A Love Song (Loggins and Messina song)

"A Love Song"
German cover art
Single by Anne Murray
from the album Love Song
B-side	"You Can't Go Back"
Released	December 1973
Recorded	October 1973
Genre	Country, pop
Length	2:50
Label	Capitol
Songwriter(s)	D. L. George Kenny Loggins
Producer(s)	Brian Ahern
Anne Murray singles chronology
"Send a Little Love My Way" (1973) "A Love Song" (1973) "You Won't See Me" (1974)

"A Love Song" is a song written by Kenny Loggins and Dona Lyn George, first released by the folk-rock duo Loggins and Messina in 1973 on their album Full Sail. Country artist Anne Murray (who'd taken her recording of another Loggins & Messina recording, "Danny's Song", to the top-ten in late 1972) covered the song later that year for her album of the same name.

Released in December 1973, Murray's version became a major crossover hit early in 1974. In her native Canada, it topped all three singles charts: the overall Top Singles chart, the Country Tracks chart and the Adult Contemporary chart. In the United States, the song peaked at No. 5 on the Billboard magazine Hot Country Singles chart and just missed the Top 10 of the Billboard Hot 100, peaking at No. 12. The song fared even better there in the adult contemporary market — it became Murray's third chart-topper on Billboard's American Hot Adult Contemporary Singles chart.[1] (In Canada, it was her seventh No. 1 on both the country and adult contemporary charts.) This was Murray's second Loggins & Messina cover, having charted with her version of their "Danny's Song" the previous year.

At the 17th Annual Grammy Awards in 1975, Anne Murray won the first of her three Grammy Awards for Best Female Country Vocal Performance for this song. The song also appears on Murray's 2007 album Anne Murray Duets: Friends & Legends, performed as a duet with the K. d. Lang.

Later versions include Dar Williams, Jonathan Rayson and Kenny Loggins.

Personnel on Loggins & Messina version

• Kenny Loggins – lead vocals, classical acoustic guitar
• Jim Messina – harmony vocals, acoustic guitar, banjo
• Jon Clarke – bass flute, alto flute
• Al Garth – recorder
• Larry Sims – bass, backing vocals
• Merel Bregante – drums, backing vocals
• Michael Omartian – piano
• Milt Holland – shakers, triangle, congas, pandeiro

Chart history

Weekly charts Chart (1973–1974) Peak position Canada Adult Contemporary (RPM)[2] 1 Canada Country Tracks (RPM)[3] 1 Canada Top Singles (RPM)[4] 1 US Adult Contemporary (Billboard)[5] 1 US Hot Country Singles (Billboard)[6] 5 US Billboard Hot 100[7] 12 US Cash Box Top 100[8] 10

Year-end charts Chart (1974) Rank Canada RPM Top Singles [9] 28 US Billboard Hot 100 [10] 80 US Cash Box [11] 87

References

1. Whitburn, Joel (2002). Top Adult Contemporary: 1961–2001. Record Research. p. 176.
2. "Top RPM Adult Contemporary: Issue 5007." RPM. Library and Archives Canada. February 23, 1974.
3. "Top RPM Country Tracks: Issue 4989." RPM. Library and Archives Canada. March 2, 1974.
4. "Top RPM Singles: Issue 4993a." RPM. Library and Archives Canada. March 16, 1974.
5. "Anne Murray Chart History (Adult Contemporary)". Billboard.
6. "Hot Country Singles". Billboard. Vol. 86, no. 7. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. February 16, 1974. p. 30. ISSN 0006-2510.
7. "Anne Murray Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard.
8. "Cash Box Top 100 Singles, March 9, 1974". Archived from the original on January 15, 2018. Retrieved May 15, 2018.
9. "The Top 200 Singles of '74". Library and Archives Canada. RPM. 28 December 1974. Retrieved 4 April 2020.
10. Billboard Top 100 Hits of 1974 Musicoutfitters.com. Retrieved 4 April 2020.
11. "Cash Box Year-End Charts: Top 100 Pop Singles, December 28, 1974". Archived from the original on October 9, 2016. Retrieved May 15, 2018.