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"Making Love Out of Nothing at All" is a power ballad written and composed by Jim Steinman and first released by the British/Australian soft rock duo Air Supply for their 1983 compilation album Greatest Hits. It reached number 2 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 for three weeks (behind "Total Eclipse of the Heart" by Bonnie Tyler, giving Steinman a consecutive peak of two songs).
 | This article needs additional citations for verification. (April 2021) |
| "Making Love Out of Nothing At All" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Single by Air Supply | ||||
| from the album Greatest Hits | ||||
| B-side | "Late Again" | |||
| Released | July 1983 | |||
| Recorded | August 1982 | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 5:43 (album version) 4:53 (single version) 5:38 (video version) | |||
| Label | Arista (US) Geffen (UK) | |||
| Songwriter(s) | Jim Steinman | |||
| Producer(s) | Jim Steinman | |||
| Air Supply singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Music video | ||||
| "Making Love Out of Nothing At All" on YouTube | ||||
The song has been covered and sampled by other artists, such as rapper Cuban Link in the song "Letter to Pun" from the album Chain Reaction.
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The song is a reworking of the main title theme from the 1980 film A Small Circle of Friends, for which Jim Steinman wrote the score.[3] It was first recorded by Air Supply, giving them a number two hit on the Billboard Hot 100 in the U.S. for three weeks.
The song was subsequently released as a new track from their 1983 greatest hits album. The B-side of the single is "Late Again".[4] They have included the song on their greatest hits and live albums, and recorded an acoustic version for their 2005 album The Singer and the Song.[5]
Simultaneously, Steinman offered the song, along with "Total Eclipse of the Heart", to Meat Loaf for his Midnight at the Lost and Found album; however, Meat Loaf's record company refused to pay Steinman for the material so Meat Loaf ended up writing compositions for the album himself. [6]
By 1983, Air Supply had changed much of its classic musician line-up, both in the recording studio and on tour. But Steinman, known for his lavish, rock-opera-ish type productions, used Bruce Springsteen's E-Street Band members Roy Bittan on keyboards and Max Weinberg on drums, to musically underscore the recording with like energies. Rick Derringer, who was previously the guitarist for the McCoys and Johnny Winter, provided the electric guitar solo.
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Two versions of the music video were produced. The initial version is a loose homage to the lives of bands on tour life and the long distance relationships they go through during their concert tours. It begins with a couple driving to an airport; the man (Graham Russell) is "leaving for a tour" and tries to convince the woman (played by Graham Russell's real-life spouse, actress Jodi Varble-Russell) to join him:
Exterior house
Man: So, won't you reconsider?
Woman: So, won't you?
Driving to the airport
Man: Come with me, I can give you anything.
Woman: I've been there, all I want is you.
Airport tarmac
Man: But it's just one more tour, then I'll be back.
Woman: But I won't...I can't...
After the man leaves and boards the plane, a Learjet 35, the band flies off to their destination. The remainder of the video intersperses Air Supply onstage with various scenes of the man and woman's relationship. Hitchcock and Russell leave their dressing room for the stage; as they sing with the band, the woman is shown packing to leave. Nevertheless, she changes her mind and does a u-turn on the freeway, and now drives to the airport. She meets Russell at the side of the stage near the end of the song and they embrace.[7] This version was filmed entirely in Los Angeles, with the concert sequences shot at the Forum and the airport scenes done at Van Nuys Airport.
The subsequent official version is set in 1960s New York City and involves a Marine and a young woman and the various challenges they encounter in their relationship, interspersed with scenes of the band singing the song.[8]
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The song was most successful in the United States and Canada, reaching numbers 2 and 3, respectively. It also reached the top 30 in Ireland and New Zealand. In the United Kingdom, the song was not as successful, peaking at No. 80 on the UK Singles Chart, their fourth highest charting single there overall, after "All Out of Love" (#11), "Even the Nights Are Better" (#44) and "Goodbye" (#66).
Weekly charts
|
Year-end charts
|
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| Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
|---|---|---|
| Canada (Music Canada)[18] | Gold | 50,000^ |
| United States (RIAA)[19] | Gold | 1,000,000^ |
|
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone. | ||
- Russell Hitchcock - lead vocals
- Graham Russell - backing vocals
- Rick Derringer - electric guitar
- Sid McGinnis - acoustic guitar
- Steve Buslowe - bass
- Bill Linnane - piano
- Roy Bittan - synthesizers, piano and backing vocals
- Eric Troyer, Rory Dodd, Holly Sherwood - backing vocals
- Max Weinberg - drums
+ In initial releases of Air Supply's 1983 Greatest Hits album, Steve Buslowe was not included as the bassist in the album credits.[20] However, this error was corrected in future pressings.[21]
| "Making Love (Out of Nothing At All)" | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Single by Bonnie Tyler | |
| from the album Free Spirit | |
| Released | 1995 |
| Studio | The Hit Factory (New York City) |
| Genre | Pop rock |
| Length | 7:49 |
| Label | East West |
| Songwriter(s) | Jim Steinman |
| Producer(s) |
|
In 1995, Welsh singer Bonnie Tyler covered "Making Love (Out of Nothing at All)" on her eleventh studio album, Free Spirit. The track was co-produced by Steinman and Steven Rinkoff, and features samples of Tyler's mother, Elsie Hopkins, singing "Un bel dì vedremo" from Puccini's opera Madama Butterfly.[22]
AllMusic called Tyler's interpretation "fantastic, clocking in at nearly eight minutes, and seems perfectly suited for her voice. [Air Supply's] version was already great, but hers is awesome."[23]
Lyrics
These lines were changed for the Tyler version, and also for the subsequent Karine Hannah version.[citation needed]
I can make you find your power
I can make you lose your fear
I can make your body do some very magical things
And make your inhibitions all disappear
Charts
| Chart (1995–96) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| European Border Breakers Airplay (Music & Media)[24] | 5 |
| Netherlands (Dutch Single Top 100)[25] | 17 |
| Netherlands (Dutch Top 40)[26] | 12 |
| UK Singles (OCC)[27] | 45 |
| Chart (2020) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| UK Physical Singles (OCC)[28] | 87 |
Re-recording
In 2010, Tyler released a new version of the song with Canadian singer Matt Petrin.[29]
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A version from 1982 sung by Rory Dodd also exists. The only accompaniment is Steinman playing piano, and he includes several variations on the primary melody in the intro and bridge.[30]
Lyrics
After the bridge, there are two verses that appear before the final two verses of the Air Supply version. The verse from the Tyler version is not included.[citation needed]
I can make your money double
Or I can make you lose your shirt
I can make the old wounds start to heal
Or I can make the new ones hurt
I can make the music louder
Or I can make the songs all fade
I can make every girl just wanna get up and dance
And make the boys in the band start to play
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