"Physical" is a 1981 song written by Steve Kipner and Terry Shaddick and performed by Olivia Newton-John. Recorded in early 1981, it first rose to number one on the Billboard Hot 100 in America in November 1981 and stayed there for ten weeks, until the end of January 1982. In terms of chart placement, it was the most popular single of her career, as well as her final number-one (to date). Billboard ranked it as the number one pop single of 1982 (since the chart year for 1982 actually began in November of 1981), and it was also the most successful song on the Hot 100 during the entire decade of the 1980s.
The single, slightly edgier than she had been known for in the past (such as her songs from Grease and her ballad "I Honestly Love You"), proved to be immensely popular both in America and in the United Kingdom, despite the fact that the song was censored and even banned by some radio stations, particularly Adult Contemporary stations; in spite of Newton-John's status as the reigning queen of soft-rock music at the time, "Physical" peaked at only number twenty-nine on the AC chart (its follow-up, the slightly softer-edged "Make a Move on Me," found more acceptance at AC radio and went to number six AC as well as number five pop.) The song was a big dance hit and spawned a music video. The revamped acoustic version of the song was released on the 2002 Olivia duet album (2) as a bonus track.
"Physical" is a 2004 song by the Swedish band Alcazar.
The song features a prominent sample from Londonbeat's #1 single I've Been Thinking About You.
