"Castles in the Air"
Single by Don McLean
from the album Believers
B-side"Crazy Eyes"
ReleasedOctober 1981
GenreEasy listening
LabelMillennium
Songwriter(s)Don McLean
Producer(s)Larry Butler
Don McLean singles chronology
"Since I Don't Have You"
(1981)		 "Castles in the Air"
(1981)		 "He's Got You"
(1987)

"Castles in the Air" is a song by American singer-songwriter Don McLean, which he originally released as a single in 1971 and subsequently re-recorded and re-released a decade later. The song describes a man who is unsatisfied with and weary of an urban lifestyle. Although native to the city, he decides to forsake not only his urban 'castle in the air' but also his love interest there. Because of his desire for and love of a country life, he decides to seek romance with a like-minded woman.

History

Originally recorded in 1970, "Castles in the Air" was McLean's first American single release, preceding "American Pie". The original version of "Castles in the Air" was included on the Tapestry album. In February 1971, it was released as the first single from the album and reached No. 40 on the Billboard Easy Listening/Adult Contemporary chart. After the success of the "American Pie" single, "Castles in the Air" was included as the B-side to its follow-up, "Vincent", and received enough radio airplay to reach the Hot 100 chart as a "flip".

In 1981, McLean re-recorded and re-released "Castles in the Air".[1] The new version of the song, a slower ballad version compared with the more mid to uptempo version of the original, first appeared on his album Believers, and later replaced the original version on some copies of Tapestry. Billboard praised the "soft guitar backdrop and tender vocal."[2] Record World said that "this gentle, rolling ballad has a timeless sound."[3] The new rendition was more successful, becoming a Top 40 hit in the US (No. 36 Billboard and No. 31 Cash Box), and reaching No. 11 in Australia. It was also a top 10 hit on the Adult Contemporary charts of both the US (No. 7) and Canada (No. 2). "Castles in the Air" became McLean's final pop hit before his genre shift to country music in the mid-1980s.

Chart performance

Weekly charts

Chart (1971) Peak
position
US Billboard Easy Listening 40
Chart (1981–82) Peak
position
Australia (Kent Music Report) [4] 11
Canada Adult Contemporary[5] 2
New Zealand[6] 12
UK Singles Chart[7] 47
US Billboard Hot 100[8] 36
US Billboard Adult Contemporary[9] 7
US Cash Box Top 100[10] 31

Year-end charts

Chart (1982) Rank
Australia (Kent Music Report)[4] 85

References

  1. ↑ Christian, Meg (November 4, 1981). "Engendering listeners". Daily News. New York City. p. M6. Retrieved September 3, 2022 – via newspapers.com.
  2. ↑ "Top Single Picks". Billboard. October 10, 1981. p. 93. Retrieved 2023-01-21.
  3. ↑ "Hits of the Week" (PDF). Record World. October 17, 1981. p. 1. Retrieved 2023-03-01.
  4. 1 2 "National Top 100 Singles for 1982". Kent Music Report. 3 January 1983. Retrieved 22 January 2023 – via Imgur.
  5. ↑ "Image : RPM Weekly - Library and Archives Canada". Bac-lac.gc.ca. 17 July 2013. Retrieved 2016-10-17.
  6. ↑ NZ Top 40 Singles Chart, March 7, 1982
  7. ↑ "officialcharts.com". Official Charts. Retrieved October 27, 2021.
  8. ↑ Joel Whitburn's Top Pop Singles 1955-1990 - ISBN 0-89820-089-X
  9. ↑ Whitburn, Joel (2002). Top Adult Contemporary: 1961-2001. Record Research. p. 166.
  10. ↑ "Top 100 1982-01-16". Cashbox Magazine. Retrieved 2016-05-19.
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