The Greatest Love of All


"The Greatest Love of All" is a song written by Michael Masser, who composed the music, and Linda Creed, who wrote the lyrics. It was originally recorded in 1977 by George Benson, who made the song a substantial hit, peaking at number two on the US Hot Soul Singles chart that year, the first R&B chart top-ten hit for Arista Records. The song was written and recorded to be the main theme of the 1977 film The Greatest, a biopic of the boxer Muhammad Ali, and is performed during the opening credits. Eight years after Benson's original recording, the song became even more well known for a version by Whitney Houston, whose 1985 cover eventually topped the charts, peaking at number one in the United States, Australia, Canada and on the US R&B chart in early 1986.
The original recording by Benson was released in 1977 in the United States, Japan, France, Germany, New Zealand, Australia, Italy, Brazil, Netherlands, the United Kingdom and Thailand, on an extended play. He officially recorded the song four times; in addition to the studio single, Benson also recorded three live versions, the last time in a duet with Luciano Pavarotti in 2001. Since 1977, a great number of artists have recorded this song, including Shirley Bassey, Oleta Adams, Alexandra Burke and Deborah Cox.

Background and composition

The song's music was composed by Michael Masser, and its lyrics were written by Linda Creed, in 1976 for The Greatest, a film based on the life of former heavyweight boxing champion Muhammad Ali. According to the Los Angeles Times, after he had been asked to write the song for the movie, Masser felt drawn to Jerusalem, even though he was not a religious man, "to get the feelings—not just my own." Masser also told the Los Angeles Times his special feelings about Ali:
Here was a man who wanted to change his name and religion. That's all. Ali hadn't believed in the war in Vietnam and had refused to fight in it. He won that battle through the legal system. Still, he lost everything—including his title. But Ali retained the most important thing of all—his dignity.

In an interview with the Ocala Star-Banner in 1988, similarly, Masser said that "He represented to me a tremendous athlete who suffered prejudice from the white man's world. He didn't give up what he believed even though he lost his title." Masser also told the Los Angeles Times that the song had another personal meaning for him to give up a legal career to pursue his interest in music, adding, "People thought I was crazy. I had to starve. Had no money. Marriage broke up. But I had to do what I'd wanted to do since I was 6... write music." Upon his return from Jerusalem, he contracted with lyricist Creed to work on the song and wrote it right from the heart. Then Masser had George Benson perform the song for the soundtrack. He said, "The record came out and the song became an underground theme for black people." He was later accused by Gordon Lightfoot of plagiarizing 24 bars of his 1971 hit "If You Could Read My Mind", but Lightfoot eventually dropped the suit out of respect for singer Whitney Houston.

The George Benson version, 1977

The original version of "The Greatest Love of All" was recorded in 1977 by Benson and originally released on the soundtrack album for The Greatest. The song was released as a single in the same year and was a substantial hit, reaching number 2 on the Billboard R&B chart, the first R&B Top Ten hit for Arista Records, and ended the year at position 33. The single also reached positions number 3 on the Cash Box Top 100 R&B and number 4 on the Record World R&B Singles. In other charts, the single was between positions number 22 and number 29 in the U.S., number 27 in the UK, and number 25 and 42 in Canada. "The Greatest Love of All" is one of George Benson's most successful hits, and for this reason, two of his numerous collections were intutated as The Greatest Hits of All, and , both released in 2003.

Charts positions

The original version of "The Greatest Love of All" recorded in 1977 by George Benson reached the following positions:

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Track listing

On May 29, 2001, the Italian operatic tenor Luciano Pavarotti performed the concert "Pavarotti & Friends" in his hometown of Modena, Italy. To raise money for refugees from Afghanistan under the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, this concert called "Pavarotti & Friends for Afghanistan" featured guest artists, one of them being his friend George Benson. The song performed in duet by the two was Benson's song "The Greatest Love of All", sung in parts by Benson in English and elsewhere by Pavarotti in Italian. This complete concert "Pavarotti & Friends for Afghanistan" raised $3.3 million for its cause, and was recorded and released in CD in 2001. The song was credited with the original title "The Greatest Love of All" recorded by Benson.

Versions of the single in other countries

The original single of "The Greatest Love of All" by George Benson has also been released in several other countries, as shown in the chart below.
YearCountryLabelCatalogueFormatA-Side
"The Greatest Love Of All"		B-Side
"Ali's Theme"
1978United States
Arista /
Flashback Records		AFS-91707" single5:35 5:18
1977JapanAristaIER-203497" single5:34 5:19
1977ItalyArista3C 006 99897" single5:32 5:17
1977GermanyArista /
EMI Electrola		1C 006-99 4897" single4:23 5:15
1977FranceArista2C 006–99.4897" single4:18 5:18
1977NetherlandsAristaNG 8917" single4:18 5:18
1977AustraliaAristaAR-115307" single4:18 5:18
1977New ZealandAristaATA 2517" single4:18 5:18
1977United KingdomAristaARISTA 1337" single
1977BrazilAristaAR-310437" single

Single with "Funkin' for Jamaica (N.Y.)"

In July 1984, a single was released in the UK by label Old Gold, with "The Greatest Love of All". Benson's original recording remained on the A-side of the single, and on the B-side was another hit single of another artist: "Funkin' for Jamaica " by Tom Browne, originally released in 1980.
Year
Recording		SideSongLengthInterpreterWriter/ComposerProducerOriginal Album
1977A-side"The Greatest Love of All"5:32
George BensonMichael Masser,
Linda Creed		Michael MasserThe Greatest soundtrack
1980B-side"Funkin' for Jamaica "3:29Tom BrowneTom Browne,
Toni Smith		Dave Grusin,
Larry Rosen		Love Approach

The ''Floating Gold'' EP in Thailand

In 1977, an extended play with four successful soul music songs from that year was released in Thailand. The EP was called Floating Gold, released by label Royalsound, in reference to the song "Float On" by the Floaters, the first track of the EP. The second track was the Manhattans' "We Never Danced To Love Song" and the third was the Brothers Johnson's "Strawberry Letter 23". To finish the EP, the fourth track was "The Greatest Love of All" by George Benson.
Year
Recording		SideSongInterpreterWriter/ComposerProducerOriginal Album
1977A-side 1"Float On"The FloatersMarvin Willis,
James Mitchell,
Arnold Ingram		Marvin Willis,
James Mitchell		Floaters
1977A-side 2"We Never Danced To a Love Song"The ManhattansGerald Alston,
Edward 'Sonny' Bivins		The Manhattans,
Bobby Martin		It Feels So Good
1977B-side 1"Strawberry Letter 23"The Brothers JohnsonShuggie OtisQuincy JonesRight on Time
1977B-side 2"The Greatest Love of All"George BensonMichael Masser,
Linda Creed		Michael MasserThe Greatest soundtrack

Whitney Houston version

The song was further popularized by American singer Whitney Houston under the title "Greatest Love of All," without the "The". The song was recorded in December 1984 for her 1985 self-titled debut studio album. The song became a major hit, topping the charts in Australia, Canada and the US, while reaching the top 20 in most countries, including Italy, Sweden and the UK. It remains her third biggest US hit, after "I Will Always Love You" and "I Wanna Dance with Somebody ". All three songs, in order of their former popularity, re-entered the Billboard Hot 100 chart, after Houston's death in 2012, debuting the same week at numbers 7, 35 and 41, respectively, giving Houston three posthumous chart hits.
Clive Davis, founder of Houston's label Arista Records, was initially against Houston recording the song for her debut studio album, Whitney Houston, but he eventually gave in after persuasion from Houston and Masser. It was released as the B-side to the single "You Give Good Love," a previous Top 5 hit by Houston. The song, eventually released as a single in its own right, on March 18, 1986, was the seventh release from Houston's debut album, and spent three weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in May of that year.
Houston's album version features a piano intro, while the single version begins with a keyboard intro. After the single became a success, it replaced the original album version on subsequent pressings of the album. However, the original version was restored for the 2010 Deluxe Anniversary Edition reissue of the album and international releases.
Her live performance in 1990 in the 15th anniversary of Arista Records concert in Radio City Music Hall was included in the 25th anniversary deluxe edition of Whitney Houston and the 2014 CD/DVD release, .

Background

Whitney Houston was still an unknown hopeful when the then-president of Arista Records, Clive Davis, and Masser heard her sing "Greatest Love" in a New York club on Amsterdam Avenue at about 68th St. a few years before her debut. Davis later described the first time he heard Houston sing:
I went down there instead of having her audition in a studio; I was seeing her before an audience. She did backup singing and you could see she was a beautiful young girl. But then she stepped out and she did two solo numbers, one of which was the song "The Greatest Love of All." Whitney sang the song with such fervor, with such a natural vocal gift, with such passion, that I was stunned. I knew really right then and there that this was a special talent and I was blown away by her. As I reflect back on this, I can relive the experience for the very first time. There was no hesitation. I wanted to sign Whitney.

Masser said, "When I first met Whitney in 1981-82, she was about 19 or 20 and unknown. I went into Sweetwater's, and I thought I must be totally out of it—I said, 'I must be going crazy, I think I'm hearing one of my songs.' She was singing 'The Greatest Love of All' just as I walked in, and that meant something to me. Two and a half years later when I was doing Teddy Pendergrass there was a duet and everybody wanted me to use this or that known person. Only because I had heard Whitney singing 'The Greatest Love of All'. I chose her."

Music video

Houston's music video was filmed at Harlem's Apollo Theater in New York City. In the video, she is a successful singer who is about to perform in front of an audience. She reminisces about the time when she was a child performing in a talent competition and receiving encouragement from her mother. The video features Houston's mother Cissy Houston playing herself, supporting a young Whitney, as well as hugging present Whitney at the end of the video. It was directed by Peter Israelson, filmed with James Contner as DP and Steadicam operator Robin Buerki shooting 35mm film. In February 2020, the music video was upscaled to 4K.

Reception

Critical reception

Many critics called the song the centerpiece of Houston's debut album. Stephen Holden of The New York Times wrote that "Houston sings it with a forceful directness that gives its message of self-worth an astounding resonance and conviction" and called the song a compelling assertion of spiritual devotion, black pride, and family loyalty, all at once. Don Shewey of Rolling Stone wrote that as the song builds, Houston "slowly pours on the soul, slips in some churchy phrasing, holds notes a little longer and shows off her glorious voice."

Chart performance

Benson's 1977 version was an R&B hit, reaching number 2 on the R&B chart. It was a moderate pop hit, making the top 40 on the Billboard Hot 100. Houston's version reached number one on the Hot 100 chart for three weeks in 1986. The single was the fourth hit from her debut album. To date, this song was her second longest stay atop this chart, behind 1992's "I Will Always Love You." The song also reached number one on both component charts, the Hot 100 Singles Sales and the Hot 100 Airplay, her second consecutive release to do so, and stayed for 14 weeks inside the top 40. On other Billboard charts, Houston also performed well, reaching number three on the R&B chart. The song topped the adult contemporary chart for five weeks, Houston's longest stay at the top of that chart at the time. The song ranked No. 11 on Billboard's year end pop singles chart. Houston's single fared well globally as well, reaching No. 8 in the United Kingdom and the top ten or No. 1 in several other European countries. It became her first No. 1 single in Australia.
After her death, the single returned to the Billboard Hot 100, debuting at number 41.

Accolades

Houston won the American Music Award for Favorite Soul/R&B Video Single, and was nominated for a Grammy Award for Record of the Year and a Soul Train Music Award for Single of the Year.

Controversy

In April 1987, Gordon Lightfoot filed a lawsuit against Michael Masser, alleging that Masser's song "The Greatest Love of All" stole twenty-four bars from Lightfoot's 1970 hit "If You Could Read My Mind." According to Maclean's, Lightfoot commented, "It really rubbed me the wrong way. I don't want the present-day generation to think that I stole my song from him." Lightfoot has stated that he dropped the suit when he felt it was having a negative effect on Whitney Houston, as the suit was about Masser and not her. Ultimately the case was settled out of court and Masser issued a public apology.

Track listing

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

End-of-decade charts

All-time charts

Certifications