How To Be A Millionaire
by ABC

Album: How to Be A... Zillionaire! (1985)
Charted: 49 20
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Songfacts®:

  • This song is about using money and things to fill the void on one's life. Part of its success was its timing, which was the same year that Lifestyles Of The Rich & Famous was a huge hit on television, and many people developed a taste for luxury. >>
    Suggestion credit:
    Mike - Santa Barbara, CA

Comments: 4

  • Dj from SocalWhere are the sound byte samples from at 2:18 ("billions and billions and billions of pounds" British voice) and 2:22 ("kill them someway" American voice) and 2:23 ("corruption corruption") ?
  • Barry from Sauquoit, NyOn March 8, 1986, ABC performed "How To Be A Millionaire" on the Dick Clark ABC-TV Saturday-afternoon program 'American Bandstand'...
    At the time the song was at #25 on Billboard's Top 100 chart, two weeks later it would peak at #20 {for 1 week} and it spent thirteen weeks on the Top 100...
    It reached #4 on Billboard's Hot Dance Club Play chart...
    And on the same 'Bandstand' show the group also performed "Be Near Me", four months earlier on November 3rd, 1985 it peaked at #9 {for 2 weeks} on the Top 100 chart and on September 22nd, 1985 it reached #1* {for 2 weeks} on Billboard's Hot Dance Club Play chart...
    Besides the above two song, the British group had five other Top 100 records, "Poison Arrow" {#25 in 1982}, "The Look of Love" {#18 in 1982}, "That Was Then But This Is Now" {#89 in 1983}, "Vanity Kills" {#91 in 1985}, and "When Smokey Sings" {#5 in 1987}...
    * Besides "Be Near Me", they had two other #1 records on the Hot Dance Club Play chart, "The Look of Love" for 1 week in 1982 and "When Smokey Sings" for 2 weeks in 1987.
  • Joshua from La Crosse, WiToward the end of this song, there is the refrain "Who wants to be a millionaire?" I wonder if that was the inspiration for the title of a certain game show...
  • Eugene from Minneapolis, MnI play this quite a bit as a "Gold" song on my Ipod. This is one of my favourite ABC songs ever next to the ultimate one called "Poison Arrow".
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