Song:To All The Girls I've Loved Before
Album:Love Songs
Spanish crooner Julio Iglesias was already an international star when Columbia Records decided to sell him to the US audience. To All The Girls I've Loved Before was a top five hit in 1984. He was born Feb. 23, 1943 in Madrid, Spain. His father was a gynecologist. Iglesias played professional soccer. He was a goaltender. And he studied law at CEU San Pablo University. A serious car accident ended his soccer career. He learned to play the guitar as physical therapy. And that's when he got into music. He was going to go back to school to get a law degree. But instead he won the 1968 Benidorm International Song Festival and that led to a record deal with Columbia's Spanish branch. Iglesias has recorded for Columbia his entire career. He had a lot of success in Europe in the 70s. In 1979, Iglesias moved to Miami and he signed a new deal with Columbia. He continued to record in Spanish and other languages. But a 1981 English cover of Begin The Beguine was a hit in England. So Columbia thought if Iglesias recorded a whole album in English, it could do well in the US. They brought in veteran producer Richard Perry for 1100 Bel Air Place. Almost all of the songs are in English. It looks like songwriter Albert Hammond had a lot to do with the song selection. Hammond wrote To All The Girls I've Loved Before with Hal David. And Hammond recorded it on his 1975 album 99 Miles From LA. In those days, Willie Nelson was recording duets with everyone. And he was on Columbia. The record reached #5 on the Billboard Hot 100 and it topped the Country Singles chart. Iglesias also recorded duets with Diana Ross and The Beach Boys. But he never had another big hit in English so he went back to recording in various languages. This budget comp covers his English recordings. Iglesias still records for Columbia. His 2015 CD Mexico did well in Spain. But for a brief time, he was a big deal here. Here's Julio Iglesias featuring Willie Nelson performing To All The Girls I've Loved Before on the 1984 CMA Awards broadcast.
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