“Footloose” – Single by Kenny Loggins from the album Footloose: Original Soundtrack of the Paramount Motion Picture
B-side: “Swear Your Love”
Released: January 11, 1984
Recorded: 1983
Label: Columbia
Songwriters: Kenny Loggins, Dean Pitchford
Producers: Kenny Loggins, Lee DeCarlo
Charted No.1 in US, No.6 in UK, No.4 in West Germany; No.1 in Canada
This was the theme from the movie of the same name starring Kevin Bacon in his breakout role; Rob Lowe and Tom Cruise also tried out for the part. He plays a teenager who moves to a small town where dancing is illegal. Dean Pitchford, who wrote the screenplay to the film and the lyrics to all the songs in the movie, got the idea from a 1979 newspaper article about the town of Elmore City, Oklahoma, where a law against dancing was on the books since the 1800s. The 14 high school seniors decided they wanted a prom, and got the town council to overturn the antiquated interdiction so they could dance. Pitchford visited Elmore City to research his screenplay, where he spent a week immersing himself in their culture.
The song was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Original Song at the 1985 ceremony, losing to Stevie Wonder’s “I Just Called to Say I Love You” from The Woman in Red.
The single version is slightly shorter in length compared to the album version. It begins with a soloed guitar track instead of a drum intro, and features more prominent backing vocals in the mix, particularly towards the end of the song.
Footloose – The Movie
Lyrics:
So now I gotta cut loose
Footloose
Kick off the Sunday shoes
Please, Louise
Pull me off of my knees
Jack, get back
Come on before we crack
Lose your blues
Everybody cut footloose
