Expert: Bong Santos - 3/24/2009

Question
Back in 2005 you posted a question about a song from the early 80's that had this line in the lyrics.  Your post was:

"I believe the song came out in the early 80's, definitely rock, possibly long-hair band.  I'm pretty sure it's called 'Don't you know what love is'?  First line starts out, "Momma says it's a bitch to recognize it..."  and then something about the 'falling rain' and 'why would momma lie'...Then it goes back to the chorus, "Giiiiiiiiiirl, don't you know what love is?  ohhhhhhhhooohhhooohhoh.  I could be the one"..."

I too have been plagued by this song ever since I had recorded the damn thing off the radio back in 81-82.  I had kept the cassette tape for the longest time hoping to one day figure out who it was, then lost the tape over the years.  But I have never forgotten this song and the same parts of the lyrics that you remembered.  When I think of the song I can hear the music playing in my head and it frustrates me to no end.  For some reason I always end up back at Triumph, maybe because the sound was so similar to theirs.

Yet that song has been forever been there in my memories, just right there on the edge....  So close, yet so far.

So I was wondering, did you ever end up finding out the exact name of the song and the band??

Answer
Dear Teena,

It's not me who found out the title of that song. The readers were the ones who provided it. Definitely, it's called DON'T YOU KNOW WHAT LOVE IS by the rock band TOUCH, formed in 1978 in New York City. The band included MARK MANGOLD & GLEN KITHCART as members. DON'T YOU KNOW WHAT LOVE IS was a cut from their debut album TOUCH I, released in 1980. It's their second single, the first one being (CALL ME) WHEN THE SPIRIT MOVES YOU (#65, Billboard Hot 100, Aug. 16, 1980). DON'T YOU... peaked at #69 on the Hot 100 Chart on Feb. 28, 1981. Their second album, TOUCH II was released in 1982. MARK MANGOLD, incidentally, co-wrote I FOUND SOMEONE with MICHAEL BOLTON, a LAURA BRANIGAN original and a CHER Top 10 hit in 1987.

Maraming salamat po!!

BONG M. SANTOS
Manila, Philippines