“I Honestly Love You” by Olivia Newton-John
“I Honestly Love You” is a unique love song in that the vocalist is expressing the titular level of affection for an addressee akin to a romantic interest, though one whom she’s already deduced that she cannot have.
As implied in the third verse, the reason that the idea of the two of them actually getting together is a no-no is because they’re already respectively in committed relationships. But Olivia is so smitten, that she feels an obligation to at least let the addressee know that, if fate had dealt them a different hand so to speak, she would have really liked to hook up. Or, as more compassionately relayed, she ‘honestly loves’ him.
Facts about “I Honestly Love You”
As far as the late Olivia Newton-John’s music career went, she is perhaps best remembered for her hit 1981 single “Physical“. But the singer/actress had been in the game much longer than that, since the early 1960s even, with Olivia getting started in her early teens.
“I Honestly Love You”, which came out on 15 February 1974, was a super-major hit for her. For instance, this track topped the Billboard Hot 100 and the charts listed below:
- Kent Music Report
- Canadian Top Singles
- Cashbox Top 100
This marked the first time she had achieved the feats mentioned above.
Additionally “I Honestly Love You” also earned Newton-John a couple of Grammys – specifically in the below categories
- Best Pop Vocal Performance Female
- Record of the Year
Olivia Newton-John (1948-2022) re-recorded this song in 1998, that time around with the vocal backing of Babyface and as featured on her album, “Back with a Heart”. That version of “I Honestly Love You” also received a little bit of love (primarily in the US) on music charts.
Other musicians who have covered this song throughout the years include:
- Lynn Anderson (1974, whose rendition was featured on the Spielberg classic Jaws)
- Frank Sinatra (alongside Leslie Uggams, 1977)
- The Staple Singers (1977)
- Bobby Womack (1979)
Chloe Lattanzi, the sole child of Olivia Newton-John, also covered this song during her 2008 appearance on an MTV show called Rock the Cradle.
More Facts
The original version of this track was actually featured on two of Olivia Newton-John’s albums that came out during the same year. It was officially released on 15 February 1974, as the lead single from “Long Live Love”, a product of EMI Records.
Shortly thereafter a Newton-John compilation LP, whose issuance was relegated to North American markets, came out called “If You Love Me, Let Me Know”. And in that instance “I Honestly Love You” was once again issued as a single, during August of 1974.
This song was written by Jeff Barry and the late Peter Allen (1944-1992). Allen was a singer in his own right, and as originally intended he was going to drop “I Honestly Love You” himself. But ultimately John Farrar, who produced Newton-John’s version, convinced him to let Olivia, who was more popular, have a crack at it instead. And she was feeling it so much that it was her first vocal take which went on to grace the final production of the track.
