The Power Of Love – Huey Lewis & The News | Top 40 Chart Performance, Story and Song Meaning
Chart Performance: Pop (#1 for 2 weeks); 1985
Story Behind The Song By Ed Osborne
One of the most memorable scenes in Steven Spielberg’s monster hit movie, Back To The Future, takes place as teenaged time traveler Marty McFly (Michael J. Fox) swings into a scorching guitar intro at the band audition.
From the judging panel comes a less-than-complimentary dismissal, “I’m afraid you’re just too darn loud.” Sharp-eyed filmgoers caught the insider humor of Huey Lewis, playing the dissenting teacher, attacking Marty’s take on Huey’s own composition.
The Power Of Love wasn’t the first choice for BTTF. Huey had first offered Spielberg and director Robert Zemeckis In The Nick Of Time, which ultimately ended up in Brewster’s Millions.
Next up was Back In Time, which played under the end titles, a song which many involved with Future firmly believed was a much better song and potential hit than Love. Bones Howe, veteran music producer and music supervisor for the film, stood by Love, which became Huey’s first #1.
This content and all Song Meaning articles were created and written by Top 40 Contributing Editor Ed Osborne. © 2024 Ed Osborne. All Rights Reserved. In addition to these song meaning articles, Ed has written our “Year in Music 1960s-1990s” articles.
Produced by:
Lyrics Written by:
- Huey Lewis
- Chris Hayes
- Johnny Colla
Awards:
- Academy Awards Nominee for Best Original Song (1986)
- Grammy Awards Winner of Grammy Award for Long-Form Video for “Heart of Rock and Roll” (1986)
- Grammy Awards Nominee for Record of the Year for “The Heart of Rock & Roll” (1985)
- Grammy Awards Nominee for Record of the Year for “The Power of Love” (1986)
- Brit Awards Winner of Best International Group (1986)
- “The Power of Love” reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart
- The song was certified Gold by the RIAA
Ed Osborne
Hi. I got my first record at age two and never looked back, spending a decades-long career in radio and the music business. Even after years of reading about and listening to all types of music, I am still fascinated by it. Apart from that, I’m endlessly intrigued by art, nature, and the inner lives of people (and dogs).