Love Is in the Air (song)


"Love Is in the Air" is a 1977 disco song sung by John Paul Young. The song was written by George Young and Harry Vanda and it became a worldwide hit in 1978, peaking at No. 3 on the Australian charts and No. 5 in the UK Singles Chart. In the United States, the song peaked at No. 7 on the pop chart and spent two weeks at No. 1 on the adult contemporary chart, his only US top 40 hit. The song plays at 122 beats per minute, a typical 1970s disco rhythm.
The song was released as the lead single from Young's fourth studio album, Love Is in the Air.
In 2017, the song was selected for preservation in the National Film and Sound Archive's Sounds of Australia collection.

Overview

John Paul Young said of the recording, "We actually did 'Love Is in the Air' because we needed something for the German market. 'Standing in the Rain' became a hit in the clubs over there and then on the charts, so we needed a follow-up. I'd been to Germany and heard the music. It was electronic mania, all clicks and electronic buzzes. So George and Harry gave it the treatment."
Young performed "Love is in the Air" live on episode 148 of Countdown on 30 April 1978.
"Love Is in the Air" was the theme song to Baz Luhrmann's 1992 debut feature film Strictly Ballroom.
Young performed the song at the Closing Ceremony of the 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney.
The song is regularly sung at football matches by supporters of Dundee United.
In 2006, the song was played during the 2006 Winter Olympic opening ceremony's parade of the athletes.

Martin Stevens

In Canada, Young's recording of "Love Is in the Air" performed significantly more poorly on the charts than in most other countries, due to the existence of a contemporaneous version of the song by Canadian singer Martin Stevens. Stevens had received Young's demo recording, and recorded a version of the song for his 1978 album, before Young's song was released.
Stevens' version debuted on the Canadian charts in July 1978, and had already reached #21 by September 9, the week Young's version debuted. The two versions appear to have cut into each other's chart momentum thereafter, with Stevens' version peaking at #19 a few weeks later before declining on the charts, while Young's peaked at #26 two weeks later. In the year-end RPM charts for 1978, Stevens' version ranked #137 and Young's ranked #195. Stevens' version of the song was a Juno Award nominee for Best Selling Single at the Juno Awards of 1979.

Track listings

European 7" single
Australian 7"

US 7"

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

1992 (Ballroom mix)

"Love Is in the Air " was released in August 1992 as the lead single from the Strictly Ballroom soundtrack. It peaked at number 9 in Denmark and number 49 in the UK. Outside Europe, it reached number 2 in New Zealand and number 3 in Australia. A new music video was shot to accompany the song. It also features some footage from the movie.
Billboard wrote, "Young updates his '70s classic for the soundtrack to "Strictly Ballroom" with a festive '90s-minded dance beat."

Track listing

Australian/ New Zealand CD single
  1. "Love Is in the Air" – 4:13
  2. "Scott & Fran's Paso Doble" – 3:56
European remix single
  1. "Love Is in the Air" – 8:27
  2. "Love Is in the Air" – 5:00
  3. "Love Is in the Air" – 4:13

    Chart performance

Weekly chart

Year-end charts

Certifications

Cover versions