Donna Summer

Released: September 11, 1984

Songwriter: Donna Summer

Producer: Michael Omartian

You were the first
And you taught me how to love
And you'll always stay close to my heart
But it would not be fair it I wouldn't tell you now

That it's over, baby it's over

You took this lonely child
And you taught it how to feel
You took the rain clouds from my eyes
You made fantasy seem real
Still it hurts me so inside
But I can't change and I can't hide

That it's over, maybe it's over

Oh now, I know you're not the one
It's me
I've changed inside
I feel a need to be free
It's over
Maybe baby it's over

I was a lonely girl
Just calling out for him
You taught me how to live
You taught me how to love myself
Still it hurts me so inside
But I can't change and I can't hide

That's it's over, baby it's over

Oh, now I know you're not the one
It's me
I've changed, changed inside
I feel a need to be free

It's over
Maybe baby it's over
It's over
Please don't hate me
But it's over

Don't you know that I love you
Don't you know that I care
Don't you know that I love you
But I can't always be there
It ain't you
No, it's me
Gonna fly like a bird
Fly like a bird
Yeah, I must be free

As the unquestioned queen of disco, the one and only Donna Summer lit up the late 70s and 80s with flashy, exuberant vocals and automatic earworms. Born LaDonna Adrian Gaines on Dec. 31, 1948, Summer moved to Germany after being cast in a Munich production of Hair. There, she happened to meet Giorgio Moroder and Pete Bellotte, and the trio conglomerated to form a dynamic music team. With Moroder, Summer forged together her first album, The Hostage, which reached moderate success in Northern Europe. Summer’s big break, however, would come later with the release of 1975’s sexual “Love to Love You Baby”, which became one of disco’s first mainstream hits and reached #2 on the Billboard Charts.

1977 came around with the concept album I Remember Yesterday, which featured the Top 10 single “I Feel Love”. The next year, Summer hit the silver screen with the movie Thank God It’s Friday, whose soundtrack featured one of her own the iconic “Last Dance.” This would later become one of the disco legends' signature songs. “Dance” would take home an Academy Award for Best Original Song, a Grammy, and a Golden Globe, and it jumped to a peak of #3 on the charts.

Yet Summer’s illustrious career was far from finished – Summer’s first live album Live and More featured the single “MacArthur Park”, a melting ballad that was a cover of the Jimmy Webb ballad of the same name. “Park” became Summer’s first – and perhaps most memorable – No. 1 hit, and cemented her status as a vocalist as well as a performer. With the track, she became the first female in modern rock history to hold the top spot in both the Hot 100 and the Billboard 200. 1979, though, would really be the peak of her career.

more tracks from the album

Cats Without Claws

From the album

Cats Without Claws (1984)

Donna Summer popular songs

Maybe It’s OverDonna Summer

Donna Summer

Cats Without Claws