"Only in My Dreams" | ||||
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Single by Debbie Gibson | ||||
from the album Out of the Blue | ||||
A-side | "Vocal (3:50)" | |||
B-side |
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Released | December 16, 1986 | |||
Recorded | 1986 | |||
Genre | ||||
Length | 3:53 (Album Version) 3:42 (Single Version) | |||
Label | Atlantic | |||
Songwriter(s) | Deborah Gibson | |||
Producer(s) | Fred Zarr | |||
Debbie Gibson singles chronology | ||||
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Music video | ||||
Only in My Dreams on YouTube |
Review scores | |
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Source | Rating |
Number One | [2] |
"Only in My Dreams" is the debut single by American singer-songwriter-actress Debbie Gibson, then 16 years old. Released December 16, 1986, as a maxi single (Atlantic DM 86744), and then in remixed form (Vocal/3:50) February 1987, the song was written by Gibson in 1984, two years before she recorded it.[3] Produced by Fred Zarr and engineered by Don Feinberg for BiZarr Music, Inc., mixed by "Little" Louie Vega and mastered by Herb "Pump" Powers, the dance-pop song reached No. 4 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 singles chart in the summer of 1987. Douglas Breitbart for Broadbeard Productions, Inc. served as executive producer (see also Debbie Gibson).
While it did not initially make the UK top 50, 'Dreams' re-entered the UK singles chart in 1988 on the back of the success of her second single (viz., "Shake Your Love," Atlantic UK A9187), eventually peaking at No. 11. The Extended Club Mix/Vocal track (6:34) from DM 86744 was excerpted for a dance medley, "Medley: Out of the Blue/Shake Your Love/Only in My Dreams" (Debbie Gibson Mega Mix), that became Track 4 on Atlantic DM 86556 "Foolish Beat."
A different mix, "Only in My Dreams" (LP Version/3:54), mastered from the original multi-track for DM 86744, became track 3 on Gibson's debut album Out of the Blue (Atlantic LP 81780), and a further variation, "Only in My Dreams (Dream House Mix/10:03)", was Track 3 on Atlantic DM 86556 "Foolish Beat".
Since the song's release, Gibson has re-recorded the song twice: in 1997 for her album Deborah and in 2010 for the Deluxe Edition release of the Japan-exclusive Ms. Vocalist.
The song was voted 95th on VH1's 100 Greatest Songs of the 80s.
Critical reception
Debbi Voller from Number One named "Only in My Dreams" Single of the Week, stating that "it should be a smasheroonie. I predict this girl to be around for a mighty long time. I mean, if she's writing hits like this now — what's she gonna be doing when she's my age?!"[2]
Music video
The accompanying music video for "Only in My Dreams" was recorded as a dream sequence at a beach in Asbury Park, New Jersey, the carousel in the Asbury Park casino (then still in use), and outside the Asbury Park Convention Center. Across the street from the beach is The Stone Pony, where Bruce Springsteen and Bon Jovi got their start. Gibson makes several wardrobe changes during the video, which shows the futility of a teenage girl attempting to get the man of her dreams to look at her, and when he does, she realizes that she was dreaming the whole event, thus causing her world to come crashing down around her.
Track listing
All tracks are written by Deborah Gibson
No. | Title | Length |
---|---|---|
1. | "Only in My Dreams" (Vocal Mix) | 3:50 |
2. | "Only in My Dreams" (Dub Mix) | 4:42 |
No. | Title | Length |
---|---|---|
1. | "Only in My Dreams" (Extended Club Mix/Vocal) | 6:34 |
2. | "Only in My Dreams" (Percapella/Vocal) | 3:29 |
3. | "Only in My Dreams" (Dreamix/Dub) | 4:18 |
4. | "Only in My Dreams" (Heartthrob Beats) | 4:14 |
Versions
- "Only in my Dreams" [Album Version] – 3:46
- "Only in my Dreams" [97 Dance Remix] – 4:36
- "Only in my Dreams" [Club Dub] – 4:36
- "Only in my Dreams" [Club Mix with Rap] – 4:35
- "Only in my Dreams" [Debbie Dreams] – 4:38
- "Only in my Dreams" [Dream Dub] – 3:44
- "Only in my Dreams" [Extended Club Mix] – 5:55
- "Only in my Dreams" [Extended Dance Mix] – 6:27
- "Only in my Dreams" [Hot Tracks Mix] – 6:27
- "Only in my Dreams" [Rave Radio Version] – 3:44
- "Only in my Dreams" [Riff Dub] – 4:22
- "Only in my Dreams" [Vasquez Club Mix] – 7:30
- "Only in my Dreams" [Video Version] – 3:42
Charts
Weekly charts
|
Year-end charts
|
Certifications
Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
---|---|---|
United States (RIAA)[17] | Gold | 500,000^ |
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone. |
1997/98 re-recording
"Only in My Dreams 1998" | ||||
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Single by Deborah Gibson | ||||
from the album Deborah Rev. 1.1 | ||||
Released | 1998 | |||
Recorded | 1997 | |||
Genre | Dance-pop | |||
Length | 37:53 overall | |||
Label | Jellybean Recordings | |||
Songwriter(s) | Deborah Gibson | |||
Producer(s) |
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Deborah Gibson singles chronology | ||||
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In 1997, Gibson re-recorded the song as "Only in My Dreams" (1997 Dance Edit/4:38), track 14 on her 1997 album Deborah, Revision 1.1 for June 1997. She later released this version in seven variations, including one with a retrofitted eight-measure rap, on Jellybean Recordings DM 2532 'Only in My Dreams 1998' (released February 1998). The basic rhythm is modified from the Dream House Version of the original song.[18]
Track listing
No. | Title | Length |
---|---|---|
1. | "Only in My Dreams 1998" (Club Mix) | 7:32 |
2. | "Only in My Dreams 1998" (Club Mix with Rap) | 4:37 |
3. | "Only in My Dreams 1998" (Club Dub) | 4:36 |
4. | "Only in My Dreams 1998" (Rave Vocal Mix) | 4:37 |
5. | "Only in My Dreams 1998" (Rave Dub) | 4:37 |
6. | "Only in My Dreams 1998" (Dream Dub) | 3:45 |
7. | "Only in My Dreams 1998" (Rave Radio Edit) | 3:46 |
8. | "Only in My Dreams 1998" (Riff Dub) | 4:23 |
Total length: | 37:53 |
References
- ↑ Breihan, Tom (March 10, 2021). "The Number Ones: Los Lobos' "La Bamba". Stereogum. Retrieved November 5, 2023.
Debbie Gibson's bittersweet bubblegum banger "Only In My Dreams" peaked at #4 behind "La Bamba
- 1 2 Voller, Debbi (March 19, 1988). "Singles". Number One. p. 40. Retrieved March 12, 2023.
- ↑ Out of the Blue (Debbie Gibson songbook), CatNo. HL00356822. Hal Leonard, 1988.
- ↑ "Debbie Gibson Canada Chart History". Archived from the original on March 8, 2016. Retrieved April 30, 2012.
- ↑ "The Irish Charts – Search Results – Only in My Dreams". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved October 26, 2013.
- ↑ "Classifiche". Musica e dischi (in Italian). Retrieved June 6, 2022. Set "Tipo" on "Singoli". Then, in the "Artista" field, search "Debbie Gibson".
- ↑ "Nederlandse Top 40 – Debbie Gibson" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40. Retrieved October 26, 2013.
- ↑ "Debbie Gibson – Shake Your Love". Top 40 Singles. Retrieved October 26, 2013.
- ↑ "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved October 26, 2013.
- ↑ "Debbie Gibson Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved November 20, 2014.
- ↑ "Debbie Gibson Chart History (Dance Club Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved November 20, 2014.
- ↑ Whitburn, Joel (1993). Top Adult Contemporary: 1961–1993. Record Research. p. 97.
- ↑ Cash Box Top 100 Singles, September 5, 1987
- ↑ "Archived copy". www.collectionscanada.gc.ca. Archived from the original on October 21, 2012. Retrieved June 30, 2022.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) - ↑ Musicoutfitters.com
- ↑ "Cash Box Year-End Charts: Top 100 Pop Singles, December 26, 1987". Archived from the original on October 24, 2016. Retrieved October 29, 2017.
- ↑ "American single certifications – Debbie Gibson – Only in My Dreams". Recording Industry Association of America.
- ↑ Deborah Gibson Discography at AngelFire.com. Retrieved 06:15, May 25, 2008 (UTC).
External links
- "Only in My Dreams" at MusicBrainz (list of releases)
- "Only in My Dreams" at Discogs (list of releases)
- "Only in My Dreams 1998" at MusicBrainz (list of releases)
- "Only in My Dreams 1998" at Discogs (list of releases)