BrianWilkins.org
April 30, 2020
In all fairness, neither George Benson, nor Glenn Medeiros wrote the song. That honor belongs to co-writers Michael Masser and Gerry Goffin. Masser wrote several hits for Whitney Houston, Diana Ross, Natalie Cole and many others. Goffin wrote several number-1 pop hits including “The Locomotion” and “Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow.”
George Benson performed the song in 1985. It was on his 22nd studio album 20/20. The album peaked at #45 on the Billboard 100 album charts on February 15, 1985. But “Nothing’s Gonna Change My Love For You” was only released as a single in Europe. It reached #29 in Belgium and #43 in the Netherlands. It’s unclear why the single was never released in the USA.
Medeiros was 16 years old when he won a talent contest in Honolulu by performing “Nothing’s Gonna Change My Love For You.” Phoenix radio station KZZP got a hold of the Medeiros version and started playing it round-the-clock in late 1986. The Medeiros version was also featured in several daytime soap operas such as Days of Our Lives and General Hospital.
The song ultimately peaked at #12 on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart on June 5, 1987. But it hit #1 in several countries, including Canada, France, Ireland and the UK.
So why was the Medeiros version so much bigger than the Benson version two years earlier? It’s mostly about marketing. Medeiros was a young teen heartthrob. The music video melted teen girls across the country and gave boys new ammunition for serenades. Benson has been gypped several times in his career. He performed “The Greatest Love Of All” in 1977 before Whitney Houston hit #1 with the song eight years later.
The debate as to who did “Nothing’s Gonna Change My Love For You” better will go on forever. There’s no question who is the better musician. Benson has a total of 36 studio albums as to today. His most recent, Walking to New Orleans, was released in 2019. Medeiros had a few more singles, including the 1990 #1 hit “She Ain’t Worth It,” a duet with Bobby Brown. Medeiros has worked in the Hawaii school system as a teacher and administrator since the late 1990s. He is President and CEO of an all-boys Catholic School in Honolulu today.
“Nothing’s Gonna Change My Love For You” is a timeless classic regardless of which version you prefer. Just hope she’s listening!
Love George Benson! I only recently learned one of my favorite George Benson songs, “Nature Boy,” was originally sung by the late great Nat King Cole (and later by his daughter, Natalie.