Beyond Your Wildest Dreams

"Beyond Your Wildest Dreams" is a ballad written by British hitmaking team Stock Aitken & Waterman, which was recorded by three of their artists, Lonnie Gordon, Sybil, and Nancy Davis. The songwriters have cited this song as one of the best they ever wrote, and were dissatisfied with its poor chart performance.

Gordon and Sybil's versions were released as singles. Nancy Davis recorded the song in 1992, and so far it remains unreleased.

Lonnie Gordon version
"Beyond Your Wildest Dreams"
Single by Lonnie Gordon
from the album If I Have to Stand Alone
Released1990
Recorded1990
GenrePop
Length3:10
LabelSupreme Records
Songwriter(s)Matt Aitken, Mike Stock, Pete Waterman
Producer(s)Stock Aitken & Waterman
Lonnie Gordon singles chronology
"Happenin' All Over Again"
(1990)		 "Beyond Your Wildest Dreams"
(1990)		 "If I Have to Stand Alone"
(1990)
Music video
"Beyond Your Wildest Dreams" on YouTube

The song was written for Lonnie Gordon, and was released as the follow-up to her breakthrough top 10 hit "Happenin' All Over Again". Initially the follow-up single was going to be another song, the uptempo "How Could He Do This To Me", however disagreements with the label led to a change of the single choice and "Beyond Your Wildest Dreams" was released instead.

These disagreements created a delay on the release of the single and it was finally released in August 1990, seven months after "Happenin' All Over Again" had entered the UK charts. The song peaked at #48 in the UK charts. Reasons for this failure may have been the long gap between singles, which may have died off public interest in Gordon, and also the fact that she released a ballad, when the public was expecting a song more in the vein of her first hit.

"Beyond Your Wildest Dreams" was later included on Gordon's 1991 debut album If I Have to Stand Alone, in an extended version.

Critical reception

Music & Media commented, "...this Philadelphia-born singer has now teamed-up with the SAW production team. The result is excellent. A smooth soul/pop record that gives Gordon's excellent voice every chance to shine. Reminiscent of SAW's Donna Summer collaboration."[1] David Giles from Music Week wrote, "Follow-up to her top five hit Happenin' All Over Again, but a distinct shift in style for the SAW production team moving away from the Hi-NRG field towards a mellower, laid-back soulful feel."[2]

Track listings
CD single (French)
  1. "Beyond Your Wildest Dreams" 6:48
  2. "Beyond Your Wildest Dreams" (senza voce) 3:48
  3. "Beyond Your Wildest Dreams" 3:15

Charts
Chart (1990) Peak
position
UK Singles (Official Charts Company) 48

Sybil version
"Beyond Your Wildest Dreams"
Single by Sybil
from the album Good 'N' Ready
Released1993
Recorded1993
GenrePop
Length3:18
LabelPWL, Next Plateau
Songwriter(s)Matt Aitken, Mike Stock, Pete Waterman
Producer(s)Mike Stock, Pete Waterman
Sybil singles chronology
"When I'm Good and Ready"
(1993)		 "Beyond Your Wildest Dreams"
(1993)		 "Stronger Together"
(1993)

American artist Sybil worked with Mike Stock and Pete Waterman in 1993 (by that time, Matt Aitken had left the trio), and had two top 10 hits with a cover of "The Love I Lost" and the Stock/Waterman original "When I'm Good and Ready". Her cover of "Beyond Your Wildest Dreams" was chosen as the third single off her successful album Good 'N' Ready, and was released in June 1993. It charted higher than the original version, but it only managed a #41 peak in the UK singles chart.

Later in 1993, Sybil released the album in the United States, retitled Doin' It Now! and featuring a different track listing from the Good 'N' Ready album, omitting some tracks and adding new ones. Although "Beyond Your Wildest Dreams" was not included on the Doin' It Now! album, it was released as the second single off it in September 1993. The US single version is a very different hip-hop styled remix with a male rapper. The song peaked at #90 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart. It also charted on the Bubbling Under R&B/Hip-Hop Singles chart.

Sybil filmed video clips for both versions of the song.

Critical reception

Larry Flick from Billboard wrote, "British pop hit has been added to Sybil's current "Doin' It Now" opus. Percolating pop/dance ditty glides along at a friendly pace, with a silky vocal, rousing hand-claps, and appropriate hip-hop beat flavors."[3]

Charts
Chart (1993) Peak
position
UK Singles (Official Charts Company) 41
US Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs 90

References
  1. "Previews: Singles" (PDF). Music & Media. 18 August 1990. p. 12. Retrieved 3 November 2020.
  2. Giles, David (28 July 1990). "Singles" (PDF). Music Week. p. 19. Retrieved 30 October 2020.
  3. Flick, Larry (4 September 1993). "Single Reviews" (PDF). Billboard. p. 63. Retrieved 27 October 2020.
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