Glenn Frey – The Heat Is On
#quotefromthe80s
You can make a break
Can win or lose
That's a chance you take
When the heat's on you
When the heat is on
#GlennFrey #TheHeatIsOn
In early December 1984 we could see a movie that really made the history of the 80s. It came out for Christmas, even though it was as far as possible from the classic Christmas movie. We’re talking about the movie that launched the career of one of the greatest artists not only of the 80s, Eddie Murphy. The film was Beverly Hills Cop, and the soundtrack included songs by great artists. In addition to Stevie Wonder and the Pointer Sisters, and Harold Faltermeyer who wrote many of those songs, there was also a fantastic piece by Glenn Frey.
Glenn Frey was a famous and highly respected artist: since his move from Detroit to Los Angeles (where he was Jackson Browne’s roommate to split the rent), his career skyrocketed: he was lead singer and guitar of the Eagles, and he was one of the authors of Hotel California, just to be clear. But we were now at the end of 1984, Eagles had broken up and he was living a sort of quiet life, let’s say. One day his manager calls him and explains about this film that will be realized with Eddie Murphy, and suddenly invites him to attend a meeting to have a part on the film’s soundtrack.
Glenn goes to the meeting; basically, there are a few people watching the movie in preview, obviously with some temporary soundtrack. Glenn likes the film, but as the film goes on every now and then he turns around and sees that more people are coming. But not just ordinary people, at some point Quincy Jones comes. Soon after came Stevie Wonder. Then he turned around again and the Pointer Sisters arrived. All right, Glenn thinks, with artists like these, I’m never going to have a song on this soundtrack! But the movie is real fun!
A couple of months go by, and the manager shows up again. Do you remember that movie in preview? Here, the authors would like to offer you a song. If you like, you can sing it. And so Glenn gets a demo recording of The heat is on, composed by Keith Forsey and Harold Faltermeyer. Glenn likes the song, there was also the sax part, and so he agrees to record it with the authors, and within a day he records vocals, guitars, choirs, and all that, for a not excessive fee.
And so a song was born that over the years has become a real symbol of the 80s. Among other things, the video for The heat is on was one of the first to combine images of the song as images taken from the film, including Eddie Murphy’s iconic laugh. In the video there is a very good musician playing sax, Bev Dahlke-Smith, but she was not the one who actually played the song. In fact, the solo was played by David Woodford, another great musician who had played with Aerosmith, but also with Rod Stewart and many others.
Both the video and the song, however, convey a lot of energy, from the first apparently calm notes, when the fan is spinning and waiting for the song to really start. Exactly because of this energy, in the United States this was one of the songs used in the stadiums of many sports when the home team came in, to put pressure on opponents. The heat is on has really become a timeless song, always modern and enjoyable.
Glenn Frey had bad luck, and by 2000, soon after crating his “Mission Records” company, his health started deteriorating. When Eagles reunited, his conditions required to postpone some of the shows. Glenn Frey left us in early 2016 for a series of complications, followed by lawsuits and legal battles with doctors and hospitals that could have made mistakes.
Glenn Frey’s name remains indelible in the 80s history, as well as the overwhelming notes of this beautiful song.
Glenn Frey on Wikipedia
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