The Rose

by Bette Midler (1945-)

Some say love, it is a river, that drowns the tender reed Some say love, it is a razor, that leaves your soul to bleed Some say love, it is a hunger, an endless aching need I say love, it is a flower, and you, it’s only seed Its the heart afraid of breaking, that never learns to dance Its the dream afraid of waking, that never takes the chance Its the one who won’t be taken, the one who can’t seem to give And the soul afraid of dying, that never learns to live When the night has been too lonely and the road has been too long And you think that love is only for the lucky and the strong Just remember that in the winter, far beneath the bitter snow Lies the seed, that with the sun’s love in the spring becomes the rose

© Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia "The Rose" is a pop song written by Amanda McBroom and featured in the 1979 movie The Rose, in which it was performed by Bette Midler. Midler hit #3 on the U.S. pop charts with her version, which was certified as a gold single. Since then it has been covered by a variety of artists. Midler's version of "The Rose" was played in a 1987 episode of the soap opera Days of our Lives, to signify the sorrow felt by the character Kayla Brady, who had just been raped. The song was also showcased in the 2004 film Napoleon Dynamite. Napoleon and his classmates performed a routine in sign language with the song as accompaniment. This routine is where the famous "butterfly flapping" movement came from. A Japanese translation of the song titled "Ai wa Hana, Kimi wa Sono Tane" ("Love is a Flower, You are the Seed") was the ending theme of Studio Ghibli's 1991 anime feature Omohide Poro Poro ("Only Yesterday"), performed by Miyako Harumi. LeAnn Rimes' 1997 album You Light up My Life includes "The Rose" as one of the tracks. America's Got Talent winner Bianca Ryan (who also covered "You Light Up My Life") includes "The Rose" in her eponymous debut album. Country singer Conway Twitty recorded a No. 1 cover version in 1983. In November 2006, boyband Westlife released "The Rose" as the first single from their new album (who also covered "You light up my life"). The single reached #1 in the UK Singles Chart, registering a huge climb to get there, as it had charted at #143 the week before based solely on download sales. Norwegian singer Kari Bremnes translated and sang the song on her 1997 album Månestein.