Love's Theme (5:18)

“Love’s Theme” is an instrumental piece recorded by Barry White’s Love Unlimited Orchestra and released in 1973. It is one of the few instrumental and purely orchestral singles to reach #1 on Billboard’s Hot 100 chart in the United States, in early 1974. The piece was included on the albums Under The Influence Of Love Unlimited (by the all-girl trio Love Unlimited) and Rhapsody in white.

The recording, with a large string orchestra and wah-wah guitar, is considered to be an influence to the disco sound, which would explode in popularity the following year. The song was also popular on the Billboard Adult Contemporary chart in the U.S., where the song spent two weeks at #1.

In the mid 1970s all the way to the late 1980s, ABC Sports used “Love’s Theme” as the opening theme music for its live golf coverage. WPIX used it as the closing music for its then Action News franchise from 1975 to 1977. It was used as the theme song for the syndicated television series Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous early in its run. It was featured on The Weather Channel’s Local on the 8’s segments in 2002 and 2007. It was used as the opening theme to the soap opera “Celebridade” (2003) in Brazil. The Vlaamse Radio - en Televisieomroep used it throughout the 70s and into the 80s as the opening tune to its popular Sunday morning radio show, “Relax”. The Seven Network in Australia used “Love’s Theme” as the opener for its music program “Sounds” from the mid 1970s until the show was cancelled in 1987.