Almost Paradise

"Almost Paradise... Love Theme from Footloose"
"Almost Paradise... Love Theme from Footloose"
Single by Mike Reno and Ann Wilson
from the album Footloose: Original Soundtrack of the Paramount Motion Picture
B-side	"Strike Zone" (by Loverboy)
Released	May 1984
Recorded	1983
Genre	Soft rock
Length	3:46
Label	Columbia
Songwriter(s)	Eric Carmen (music); Dean Pitchford (lyrics);
Producer(s)	Keith Olsen

"Almost Paradise... Love Theme from Footloose" is the title of a duet by singers Mike Reno of Loverboy and Ann Wilson of Heart. It is one of two major hits with music by singer Eric Carmen and lyrics by Dean Pitchford, the other being Carmen's song "Make Me Lose Control".

Reno is best known as the lead singer of the rock band Loverboy, while Wilson is the lead singer of the rock band Heart. Both bands achieved a significant amount of success in the 1980s, and Reno and Wilson were approached to record a duet for the film Footloose.

Background[]

Officially listed as the "Love Theme from Footloose" on the film's soundtrack, "Almost Paradise" was one of three top 10 hits on the Billboard Hot 100 chart found on the soundtrack; it peaked at No. 7 and spent 13 weeks in the top 40.^[2] An alternate version of the song with a slightly different musical arrangement, which has never been released, is used in the film. The other hits from this soundtrack include "Footloose" by Kenny Loggins and "Let's Hear It for the Boy" by Deniece Williams, both of which went to No. 1 on the pop chart.^[3] "Almost Paradise" was also a hit on the Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks chart in the United States, where it spent one week at No. 1.^[4] Both singers resumed their respective roles within their bands following this one-off recording.

Chart performance[]

Weekly charts[]

Chart (1984)	Peak position
Australia (Kent Music Report)^[5]	52
Canadian RPM Top Singles^[6]	3
Canadian RPM Adult Contemporary ^[7]	2
US Billboard Hot 100^[8]	7
US Adult Contemporary (Billboard)^[9]	1
US CHR/Pop Airplay (Radio & Records)^[10]	4

Year-end charts[]

Chart (1984)	Position
Canada RPM Top Singles^[11]	32
US Billboard Hot 100^[12]	59

Personnel[]

Movie Version:

Mike Reno and Ann Wilson – vocals
Chas Sanford – electric guitar
Keith Olsen – bass, acoustic guitar
Bill Cuomo – keyboards, synthesizer
Jerry Peterson – saxophone
Jim Keltner – drums

Album Version:

Mike Reno and Ann Wilson – vocals
Chas Sanford – electric guitar
Keith Olsen – bass, acoustic guitar
Bill Cuomo – keyboards, synthesizer
Jim Keltner – drums

Cover versions[]

In 1989, Eric Carmen and Merry Clayton released a cover single, which was performed as part of the Dirty Dancing live tour.^[13]^[14]
In 2011, Victoria Justice and Hunter Hayes performed the song, for the 2011 remake of the original film.^[15]
In 2017, Royce da 5'9, Kxng Crooked, Truth Ali, Iliana Eve, Jonathan Hay, Mike Smith and King Graint all collaborated on "Almost Paradise", a hip-hop interpolation of the original. The song is from The Sins of a Father Playlist compilation and it reached #28 on the Canadian Spotify Charts.^[16]^[17]

Popular culture[]

The use of "Almost Paradise" on the daytime soap opera All My Children was a significant factor in the song's success.^[18]
"Almost Paradise" was also used on the daytime serials Guiding Light and Santa Barbara.^[19]^[20]
“Almost Paradise” is used as the theme song for the reality television show Bachelor in Paradise.

References[]

^ "200 Greatest Soft Rock Songs". entertainment.expertscolumn.com.
^ Whitburn, Joel (1996). The Billboard Book of Top 40 Hits, 6th Edition (Billboard Publications)
^ Bronson, Fred (2003). The Billboard Book of No. 1 Hits, 5th Edition (Billboard Publications)
^ Hyatt, Wesley (1999). The Billboard Book of No. 1 Adult Contemporary Hits (Billboard Publications)
^ Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992. Australian Chart Book, St Ives, N.S.W. p. 250. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2015-04-02. Retrieved 2015-03-18.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2016-03-13. Retrieved 2015-03-18.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
^ "Mike Reno Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved November 30, 2018.
^ "Mike Reno Chart History (Adult Contemporary)". Billboard. Retrieved November 30, 2018.
^ "Mike Reno". wweb.uta.edu. Retrieved 11 September 2018.
^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2015-04-02. Retrieved 2015-03-18.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
^ "Top 100 Hits of 1984/Top 100 Songs of 1984". www.musicoutfitters.com. Retrieved 11 September 2018.
^ http://streamd.hitparade.ch/cdimages/eric_carmen_with_merry_clayton-almost_paradise_s.jpg
^ "Various - Dirty Dancing - Live In Concert". Discogs. Retrieved 11 September 2018.
^ "Footloose (Music from the Motion Picture) by Various Artists". iTunes Store. Apple Inc. Retrieved 2 September 2014.
^ "Spotify Charts". spotifycharts.com. Retrieved 11 September 2018.
^ "Almost Paradise (feat. Royce da 5'9", Truth Ali & Kxng Crooked)". 6 October 2017. Retrieved 11 September 2018.
^ "August 2, 1986." Casey Kasem's American Top 40 - The 80s. Hst. Casey Kasem. iHeartRadio. KOSF, San Francisco, 2 Aug. 2020. Radio.
^ "GL Two Scoops: The final countdown".
^ "Santa Barbara".

External links[]

Single release info at discogs.com

[1] "200 Greatest Soft Rock Songs". entertainment.expertscolumn.com.

[2] Whitburn, Joel (1996). The Billboard Book of Top 40 Hits, 6th Edition (Billboard Publications)

[3] Bronson, Fred (2003). The Billboard Book of No. 1 Hits, 5th Edition (Billboard Publications)

[billboard_1-4] Hyatt, Wesley (1999). The Billboard Book of No. 1 Adult Contemporary Hits (Billboard Publications)

[Australian_Chart_Book_1970–1992-5] Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992. Australian Chart Book, St Ives, N.S.W. p. 250. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.

[6] "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2015-04-02. Retrieved 2015-03-18.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)

[7] "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2016-03-13. Retrieved 2015-03-18.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)

[sc_Billboardhot100_Mike_Reno-8] "Mike Reno Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved November 30, 2018.

[sc_Billboardadultcontemporary_Mike_Reno-9] "Mike Reno Chart History (Adult Contemporary)". Billboard. Retrieved November 30, 2018.

[10] "Mike Reno". wweb.uta.edu. Retrieved 11 September 2018.

[11] "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2015-04-02. Retrieved 2015-03-18.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)

[12] "Top 100 Hits of 1984/Top 100 Songs of 1984". www.musicoutfitters.com. Retrieved 11 September 2018.

[13] ttp://streamd.hitparade.ch/cdimages/eric_carmen_with_merry_clayton-almost_paradise_s.jpg

[14] "Various - Dirty Dancing - Live In Concert". Discogs. Retrieved 11 September 2018.

[15] "Footloose (Music from the Motion Picture) by Various Artists". iTunes Store. Apple Inc. Retrieved 2 September 2014.

[16] "Spotify Charts". spotifycharts.com. Retrieved 11 September 2018.

[17] "Almost Paradise (feat. Royce da 5'9", Truth Ali & Kxng Crooked)". 6 October 2017. Retrieved 11 September 2018.

[18] "August 2, 1986." Casey Kasem's American Top 40 - The 80s. Hst. Casey Kasem. iHeartRadio. KOSF, San Francisco, 2 Aug. 2020. Radio.

[19] "GL Two Scoops: The final countdown".

[20] "Santa Barbara".

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