You Take My Breath Away!

Remember the name Rex Smith? If you don’t, I’m not surprised. Rex Smith was sort of a teen idol back in the late 70s, having really only one hit song, the romantic ballad You Take My Breath Away, which briefly hit the top ten in 1979. I collected 45 hit singles back then, and I remember Smith’s glossy black and white headshot on the front of the record’s dust cover.

Anyway, I have to admit – although I really don’t want to! – I kind of liked the song when it came out. (I guess I’m just a sucker for a whiny ballad.) These days, however, I can’t for the life of me remember why I liked the song – in fact, when I hear it now (it’s frequently played on the Sirius/XM Jukebox of Cheese) I think, “What a piece of useless fluff! How could I possibly have liked that song?”

Back in 1979, though, I liked the song well enough to actually write an arrangement of it for the wedding band I played in at the time – a band I like to refer to as “Four White Guys in Ruffled Shirts and Cheesy Tuxedoes.” I grimace now when I think about some young newlywed couple taking their spot on the dance floor for that very special first dance, and me seated behind my drum set crooning out lyrics like, “You, you smile and it’s okay; I don’t know what to say; you take my breath away; you take my breath a-waaaaay!” Yikes!

Rex Smith did go on to achieve some success in his career, including a platinum-selling album, Sooner or Later, acting roles on and off Broadway, and guest appearances on TV shows like The Love Boat, Baywatch, and As the World Turns. Clearly, the guy has some talent.

When all is said and done, Rex Smith’s You Take My Breath Away ranks right up there with other schlocky classics of the era, like John Travolta’s Let Her In (1976), Kenny Nolan’s I Like Dreamin’ (1977), and Dr. Hook’s Sharing’ the Night Together (1978) – all of which, at the time, I also thought were pretty good tunes. What was I thinking?