Song of the Day: On the Wings of Love (by Jeffrey Osborne)


Jeffrey Osborne’s On the Wings of Love always brings back the nostalgia of those junior high and high school dances—the dim lights, the cautious swaying, the mix of nerves and excitement that felt like the biggest deal in the world. It was one of those slow songs that seemed built for that moment: simple, heartfelt, and unafraid to wear its emotions openly. Hearing it again instantly puts you back in that space where a single dance could mean everything.

What stands out now, listening with older ears, is how raw and genuine it sounds. This was music from a time before autotune, when what you heard was pure singing talent—no filters, no layers of studio polish to smooth out the edges. Osborne’s voice carries every ounce of emotion on its own, steady and powerful, but full of warmth. That sincerity is what made the song feel so timeless; it wasn’t just about hitting the notes, it was about meaning them.

Revisiting On the Wings of Love today feels like a little time capsule from when love songs aimed straight for the heart, no tricks or irony. It captures an innocence that’s rare in modern pop—back when melody and emotion were enough to lift you. For February, it’s the perfect reminder that sometimes the purest expressions of love come from nothing more than a beautiful voice and a song that believes in what it’s saying.

On the Wings of Love

Just smile for me and let the day begin
You are the sunshine that lights my heart within
And I’m sure that you’re an angel in disguise
Come take my hand and together we will rise

On the wings of love, up and above the clouds
The only way to fly is on the wings of love
On the wings of love, only the two of us
Together flying high, flying high upon the wings of love

You look at me and I begin to melt
Just like the snow when a ray of sun is felt
And I’m crazy ’bout ya, baby, can’t you see
I’d be delighted if you would come with me

On the wings of love, up and above the clouds
The only way to fly is on the wings of love
On the wings of love, only the two of us
Together flying high, flying high upon the wings of love

Yes, you belong to me and I’m yours exclusively
Right now we live and breathe each other
Inseparable it seems, we’re flowing like a stream
Running free flowing on the wings of love

On the wings of love, up and above the clouds
The only way to fly is on the wings of love
On the wings of love, only the two of us
Together flying high, together flying high

On the wings of love, up and above the clouds
The only way to fly is on the wings of love
On the wings of love, only the two of us
Together flying high, together flying high
Upon the wings of love, of love

Music Video of the Day: Maniac by Michael Sembello (1983, dir. Adrian Lyne)


Warning: If you’re epileptic, then you might not want to watch the video. It does include some very quick flashing for an extended period of time.

I thought I would go with something that wouldn’t immediately jump to mind for October unless you already know the story behind it.

As closely as this song is associated with Flashdance (1983), it wasn’t originally written for it. It was written with William Lusting’s 1980 film Maniac in mind. I can’t find out for sure if it was written for or was inspired by the movie. Everything I have read seems to indicate the latter. In particular, the fact that it was apparently nominated for an Academy Award, but disqualified because the song wasn’t originally written for Flashdance. It didn’t play in my copy of the film either. It was written for a movie about someone with an obsession for trapping people as they are at a certain place in their life by killing, scalping, and then placing their hair on mannequins. He has other issues intertwined with that as well. The remake explains the motive behind what he does a bit better by expanding his relationship with a photographer who was played by Caroline Munro in the original.

Something that’s amazing to me is that Sembello didn’t change much to get the version we all know from Flashdance. With a few tweaks, you can play this over certain sections of the original film, and it would fit just fine. In addition, there are sections of this video that feel like they were put together in such a way because they would resemble a scene from Maniac.

The part where she’s running in a building while we watch via a tracking shot. That instantly made me think of the scene where the nurse is trying to get away in the subway station.

Maniac (1980, dir. William Lusting)

Also, he hammered the scalps onto the heads of the mannequins.

Maniac (1980, dir. William Lusting)

One last thing that caught my attention was the prostitute at the start of the film who is dressed like she could start dancing, and is shown to be as flexible.

Maniac (1980, dir. William Lusting)

Maniac (1980, dir. William Lusting)

Maniac (1980, dir. William Lusting)

I wouldn’t be surprised if these things were intentional because according to Songfacts, this was the first music video to use nothing but scenes from the movie the song was from. I have a strong feeling that Lyne and editors Bob Lederman, Walt Mulconery, and Bud Smith put those in there for that reason.

The postings of this video on YouTube are numerous, unofficial, and all appear to have been marked for monetization or have a link inserted to where you can buy or rent the movie. That makes sense. In retrospect, this music video acts as a trailer for the movie.

So, there you go, Flashdance for October. If Songfacts is accurate, some of the lyrics originally went like this:

He’s a maniac, maniac that’s for sure
He will kill your cat and nail him to the door

Gruesome. The story is that producer Phil Ramone is the one who got Sembello to write lyrics for “a girl possessed with the passion of a gift for dance.”

All three editors worked on Personal Best (1982). They have all done many things over the years from editing The Karate Kid (1984) to producing a lot of Star Trek to directing Johnny Be Good (1988).

Enjoy!