Peak
6
Weeks
20
Score
2,854
Chart Year
1989
///
This was the theme song to the 1989 movie Chances Are, starring Cybill Shepherd, Robert Downey Jr. and Ryan O'Neal. The song was written by Dean Pitchford (lyrics) and Tom Snow (music), who couldn't use the title "Chances Are" because it is the name of a famous Johnny Mathis song. In our interview with Dean Pitchford, he explained: "The movie was about a woman who falls in love with a man only to lose him. He gets killed, and then his soul migrates into another body and comes back in a younger man. And that soul is trying to reunite with her, but inevitably she ends up with a man who has been staying by her side all her life, and has been there for her. And that's the soul match that was to have been made. So when she walks down the aisle at the end of the movie with Ryan O'Neal, it's the end of a long journey. So I wrote 'After all the stops and starts, we keep coming back to these two hearts. Two angels who've been rescued from the fall.' I thought that that was really the summation of the movie, because you get some scenes in Heaven, where the soul gets misassigned. And I always liked the idea of angels being rescued from the fall, and I also liked that 'fall' rhymed with 'all.' So I brought Tom the 'After All' concept of 'we keep coming back to these two hearts,' and that was the taking off point." Dean Pitchford had lots of success with movie soundtracks - he wrote the screenplay and all the songs for Footloose, including "Almost Paradise," another duet that like "After All" was a #1 Adult Contemporary hit. Some of the other songs Pitchford wrote with Tom Snow include "You Should Hear How She Talks About You" and "Let's Hear It For The Boy." In addition to the Chances Are soundtrack, this was released on Cher's album Heart of Stone and on Peter Cetera's album Connection. It was Cher's first #1 Adult Contemporary hit. In addition to writing this this song for Chances Are, Tom Snow also worked on the film's score, using variations on the main theme of this song in places.
Well, here we are again, I guess it must be fate We've tried it on our own But deep inside we've known We'd be back to set things straight I still remember when your kiss was so brand new Every memory repeats Every step I take retreats Every journey always brings me back to you After all the stops and starts We keep coming back to these two hearts Two angels who've been rescued from the fall And after all that we've been through It all comes down to me and you I guess it's meant to be Forever you and me, after all When love is truly right, this time it's truly right It lives from year to year, it changes as it goes Oh and on the way it grows But it never disappears After all the stops and starts We keep coming back to these two hearts Two angels who've been rescued from the fall And after all that we've been through It all comes down to me and you I guess it's meant to be Forever you and me, after all Always just beyond my touch You know I needed you so much After all, what else is livin' for? Oh, after all the stops and starts We keep coming back to these two hearts Two angels who've been rescued from the fall And after all that we've been through It all comes down to me and you I guess it's meant to be Forever you and me After all the stops and starts We keep coming back to these two hearts Two angels who've been rescued from the fall And after all that we've been through It all comes down to me and you I guess it's meant to be Forever you and me, after all
| Week | Chart Date | Position | Points |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Mar 11, 1989 | 59 | 67 |
| 2 | Mar 18, 1989 | 50 | 76 |
| 3 | Mar 25, 1989 | 43 | 83 |
| 4 | Apr 1, 1989 | 34 | 92 |
| 5 | Apr 8, 1989 | 26 | 100 |
| 6 | Apr 15, 1989 | 20 | 106 |
| 7 | Apr 22, 1989 | 15 | 111 |
| 8 | Apr 29, 1989 | 9 | 117 |
| 9 | May 6, 1989 | 7 | 119 |
| 10 | May 13, 1989 | 6 | 120 |
| 11 | May 20, 1989 | 8 | 118 |
| 12 | May 27, 1989 | 17 | 109 |
| 13 | Jun 3, 1989 | 26 | 100 |
| 14 | Jun 10, 1989 | 36 | 90 |
| 15 | Jun 17, 1989 | 47 | 79 |
| 16 | Jun 24, 1989 | 59 | 67 |
| 17 | Jul 1, 1989 | 66 | 60 |
| 18 | Jul 8, 1989 | 81 | 45 |
| 19 | Jul 15, 1989 | 84 | 42 |
| 20 | Jul 22, 1989 | 88 | 38 |