"Never Ending Story" is the title song from the English version of the 1984 film The NeverEnding Story. It was produced and composed by Italian musician Giorgio Moroder and performed by English pop singer Limahl. He released two versions of the song, one in English and one in French. The English version featured vocals by Beth Anderson, and the French version, titled L'Histoire Sans Fin, featured vocals by Ann Calvert. It was a success in many countries, reaching No. 1 in both Norway and Sweden, No. 2 in Austria, West Germany and Italy, No. 4 in the UK, No. 6 in Australia and No. 6 on the US Billboard Adult Contemporary chart.

"Never Ending Story"
Single by Limahl
from the album Don't Suppose and The NeverEnding Story soundtrack
B-side	"Ivory Tower" or Instrumental version
Released	25 July 1984
Recorded	January 1984
Genre	Synth-pop new wave
Length	3:31
Label	EMI
Songwriter(s)	Giorgio Moroder, Keith Forsey
Producer(s)	Giorgio Moroder
Limahl singles chronology
"Too Much Trouble" (1984) "Never Ending Story" (1984) "Tar Beach" (1984)
Music video
"The NeverEnding Story" on YouTube

Background and writing

The song was composed by Giorgio Moroder with lyrics by Keith Forsey, though it (and other electronic pop elements of the soundtrack) is not present in the German version of the film, which features Klaus Doldinger's score exclusively.

Beth Anderson recorded her words in America separately from Limahl's.[1] Anderson does not appear in the music video; frequent Limahl back-up singer Mandy Newton lip-syncs Anderson's part.

As a reference to the film and its title, the song has no distinctive beginning, nor an end. While many songs fade out, "The NeverEnding Story" not only fades out but also fades in, thus making it "never-ending".

Legacy

In the final episode of the third season of Stranger Things, set in 1985, "Never Ending Story" is sung by Dustin (Gaten Matarazzo) and his long-distance girlfriend Suzie (Gabriella Pizzolo) as a way to reconnect after not seeing each other for some time.[2] Following the season's release on July 4, 2019, interest in "The NeverEnding Story" surged; viewership of the original music video had increased by 800% within a few days according to YouTube, while Spotify reported an 825% increase in stream requests for the song. Limahl expressed gratitude towards Netflix for this; while he had not watched the series, he was told of the song's inclusion by his nephews and watched clips of the duet. Limahl had previously found a similar increase in his past work when the network used his band Kajagoogoo's song "Too Shy" in Black Mirror: Bandersnatch.[3][4]

Track listings

Official mixes

• "Never Ending Story" (7" mix) – 3:28
• "Never Ending Story" (12" mix) – 5:17
• "Never Ending Story" (club mix) – 6:09
• "Never Ending Story" (instrumental version) – 5:28

Personnel

• Limahl – vocals
• Beth Anderson – background vocals (uncredited)
• Dee Harris – guitar
• Giorgio Moroder – synthesizer
• Keith Forsey – drums, percussion

Charts

¹ "The NeverEnding Story"/"L'Histoire Sans Fin"

Certifications

Cover versions

• For The NeverEnding Story II: The Next Chapter, the song was performed by Joe Milner, heard during the closing credits.
• J-pop group E-Girls covered a Japanese version of the song in 2013. It debuted in the second place of the Oricon weekly singles chart.^{[citation needed]}
• American pop punk group New Found Glory covered the song on their 2000 EP From the Screen to Your Stereo.
• Shooter Jennings and Brandi Carlile covered the song on Jennings' 2016 Giorgio Moroder tribute album Countach (For Giorgio).

References

External links

• The NeverEnding Story single
• Limahl Official British Website
• KajaFax - The Officially Approved Limahl & Kajagoogoo Community & Fan Club
• Unofficial Limahl & Kajagoogoo YouTube video archives

На других языках

[de] The NeverEnding Story

[es] The NeverEnding Story (canción)

[ru] The NeverEnding Story