Truly

Album: Lionel Richie (1982)
Charted: 6 1
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • This was Richie's first solo single after leaving the Commodores earlier in the year. With that group, he wrote and sang on a number of hits, including "Three Times A Lady" and "Still." While still with the group, he wrote and produced the Kenny Rogers #1 hit "Lady" and also the smash duet with Diana Ross, "Endless Love."

    "Truly" stayed in his sweet spot of devotional ballads, and again he rose to the top: the song hit #1 on the Hot 100 and Adult Contemporary charts, and rose to #2 R&B.
  • Richie's co-producer on this track was James Anthony Carmichael, who worked on most of the Commodores material.
  • After 18 nominations (mostly for songs with the Commodores), Richie finally won his first Grammy when this took the award for Best Pop Vocal Performance, Male in 1983. Richie almost skipped the ceremony, as he was nominated each of the previous five years and had come up empty handed each time.
  • This song got no help from MTV because Richie didn't make a video for it. He had little reason to: The network shied away from ballads and didn't play black artists in earnest until Prince and Michael Jackson broke through the following year. He made a video for his next single, the uptempo "You Are," but MTV didn't play it. The following year, he made videos for the singles from his, Can't Slow Down album, and they became some of the most-played on the network, especially "All Night Long (All Night)" and "Hello."

Comments: 1

  • Barry from Sauquoit, NyOn this day in 1982 {October 23rd} Lionel Richie performed "Truly" on the ABC-TV Saturday-afternoon program, 'American Bandstand'...
    At the time "Truly" was at position #36 on Billboard's Top 100 chart, seven weeks later it would peak at #1 {for 2 weeks} and it spent eighteen weeks on the Top 100...
    And on November 7th, 1982 "Truly" peaked at #2 {for 9 weeks} on Billboard's Hot R&B Singles chart, for the nine weeks it was at #2, the #1 record for those nine weeks was "Sexual Healing" by Marvin Gaye...
    Between 1981 and 2006 the Tuskegee, Alabama native, as a solo artist, had twenty records on the Hot R&B Singles chart, fourteen made the Top 10 with five* reaching #1, "Endless Love", with Diana Ross, for 7 weeks in 1981, "All Night Long" for 7 weeks in 1983, "Hello" for 3 weeks in 1984, "Say You, Say Me" for 2 weeks in 1986, and "Do It To Me" for 1 week in 1992...
    Lionel Brockman Richie, Jr. will celebrate his 71st birthday come next June 20th, 2020...
    * He just missed having three more #1 records when his "You Are", "Love Will Conquer All", and the above "Truly", all peaked at #2 on the Hot R&B Singles chart...
see more comments

Editor's Picks

Who's Johnny, And Why Does He Show Up In So Many Songs

Who's Johnny, And Why Does He Show Up In So Many SongsSong Writing

For songwriters, Johnny represents the American man. He has been angry, cool, magic, a rebel and, of course, marching home.

Joe Jackson

Joe JacksonSongwriter Interviews

Joe talks about the challenges of of making a Duke Ellington tribute album, and tells the stories behind some of his hits.

How "A Rolling Stone Gathers No Moss" Became Rock's Top Proverb

How "A Rolling Stone Gathers No Moss" Became Rock's Top ProverbSong Writing

How a country weeper and a blues number made "rolling stone" the most popular phrase in rock.

Max Cavalera of Soulfly (ex-Sepultura)

Max Cavalera of Soulfly (ex-Sepultura)Songwriter Interviews

The Brazilian rocker sees pictures in his riffs. When he came up with one of his gnarliest songs, there was a riot going on.

Brenda Russell

Brenda RussellSongwriter Interviews

Brenda talks about the inspiration that drove her to write hit songs like "Get Here" and "Piano in the Dark," and why a lack of formal music training can be a songwriter's best asset.

Weezer

WeezerFact or Fiction

Did Rivers Cuomo grow up on a commune? Why did they name their albums after colors? See how well you know your Weezer in this Fact or Fiction.