccessful there.
12" single (released in Germany only)
The single performed to moderate success, achieving allSTARS*' highest UK chart position, #9.
(translated into French: "A Quatre pas D'ici") in 1983 (Hill and Sinfield would later pen her smash-hit "Think Twice") and by German singer Elke Best (as "Land der Phantasie") in 1982. Brazilian girl-group Harmony Cats
recorded a Portuguese version in 1984 (as "Terra do Faz de Conta"). Bucks Fizz themselves recorded the song in Spanish as "El Mundo de Ilusion" in 1982. The song (in English) was also recorded by children's group Minipops
in 1982 and an anonymous cover version for the Top of the Pops
album range.
Bucks Fizz (band)
Bucks Fizz are an English pop group who achieved success in the 1980s, most notably for winning the 1981 Eurovision Song Contest with the song "Making Your Mind Up". The group was formed in January 1981 specifically for the contest and comprised four vocalists: Bobby G, Cheryl Baker, Mike Nolan and...
. It reached No.1 in the UK in early 1982 - the second single by the band to do so. The song was produced by Andy Hill
Andy Hill (composer)
Andy Hill is a British music producer and songwriter who scored many hits during the 1980s and 90s...
with music by Hill and lyrics by ex-King Crimson
King Crimson
King Crimson are a rock band founded in London, England in 1969. Often categorised as a foundational progressive rock group, the band have incorporated diverse influences and instrumentation during their history...
member Peter Sinfield
Peter Sinfield
Peter John Sinfield is an English poet, lyricist and artist, most famously known as the lyricist and co-founding member of early incarnations of King Crimson, whose debut album In the Court of the Crimson King has been regarded as one of the most influential progressive rock albums ever...
. Despite the apparent sugar-coated style of the song, Sinfield later claimed it was a subtle attack on Margaret Thatcher
Margaret Thatcher
Margaret Hilda Thatcher, Baroness Thatcher, was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1979 to 1990...
and her government's policy at the time. The song was later covered by allSTARS* for a 2002 single release.
Background
"The Land of Make Believe" was the second of three UK #1 singles for the BritishUnited Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
Eurovision
Eurovision Song Contest
The Eurovision Song Contest is an annual competition held among active member countries of the European Broadcasting Union .Each member country submits a song to be performed on live television and then casts votes for the other countries' songs to determine the most popular song in the competition...
winners Bucks Fizz, staying at the top for two weeks in January 1982. It remained on the charts for 16 weeks.
The song has a rocky edge, mixed with a spooky beginning, which entices the listener. The lyrics are based on a child's dream where ghostly voices lure the child outside to a world where everything is bright and happy, but the child resists. Characters, Superman
Superman
Superman is a fictional comic book superhero appearing in publications by DC Comics, widely considered to be an American cultural icon. Created by American writer Jerry Siegel and Canadian-born American artist Joe Shuster in 1932 while both were living in Cleveland, Ohio, and sold to Detective...
and Captain Kidd are referenced in the lyrics. The close of the song features a nursery rhyme narrated by Abby Kimber, who was the 11-year old daughter of an executive of RCA Records
RCA Records
RCA Records is one of the flagship labels of Sony Music Entertainment. The RCA initials stand for Radio Corporation of America , which was the parent corporation from 1929 to 1985 and a partner from 1985 to 1986.RCA's Canadian unit is Sony's oldest label...
and a member of the Minipops
Minipops
Minipops was a television series broadcast in 1983 on Channel 4 in the United Kingdom. Focused primarily for younger viewers, it consisted of music performances on a brightly coloured set, featuring preteen children singing then-contemporary pop music hits as well as older classics...
. This was an original piece, penned by Sinfield, and read:
"I've got a friend who comes to tea,
And no-one else can see but me,
He came today, but had to go
To visit you? You never know!"
At the time, radio stations were instructed to fade the song before the narration.
The music video was filmed at White City, London
White City, London
White City is a district in the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham, to the north of Shepherd's Bush. Today, White City is home to the BBC Television Centre and BBC White City, and Loftus Road stadium, the home of football club Queens Park Rangers FC....
swimming baths and is a parody of many childhood stories. It begins in a black and white bedroom, with member Cheryl Baker
Cheryl Baker
Cheryl Baker is an English television presenter and singer. She is most famous for being a member of 1980s pop group Bucks Fizz, and has performed for the UK in the Eurovision Song Contest twice, winning it the second time.-Early career:After leaving school and a series of secretarial jobs, Cheryl...
in bed waking up, and in a parody of The Wizard of Oz
The Wizard of Oz (1939 film)
The Wizard of Oz is a 1939 American musical fantasy film produced by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. It was directed primarily by Victor Fleming. Noel Langley, Florence Ryerson and Edgar Allan Woolf received credit for the screenplay, but there were uncredited contributions by others. The lyrics for the songs...
the picture changes to colour, and Baker's clothes are transformed by a Fairy Godmother in the style of Cinderella
Cinderella
"Cinderella; or, The Little Glass Slipper" is a folk tale embodying a myth-element of unjust oppression/triumphant reward. Thousands of variants are known throughout the world. The title character is a young woman living in unfortunate circumstances that are suddenly changed to remarkable fortune...
. She then walks from everyday life, through a gap into a winter wonderland and has to push her way through many fir trees, in a copy of "The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe
The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe
The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe is a fantasy novel for children by C. S. Lewis. Published in 1950 and set circa 1940, it is the first-published book of The Chronicles of Narnia and is the best known book of the series. Although it was written and published first, it is second in the series'...
", before joining the rest of the band on stage. The remainder of the video consists of the group performing the song, intercut with brief fantastical scenes. The costumes the group wore in the video were subsequently used in television appearances for the song and many photo-shoots. Member Jay Aston
Jay Aston
Jay Hilda Aston is a singer, dancer, and occasional songwriter who was formerly with the British pop group, Bucks Fizz. She was the youngest member of the group's original line-up, being just 19 at the Eurovision Song Contest....
chose the outfits, with the female costumes from Kahn and Bell on London's King's Road
King's Road
King's Road is a street in Chelsea, London, England.King's Road or Kings Road may also refer to:* King's Road * King's Road * King's Road * King's Road...
and the male costumes from Boy
Boy
A boy is a young male human , as contrasted to its female counterpart, girl, or an adult male, a man.The term "boy" is primarily used to indicate biological sex distinctions, cultural gender role distinctions or both...
. They cost between £50 and £120 each.. British disc jockey Mark Goodier
Mark Goodier
-Early career:Mark Goodier was born in Rhodesia . His family moved to the UK when he was a child, eventually settling in Scotland. He was educated at George Heriot's School, in Edinburgh. He became a mobile DJ in Edinburgh and then joined local station Radio Forth at the age of 19...
who became famous in the late 1980's features as an extra in the video.
The single was released in November 1981 and became a top 10 hit in December, being popular over Christmas and being placed at No.5 for the Christmas chart. The following week it was placed at No.2, behind The Human League
The Human League
The Human League are an English electronic New Wave band formed in Sheffield in 1977. They achieved popularity after a key change in line-up in the early 1980s and have continued recording and performing with moderate commercial success throughout the 1980s up to the present day.The only constant...
's "Don't You Want Me
Don't You Want Me
"Don't You Want Me" is a single by British synthpop group Human League, released from their album: Dare on 27 November 1981.It is the band's best known and most commercially successful recording to date, and was the Christmas number one in the UK, in 1981, where it sold over 1,400,000 copies,...
", before finally taking over at No.1 in January. Critical reaction to the song was favourable with Record Mirror
Record Mirror
Record Mirror was a British weekly pop music newspaper, founded by Isadore Green and featured, news articles, interviews, record charts, record reviews, concert reviews, letters from readers and photographs. The paper became respected by both mainstream pop music fans and serious record collectors...
stating: “Prejudices and preconceptions aside, it's an excellent record and a worthy successor to “Don't You Want Me” at the top.”
The song was later included on the group's second album, Are You Ready and was later released in a remixed form in 1991 as a bootleg single. A similar version of this was included on a compilation album
The Ultimate Anthology
The Ultimate Anthology is a compilation album by pop group Bucks Fizz.Released in 2005, this album was significant in that it was the first release that contained all of Bucks Fizz's 20 hit singles together on one disc...
released in 2005, while a more recent remix of the song was featured on the group's 2008 album, The Lost Masters 2 - The Final Cut. The B-Side of the single was a balled, "Now You're Gone" featuring lead vocals by Cheryl Baker. The song features the chorus line; "It doesn't feel like Christmas now you're gone" and remains the only festive-themed song recorded by the group. An alternate ending to the song was featured as a hidden track on The Lost Masters 2 - The Final Cut.
"The Land of Make Believe" remains a firm fan favourite and reviews in the press at the time were positive with Smash Hits
Smash Hits
Smash Hits was a pop music based magazine, aimed at teenagers and young adults and originally published in the United Kingdom by EMAP. It ran from 1978 to 2006 and was issued fortnightly for most of that time...
calling the song "sheer genius" and more recently Q Magazine labelling the song "not half bad" and "an 80s classic". Members Bobby G
Bobby G
Bobby G is a member of pop group Bucks Fizz. He was the only remaining original member in the group...
and Cheryl Baker
Cheryl Baker
Cheryl Baker is an English television presenter and singer. She is most famous for being a member of 1980s pop group Bucks Fizz, and has performed for the UK in the Eurovision Song Contest twice, winning it the second time.-Early career:After leaving school and a series of secretarial jobs, Cheryl...
have both named it as the best of their own songs. The song became the biggest selling single by the group in the UK, outselling their Eurovision winner "Making Your Mind Up
Making Your Mind Up
"Making Your Mind Up" is a song by British pop group Bucks Fizz. It was the winner of the 1981 Eurovision Song Contest and a UK Number-one single...
", to finish as the 41st biggest seller of the 1980s in the UK. It also reached No.1 in The Netherlands and Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
, while in Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
it also became their biggest selling single. The song became the group's debut single release in the US, but was unsuccessful there.
Track listing
7" single- "The Land of Make Believe" (3.51)
- "Now You're Gone" (3.36)
12" single (released in Germany only)
- "The Land of Make Believe" (3.51)
- "Midnight Reservation" (3.44)
- "Now You're Gone" (3.36)
Chart positions
| Country | Peak position |
|---|---|
| UK | 1 |
| The Netherlands | 1 |
| Ireland | 1 |
| France | 3 |
| Germany | 3 |
| Austria | 7 |
| Australia | 15 |
| New Zealand | 44 |
allSTARS* Version
"The Land of Make Believe" was the third single by the British band allSTARS*. The single was slightly faster than the original version and had a more euro-pop sound. The music video was set in a circus tent, with each individual member of the band performing tricks e.g. being cut in half, levitating or juggling.The single performed to moderate success, achieving allSTARS*' highest UK chart position, #9.
Other versions
"The Land of Make Believe" has also been recorded by Celine DionCeline Dion
Céline Marie Claudette Dion, , , is a Canadian singer. Born to a large family from Charlemagne, Quebec, Dion emerged as a teen star in the French-speaking world after her manager and future husband René Angélil mortgaged his home to finance her first record...
(translated into French: "A Quatre pas D'ici") in 1983 (Hill and Sinfield would later pen her smash-hit "Think Twice") and by German singer Elke Best (as "Land der Phantasie") in 1982. Brazilian girl-group Harmony Cats
Harmony Cats
- Plot :Harmony Cats is about a violinist named Graham Braithwaite who plays with a British Columbia symphony. One day, the symphony stops playing permantently and Graham is left to find work elsewhere...
recorded a Portuguese version in 1984 (as "Terra do Faz de Conta"). Bucks Fizz themselves recorded the song in Spanish as "El Mundo de Ilusion" in 1982. The song (in English) was also recorded by children's group Minipops
Minipops
Minipops was a television series broadcast in 1983 on Channel 4 in the United Kingdom. Focused primarily for younger viewers, it consisted of music performances on a brightly coloured set, featuring preteen children singing then-contemporary pop music hits as well as older classics...
in 1982 and an anonymous cover version for the Top of the Pops
Top of the Pops (record series)
Top of the Pops is the name of a series of records issued by Pickwick Records on their Hallmark label, which contain anonymous cover versions of recent and current hit singles. The recordings were intended to replicate the sound of the original hits as closely as possible...
album range.
See also
- List of Dutch Top 40 number-one singles of 1982
- List of number-one singles of 1982 (Ireland)
- List of number-one singles from the 1980s (UK)