Again, I stayed up too late listening to music. I just finished The Best of Mel Carter. Mel Carter is best-known for “Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me,” and - before I got this album - that was the only song I knew by him. But, listening through these songs, I found an instance where he repeats the same sort of opening. From what I’ve read, this was a fairly common move. After you have a hit record, you try to make the next record sound similar to it, so people will buy that one too.
"Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me" starts out with a string section that increases in pitch, number, and volume. Mel Carter and backing vocalists then come in, along with guitar chords. Finally, there’s a quick introductory drum part.
"Love Is All We Need" follows this same structure almost identically. Aside from the words (and probably the key), the only major difference is that the drums don’t come in quite as early. I looked up Mel Carter’s discography, and - from what I can tell - “Love Is All We Need” was recorded after “Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me.” So it’s more likely that it was a conscious echo (no pun intended) of “Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me” than just a format that Mel Carter, his producer, his arranger, or any combination of those three liked and used often.
