The Story Behind Whitney Houston’s Momentous 1988 Summer Olympics Anthem “One Moment in Time” That Was Written with Elvis Presley in Mind

When Albert Hammond and John Bettis were tasked with writing a song for the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul, Korea, they wrote one that ended up its theme song.

“I got a phone call from NBC: ‘Can you write a song for the Olympics in Seoul, Korea representing the US?’” remembered Hammond of how the song came together. “I called John, and he said, ‘Great.’ I just finished dinner—it took an hour. He called me up and said, ‘What do you think of this?’ He read to me, ‘Give me one moment in time, when I’m more than I thought I could be, when all of my dreams are a heartbeat away, and the answers are all up to me.’”

Hammond took the lyrics to the piano and sang through the melody with lyrics. He [Bettis] said, ‘Did you just do that?” said Hammond.

“I Wrote It Thinking of Elvis”

At the time, Hammond already had a string of hits he had written, from The Hollies’ 1974 song “The Air That I Breathe,” Willie Nelson and Julio Iglesias’ classic duet “To All the Girls I’ve Loved Before,” Starship’s “Nothing’s Gonna Stop Us Now,” and Leo Sayer’s 1977 No. 1 “When I Need You,” and more, while Bettis had already written several hits for the Carpenters along with the Pointer Sisters’ 1981 hit “Slow Hand,” which later resurfaces as a hit for Conway Twitty, Michael Jackson’s “Human Nature,” and Madonna‘s 1985 No. “Crazy For You.”

When he was working on “One Moment in Time,” Hammond later admitted that when he wrote the song he imagined Elvis Presley singing it. “I wrote it thinking of Elvis Presley, but he was dead,” said Hammond. “Whitney [Houston] came later. I cried when I heard it, it was so beautiful.”

[RELATED: Legendary Songwriter Albert Hammond Delivers New ‘Body of Work’]

‘All of My Dreams are a Heartbeat Away’

The duo had a triumphant anthem of perseverance and realizing one’s dreams written for the Olympics, and Whitney Houston recorded the song for the compilation One Moment in Time: 1988 Summer Olympics Album.

The album also included similarly themed songs, including Taylor Dayne’s “Willpower” and “Reason to Try” by Eric Carmen, along with other songs by the Bee Gees, Jennifer Holliday, the Four Tops, which tied into the segments NBC was producing around individual athletes’ struggles and triumphs.

Each day I live
I want to be
A day to give
The best of me
I’m only one
But not alone
My finest day
Is yet unknown

I broke my heart
Fought every gain
To taste the sweet
I face the pain
I rise and fall
Yet through it all
This much remains

I want one moment in time
When I’m more than I thought I could be
When all of my dreams are a heartbeat away
And the answers are all up to me
Give me one moment in time
When I’m racing with destiny
Then in that one moment of time
I will feel
I will feel eternity

I‘ve lived to be
The very best
I want it all
No time for less
I’ve laid the plans
Now lay the chance
Here in my hands

“One Moment in Time” went to No. 5 on the Billboard Hot 100 and marked Houston’s third No. 1 hit in the UK and won an Emmy.

The song also earned Houston a Grammy nomination for Best Pop Vocal Performance, Female and she performed it at the 31st Annual Grammy Awards in 1989. It was later featured on the 2000 compilation Whitney: The Greatest Hits and also on The Ultimate Collection and of I Will Always Love You: The Best of Whitney Houston in 2012.

“The best Olympic song for me—and not just because I wrote it—is ‘One Moment In Time,’” said Hammond. “It’s an anthem. I can’t even remember the others.”

Photo: Whitney Houston by Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images