” I never knew love like this before
Now I’m lonely never more
Since you came into my life”

A simple song of love that could relate to a lover, a friend, a child, or even to God for that matter, this lovely little unassuming disco tune makes me feel good every time I hear it. It also makes me think of Janet Jackson’s “Together Again” for some reason. I suppose it’s a bit girlish but I don’t mind. Music brings out some of my more feminine sides - my wife sometimes laughs in disbelief at the pure unmanliness of my playlists. Oh well.

Stephanie Mills, 23 at the time of this release, was already well into her career. She first caught attention at age 9, appearing in the Broadway play “Maggie Flynn”. In the early 1970s she was the opening act for the Isley Brothers, and her 1975 sophomore album was produced by by Burt Bacharach and Hal David.

“Never Knew Love Like This Before” was one of the last disco crossover hits of the era and Mills’ biggest hit to date. It’s written by James Mtume and and Reggie Lucas, who also produced most tracks on her four albums between 1979 and 1982. According to Wikipedia it reached #12 on the U.S. R&B charts and went all the way up to #6 on the pop charts. How does that work, anyway?

The song also won her a Grammy for Best Rhythm & Blues Vocal Performance in 1981. She’s been nominated several times before and after, but this is her only win.

Production-wise it’s a lavish disco arrangement with strictly by-the-numbers guitar-bass-drums accompaniment, a tambourine, background vocals and strings and horns a-plenty.

I’ve often wondered how they could afford to hire a full orchestra on every single disco session at the time. Did they throw in the horn and string players on some special offer when they offered studio time? “Pay Now - Get 40 String Players Cost-Free!”

And what happened to all of those guys when Mellotron’s cheaper heirs finally replaced them in the 1980s? Did they all grow mullets and change their job title to “Synclavier consultant”? Hardly.

In their album review of “Sweet Sensation”, Wilson & Alroy’s Record Reviews - an excellent and entertaining resource - point to “the bell-like keyboards that Madonna would soon turn into a trademark.” They’re right - the keyboards here are straight out of Madonna’s “Borderline.”

Mills has continued as a recording artist until the present, but she’s only released two albums after her last album on a major label in 1992.

She actually revisited the lyrics of this song in a more recent one, “Never Knew Love” from her 2004 album “Born For This!”