Magnet and Steel

"Magnet and Steel" is a hit single written and performed by Walter Egan, released in March 1978. It was the first and biggest hit on Egan's second solo LP, Not Shy. It reached number eight on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 and number nine in Canada. It spent 22 weeks on the American charts.

"Magnet and Steel"
Side A of the Australian single
Single by Walter Egan
from the album Not Shy
B-side	"Tunnel O'Love" (U.S.) "She's So Tough" (International)
Released	March 1978[1]
Genre	Soft rock
Length	3:25
Label	Columbia (US) Polydor (international)
Songwriter(s)	Walter Egan
Producer(s)	Walter Egan, Lindsey Buckingham, Richard Dashut

Stevie Nicks and Lindsey Buckingham, members of Fleetwood Mac, sang background vocals along with several others; Buckingham was also one of the song's producers, along with Egan and Richard Dashut. Nicks was also Egan's inspiration for the song.^[2]

Later uses

"Magnet and Steel" was featured in Boogie Nights (1997), Overnight Delivery (1998), and Deuce Bigalow: Male Gigolo (1999). It was also heard in the Season 2 episode "Ohio" of the HBO series Divorce (2018) and in the film This is 40.

The singer Matthew Sweet recorded a version of the song for the Sabrina the Teenage Witch album with Lindsey Buckingham on guitar and backing vocals.

Personnel

• Walter Egan – lead vocals, guitar
• Lindsey Buckingham – guitars, background vocals
• Stevie Nicks – background vocals
• Annie McLoone – background vocals
• John Selk – bass guitar, background vocals
• Tom Moncrieff – guitar, background vocals
• Stephen Hague – keyboards, vocals
• Mike Huey – drums, percussion

Chart performance

Weekly charts

Chart (1978)	Peak position
Australia[3]	32
Canada RPM Top Singles[4]	9
France (IFOP)[5]	60
New Zealand[6]	7
U.S. Billboard Hot 100[7]	8
U.S. Billboard Adult Contemporary[8]	18
U.S. Cash Box Top 100[9]	9

Year-end charts

Chart (1978)	Rank
Canada[10]	68
New Zealand[11]	46
U.S. Billboard Hot 100[12]	40
U.S. Cash Box[13]	59

See also

• List of 1970s one-hit wonders in the United States

References

1. "Walter Egan - Magnet and Steel".
2. "The Penguin Q&A Sessions: Walter Egan". FleetwoodMac.net. October 13–26, 1999. Archived from the original on 2012-03-18. Retrieved 2013-05-06.
3. "One Hit Wonders". Australian-charts.com. October 22, 2008. Archived from the original (Internet forum) on May 13, 2013. Retrieved 2011-08-06.
4. "RPM Top 100 Singles - September 2, 1978" (PDF).
5. "Toutes les Chansons N° 1 des Années 70" (in French). InfoDisc. 1978-12-08. Retrieved 22 December 2019.
6. Steffen Hung. "New Zealand charts portal". charts.nz. Retrieved 2016-10-13.
7. "Music: Top 100 Songs | Billboard Hot 100 Chart". Billboard.com. 1978-08-26. Retrieved 2016-10-13.
8. Whitburn, Joel (2002). Top Adult Contemporary: 1961-2001. Record Research. p. 85.
9. "Top 100 1978-08-26". Cashbox Magazine. Retrieved 2014-10-30.
10. "RPM Top 200 Singles of 1978 - December 30, 1978" (PDF).
11. "Top Selling Singles of 1978 | The Official New Zealand Music Chart". Nztop40.co.nz. 1978-12-31. Retrieved 2016-10-13.
12. "Top 100 Hits of 1978/Top 100 Songs of 1978". Musicoutfitters.com. Retrieved 2016-10-13.
13. "Top 100 Year End Charts: 1978". Cashbox Magazine. Retrieved 2015-11-03.

External links

• Listen to "Magnet and Steel" (Audio).