THEME = Remake Wednesday: original (Bette Midler) & cover (Conway Twitty)

Today’s feature is “The Rose”….

#1 (original)
This song, written by Amanda McBroom, was 1st recorded by Bette Midler for the soundtrack of the 1979 movie of the same name; it is heard in the movie during the closing credits. Interestingly, the song was NOT written for the movie; McBroom wrote it ~2 years earlier & sang it in clubs. It is, however, 1 of 7 songs Midler selected for the movie. Released as the 2nd single from the film’s soundtrack, this song claimed #1 on the Adult Contemporary chart for 5 weeks. It also reached #3 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart & won the Best Female Pop Vocal Performance Grammy.

#2 (cover)
Conway Twitty released his version of this song from his album ‘Dream Maker’; debuting 12/25/1982, Twitty’s rendition spent 19 weeks on the country charts & claimed #1, his 35th country chart topper, in early 1983. It also reached the top spot of Canada’s country chart. Twitty’s career (highlighted here) spanned early 1966 to mid 1993 & featured 40 chart toppers & 35 additional Top 10 tunes.