"Abracadabra" is a well-recognized song recorded by the
Steve Miller Band.
Released as the main single from
Abracadabrain June 1982, it became a number-one hit on
the United States
BillboardHot 100 chart, and also hit number two on the
UK charts. It followed Survivor's "Eye of the Tiger" (from
Rocky III) on the Hot 100, and preceded Chicago's "Hard
to Say I'm Sorry". After Chicago's ballad ended its two-week
stay at number one, "Abracadabra" re-assumed the top spot on
the U.S. charts for an additional week on September 25. John
Cougar's "Jack and Diane" dislodged the Steve Miller Band's
final number-one hit from the top on October 2.
The song is said to have been inspired by the American
singer Diana Ross with whom the band met filming TV shows in
the 1960's.
This song holds the record for the biggest drop out of the
Top 10/Top 40 on the Hot 100. In the fall of 1982, as the song
was moving down the chart, "Abracadabra" fell 38 spots from #10
to #48 in one week.
The song is listed at #70 on
Billboard's Greatest Songs of all time.[1]
Cover versions of the song have been performed by Sugar Ray
on their album
14:59and by Mike Chapman Band. A live version by the
Belgian band Das Pop appeared on there 2004 DVD-single
Love is Fair.
A version lasting 3 minutes and 41 seconds appears on a CD
of Songs hand-picked by Guy Fieri titled
Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives:Road Songs That Rock
Another CD that has the single version is from the Time-Life
Label
Sounds of the Eighties: 1980–1982.