You know that feeling when a song just belongs to one person? Like, you can't imagine anyone else ever touching it? That’s basically the deal with Bette Midler and Wind Beneath My Wings.
But here’s the thing: Bette wasn't the first. Not by a long shot.
Honestly, by the time Midler recorded it for the 1988 movie Beaches, the song had already been passed around Nashville and L.A. like a hot potato. It had been out for years. It was a country song. It was an R&B song. It was even a "pound shop Janet Jackson" pop song if you ask some critics.
Yet, when you hear those first few notes of the piano now, you don’t think of Lou Rawls or Gladys Knight. You think of C.C. Bloom and Hillary Whitney. You think of that beach house. You probably think of a funeral you went to once.
The Song That Wouldn't Die
Before it became the anthem for every graduation and memorial service on the planet, Wind Beneath My Wings was just a demo written in 1982 by Jeff Silbar and Larry Henley.
Henley was an old-school pro—he’d been in a group called the Newbeats back in the '60s. He had this line scribbled on a legal pad: "Wind beneath my wings." Silbar saw it, grabbed a guitar, and they hammered out a melody.
They thought it was a love song.
"It took us a few days to realize that the song had more depth and meaning," Silbar later admitted. It wasn't just about a boyfriend or girlfriend. It was a "thank you" to the person standing in the shadows. The one letting someone else shine.
Before Bette got her hands on it, the song was recorded by:
- Roger Whittaker (the first to record it in 1982)
- Sheena Easton
- Lou Rawls
- Gladys Knight & the Pips (who called it "Hero")
- Gary Morris (who actually had a massive country hit with it in 1983)
Gary Morris's version was huge. It won Song of the Year at the CMAs. So, technically, the song was already "done." It was a proven hit.
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Then came Beaches.
Marc Shaiman and the "Force" of Nature
Bette Midler didn't just wake up and decide to sing a country ballad.
Her longtime musical director, Marc Shaiman—the guy who later did Hairspray—was the one who pushed it. He was obsessed with the song. Bette? Not so much.
During her 1990 Grammy acceptance speech, she joked that Shaiman basically held her down and told her she had to sing it or he’d never speak to her again. It sounds like a joke, but Bette is known for being picky. She’s the "Divine Miss M." She does camp. She does brassy jazz. A "lugubrious dirge" (as some mean-spirited critics called it) wasn't exactly her brand at the time.
But they needed something for the movie. Beaches is a "three-hanky" tearjerker. If you haven't seen it, it's about two friends who meet at the boardwalk as kids and stay friends until one of them—spoiler alert for a 40-year-old movie—dies of a heart condition.
The song was the glue.
They didn't even use it as a "performance" in the film. Unlike Midler’s other songs in the movie where she’s on stage, this one plays over the soundtrack. It’s the emotional weight of the friendship. It worked.
The Chart-Topping Surprise
The soundtrack came out in November 1988.
Guess what the first single was? It wasn't Wind Beneath My Wings.
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Atlantic Records went with "Under the Boardwalk" first. It tanked. Well, it didn't tank, but it didn't set the world on fire. It peaked outside the Top 100.
Then, in February 1989, they released Wind Beneath My Wings.
It went to Number 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 in June 1989. It stayed there for a week. It was Midler's first-ever Number 1 hit. For a woman who had been a superstar since the '70s, it’s wild that it took a movie ballad to get her to the top of the charts.
The song eventually went Platinum. It won Record of the Year and Song of the Year at the 1990 Grammys.
Why We Can't Escape It
You’ve heard it at a funeral. You’ve heard it at a wedding. You’ve heard it at a 50th-anniversary party.
Why?
Because the lyrics are devastatingly simple.
"It must have been cold there in my shadow / To never have sunlight on your face."
It taps into a very specific kind of guilt and gratitude. Most "tribute" songs are about how great the other person is. This song is about how the singer was kind of a jerk for taking all the credit, and finally, they’re noticing the person who held them up.
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It’s the ultimate "unsung hero" song.
Ironically, the song has become so synonymous with death because of the movie's ending. In the UK, it’s consistently ranked as one of the most-played songs at funerals. Some people find it "corny" or "sappy," but the numbers don't lie. It hits a nerve.
What Most People Get Wrong
People think this was written for Beaches. It wasn't.
People think Bette wrote it. She didn't.
Some people even think it’s a religious song. It’s not, though it’s been covered by enough gospel artists that it might as well be.
The biggest misconception is that the song is "easy" to sing. It’s not. It requires a massive amount of breath control to hit those long, sustained notes at the end—the "Fly, fly, fly high" part. Midler’s version works because she brings an actress’s sensibility to it. She builds the tension. She doesn't just belt; she tells the story.
Actionable Takeaways for Music Lovers
If you're looking to dive deeper into the history of this track, don't just stick to the Spotify "Greatest Hits" version.
- Listen to Gary Morris's 1983 version. It’s a completely different vibe. It’s more "lonely cowboy" and less "Hollywood orchestra."
- Watch the 1990 Grammy performance. Bette is visibly moved, and you can see the chemistry with Marc Shaiman on the keys.
- Check out the movie version vs. the radio version. The recording used in the actual film Beaches is slightly different from the one that played on the radio. It’s a bit more raw.
- Look up the "Hero" version by Gladys Knight. If you want more of a soulful, R&B take, that’s the one to find.
Whether you love it or think it's the cheesiest thing ever recorded, you can't deny the power of Wind Beneath My Wings. It turned Bette Midler from a cult favorite into a global pop icon, and it gave us a way to say "thank you" when we don't have the words.
Next time it comes on the radio, don't change the station. Just let the melodrama wash over you. It's good for the soul.