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Dark Horse (Amanda Marshall song)
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Wikipedia article
"'Dark Horse'" is a song by Canadian pop singer Amanda Marshall. Co-written by Dean McTaggart and David Tyson, it was the fifth single released from Marshall's 1995 self-titled debut album and became another hit for her in Canada, reaching number five on the 'RPM' Top Singles chart and peaking atop the 'RPM' Adult Contemporary chart. It also became a minor hit in Australia and Germany. In 1997, American country music singer Mila Mason covered the song for her own debut album, 'That's Enough of That'. Her version reached number 21 on the US 'Billboard' Hot Country Songs chart and number 12 on the Canadian 'RPM' Country Tracks chart.
Critical reception
Colin Larkin, in 'The Encyclopedia of Popular Music', wrote that it was "more personal" than the other story songs on Marshall's album. Jeremy Helligar of 'Entertainment Weekly' said that Marshall "drums up momentum with the gently percussive 'Dark Horse'". While not a music critic, Elton John remarked on The Rosie O'Donnell Show that "Dark Horse" was a "guaranteed hit" after he mentioned that he was listening to Amanda Marshall's album.
Chart performance
"Dark Horse" peaked at number five on the Canadian 'RPM' Top Singles chart on the issue of March 17, 1997. The single also peaked at number one on the same publication's Adult Contemporary chart two weeks later. It was the twenty-seventh most successful song of 1997 in Canada and the third-most successful adult contemporary hit of the year in the country. The song also charted within the lower reaches on the charts of Australia and Germany, making it to numbers 70 and 93 respectively. Despite its low peak on the German chart, it stayed in the top 100 for six nonconsecutive weeks.
Track listings
'Canadian promo CD'
# "Dark Horse" (radio edit) 4:54
# "Dark Horse" (early fade) 4:29
'European maxi-CD single'
# "Dark Horse" (edit) 4:29
# "Let It Rain" (live) 6:12
# "Birmingham" (live) 7:46
'UK CD single'
# "Dark Horse" (edit)
# "Let It Rain" (live)
# "Birmingham" (live)
# "This Could Take All Night"
Charts
Weekly charts
Year-end charts
Mila Mason version
Mila Mason's version appears on her 1996 debut album 'That's Enough of That'. It was the second single from the album, entering the charts in February 1997.
Critical reception
Brian Wahlert of 'Country Standard Time' described Mason's cover as "the least country song on the album" but said that "Mason's smoky voice works perfectly on the opening lyric [] and the pretty ensuing story of young love that lasted."Chart performance
Mason's version of the song spent 20 weeks on the 'Billboard' Hot Country Songs charts, peaking at number 21. In Canada, it peaked at number 12 on the 'RPM' Country Tracks charts dated for May 12, 1997.Weekly charts
Year-end charts
References
Category:1995 singles
Category:1995 songs
Category:1996 singles
Category:1997 singles
Category:Amanda Marshall songs
Category:Atlantic Records singles
Category:Epic Records singles
Category:Mila Mason songs
Category:Songs written by David Tyson
Category:Songs written by Dean McTaggart
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