“Hello, McFly?” - Your Survival Guy

Nice write-up by Marc Meyers in the WSJ on the anatomy of the song: “The Power of Love” by Huey Lewis and the News, featured in the movie Back to the Future starring Michael J. Fox. Meyers writes (abridged):

By 1984, Huey Lewis and the News had eight Billboard pop hits but none cracked the top five. Then came an offer to write a theme for the movie “Back to the Future.” Mr. Lewis nearly passed.

He feared a song with that title would make the News sound retro and dated. So he went with “The Power of Love.” The single became a No. 1 Billboard pop hit in 1985 and was nominated for an Oscar.

Recently, the song’s co-writers—Mr. Lewis, guitarist Chris Hayes and guitarist/saxophonist Johnny Colla—looked back at making the hit. A new album from Huey Lewis and the News titled “Weather” (BMG) is due out Friday. Edited from interviews:

Huey Lewis: When my manager, Bob Brown, and I met with the Amblin Entertainment team in Los Angeles in 1984, they told us about a film they had just written called “Back to the Future.”

They talked about the kid who was the lead character, Marty McFly, and said that if he had a favorite band, it would be Huey Lewis and the News. They asked me to write and record a song.

At first, I didn’t want to write a song called “Back to the Future.” The News wasn’t about looking backward. I also told them I had no idea how to write for a film.

“That’s OK,” they said. “We don’t care what you call it. We just want a Huey Lewis and the News song.” By then, we had a bunch of strong hits, including “I Want a New Drug,” “The Heart of Rock & Roll” and “If This Is It.”

I said, “Let me have a think and I’ll send you the first new song we write.” They said, “Fine.” When I got back to my house in Santa Venetia, Calif., up in Marin County, I remembered the cassette demo our guitarist Chris Hayes had given me with his chord progression for a new song.

E.J. Smith - Your Survival Guy

E.J. Smith is Founder of YourSurvivalGuy.com, Managing Director at Richard C. Young & Co., Ltd., a Managing Editor of Richardcyoung.com, and Editor-in-Chief of Youngresearch.com. His focus at all times is on preparing clients and readers for “Times Like These.” E.J. graduated from Babson College in Wellesley, Massachusetts, with a B.S. in finance and investments. In 1995, E.J. began his investment career at Fidelity Investments in Boston before joining Richard C. Young & Co., Ltd. in 1998. E.J. has trained at Sig Sauer Academy in Epping, NH. His first drum set was a 5-piece Slingerland with Zildjians. He grew-up worshiping Neil Peart (RIP) of the band Rush, and loves the song Tom Sawyer—the name of his family’s boat, a Grady-White Canyon 306. He grew up in Mattapoisett, MA, an idyllic small town on the water near Cape Cod. He spends time in Newport, RI and Bartlett, NH—both as far away from Wall Street as one could mentally get. The Newport office is on a quiet, tree lined street not far from the harbor and the log cabin in Bartlett, NH, the “Live Free or Die” state, sits on the edge of the White Mountain National Forest. He enjoys spending time in Key West and Paris. Please get in touch with E.J. at ejsmith@yoursurvivalguy.com To sign up for my free monthly Survive & Thrive letter, click here.