"The Power of Love" is a song co-written and originally recorded by Jennifer Rush in 1984. It has been covered by several artists, most notably by Celine Dion, Laura Branigan and Air Supply.
Rush's original version, released in her native United States at the end of 1984 and in Europe during 1985, went to number one in the United Kingdom in October 1985 and became the biggest-selling single of the year in that country. It was also a number one single in several other European countries, as well as Canada, Australia and New Zealand. Dion's version went to number one in the United States, Canada and Australia in 1994. The song has been translated into several languages, becoming a pop standard.
Video The Power of Love (Jennifer Rush song)
Overview
"The Power of Love" was first recorded by Jennifer Rush for her 1984 eponymous album. It was released as a single in West Germany in December 1984. In June 1985, "The Power of Love" was issued as a single in the United Kingdom, where it topped the chart for five weeks in October 1985 and became the best-selling single of the year. As of March 2017, it has sold 1.45 million copies in the UK.
The massive success of "The Power of Love" in the UK followed with widespread international success for the single in the last months of 1985 and the first of 1986, including a German re-release with a resultant number-nine charting. Eventually "The Power of Love" reached number one in Australia, Austria, Ireland, New Zealand, Norway, South Africa and Spain (where Rush topped the chart with a version in Spanish called "Si tú eres mi hombre y yo tu mujer", translated as "If you are my man and I'm your woman"), number three in Switzerland, Sweden and Belgium, and number seven in the Netherlands.
CBS held off on releasing "The Power of Love" in North America feeling the disc was too European. It finally saw release in the United States and Canada in January 1986 but despite rising to number one in Canada, "The Power of Love" failed to become a significant US hit, stalling at number fifty-seven on the Billboard Hot 100 on the week-ending of 5 April 1986 and spending 13 weeks within the Hot 100. The song was performed by Rush on The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson in March 1986 and American Bandstand in April 1986.
Maps The Power of Love (Jennifer Rush song)
Official versions
Track listings
Charts
Certifications and sales
Air Supply version
Australian duo Air Supply covered "The Power of Love" for their 1985 eponymous album. Since the song was sung by Russell Hitchcock, the gender roles were reversed in the lyrics ("I'm your lady and you are my man" became "You are my lady and I am your man"). It was released as a single in July 1985 in the United States, and later in Canada and New Zealand. Their version was titled "The Power of Love (You Are My Lady)" so as not to be confused with "The Power of Love" by Huey Lewis and the News which was on the charts at the same time. Air Supply's version was a moderate success in New Zealand and Canada, reaching the top 40 in both countries in late 1985. In the US, it peaked at number 68. This cover was featured in the 2017 film Death Note.
Track listing
Personnel
- Russell Hitchcock - vocals
- Graham Russell - background vocals
- Steve Lukather - guitar
- Greg Phillinganes - keyboards
- David Paich - keyboards
- Steve Porcaro - keyboards, synthesizer
- Nathan East - bass
- John "JR" Robinson - drums
Charts
Laura Branigan version
Laura Branigan recorded "The Power of Love" under the title "Power of Love" for her 1987 album, Touch. Produced by David Kershenbaum, the track was released in October 1987 as the album's second single, after "Shattered Glass." In December 1987, "Power of Love" reached number twenty-six on the Billboard Hot 100. It also peaked at number nineteen on the US Adult Contemporary chart.
Track listing
Personnel
- Laura Branigan - vocals
- David J. Holman - PPG programming, engineering, mixing
- David Kershenbaum - production
- Bob Marlette - keyboards, drum programming, arrangement
- Kim Scharnberg - strings, arrangement
Charts
Celine Dion version
Canadian singer Celine Dion covered "The Power of Love" for her third English-language studio album, The Colour of My Love (1993). It was produced by David Foster and released as the first single in November 1993 in North America, in December 1993 in Japan, and in early 1994 in the rest of the world.
A music video for the song was released. It only used the radio edit, which was the opening track for all releases of the song.
"The Power of Love" became Dion's first US number-one song, topping the Billboard Hot 100 for four weeks in February 1994. It also became her first Australian chart topper and second number-one single in Canada. The song also topped the adult contemporary charts in the United States and Canada. In the rest of the world, "The Power of Love" reached top ten in France, United Kingdom, Belgium, Sweden and New Zealand. It was certified Platinum in the United States and Australia, Gold in New Zealand and Silver in France. In the United States, it has sold 1.5 million copies.
"The Power of Love" won the ASCAP Pop Award for Most Performed Song in the United States. It was also nominated for the Grammy Award for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance, American Music Award for Favorite Pop/Rock Single, two Billboard Music Awards for Hot 100 Single of the Year and Hot Adult Contemporary Single of the Year, and for the Juno Award for Single of the Year. Thanks to "The Power of Love," David Foster was also nominated for the Juno Award for Producer of the Year.
"The Power of Love" became one of Dion's signature songs. She performed it during all of her concert tours and included it on her live albums. "The Power of Love" was also featured on Dion's greatest hits compilations: All the Way... A Decade of Song (1999), Complete Best (2008), My Love: Essential Collection (2008) and The Best of Celine Dion & David Foster (2012). Live performances are included on À l'Olympia (album), Live à Paris (album), Live à Paris (video), Au coeur du stade (video), Live in Las Vegas: A New Day... (video), Taking Chances World Tour: The Concert (album/video), and Céline une seule fois / Live 2013 (album/video). She also performed the song at the American Music Awards of 1995 and her CBS television special That's Just the Woman in Me on 15 February 2008.
Critical reception
Dave Sholin from the Gavin Report wrote about the song: "A song this powerful places extraordinary demands on those who sing it. Only a rare few are up to the task and who better than Celine Dion to revive the song first made a hit around the world by Jennifer Rush. Add Celine's interpretation to producer David Foster's arrangement and the result is nothing short of superb."
Track listings
Charts
Certifications and sales
Release history
See also
References
External links
- Jennifer Rush - "The Power of Love" on YouTube
- Celine Dion - "The Power of Love" on YouTube
Source of the article : Wikipedia
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