"King of Wishful Thinking"Also titled as "The King of Wishful Thinking" on Chrysalis releases is a song by British pop duo Go West, written by Peter Cox, Richard Drummie and Martin Page. It appeared in the film Pretty WomanHow King of Wishful Thinking got on the Pretty Woman soundtrack and was later included on Go West's third studio album, Indian Summer, in 1992.

In terms of the group's discography, "King of Wishful Thinking" has become their best known song. The track reached number three in Canada, number six in Australia, number eight in the United States, and number 18 in the United Kingdom. At the 1991 Brit Awards, the song was nominated for the Brit Award for British Video of the Year.

Critical reception Music journalist Hannah Dailey of the U.S. publication Billboard has labeled the song as "one of the crown jewels of ’90s classic hits".

Music video The song's official music video is known for including various absurdist elements alongside the pop duo as they act on a solid white stage. It was produced, directed and written by Paul Flattery and Jim Yukich of FYI. Though the film does not outwardly utilize film clips from Pretty Woman, outside of brief glimpses superimposed on actual celluloid, the video includes lookalikes of Julia Roberts and Richard Gere (dressed as his character from An Officer and a Gentleman). An actor playing Roy Orbison, performer of the titular song from the film, also appears.

In 2018, actor Paul Rudd and late-night host Jimmy Fallon made a shot-for-shot recreation of the music video for The Tonight Show. Some elements such as a dancing Pope, zebras, and a trained circus elephant, present in the original video, were not reproduced in the remake. American band the Roots made a cameo appearance.

Track listings UK 7-inch and cassette single "The King of Wishful Thinking" – 4:00 "Tears Too Late" – 4:25

UK CD single "The King of Wishful Thinking" – 4:00 "The King of Wishful Thinking" (Jon Gass US 12-inch) – 5:49 "Tears Too Late" – 4:25 "The King of Wishful Thinking" (acapella) – 2:45 The UK 12-inch single switches tracks one and two.

US and Canadian cassette single "King of Wishful Thinking" (LP version) "King of Wishful Thinking" (power mix)

Personnel Go West Peter Cox – lead vocals, backing vocals, keyboards Richard Drummie – keyboards, guitars, backing vocals

Additional musicians

Peter Wolf – keyboards, drum programming David Williams – guitars Dan Higgins – saxophones Larry Williams – saxophones Gary Grant – trumpet Jerry Hey – trumpet, horn arrangements Lynn Davis – backing vocals Phillip Ingram – backing vocals Dorian Holley – backing vocals Alfie Silas – backing vocals Session Days - 1990 Go West – King Of Wishful Thinking (US:#8 UK:#18) (Listing of personnel from Sessiondays.com site)Jeff Porcaro Session World - GO WEST / INDIAN SUMMER, 6. THE KING OF WISHFUL THINKING

Charts

Weekly charts Chart (1990)PeakpositionEurope (Eurochart Hot 100)49US Billboard Hot 1008US Adult Contemporary (Billboard)7

Year-end charts Chart (1990)PositionAustralia (ARIA)62Canada Top Singles (RPM)35Canada Adult Contemporary (RPM)40US Billboard Hot 10070US Adult Contemporary (Billboard)44

Certifications

Covers New Found Glory covered the song for their 2007 album From the Screen to Your Stereo Part II. MUNA covered the song on Sirius XMU Sessions in June 2026 Stephanie White and the Philth Harmonic covered the song on their 2009 album This Is Why We Can't Have Nice Things.

See also 1990 in music

References

External links