“You’re My Heart, You’re My Soul” by Modern Talking
As we have noted in the past, English does not appear to be the primary language of Dieter Bohlen, Modern Talking’s main songwriter. As such even though their tunes are rendered in said language, the wording involved tends to be somewhat simplistic or “cheesy”, as some would say.
In that regard Modern Talking is sorta reminiscent of Swedish pop sensations ABBA, no disrespect to either act. And why are we comparing these two acts? This is simply because sometimes these types of straightforward songs that anyone can easily understand are exactly what the doctor ordered in terms of international chart success.
“You’re My Heart, You’re My Soul”
Indeed just the title alone is, despite being metaphorical, pretty plainspoken. And so it is with the verses themselves. There is some poetry involved, i.e. the vocalist utilizing such colorful imagery as ‘a fire burning hard deep in his heart’ and desiring for the addressee’s ‘body to melt in his’, akin to “candles burning”.
But let’s just say that it doesn’t take any type of advanced thought processing to figure out what he’s alluding to. In fact we are once again treated to a Modern Talking song, like “Cheri Cheri Lady” and “Brother Louie“, centered on the concept of a narrator being in love with an addressee who, as comprehensively read, is not his actual lady.
So yes he is verily smitten by her, i.e. the addressee being the singer’s ‘heart and soul’. But in terms of actually doing what candles do, for now that’s just a “fantasy” as far as he’s concerned.
Therefore, Thomas Anders is once again tasked with convincing a lady that she is in fact the one and accordingly should freely accept his hand. And considering that this is actually the first song Modern Talking had ever put out, it would appear that given its success such themes sort of became the band’s modus operandi.
Release of “You’re My Heart, You’re My Soul”
Being released by Hansa Records on 29 October 1984, this song is actually the earliest track in Modern Talking’s discography. It is the lead single from the pair’s first album, which itself is entitled “The 1st Album“.
And “You’re My Heart, You’re My Soul” was a great way to start off the act’s career. And why? This is because the track proved to be a chart topper in Germany. It also replicated a similar feat on the Eurochart Hot 100 and in a handful of other nations. Furthermore, it achieved gold certification in Deutschland and in neighboring France.
In 1998, Modern Talking dropped another version of this song, amply entitled “You’re My Heart, You’re My Soul ’98”. That outing also proved to be a major success. It was even more commercially successful than the original.
And in 2019 one half of the crew, Dieter Bohlen, featured a couple of new renditions of this tune on his own project, “Das Mega Album!”.
Modern Talking
Modern Talking was primarily a duo. It consisted of musician Dieter Bohlen and vocalist Thomas Anders, but other members have graced the crew also. Spanish producer Luis Rodriguez was down for the cause from 1985 to 1987 and again from 1998 to 2000.
And an American rapper, Eric Singleton, also ran with the crew from 1998 to 2000. So that means from 1998 to 2000, Modern Talking was at its peak membership with four individuals – Bohlen, Anders, Rodriguez and Singleton.
And resultantly Rodriguez is credited with participating on “You’re My Heart, You’re My Soul”, as well as Eric Singleton rapping on one of the 1998 remixes of the tune that has been dubbed the “Modern Talking Mix ’98”.
Moreover, Singleton is acknowledged as one of the co-writers of the original alongside Dieter Bohlen, the latter of whom also produced the track.
The director of the music video to “You’re My Heart, You’re My Soul” was Michael Leckebusch (1937-2000).
