A Very Special Love Song
Encyclopedia
"A Very Special Love Song" is the title of a 1974 song by country music
singer Charlie Rich
. The song was written by Billy Sherrill
and Norro Wilson
, songwriters who had also written Rich's 1973 hit, "The Most Beautiful Girl
". The song is included on Rich's 1974 album, Very Special Love Songs.
chart in April 1974, peaking at #11. The song was able to top two other Billboard
charts that year, as it spent three weeks atop the country music chart
and two weeks at the summit on the adult contemporary chart
. This was the second of four chart-toppers Rich achieved on the Billboard AC chart.
Songwriters Sherrill and Wilson won a Grammy Award
for "A Very Special Love Song" in the category Best Country Song
at the 1975 ceremony
.
's "The Summer Knows", the theme from the 1971 film Summer of '42
, served as the musical inspiration for Rich's song. He was quoted by Billboard author Tom Roland as saying: "I don't think I stole from them all [sic], but that's my favorite theme of all time. There's not a similarity, and yet, you can understand what I was thinking about and where I was coming from."
recorded a version of this song in 1974; hers was included on her album This Time I Almost Made It
.
Country music
Country music is a popular American musical style that began in the rural Southern United States in the 1920s. It takes its roots from Western cowboy and folk music...
singer Charlie Rich
Charlie Rich
Charles Rich was an American country music singer and musician. A Grammy Award winner, his eclectic-style of music was often hard to classify in a single genre, playing in the rockabilly, jazz, blues, country, and gospel genres.In the latter part of his life, Rich acquired the nickname The Silver...
. The song was written by Billy Sherrill
Billy Sherrill
Billy Sherrill is a record producer and arranger who is most famous for his association with a number of country artists, most notably Tammy Wynette...
and Norro Wilson
Norro Wilson
Norris "Norro" Wilson is an American country music singer, songwriter and producer, and member of the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame....
, songwriters who had also written Rich's 1973 hit, "The Most Beautiful Girl
The Most Beautiful Girl
"The Most Beautiful Girl" is a song recorded by Charlie Rich and written by Bill Sherrill, Norris Wilson, and Rory Michael Bourke. The country & western ballad reached #1 in the United States in 1973 on three Billboard music charts: the pop chart ; the country chart ; and the adult contemporary...
". The song is included on Rich's 1974 album, Very Special Love Songs.
Reception
Released as the follow-up single to "The Most Beautiful Girl", "A Very Special Love Song" nearly reached the top ten on the Billboard Hot 100Billboard Hot 100
The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...
chart in April 1974, peaking at #11. The song was able to top two other Billboard
Billboard (magazine)
Billboard is a weekly American magazine devoted to the music industry, and is one of the oldest trade magazines in the world. It maintains several internationally recognized music charts that track the most popular songs and albums in various categories on a weekly basis...
charts that year, as it spent three weeks atop the country music chart
Hot Country Songs
Hot Country Songs is a chart published weekly by Billboard magazine in the United States.This 60-position chart lists the most popular country music songs, calculated weekly mostly by airplay and occasionally commercial sales...
and two weeks at the summit on the adult contemporary chart
Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks
The Adult Contemporary chart is a weekly chart published in Billboard magazine that lists the most popular songs on adult contemporary and "lite-pop" radio stations in the United States...
. This was the second of four chart-toppers Rich achieved on the Billboard AC chart.
Songwriters Sherrill and Wilson won a Grammy Award
Grammy Award
A Grammy Award — or Grammy — is an accolade by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States to recognize outstanding achievement in the music industry...
for "A Very Special Love Song" in the category Best Country Song
Grammy Award for Best Country Song
The Grammy Award for Best Country Song has been awarded since 1965. The award is given to the writer of the song.There have been several minor changes to the name of the award:...
at the 1975 ceremony
Grammy Awards of 1975
The 17th Grammy Awards were presented March 1, 1975, and were broadcast live on American television. They recognized accomplishments by musicians from the year 1974.- Award winners :*Record of the Year...
.
Inspiration
French composer and pianist Michel LegrandMichel Legrand
Michel Jean Legrand is a French musical composer, arranger, conductor, and pianist...
's "The Summer Knows", the theme from the 1971 film Summer of '42
Summer of '42
Summer of '42 is a 1971 American coming-of-age drama film based on the memoirs of screenwriter Herman Raucher. It tells the story of how Raucher, in his early teens on his 1942 summer vacation on Nantucket Island, off the coast of New England, embarked on a one-sided romance with a woman, Dorothy,...
, served as the musical inspiration for Rich's song. He was quoted by Billboard author Tom Roland as saying: "I don't think I stole from them all [sic], but that's my favorite theme of all time. There's not a similarity, and yet, you can understand what I was thinking about and where I was coming from."
Chart performance
| Chart (1974) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| U.S. Billboard Hot Country Singles | 1 |
| U.S. Billboard Hot 100 | 11 |
| U.S. Billboard Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks | 1 |
| Canadian RPM Country Tracks | 1 |
| Canadian RPM Top Singles | 4 |
| Canadian RPM Adult Contemporary Tracks | 2 |
Cover versions
Country music singer Barbara MandrellBarbara Mandrell
Barbara Ann Mandrell is an American country music singer best known for a 1970s–1980s series of Top 10 hits and TV shows that helped her become one of country's most successful female vocalists of the 1970s and 1980s...
recorded a version of this song in 1974; hers was included on her album This Time I Almost Made It
This Time I Almost Made It
This Time I Almost Made It is the fourth studio album released by American country singer, Barbara Mandrell, released in 1974.This would be Mandrell's last album with her record company, Columbia before the label dropped her. She would later switch to ABC/Dot and enjoy the most successful part of...
.