The Cassingle Vault: Debbie Gibson, “Anything Is Possible”
Monday, March 24th, 2008 by Jeff Giles
Debbie Gibson - Anything Is Possible (1990)
We hear a lot about the sophomore jinx in music, and rightly so; making the jump from hit debut release to Greatest Hits, Volume 1 is a long road, and it’s got a big ol’ pothole where Album Number Two is supposed to be. For a minute, it looked like Debbie Gibson was going to make that jump — her second album, 1989’s Electric Youth, was an even bigger hit than her debut1, and since all anyone ever talked about was how Debbie wrote, produced, arranged, and played on all her songs, she seemed to have what it took to stick around for the long haul.
And then the little-known third-album jinx snuck up behind her, said “Not so fast, bitch,” and punched Debbie Gibson right in her face.
This face-punching started with the release of this here cassingle, which was meant to lead off another season of chart success for Ms. Gibson. The title track to her third album, “Anything Is Possible” (download) found Gibbie working with Lamont Dozier in an effort to scrub the goody-two-shoes vibe from her sound. The (insufferably long) album was actually split between dance tracks and ballads, supposedly giving everyone something they could enjoy. (I said supposedly.) To his credit, Dozier did respectable work with what he was given; unfortunately, much of what he was given was as bad, or even worse, than “Anything Is Possible.” For your amusement:
Anything is possible
If you put your mind to it
Anything is possible
Just put your mind to it
Anything is possible
If you put your mind to it
Anything….
Is possible
Verse 1:
Thought I couldn’t slow him down
Long enough to look my way
Thought he was out of my league
Wouldn’t give me time of day
Thought he was like all the rest
Love her, leave her, no remorse
But I guess that I misjudged
And this thing just ran its course
He taught me
Chorus:
Anything is possible
If you put your mind to it
Anything is possible…
Just put your mind to it
Anything is possible
If you put your mind to it
Anything is possible
Break it down now….
No matter what it is,
it’s possible
Say, anything is possible
(Anything…) No
matter what it is,
it’s possible
Say, anything is possible
(Anything…) No
matter what it is,
it’s possible
Say, anything is possible
(Anything…) No
matter what it is,
it’s possible
Say, anything is possible
Verse 2:
Much to my surprise I felt
A warm, not cold vibe
When he looked in my eyes
(Oh yeah, it’s possible)
His bad boy front not charm
Was his disguise
Oh whoa whoa
(Let me tell ya)
He read so much into me
Listened so attentively
He liked me, I rest my case
Wasn’t just a pretty face
Bridge:
Anything…
If you set your mind
You can do anything you want
Not every guy is a bad guy
Don’t stereotype
‘Cause this guy, he
proved me wrong
(Anything is possible…)
He taught me
Anything is possible
Just put your mind to it
Ooooooo….
Ooo-Oooooo
Ooo-Oooooo
Ooo-Oooooo
If you put your mind
You know you can do anything,
Anything
Anything is possible
Anything is possible
Anything is possible
Just put your mind to it
Anything is possible
If you put your mind to it
Aside from the humor inherent in the lyrics, which invite all sorts of horribly dirty gags about what exactly “anything” is, and/or how exactly he taught her it’s possible, this is one lame song. It was only — and this is the last time in music history that this phrase applies — the strength of Gibson’s name that pushed the song into the Top 40.
Bad as the song is, it must be said that Atlantic didn’t do Gibson any favors by re-using the set of the “Electric Youth” video for the “AIP” promo clip:
Speaking of “Electric Youth,” were you aware of the existence of a Wikipedia page devoted entirely to the perfume Debbie Gibson named after her second album? Seriously, it’s out there, and it offers the following description of the premier celebrity scent available at finer Walgreens in 1989: “The core fragrance is composed of a blend of citrus and other fruit essential oils, rendering a fruity scent known to be popular with the teenager demographic of the day.”
(A further five minutes of research has revealed the existence of dozens of people desperately searching for Electric Youth perfume. Indeed, there seems to be a black market for counterfeit bottles of the stuff. The going rate is apparently somewhere around $30 for a 1.5-oz. bottle. Repeat after me: Oh my effing God.)
Anyway, uh, not much else to say about “Anything Is Possible,” other than Debbie must have been writing tons of songs at the time; not only does Anything Is Possible include a veritable buttload of tracks (I don’t remember exactly how many, but if memory serves, it was something like 400), but this cassingle includes a non-album B-side, “So Close to Forever” (download).
Debbie kept on churning out music on a regular basis into the mid-’90s, eventually moving onto Broadway, shitty direct-to-video movies, and cashing checks with Hugh Hefner’s name on them. She still releases albums occasionally, and enjoys the slavish devotion of many fans, some of whom will doubtless wander over here in the hopes of completing their Giblet B-sides collection and/or leaving enraged comments. Enjoy the show! It’s bound to be more entertaining than the music!
1Or not. I have no idea, really, but I wanted to give Debbie the benefit of the doubt. It just felt like the right thing to do.
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I'm actually kinda partial to the leadoff track "Another Brick Falls".
Does that mean you didn't like her rapping on "One Step Ahead?" That song should have been the lead single from "Anything Is Possible" -- it DG's positivity vibe. It sounded C&C Music Factory-ish, which was a good thing at the time. When it was released as the third single they removed the rap on and remixed it slightly.
I actually really like this CD. Okay, so it was perfect and completely accessible. But it reminds me of high school. It was a good mesh of a Motown sound (which DG always proclaimed her love for) and pop. "Deep Down" is such a fun song -- it was featured on "90210" when she made a guest appearance. I love the bridge on "Where Have You Been?" and I feel her pain on the 8-minute song "This So-Called Miracle" -- esp when the choir kicks in.
At the time of it's release, the odds were against DG as grunge was making it's way in, and anything pop was considered shameful. Debbie really represented that pop sound that people were trying desperately to migrate away from.
PS -- I love you for blogging about this CD!
Zappin' it to ya ! I love D. Gib (my cool, hip-hop flavored nickname for her) and I will fight any motherfucker who has a problem with that. Teen idols may be the ultimate guilty pleasure but part of that equation is indeed pleasure. I loved Deb's first 2 albums (on cassette, natch) and kept them safe and secure next to my hot pink leg warmers and cocoa body oil dispenser.
I also loved TIffany and never went in for this competition bullshit. Can't I have both of them for chrissake ? Yes, she got taken out at the knees, but for everyone whose still putting Debbie down, I remind you that Tiffany has undergone a nice transformation and is finally starting to be taken seriously. So don't count Deb out, you souless bastards.
No mention of the 3rd entry in the 80's Teen Queen Troika, Shanice Wilson? Just as awful as Deb & Tiff, but with dance skillz and a bra over jailhouse couture.
http://youtube.com/watch?v=x97aSuscGro
Trying to get an erection from a Playboy photo spread is akin to trying to prepare a nutritious meal out of plastic fruit.
Now let's not forget - Debbie also sang back-up with The Circle Jerks on a cover of I Wanna Destroy You. A noble move at cross-genre solidarity that also, from what I recall, resulted in a near-disaster stage dive during a Circle Jerks concert (Ms. Sparks from L7 also sang back-up at that show). And for the truly hard-core fans, Deb's album spawned a second cassingle b-side "The Most Beautiful Love Song." I was working in radio when that album dropped. If they chose the superior "One Hand, One Heart" as the lead single, the album would have been a smash. The album is a cut-out bin treasure trove.
To keep the competition alive - Tiffany sang with Front Line Assembly on a U2 covers album - We Will Follow. Terrible disc. Predictable title.
It's true -- Niko Bolas somehow ended up working on Gibson's 1995 album for SBK -- she got there after the Wilson Phillips money dried up, unfortunately -- and he introduced her to the Jerks. Hey, I never said she didn't have a sense of humor...only that this particular single, and album, are duds.
I'm keeping a mental list of teeny bopper female singers you love, and I think in a Debbie G/Tiffany throw down, you'd be putting money on Debbie. Please tell me I'm right.
You'd have to point a gun at me to make me care enough about either of them to choose, but under those circumstances, yes, you'd be right.
I don't believe you. I think you have a crush on Debbie Gibson.
It's true, I do. I do have a crush on Debbie Gibson.
In 1987.
Now you can take a trip back to 1987 and see your crush by going to Atlantic City and seeing her in Pop Goes Broadway!
http://www.deborah-gibson.com/
I'd totally tongue-tickle that schnoz.
The album this was from was basically a double, too--16 tracks in the halcyon days of the LP ceasing to be a factor. All of it pretty awful.
Lamont Dozier was bidding to be the male Diane Warren at the time: Simply Red's "You've Got It" would be a good song by him.
Remember that Tiffany's New Inside album came out at the same time and she also became a has-been on impact. Meanwhile, both Donny Osmond and David Cassidy were having comebacks.
"Losing Myself" from Debbie's attempted comeback in 1993 was a more interesting song, but forced sexuality didn't work on a 22-year-old. Maybe she (or even Tiff) could've done it at 32 with better material?
But using Playboy as a launch pad was pretty lame by then...
Playboy is the elephant's graveyard of popular culture in decline. "No one's paying attention to me anymore! What do I do? Hey, wait a minute... I've got boobs!!"
I stand corrected, Debbie was 36 years old circa Playboy. Like the similar spreads with Carnie WIlson and Belinda Carlisle, the pics looked so untrue to life, there was nothing scandalous about it. A woman who makes music capable of appealing to men would be better off posing nekkid in a men's magazine, funny how that never happens.
"Losin' Myself": Not as bad as thought, by me, three hours ago. She was still way young to be pulling the "mature" act:
http://youtube.com/watch?v=EfnrdZez6oo
That perfume was also available at Kroger's, or at least their store in the Memphis suburb I grew up in. It actually had a "fragrance counter" near the front, with sample bottles. That offered unemployed teenage shitheads (e.g., me) the excellent opportunity to douse friends-slash-employees with the cloying citrus reek of Electric Youth then race over to Little Caesar's (motto: "Jesus! Jesus! Don't eat that Pizza! Pizza!"), leaving said friends stuck in the deli, slicing lunchmeats and offending the customers, odiferously.
You didn't like Little Caesar's, Rich? If you don't like Papa John's, I'll have to fight you.
Oh I love Big Papa. To paraphrase Mike Myers: in the red sauce, Papa puts an addictive chemical that makes you crave it fortnightly.
To answer your footnote, Jeff: yes and no. The first single, "Lost in Your Eyes", was a #1 hit. And the album hit #1 also. But then she released the title track as the second single, and both it and the video that went with it were....um....I don't like to throw the phrase "the gayest thing ever" around, since that's pretty harsh, but in this case I might be willing to make an exception. Imagine "Up With People" for a new generation, and that was "Electric Youth", the song and video:
http://youtube.com/watch?v=cOoIlN5S0hY
That was pretty much the career-killer right there, if I recall correctly.