Johnny carson, who hosted The Tonight Show for 30 years, said this was his favorite vocal performance. And he invited Billy Vera to sing this song multiple times on his show, which was completely unheard of.
I love the live album they rush together to put out when the song hit after Family Ties used it. IMO the better song on this album is Here Comes The Dawn... But they are all great!
Hey Britt, this song became a hit when in the TV show "Family Ties" Ellen, played by Tracy Pollan, broke up with Alex played by Michael J. Fox of Back to the Future Fame. A very sad episode. What makes this more unique, in real life they have been married for 35 years. One of Hollywood's most enduring marriages. Here is that scene from the show. ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-8h3JY49JTfk.htmlsi=g-EEQ-gi_gx4wVBo
YES! Came to say the same. Glad someone else remembers. It's from the two-parter where they first met too, which is another reason beyond the lyrics why it was so devastating in the breakup episode.
@@HazyWave1974 those episodes broke, me and I must say, I played this song often when my "first love" broke up with me in college, which was not that far away, time wise, to when the episode first aired!
I love this song and it always tugs at my heartstrings. I haven't heard it in a long long time. Thank you for choosing this for your reaction video. Sending much love from the Finger Lakes of NY. 🍷 🍷
Britt, please consider "If I Were A Magician" by Lou Rawls and written by Billy Vera. "At This Moment" was originally recorded January 17, 1981during a live performance at The Roxy in West Hollywood, CA. "At This Moment" was written by Billy Vera and released under the name Billy Vera & the Beaters in 1981 on their self-titled live album Billy and the Beaters, released. This was the second single released from the album in 1981. It became a number one song on the charts after it was featured on the TV show Family Ties. that year as the album's second single, on the American subsidiary of Japan's Alfa Records. The song is more notable for its second run on the charts years after its initial release, following its being featured on television's Family Ties series, after which the song became a number 1 hit in early 1987. Billy Vera is now 80 years old and still performing. Vera began his recording career in 1962 as a member of the Resolutions followed by the regional hit "My Heart Cries"/"All My Love" as Billy Vera & the Contrasts. He went on to a songwriting career in the 1960s, writing for Barbara Lewis, Fats Domino, The Shirelles and Ricky Nelson. He also wrote the garage band classic "Don't Look Back", performed by the Remains and later covered by Robert Plant. In 1967 Vera, with Chip Taylor, wrote "Storybook Children" and brought it to Atlantic Records. The groundbreaking decision to place former gospel singer Judy Clay with Vera in a white-black duet to record the song was a commercial and artistic success. "Storybook Children" is considered to be the first interracial love song to chart in the USA. Prior to this, duo Sister Rosetta Tharpe and Red Foley had recorded "Have a Little Talk with Jesus" in 1952, which was a B-side. The duo became big favorites at Harlem's Apollo Theater and their follow-up, "Country Girl-City Man" also charted. He had a solo hit single later that same year with the Bobby Goldsboro penned "With Pen in Hand", which was also the name of his next album. 1979 began with his song "I Really Got the Feeling", a number 1 hit for Dolly Parton. During that decade he served as conductor for many oldies acts, including the Shirelles and Ronnie Spector as well as fronting the band at the 1972 Reunion concert of Dion & the Belmonts. Before moving to Los Angeles in 1979. Vera co-produced three Lou Rawls albums with his friend Michael Cuscuna, for Blue Note Records, including At Last, which reached number 1 on the Billboard jazz chart. Vera also produced Rawls's final album, Rawls Sings Sinatra, which remained on the jazz chart for over six months.[7] Rawls recorded seven of Vera's songs, including "If I Were A Magician" (1989), "Room with a View" and "You Can't Go Home". In 1990, Vera's tune "Papa Come Quick (Jody & Chico)" was included on Bonnie Raitt's album, Luck of the Draw. Vera also recorded as a duo with Nona Hendryx on the 1992 album You Have To Cry Some Time. Vera also has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at the corner of Vine Street and Yucca Street, right in front of the Capitol Records Building in Hollywood. He won a 2013 Grammy Award for Best Album Notes for the Ray Charles box set Singular Genius: The Complete ABC Singles.
He was playing out in a club and a girl he noticed was with someone he learned later that she was going to break up with and he started writing the song about his perspective of it then he fell in love and dated the same girl and finished the song when she broke his heart 😢
Hard to believe that this song did nothing the first time it was released and was discovered after it was used as background music in a tv show years later, really unbelievable.
Curious what you think. Check out " Song: "Dancin' The Boogie" composed and performed by swiss pianist Silvan Zingg. Dancing: by french couple William Mauvais and Maéva Truntzer "
Hi I watched your Lucy Thomas reactions but nothing since . She has just done a live concert and has just released unchained melody on her channel don’t know if you are still interested maybe you could let me know. Mike
I never understood why these react channels don’t just use an actual screen shot of their reaction from the video. It’s always some copy paste one from another.
Donnie McClurkin - Stand (1996) vs. Billy Vera - At This Moment (1981) Soooo is Mr. Vera owed some royalties? Is this the church imitating pop music now? Actually, it very much sounds like McClurkin sang directly over the "At This Moment" melody.
Before someone else post it : "The song was revived when it was used in three episodes of the hit TV show Family Ties in 1985 and 1986, as a backdrop for romantic interludes between Alex P. Keaton (played by Michael J. Fox) and Ellen Reed (played by Tracy Pollan, who became Fox's wife in real life)."
This song never got near the recognition it should have back in the day in my opinion. I'm glad to see it popping up again in a lot of reactions. It's a truly great song.
RU-vidr @modern Renaissance Man also recognized it from a gospel song at church. Check out his reaction. They sampled it from Billy Vera’s song. It happens.😊
My association with this song comes from tv sitcom days back in the 80's.... the first time I heard it was 'Family Ties' with the love relationship on screen and off screen from costars - and what gives it more sentiment is that Tracy & Michael J Fox are still married after all these decades and that she supported him thru his health issues with Parkinson's. Their story adds such value to this song. But without any doubt Billy Vera's vocal work is amazing in this version!
If I'm not mistaken, Billy Vera and his band at the time, the Beaters, held down the number one spot for two weeks, maybe three, on the Billboard pop charts, with At This Moment. Forgot what year, but it was used in a couple of shows back in the 80s. Great ballad.
Billy Vera is a pro's pro. He's been involved in music and entertainment since the 50's, and is a student of popular music, in general. He is also an author, voice-over artist and a fine actor with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. When this song was first released, it did not do well. But, and this is a familiar story, thanks to exposure on a popular television show, the song was re-released and shot to #1 on the Billboard Hot 100. Sadly, and somewhat inexplicably, Mr. Vera was never able to duplicate that chart success. At 80 years young, Billy Vera continues to tour and entertain.
Thanks for reacting to this, one of my all time favorites. " If you stay I'd subtract twenty years from my life". Maybe the most desperate lyric ever sung.
For me, there is no better lyric in a love song than, "If you'd stay, I'd subtract 20 years from my life." If you don't know what that feels like, you've never been in love.
One of my childhood memories is of watching him perform this song on late night primetime television. It's always stuck with me as being one of my favorites. I especially like the lyric, "I'd subtract twenty years from my life.". That's a deep line.
This song has been on every mix tape, CD or playlist I have had since I first heard it on the TV show Family Ties back in 1986. Such a great and sad song.
Oh yeah, Billy & The Beaters knew how to do it. I bought my first record of theirs in '79 or maybe '80? And this song was on it. I was just browsing through a record store, and the album was playing, I bought it on the spot. Love these guys! Hopeless Romantic and Here Comes The Dawn were two more really good ones I remember from that LP. Thanks for sharing this one, Britt. 🙂
This was about 81 , but it was made famous in 87 because of a popular tv show used it in a emotional episode . I know because I broke up with a man who did not take it well and this song tortured me on the radio for ages while he kept trying to get back together
Takes me back to a time when a young lady broke off our relationship along with a big piece of my heart and this song came on the radio . Had to pull the car over and literally regain my composure. But you know you have to follow your heart or you’ll never find love again.
One of the most famous singers in the World you never heard of. Teresa Teng. How famous.? BILLIONS. Born in Taiwan, fluent in 4 languages. Her native language is Mandarin , Cantonese, Japanese and English. This concert is on the same stage Mori Masako had her concert. The famous NHK concert hall in Tokyo. 1985. ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-p8XCb622x2I.htmlsi=TFU95Wt9fhlBTrpY
I can tell you why the title was unexpected in the verse, it's because you expected it in the Chorus, but this song doesn't have a Chorus. It's song structure is AABA meaning Verse Verse Bridge Verse(with repetition of verse after the instrumental sax solo), so therefore, the title could only go in the verse, it's never placed in the bridge anyway. As a songwriter I have to admit it's very well written, including it's structure and location of the title. I quite like the fact that you picked the title as being not too obvious if you didn't know what the title was, I only realized that after hearing you.
🇨🇦🇨🇦🇨🇦🇨🇦🇨🇦🇨🇦🇨🇦 Another's beautiful song. I really like to see your reaction is by "ST-PAUL and the broken bones" Live studio (our vinyls sessions) Song is 🎵🎶 Grass is greener 🎵🎶 You gonna adore this song to Keep the good work Sunshine 🌞 👍🙏👌👏👏
Hey, Britt. You have 300k subs in a short period. If I met you I'm pretty sure as a 70 year old white guy I'd love you in a real way and over a drink - I hope. My only thought is that maybe a tip to a balance that needs different for different songs which of course includes your dynamic personality but doesn't take over the song. A balance. Hope that makes sense. And I know I'm not your main audience, just a guy who's been around and knows both music and reactors. Take care.
To make matter worse, Billy and the band thought this song ran it's course, so when FAMILY TIES asked about buying the rights to the song so they could use it in the show, he said no problem, it's not a money maker for us. Then it spent weeks at number 1 and they lost all the royalties to NBC.
lol Rick Fortier beat me to it. I was gonna mention the 80s sitcom Family Ties. That’s where I first heard this song. That’s a sad song. The music, his vocals, the whole thing. And I was like 12 when I first heard it. Lol
ROCK AND ROLL was invented by Ray Charles in the late 40s, and is a mix of gospel, blues, big band, and country blues. So much of rock was built on the field songs of sharecroppers from the turn of the 20th century.
AHHhhhh... glad you liked my suggestion, Britt!!!! Yes, I agree with you that blues, jazz, & old school r-n-b has it roots in Gospel music... AND you can hear it IN this particular song!!!! Check out Billy Vera's catalog of hit songs (unfortunately THIS song was his biggest hit though). Still, you have some GREAT MUSIC coming you way, by this artist!!!! I look forward to many more reactions from your channel in the future!!!! Keep doin' YOU.... Peace, Love, & Liberty. MIC DROP 🎤.