The Superstars

The Superstars was the third album by Dutch soundalike studio group Stars on 45, released on the CNR Records label in The Netherlands in March 1982. In the US the album was retitled Stars On Long Play III, released on Radio Records and credited to 'Stars On'. In the UK, Ireland, Australia and New Zealand the album was instead titled Stars Medley, again credited to Starsound and released by CBS Records. Just like the two preceding Stars on 45 albums The Superstars was also issued in the Soviet Union and large parts of the Eastern Bloc by state-owned label Melodiya, credited to Stars on 45 but released under the title Discotheque Stars 3.

Contents

• Side A
• Side B
• Personnel
• Production
• Songs
• References

The fourth Stars On 45 single released in both Europe and the U.S. was "Stars on Stevie", paying tribute to Stevie Wonder and including a selection of his best-known songs, ranging from his breakthrough single "Fingertips" (released in 1963 and credited to Little Stevie Wonder) to his then most recent US hit "Master Blaster (Jammin)". The "Stars On Stevie" medley - in the UK somewhat confusingly released by CBS as Starsound: "Stars Medley", the very same title as the album - became Stars On 45's fourth UK Top 20 hit, peaking at #14 in February 1982. In the US, where it was given a third title, "Stars On 45 III: In Tribute To Stevie Wonder", it reached #28 on Billboard's Hot 100 chart.

The extended 12" mix of "Stars On Stevie" was included on Stars On 45's third full-length release The Superstars where it was placed as the opening track on Side B, followed by an also-extended version of the single's B-side, "It's Not A Wonder, It's A Miracle", written by producer Jaap Eggermont and musical arranger Martin Duiser.

For the A-side of the album Eggermont returned to the concept of the first Stars On 45 LP by again creating a sixteen-minute side-long medley, this time dedicated to The Greatest Rock 'n Roll Band in the World; The Rolling Stones. The twenty-five track medley charted the band's at the time seventeen-year-long career, from their 1965 breakthrough with "(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction" via classic hits like "Ruby Tuesday", "Sympathy For The Devil", "Miss You", "Under My Thumb" and "Honky Tonk Women" all the way to 1980's "Emotional Rescue" and "Start Me Up", a UK and US Top Ten hit in August 1981. "The Greatest Rock 'n Roll Band In The World" single didn't fare as well on the charts however; while it became another Top 20 hit in the Netherlands and a few other European countries it failed to chart in both the UK and the US and The Superstars album itself met with the same fate, only reaching #94 on the UK albums chart and failing to register on Billboard's Top 200 chart in the US. (The only version of the Stars On 45 Stones medley to have been re-released on CD is the heavily edited 7" mix, only including ten of the original twenty-five titles and 5:09 in length. The 9 minute 40 second 12" mix featured the majority of the Stones tracks in slightly edited form.)

Consequently, for the following album project producer Jaap Eggermont made a radical change of the Stars On 45 concept by launching the spin-off group The Star Sisters, mainly covering material made famous by The Andrews Sisters and other stars from the 1940s, 50's and early 60's - and without the Stars On 45 disco beat and its characteristic handclaps. The Star Sisters went on to release three albums and a series of singles between the years 1983 and 1987 whose commercial success was limited to Continental Europe in general and the Benelux countries in particular.

The Superstars/Stars On Longplay III/Stars Medley album in its entirety and in its original form remains unreleased on CD. The full length Stevie Wonder medley is commonly found on cd (the 7" version has not been released on cd however). The 7" Rolling Stones medley is also commonly found on cd, but the 9 minutes 12 inch, nor the lp version, nor the B-sides are released on cd)