About The Song
Mutual love and respect for jazz music is the common thread that brought “L-O-V-E” writers, Bert Kaempfert and Milt Gabler, together across oceans.
Kaempfert has international origins, born in Germany in 1923 where he got his start in music. During World War II, he performed in the German Navy band before forming his own big band and working as an arranger and producer. Kaempfert crossed country borders with his first hit, “Wonderland by Night,” written by German composer Klaus Günter Neumann, which Kaempfert recorded with his orchestra. The song was distributed by Decca Records in New York in 1960, where Gabler was Head of A&R, and hit No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 a year later.
“The song that made the name Bert Kaempfert a household term at the top of the best-selling charts was the 1961 instrumental, ‘Wonderland by Night,’ which established him as a worldwide hit-maker,” the Songwriters Hall of Fame writes in his bio. “Beyond discovering talent, Kaempfert was quite an enormous talent, in his own right, as a multi-instrumentalist, recording artist, record producer, and particularly a songwriter.”
Born in Harlem, New York as the son of Jewish immigrants from Europe, Gabler was mostly known as a record label executive, founding independent record label Commodore Records in 1938, known for releasing Billie Holiday’s powerful “Strange Fruit” in 1939. Also signed to the label were Bobby Hackett, Art Tatum, Bud Freeman, and others. He later joined Decca Records in 1941 as head of the A&R department.
Gabler and Kaempfert met when the latter came to Decca’s New York office with “Wonderland by Night,” which led them to co-write “L-O-V-E.” Among Gabler’s other prominent songwriting credits are “In a Mellow Tone,” which was composed by Duke Ellington. Gabler also produced the Bill Haley & The Comets hit “Rock Around the Clock” and was working at Decca during Brenda Lee’s tenure which encompassed the release of her signature hit, “I’m Sorry.”
“L-O-V-E” first appeared as an instrumental on Kaempfert’s 1964 project, Blue Midnight. Cole took the song to the top 20 on the Billboard Adult Contemporary chart in 1964, serving as the title track of his 1965 album. “L-O-V-E” can also be heard at the beginning of the beloved 1998 film starring Lindsay Lohan, The Parent Trap.
Video
Lyrics
[Verse 1]
L is for the way you look at me
O is for the only one I see
V is very, very extraordinary
E is even more than anyone that you adore can[Chorus]
Love is all that I can give to you
Love is more than just a game for two
Two in love can make it, take my heart and please don’t break it
Love was made for me and you[Verse 2]
L is for the way you look at me
O is for the only one I see
V is very, very extraordinary
E is even more than anyone that you adore can[Refrain]
Love is all that I can give to you
Love is more than just a game for two
Two in love can make it, take my heart and please don’t break it
Love was made for me and you[Outro]
Love a-was made for me and you
Love a-was made for me and you