After graduating from high school in 1967, she worked as a secretary and performed part-time as a singer for a local folk band called Sweet Rain. Her singing caught the attention of Russ Regan (then head of 20th Century Records) in 1972 when he heard a demo she had recorded. At the time, Regan was searching for a singer to record "The Morning After" (the theme from The Poseidon Adventure) for release as a record. He hired McGovern sight unseen to record the song, which led to her signing with 20th Century Records. After it won an Oscar for Best Original Song, "The Morning After" quickly climbed the pop charts, reaching #1 in 1973.
In 1974, she recorded two movie themes: "We May Never Love Like This Again" (from the disaster film The Towering Inferno, in which she made a short appearance when she is seen singing the song as the evening's entertainment) and "Wherever Love Takes Me" (from the British disaster film Gold). The former won an Oscar (though it was only a minor pop hit), and the latter received an Oscar nomination. These two songs (along with "The Morning After") led the media to call McGovern "the Disaster Theme Queen."
McGovern's contract with 20th Century ended in 1976. By this time, her career went downhill and she ended up broke, due to being cheated out of her earnings by her managers and producers. To begin her life over again, she moved to Marina del Rey and took a secretarial job under an assumed name. However, she was still in demand occasionally for international live concerts. Her career made a turn for the better when she was asked to record a version of "Can You Read My Mind," the love theme from 1978's Superman, which was not recorded for the film. The single achieved minor success on the Pop charts. Toward the end of the decade, she recorded "Different Worlds," the theme from a short-lived TV sitcom entitled Angie. The song was her only other Top 40 single aside from "The Morning After," reaching #18 on the Pop charts in 1979 and also spending two weeks at #1 on the Adult Contemporary chart. In 1980, she made a cameo appearance as the singing nun, Sister Angelina, in the comedy-disaster movie Airplane!.
At the beginning of the 1980s, McGovern gave up movie themes to begin a career on Broadway, despite having no acting experience. In 1981, she made her Broadway debut as Mabel in a revival of Gilbert & Sullivan's musical The Pirates of Penzance. She then performed in two productions with the Pittsburgh Civic Light Opera: The Sound of Music (1981; as Maria) and South Pacific (1982; as Nellie Forbush). She continued her theatrical career throughout the eighties and originated the role of Mary in the Off-Broadway production of Brownstone in 1985.
In 2005, McGovern returned to the Broadway stage as Marmee opposite Sutton Foster's Jo in the musical adaptation of Louisa May Alcott's Little Women. Plagued by negative reviews, it quickly closed, but McGovern reprised her role for the successful subsequent national tour.
She slowly returned to music in the mid-eighties, contributing songs to musical soundtracks and recording for various-artist compilations. She also returned to touring and performing in concerts and began establishing herself as a classy, jazzy nightclub and cabaret performer. Starting in 1987, she released three albums for CBS in three years - Another Woman in Love (a voice/piano album), State of the Heart (a fully orchestrated album), and Naughty Baby (a live album).
In 1989, she performed her debut concert in Carnegie Hall, singing a collection of songs by George Gershwin. The concert was recorded live and released that year as an album entitled Naughty Baby; it features a very first recording of a lost Gershwin song "A Corner of Heaven With You" (written ca. 1917).
From the nineties into the 21st century, McGovern continued her careers in musical theatre, performing in concerts, and recording albums, and she occasionally made guest appearances on television. Other recordings include Baby I'm Yours (1992), a collection of her favorite songs from 1955 to 1970, and Out of This World (1996), a collection of songs by Harold Arlen. She was twice nominated for a Grammy, for her albums The Music Never Ends (1997), a collection of songs by Alan & Marilyn Bergman, and The Pleasure of His Company (1998), another voice/piano album.
In 2003, Out of This World and The Music Never Ends were rereleased by Fynsworth Alley Records; both albums included bonus tracks, the former two, and the latter three.
When You Wish Upon a Star/Over the Rainbow
Maureen McGovern Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
They possess a gift or two
One of them is this:
They have the power to make a wish come true
When you wish upon a star,
Makes no difference who you are
Anything your heart desires
If your heart is in your dreams,
No request is too extreme
When you wish upon a star
As dreamers do
Fate is kind
She brings to those who love
The sweet fulfillment of
Their secret longing
Somewhere over the rainbow,
Way up high,
There's a land that I heard of
Once in a lullabye
Somewhere over the rainbow,
Skies are blue
And the dreams that you dare to dream
Really do come true
Someday, I'll wish upon a star
And wake up where the clouds are far behind me
Where troubles melt like lemon drops
Away above the chimney tops, that's where you'll find me
So, if your heart is in your dreams,
No request is too extreme
When you wish upon a star,
Your dreams come true
The opening lines of Maureen McGovern's song, "When a star is born, they possess a gift or two. One of them is this: They have the power to make a wish come true." refer to the magical and mystical powers that stars seem to have in our collective consciousness. This is a common theme in folklore across many cultures, where shooting stars, for example, are believed to carry our wishes up to the heavens, where they will be granted. The lyrics continue to describe the potency of wishing upon a star, regardless of who we are. There is a sense of hope and optimism that runs throughout the song and the message that our dreams can come true, as long as we dare to dream.
The second part of the song compares wishing upon a star to having a heart full of dreams, believing that anything is possible. There is a call to action to not shy away from our biggest and most extravagant aspirations, because "no request is too extreme". The song explores the idea that if we let go of our limiting beliefs and embrace the power of imagination, we can create a reality that surpasses our wildest expectations. The final lines of the song reinforce this sentiment: "So, if your heart is in your dreams, no request is too extreme, when you wish upon a star, your dreams come true."
Line by Line Meaning
When a star is born,
From the moment a star comes into existence,
They possess a gift or two
They have one or two unique qualities
One of them is this:
One of these qualities is
They have the power to make a wish come true
The ability to grant wishes
When you wish upon a star,
If you make a wish on a star
Makes no difference who you are
It doesn't matter who you are
Anything your heart desires
Whatever you deeply want
Will come to you
Will be granted
If your heart is in your dreams,
If you focus on your dreams
No request is too extreme
There's no limit to what you can ask for
When you wish upon a star
If you make a wish on a star
As dreamers do
Like all those who dream
Fate is kind
The universe is benevolent
She brings to those who love
It grants the deepest wishes of those who love
The sweet fulfillment of
What they've been longing for
Their secret longing
Their deepest desire
Somewhere over the rainbow,
In a faraway place, beyond our usual reality,
Way up high,
Far above the earth
There's a land that I heard of
There's a place I've heard about
Once in a lullabye
I heard it in a soothing song
Skies are blue
The sky is characterized by a blue color
And the dreams that you dare to dream
The aspirations that you are brave enough to have
Really do come true
Can actually manifest themselves
Someday, I'll wish upon a star
One day, I will make a wish on a star
And wake up where the clouds are far behind me
And find myself in a place where troubles are distant
Where troubles melt like lemon drops
The hardships disappear as if by magic
Away above the chimney tops, that's where you'll find me
Far above the roofs of houses, that's where I'll be
So, if your heart is in your dreams,
Therefore, if you focus on your dreams,
No request is too extreme
There's no limit to what you can ask for
When you wish upon a star,
If you make a wish on a star
Your dreams come true
Your aspirations are fulfilled
Contributed by Lillian M. Suggest a correction in the comments below.