Maniac (Michael Sembello song)
| "Maniac" | |
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"Maniac" is a synthpop song performed by Michael Sembello. The song was used in the 1983 film Flashdance and was inspired by the 1980 horror film Maniac.[1]
The film Maniac was about a serial killer who stalks his victims in New York City.[1] The song's performer and co-writer Michael Sembello recalls that an early version of the chorus was:
- He's a maniac, maniac that's for sure,
- He will kill your cat and nail him to the door.[1]
At the suggestion of the record's producer Phil Ramone, the lyrics were rewritten to describe a girl with a passion for dancing.[1] The lyrics became:
- She's a maniac, maniac on the floor
- And she's dancing like she's never danced before.
"Maniac" appears during an early scene in Flashdance and is used as the backing track of a montage sequence showing Alex (Jennifer Beals) training strenuously in her converted warehouse.
The song was included in Flashdance after Sembello's wife sent a tape to executives at Paramount Pictures who were looking for music to use in the film.[1]
The solo and the final solos were played with Fender Stratocaster
Covers
The synth was covered by Wiz Khalifa in his Number 1 hit single, Black and Yellow in 2010.[citation needed]
Greek power metal band Firewind did a cover of the song on their album The Premonition, in 2008.
Irish DJ Mark McCabe released a dance remix featuring the chorus which spent 10 weeks at number 1 in Ireland and is now the 2nd biggest selling single in Ireland.
In 1995 Sargant Fury, a Heavy Metal band from Germany, recorded a cover which featured on their album "Turn the page".
Reggae artists Bounty Killer and Ritchie Stephens and recorded a cover which featured on their respective 1997 and 1998 albums.
The French avant-garde metal band Carnival in Coal also covered the song on their album French Cancan, and the song was also covered by the band Evergreen Terrace on their album Writer's Block. Popular South African band Van Coke Kartel recorded a cover for the song in 2010.
The song was sampled in the Basement Jaxx song "Twerk", from their album "Scars", in 2009.
Mexican tropical cover band Tropikal Forever covered the song as "Lo Menea" in a tropical style, and adapted the lyrics to Spanish.
Polish actor and singer Roman Frankl performed the song translated into Polish as "Jesteś moja" ("You are mine") in early 1980s.
Charts and awards
"Maniac" reached number one in the Billboard Hot 100 for two weeks in September 1983 and is one of the highest-grossing songs ever written for a film. In addition to producing "Maniac", Phil Ramone produced the song that would dethrone it from the top spot, Billy Joel's "Tell Her About It". The Original Soundtrack of Flashdance won the 1984 Grammy Award for Best Album of Original Score Written for A Motion Picture or a Television Special.
The song was nominated for an Academy Award, but it was disqualified since the original version had not been written for the film.[1] Michael Sembello states on the website Songfacts that the decision "pisses me off to this day".[1] Another song from the film, "Flashdance... What a Feeling" performed by Irene Cara, won the Academy Award for Best Original Song in 1984.
In popular culture
In the teen comedy She's Out of Control (1989) starring Tony Danza, Katie, played by Ami Dolenz, reenacts the Flashdance sequence dancing in the room on the song.
The Simpsons episode "Simpsoncalifragilisticexpiala(Annoyed Grunt)cious" had Groundskeeper Willie perform a one-man-band version of the song.
Scrubs episode "My Way Home" had The Blanks perform an a cappella version of the song.
A soundalike instrumental was used in an audition scene in the Family Guy episode "The King is Dead".
The song is in StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty in an iPod spoof called the iPistol, with the silhouette figure doing dance moves from Flashdance.
In Tommy Boy, after he and his soon-to-be step brother go "cow tipping", Tommy Callahan sings Maniac and dances to it while his step brother sprays the mud off of him.
In Dance Flick, Thomas was dancing to this song.
This song was included along with other 1980s hits when Stifler Seann William Scott from American Wedding, dances for everyone at a gay club.
In Just Wright, Leslie (Queen Latifah) briefly sings this song while at Rucker Park with Scott (Common).
The song was in the 2011 comedy film Big Mommas: Like Father, Like Son.
It was featured as Kyle's ringtone in animated series South Park" 4th Episode of the 16th season.