Song:The Best Things In Life Are Free
Album:The Best
The Best Things In Life Are Free was a top ten pop hit in 1992. It also topped the R&B chart. It was in the 1992 film Mo' Money starring and written by Damon Wayans. It appeared on the soundtrack album but it did not appear on a Janet Jackson or Luther Vandross album. So it is an orphan in the discography of both artists. It came at a significant time for Janet as she had just signed a huge contract with Virgin Records. This song was her first appearance since signing that deal though it was not part of her Virgin deal. The soundtrack for Mo' Money was written and produced by Janet's long time producers Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis and it was released on their Perspective label with A&M distribution. Jam and Lewis approached artists directly to appear on the soundtrack. Normally a record company employee handles those negotiations. They asked Janet to appear on the soundtrack and then they brought in Vandross. It seems to be the only time he worked with Jam and Lewis. They added Bell Biv Devoe and Ralph Tresvant to do the rap. It reached #10 on the Billboard Hot 100 and it topped the dance & R&B charts. Caron Wheeler, Public Enemy and MC Lyte are among those who appear on the soundtrack which is still available on CD. Janet gets to shine more on this song than Vandross. So I think it will be of more interest to her fans. You can get it on this 2009 2CD comp The Best. It's on a couple of her other comps but this is the most recent. It also appears on a couple of Vandross comps including the 2CD The Essential Luther Vandross. None of the artists appear in the music video. Mo' Money stars Damon Wayans and Stacey Dash lip sync. It's not unusual for a music video to promote the movie. Here's the video of The Best Things In Life Are Free by Janet Jackson & Luther Vandross f/Bell Biv Devoe & Ralph Tresvant.
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