"True Love" by Glenn Frey

Song#:  3624

Date:  08/20/1988

Debut:  63

Peak:  13

Weeks:  15

Genre:  Soft Rock, Blue-Eyed Soul

Pop Bits:  Ex-Eagle Frey's two biggest solo hits came via soundtrack albums. Both "The Heat Is On" (from Beverly Hills Cop) and "You Belong to the City" (from Miami Vice) would reach the #2 spot in 1985. After those successes, Frey was still looking to score a Pop Top 10 hit from one of his own solo albums (by this point he had released two solo LPs, which generated three Pop Top 20s).  His next attempt would be this lead single from his third solo album Soul Searchin'. While the song would do well at AC (#2) and Rock (#15), it wasn't enough to help the single break into the Pop Top 10. Once again, Frey would be trapped in the Top 20. Unfortunately, it would also be his last time in the Pop Top 40. While the song would help sell some albums, it fared less well than his two previous gold efforts. It would stop at #36 and miss going gold.

ReduxReview:  For his third album, Frey didn't stray from the sounds he established on his first two LPs and that probably didn't do him any favors. It was business as usual and with some fans that was probably fine. However, it seemed that more casual listeners were getting a little tired of the same ol' same ol' and didn't show up to buy the album. This Memphis soul-ish single did little to change up Frey's sound and for the most part it didn't seem to bother a lot of folks with the tune hitting #2 AC and cracking the Pop Top 20. However, it wasn't a smash hit and did little to bring new fans aboard. Frankly, if there existed such a thing, I'd call it a lazy hit. Frey basically cooked up the same dish in the same pan and served it out for yet another dinner. He turned into the musical equivalent of a diner cook slingin' the same hash day after day. That doesn't mean the track is bad; it just didn't bring anything new or different to the table and for the Pop chart in the late 80s, that was not going to satisfy folks for long. I certainly went "meh" and didn't pay much attention to Frey after this.

ReduxRating:  4/10

Trivia:  In '89, a Frey song would once again find its way to a soundtrack album. The tune "Flip City" would be used in the comedy sequel Ghostbusters II. While it was not officially released as a single, it seems a promo was pushed out to rock radio for airplay, but it didn't generate interest and therefore did not chart. The soundtrack (#14, gold) became more known for Bobby Brown's #1 R&B/#2 Pop hit "On Our Own." The film did not perform to expectations. The original Ghostbusters had become the biggest grossing comedy film up to that point and Columbia Pictures was betting on the sequel to do as well or surpass that result. It did not. While not an actual bomb at the box office (in the US it did half the business as the original), critics panned the flick and the studio considered it a failure.

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