Released as the follow-up single to his 1973 hit “The Most Beautiful Girl,” Charlie Rich’s “A Very Special Love Song” was also a multi-chart-topper. It topped Billboard’s Hot Country Singles and Easy Listening and even almost breached the Top 10 of the Billboard Hot 100, peaking at number 11. The song also earned its songwriters, Billy Sherrill and Norro Wilson, a Grammy for Best Country Song.
Meaning Behind the Song
“A Special Love Song,” produced by Sherill under Epic Records in 1974, is a tender ballad that showcases the narrator’s deep and unadulterated affection toward his babe. It’s simple and sincere and overflows with devotion.
The song opens with a very declaration of love, of how it will be a very special love song, a symphony of all she meant to him. And it’s as romantic as romantic could get. Symphony suggests a grand and harmonious feeling that transcends ordinary experiences, so the narrator likens all his feelings for her to a complex yet beautiful musical composition.
For You
And he will always find a way to remind her of it. He sings, “If there’s a way you know I’m gonna say it, babe / If there’s a melody, I’ll play it / And I’ll play it through, especially for you.” As the song progresses, he takes it up a notch. That is, he’s not just going to sing it. He will sing out loud to the whole big, lonely world that he loves her.
He wraps up his very special love song on a poetic note, singing, “If there’s an ounce of love, I’m gonna give it to you, babe / If there’s a breath of life, I’m gonna live it.” Every single day, he’ll live for her.
If you want to feel butterflies in your stomach, this is your song. Listen to Charlie Rich’s “A Very Special Love Song” in the video below. Check out the rest of Charlie Rich’s songs here.
