Who's Right, Who's Wrong

Album: Keep The Fire (1979)
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Songfacts®:

  • Written by Kenny Loggins and Richard Page, this jazzy ballad is about a senseless argument that threatens to destroy the singer's relationship. The track debuted on Loggins' third solo album, Keep The Fire, which is better known for the hit single "This Is It."
  • Richard Page was the lead singer of the '80s rock band Mr. Mister, but when he co-wrote this track he was still fronting the group Pages. Shortly after Keep The Fire dropped in September 1979, Pages released the album Future Street that featured their rendition of the tune.
  • Loggins' version features backing vocals from Michael Jackson (and Page). In a 2014 interview with Ultimate Classic Rock, he said he met the King of Pop at a benefit right around the time Jackson finished his breakthrough Off The Wall album and asked him to sing on the track. "Had I really thought it through, I should have probably recorded something up-tempo with him. I kick myself and think that was a waste of his talent. Great tune and everything, but just not the right tune for Michael Jackson to be singing on," he explained.

    But Loggins still enjoyed the sessions he had with Jackson, who was willing to follow his lead. "He was a total sweetheart and was willing to go in any direction," he recalled. "I remember at one point I said, 'Put more of your 'thing' on it; it feels a little too stiff.' And he said, 'You mean you want it stinky?' 'Yeah! I want it stinky.' So he put more juice on it."
  • In 1981, soul singer Mel Carter, known for the 1965 hit "Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me," released a version that was arranged by David Foster and Jay Graydon. Loggins also worked with Foster on "Heart To Heart."
  • This features a tenor sax solo from Michael Brecker. The prolific jazz musician played on nearly 900 albums before his death in 2007. Some other selections from 1979 include Joni Mitchell's Shadows And Light, Carly Simon's Spy, Bette Midler's Thighs And Whispers, and Art Garfunkel's Fate For Breakfast.

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