This song–If You Remember Me–is heart-rending and I’d forgotten what a wonderful movie The Champ (1979) was, which this song was a part of.
The great Marvin Hamlisch (A Chorus Line, The Way We Were) wrote the music, Carole Bayer Sager the lyrics, and the vocals are by Chris Thompson, an AOR (adult-oriented rock) singer from the group Manfred Mann.
It does take a singer with a rock background to sing this song with great feeling and not risk sounding, well, smaltzy. Excellent. Just like the film, everything about the song makes you want to cry.
When you remember me,
If you remember me,
I hope you see it’s not the way I want it to be,
Or I’ll be with you now,
But wherever you go,
My love goes with you . . . [lyrics by Carole Bayer-Sager]
The film was a remake of a 1931 film about an ex-boxer who makes a comeback, and starred Jon Voight, Faye Dunaway, and a very golden Ricky Schroeder.
Everyone I knew who watched it back in the day loved the film, and The Champ is one of those movies which are integral to my childhood memories.
I was 12 then.
Tell me what you think.