On this day (May 21) in 1994, R&B group All-4-One went to No. 1 with a cover of John Michael Montgomery’s “I Swear.” The song went to the top of the Billboard Hot 100 chart and stayed there for 11 weeks. The single’s success boosted the sales of the group’s debut album and helped them reach countless new listeners.
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Gary Baker and Frank J. Myers co-wrote “I Swear,” and Montgomery released it as the lead single from his sophomore album Kickin’ It Up in 1993. His version of the song was a hit, topping the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart for four weeks. The original rendition of the track also crossed over to the Hot 100, peaking at No. 42.
[RELATED: 4 Massive Hit Country Songs From the 1990s That Are Still Bangers Today]
The rising R&B group All-4-One recorded the song and released it as the second single from their self-titled debut album. It spent 11 weeks at the top of the Hot 100 and topped charts in several other countries. “I Swear” would be their first and only No. 1.
All-4-One Founder Jamie Jones on Recording “I Swear”
All-4-One lead singer and founder Jamie Jones discussed “I Swear” during an appearance on The Hot Zone podcast. “After we get our record deal and our song ‘So Much in Love’ is zooming up the charts, at this point we are about five weeks in and we were rushing to get an album together,” he recalled.
Jones recalled that their album was finished and was in the process of being mastered when Doug Morris, president of Atlantic Records, called the group into his Los Angeles office for a meeting. “He knew we had literally just finished this thing and got it over to mastering. So, he says to us, ‘Hey guys, let me play you a record.’ And he plays us this country song,” he explained.
The group liked the song but had a couple of issues. First, it was a country song, and they weren’t a country group. Maybe more importantly, they had already finished their debut album. When presented with these issues, Morris told the group, “You’re not going to do it country and let me worry about your record.”
Then, Morris gave them an offer they couldn’t refuse. He told them Atlantic had just locked in a deal with all-star Grammy-winning producer David Foster. Notably, he produced Whitney Houston’s cover of “I Will Always Love You.” In fact, that was the selling point. “I’m going to have him do for you guys what he did for Whitney Houston and ‘I Will Always Love You,’” he told them.
Morris wasn’t far off in his estimation of Foster’s abilities. Houston’s “I Will Always Love You” topped the Hot 100 for 14 weeks.
Featured Image by Al Pereira/Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images
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