Violet and Blue

[Macfan4life]

This song was on the 1984 Against All Odds soundtrack. The lead single from the album by Phil Collins went to #1, won a Grammy and nominated for Song Of the Year among other awards and nominations. It was huge. It was Phil's first #1 song in the states. The song was so big that it carried the movie. The movie is not that great. Many times a hit movie carries the song to the charts. The album actually went all the way to #12 on Billboard. It was a huge loss of an opportunity not to release Violet and Blue as the second single. Perhaps there was something preventing them from doing so? The album's second single was Peter Gabriel's Walk Through The Fire that never charted. Stevie's limelight from The Wild Heart was fading and it would have been a much better second single. I don't think it would have been a huge hit but it definitely would have charted. The song got major rock airplay and even pop radio stations were playing it. I remember going to my local record store at the mall and WYDD Pittsburgh had Violet and Blue as #38 on their charts. I think the song would have done better than Nightbird. It was an easy set up but a major fail.
On a side note, my local rock station in March 1984 played Violet and Blue and Christine's One In A Million back to back. I will never forget that moment. Something new from Stevie and something new from Chris.
I always liked the song. You can tell its a live vocal all the way through the song. I love the bridge too. Ten thousand Times....Oh I tried to tell you .......then she yells YEAH!

So overwhelming

[vivfox]

I love Violet & Blue very much. If I recall, they play a live version of it in the actual movie.

[blinker12]

Good post! I bet it would’ve been a sizable hit on the Rock chart, and maybe scraped into the the lower reaches of the Hot 100. By 1984, rock was really starting to get eclipsed by synth pop and dance pop on the charts (which isn’t a complaint - 1983 and 1984 are some of my favorite years in music!).

[Steviegirl]

LOVED this song! I even bought the stupid cassette of the soundtrack. I think it's on Enchanted, too? Really good song.

[BrownEyedGirl26]

Originally Posted by Steviegirl

LOVED this song! I even bought the stupid cassette of the soundtrack. I think it's on Enchanted, too? Really good song.

I loved this song at the time and still do!

"Take your Violet and Blue mornings with you......!"

[UnwindedDreams]

I loved when Stevie added the line from this song to the end of "I Need To Know." Unfortunately she stopped doing that after her 2005 Vegas residency.

[bwboy]

I can see why it wasn’t released as a single. The chorus isn’t especially catchy and the song is quite long. I think it would have required major remixing and editing in order to have gotten radio airplay. Against All Odds by Phil Collins really set a high threshold for the soundtrack; plus wasn’t 1984 the year Madonna and Cyndi Lauper hit it big? It’s hard for me to imagine Violet and Blue being played alongside Crazy For You or Time After Time, for example.

I’m not criticizing the song itself, just offering some ideas as to why it wasn’t a single. 1984 would have been an ideal time for a Stevie song on a soundtrack to be released as a single, as it was in between the Wild Heart and Rock a Little.

[Macfan4life]

Originally Posted by bwboy

I can see why it wasn’t released as a single. The chorus isn’t especially catchy and the song is quite long. I think it would have required major remixing and editing in order to have gotten radio airplay. Against All Odds by Phil Collins really set a high threshold for the soundtrack; plus wasn’t 1984 the year Madonna and Cyndi Lauper hit it big? It’s hard for me to imagine Violet and Blue being played alongside Crazy For You or Time After Time, for example.

I’m not criticizing the song itself, just offering some ideas as to why it wasn’t a single. 1984 would have been an ideal time for a Stevie song on a soundtrack to be released as a single, as it was in between the Wild Heart and Rock a Little.

OMG you better check your meds. Attacking Stevie songs? Before you go all anti-Stevie on us go listen to the rest of the songs on the soundtrack then come back here. Pretend its your job to release the next single and make the album more popular.
Its a great song. It has passion and the music and drumming is really good. Comparing it to Madonna is so insulting. The song is not long at all. Its typical. You deserve to be whipped with chiffon.

[Macfan4life]

Originally Posted by vivfox

I love Violet & Blue very much. If I recall, they play a live version of it in the actual movie.

You are so right! I remember when I first joined this board asking a question about a different version heard in the movie. I thought maybe it was not Stevie because it was the version that was not on the radio. It is some sort of live or alternate version. Its in the movie when they walk into some club. So maybe they wanted a live sound to make it sound like someone was performing. Regardless I am glad I am not the only one that caught that. I used to watch that movie only to hear the song. Its quite the brutal task because I never liked the movie

[bwboy]

Originally Posted by Macfan4life

Before you go all anti-Stevie on us go listen to the rest of the songs on the soundtrack then come back here. Pretend its your job to release the next single and make the album more popular.

Its a great song. It has passion and the music and drumming is really good. Comparing it to Madonna is so insulting. The song is not long at all. Its typical. You deserve to be whipped with chiffon.

I looked the soundtrack up, and I really think My Male Curiosity by Kid Creole and the Coconuts would have been the obvious choice for a second single.

Violet and Blue was also listed at 5:03, which is longer than the average radio song. Stevie had a number of soundtrack songs that were never singles- Sleeping Angel, Violet and Blue, Battle of the Dragon, Blue Lamp, and Twisted. I wonder why? Well, I guess If You Ever Did Believe was a single, or at least it was a video that got some airplay.

[In Your Dreams]

I thought I read somewhere that Stevie intended to put the Chris Lord-Alge remix of Violet and Blue on Timespace but the record label wanted SIAB instead.

[greendaze5]

Even though 'Violet and Blue' was never a single, it did get some buzz. I remember a rock magazine printed the lyrics to it.

It should've been on 'The Wild Heart', replacing the boring 'Gate and Garden'.

Also, if 'Violet and Blue' was on the album, it (or 'Nothing Ever Changes') should have been the third single. While I love 'Nightbird', it wasn't meant for Top 10 radio and only went up to the low 30s on Billboard.

Nonetheless, we did get two nice live performances out of 'Nightbird' on 'Solid Gold' and 'SNL'.

Oh - does anyone have a link to the 'SNL' performance if its online anywhere?

[Macfan4life]

Originally Posted by bwboy

I looked the soundtrack up, and I really think My Male Curiosity by Kid Creole and the Coconuts would have been the obvious choice for a second single.

Violet and Blue was also listed at 5:03, which is longer than the average radio song. Stevie had a number of soundtrack songs that were never singles- Sleeping Angel, Violet and Blue, Battle of the Dragon, Blue Lamp, and Twisted. I wonder why? Well, I guess If You Ever Did Believe was a single, or at least it was a video that got some airplay.

All of those soundtracks you listed except American Anthem did not release singles. They were released as an entire soundtrack. Against All Odds was a popular album and released singles which was the point I was making. It would have been a good release.
The lead single had a music video with movie clips, etc. Something could have been thrown together for Violet and Blue especially since it was so successful with its first single release. The movie industry learned from Flashdance how to make a successful movie and music. Flashdance did not charm test audiences. But once the lead single from the soundtrack appeared on MTV with movie clips, Flashdance took off like a rocket. It appears they started the same formula for Against All Odds but only for one single.

[Macfan4life]

Originally Posted by greendaze5

Even though 'Violet and Blue' was never a single, it did get some buzz. I remember a rock magazine printed the lyrics to it.

It should've been on 'The Wild Heart', replacing the boring 'Gate and Garden'.

Also, 'Violet and Blue' (or 'Nothing Ever Changes') should have been the third single. While I love 'Nightbird', it wasn't meant for Top 10 radio and only went up to the low 30s on Billboard.

Nonetheless, we did get two nice live performances out of 'Nightbird' on 'Solid Gold' and 'SNL'.

Oh - does anyone have a link to the 'SNL' performance if its online anywhere?

Both audios of Nightbird of SNL and Solid Gold are on youtube. I think the videos are gone but the audio is still up. IMHO the Solid Gold peformance is better than the SNL but is always over looked because SNL is more famous. Stevie sang live on Solid Gold twice and once was Nighbird and I prefer that performance over SNL.

[greendaze5]

Originally Posted by Macfan4life

Both audios of Nightbird of SNL and Solid Gold are on youtube. I think the videos are gone but the audio is still up. IMHO the Solid Gold peformance is better than the SNL but is always over looked because SNL is more famous. Stevie sang live on Solid Gold twice and once was Nighbird and I prefer that performance over SNL.

Thanks!

I wish the video for the 'SNL' Nightbird was still up. I haven't seen it ages.

The performance on 'Solid Gold' is up at least (with Stevie singing live and the band miming to the instrumental track):



And 'Stand Back' on 'Solid Gold' is still up too: