"Track Record" a new section at the site where we talk to a certain musician about one of his/her songs of the past. First up, what inspired Stan Bush to come up with "The Touch" in the first place? Well, I'm sure you've all seen the original Transformers movie of the eighties (cartoon). It had a huge impact on us kids and it's been a much discussed power pop anthem ever since really. Geez, doc, it's back to the future, 1987 and the Barrage daze/days, here's the action hero of the day, STAN BUSH...

"The Touch" came together fairly quickly. Lenny Macaluso and I wrote it pretty much in one day. The melody just kind of happened. It was inspired by the 'go for it', 'believe in yourself' feeling. I think that's why the melody seems to keep going up. The verse has a catchy melody and a pre-chorus that lifts and then the chorus really nails it. It's the kind of song that sticks in your mind. I even see little kids walking around singing it.

I have to admit Lenny was a huge factor in the creating "The Touch". With a lot of songs, it's 50-50 and often I'll be the one to contribute the most, but Lenny really took the ball on this one.

It's funny, people ask us where the idea came from. In the movie "Iron Eagle 2" with Louis Gossett Jr., he turns to this young fighter pilot and says, "Kid, you got the touch". That's where the idea for the title came from. Although the original animated film, "Transformers: The Movie" was 25 years ago, it had a big impact on many people. I’ve heard people say those songs "The Touch" and "Dare" were almost life-changing to some. I think maybe they were inspired and got a shot of confidence. They're very uplifting songs. I had songs in other action films around that time, like "Bloodsport" and "Kickboxer" with Jean-Claude Van Damme, and the theme for Sailor Moon and other songs like for the 1996 Olympics ("Capture the Dream"). It seems like I was always drawn to the 'action' themed anthem.

I think the timing was a big part of the song not ending up at the very top of the charts. The late 80's had a lot of 'power pop' music coming out at that time, so there was a lot of competition. Also, the record company I was signed to at the time Scotti Bros/Epic wasn't doing all that well in the radio promotion. They had had a huge hit with "Eye of the Tiger", but after that, it was mostly downhill. Anecdotes? I was a big fan of Foreigner and earlier stuff like Led Zeppelin. In fact, in the early 90s I auditioned for Foreigner, and in the late 80s I toured with Lou Gramm.

Finally, I'd like to thank everybody for the support! And please visit my website:
www.stanbush.com

Interview by Urban Wallström
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