| You're the Inspiration | |
| Cover: | Chicago inspiration.jpg |
| Caption: | UK vinyl single |
| Type: | single |
| Artist: | Chicago |
| Album: | Chicago 17 |
| B-Side: | Once in a Lifetime |
| Released: | 31 October 1984 |
| Recorded: | 1983–1984 |
| Genre: | Soft rock[1] |
| Length: | 3:50 |
| Label: | Full Moon/Warner Bros. |
| Producer: | David Foster |
| Prev Title: | Hard Habit to Break |
| Prev Year: | 1984 |
| Next Title: | Along Comes a Woman |
| Next Year: | 1985 |
"You're the Inspiration" is a song written by Peter Cetera and David Foster for the group Chicago and recorded for their fourteenth studio album Chicago 17 (1984), with Cetera singing lead vocals. The third single released from that album, it reached on the US Billboard Hot 100 chart in January 1985 and also climbed to the top position on the Adult Contemporary chart at the same time.[2] The song won honors for Foster and Cetera from the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP), in 1986 in the most-performed songs category.[3]
Peter Cetera re-recorded the song for his 1997 solo album .[4] That same year he also recorded a single version with the vocal R&B group Az Yet.[5]
The song was used in the 2016 film Deadpool.
Peter Cetera stated in a 2004 interview that "You're the Inspiration" started out as a song for Kenny Rogers: Cetera then changed some of the words and recorded the song with Chicago for their Chicago 17 album.
Billboard said that it was "somewhere between a hymn and an anthem."[6]
Additional personnel
The video depicted the band performing intercut with scenes of embracing couples of varying ages ranging from young kids to a couple resembling Billy Idol and Madonna at the time. Lead singer Peter Cetera is seen wearing a T-shirt from the British goth band Bauhaus. During his performance, Cetera is sitting the whole time. It also uses an alternate version of the song without the guitar sting between the second and third choruses.
| Chart (1984–1985) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Australia (Kent Music Report)[7] | 43 |
| Canada RPM Top 100[8] | 5 |
| Canada RPM Adult Contemporary[9] | 1 |
| Netherlands[10] | 32 |
| New Zealand Singles Chart[11] | 30 |
| Swedish Singles Chart[12] | 6 |
| Chart (1985) | Position |
|---|---|
| Canadian Singles Chart[13] | 31 |
| US Billboard Hot 100[14] | 37 |
| You're the Inspiration (Remix) | |
| Cover: | You're the Inspiration Peter Cetera.jpg |
| Type: | single |
| Artist: | Peter Cetera featuring Az Yet |
| Recorded: | 1996 |
| Genre: | R&B, adult contemporary |
| Length: | 4:07 |
| Label: | Platinum Entertainment |
| Producer: | Babyface |
| Chronology: | Az Yet |
| Prev Title: | Hard to Say I'm Sorry |
| Prev Year: | 1997 |
| Next Title: | Keep on Pushin' |
| Next Year: | 2007 |
In 1997, Peter Cetera re-recorded "You're the Inspiration" for his 1997 solo album . Due to Cetera featuring on R&B vocal group Az Yet's cover of "Hard to Say I'm Sorry" earlier in the year, they collaborated on a remix of Cetera's solo recording of "You're the Inspiration", which was released as a single. This version reached No. 77 on the Billboard Hot 100 and No. 29 on the Adult Contemporary chart. Like Az Yet's "Hard to Say I'm Sorry", Cetera and Az Yet's version of "You're the Inspiration" was also produced by Babyface.
The music video for Peter Cetera and Az Yet's "You're the Inspiration" was directed by Steven R. Monroe and was filmed at Westward Beach (Malibu, California).[15]
