Saving All My Love for You

In this song, Whitney sings about loving a man who doesn't return her affections. Despite the advice of her friends and against her better judgment, she holds out for him, and he becomes her idealized lover.

This was originally recorded by Marilyn McCoo and Billy Davis Jr., who released it on their 1978 album Marilyn & Billy. Although credited to the pair, McCoo did all the lead vocals. Her performance was pure acting: she and Davis had been married since 1969. The lyric was written by Gerry Goffin and the music by Michael Masser, who also produced it. The McCoo/Davis version didn't get much attention, but when Whitney Houston included it on her 1985 debut album, it found a huge audience. Houston went supernova after "Saving All My Love for You" was released as a single; it became the first of seven consecutive #1 Hot 100 hits for the singer, and also topped the R&B and Adult Contemporary charts. It was also her first #1 in the UK.

According to 1000 UK #1 Hits by Jon Kutner and Spencer Leigh, Michael Masser heard Whitney at Sweetwater's in New York and was mesmerized by the way she performed one of his songs, "The Greatest Love Of All." He suggested another of his songs, "Saving All My Love For You," telling Whitney, "This is going to make women cry. It is a woman's song." But Whitney's mother, Cissy Houston, was unsure, not wanting her daughter to sing about adultery. Eventually, Whitney agreed to do the song, though the subject matter was even clearer in the video. Clive Davis instructed Masser not to make the record 'too black,' so it would appeal to black and white audiences. Masser included a sax solo from the veteran Tom Scott, but he did not complicate the arrangement as he wanted to showcase Whitney's voice.