Stephanie Mills first came to fame as "the little girl with the big voice" as the star of the hit Broadway play, The Wiz, an adaptation of L. Frank Baum's classic book, The Wizard Of Oz. She had many R&B hits such as "I Have Learned to Respect the Power of Love," "I Feel Good All Over," "(You're Puttin') A Rush On Me," "Something in the Way (You Make Me Feel)" and "Home" along with one certified million selling single, "Never Knew Love Like This Before." In addition, she also had five gold albums: Whatcha Gonna Do With My Lovin', Sweet Sensation, Stephanie, If I Were Your Woman and Home.
Mills honed her rich vocals singing gospel music at Brooklyn's Cornerstone Baptist Church as a small child. At age 9, she began appearing in the Broadway play Maggie Flynn. She was presented with first prize after winning "The Amateur Hour" talent contest six weeks straight at New York's famed Apollo Theater when she was nine. That success led to her being chosen as the opening act for The Isley Brothers, eventually becoming good friends with lead singer Ronald Isley. Many years later, Isley would manage and later marry singer/songwriter Angela Winbush, who co-wrote one of her number one R&B hits. Mills' début album, Movin' In The Right Direction was recorded for ABC Records in 1974. A year later, she won the role of Dorothy in The Wiz. Her rendition of the beautiful ballad "Home" was a showstopper, mesmerizing audiences nightly for a number of years. The original cast recording of The Wiz was produced by Jerry Wexler and issued by Atlantic Records in spring 1975. Curiously, when The Wiz was made into a full length feature film by Motown Records' film division and Universal Pictures, Diana Ross played the role of Dorothy instead of Mills. The film ended up being a major flop.
Singer Jermaine Jackson referred Mills to Motown head Berry Gordy, who signed her to the label. Her Motown debut was For the First Time, written and produced by Burt Bacharach and Hal David, being issued in October 1976. For the First Time is a sweet affair with Mills convincingly covering Bacharach/David standards, most of which were originally recorded by Dionne Warwick. In 1978, she signed to 20th Century Records and was teamed with the hit production duo of James Mtume — later leader of Mtume, who had a gold single with "Juicy Fruit" — and Reggie Lucas. Her first LP for the label, Whatcha Gonna Do With My Lovin', went gold, going to number 12 R&B and number 22 pop on Billboard's charts in summer 1979 and spawned the singles, "Whatcha Gonna Do With My Lovin'" and "You Can Get Over." Her next LP, Sweet Sensation (#3 R&B, #16 Pop, spring 1980) yielded "Sweet Sensation," "Never Knew Love Like This Before," and the radio-aired LP track, "Try My Love." Around this time, she briefly married former Soul Train dancer Jeffrey Daniels of the group Shalamar. Next came the LP titled Stephanie in spring 1981, which also was a huge hit, peaking at #3 R&B and #30 Pop. The album included notable songs such as "Two Hearts" — a midtempo duet with Teddy Pendergrass — "Night Games" and the radio-aired LP cut, "Don't Stop Doin' What Cha Do."
In 1981, Mills switched to Neil Bogart's Casablanca Records. Her LPs for the label included Tantalizingly Hot, Merciless and I've Got The Cure. During 1983, she had her own NBC-TV daytime talk show and reprised on role in a Broadway revival of The Wiz. She also signed with MCA Records, where she released her Stephanie Mills album.
The first single from the Stephanie Mills album was "Stand Back," in late 1985, which also included the passionate ballad "I Have Learned To Respect The Power Of Love." "I Have Learned To Respect The Power Of Love" was initially written by Rene Moore and Angela Winbush — best known as the hit singing duo Rene & Angela — as a gospel song and originally was recorded by Alton McClain and Destiny on their self-titled 1978 Polydor LP. The original version is available on Polygram's Power of Love: Best of Soul Essentials Ballads. Because of its massive radio play as an album track, Mills' version of "I Have Learned To Respect The Power Of Love, — produced by Philly Soul keyboardist Ron Kersey — was reissued as an A side holding the #1 R&B spot for two weeks in spring 1986. Its follow-up, "Rising Desire" reached #11 R&B in summer 1986.
Her next LP's title cut was the Clay McMurray/Gloria Jones/Pam Sawyer song, "If I Were Your Woman," originally a 1971 #1 R&B, #9 Pop smash for Gladys Knight and the Pips. Philly-based producer Nick Martinelli gave Mills her second #1 R&B hit with "I Feel Good All Over," written by husband and wife songwriting duo, Gabriel Hardeman and Annette Hardeman. The song held the #1 R&B spot for three weeks in spring 1987. Originally submitted to Mills' fellow MCA labelmate Patti Labelle by the Hardemans, the track was included on Mills' LP If I Were Your Woman, issued June 1987 and peaked at #30 Pop in summer 1987. Paul Laurence produced and co-wrote with Timmy Allen the chugging '"(You're Putting) a Rush On Me" giving the singer her third #1 R&B hit in fall 1987. The single made it to #85 Pop and was followed by "Secret Lady," which landed at #7 R&B in late 1987. Her covers of "If I Were Your Woman" and "Where Is The Love" followed. All were included on her If I Were Your Woman album, which peaked at #1 R&B, #30 Pop in summer 1987. Following these hits, Mills contacted Ronald Isley about working with singer/songwriter/producer Angela Winbush who had hits as half of Rene and Angela and was forging a hit-filled career as a recording artist and producer for the group Body among others. The collaboration between Mills and Winbush resulted in another #1 R&B single, "Something In The Way You Make Me Feel," in summer 1989.
Having starred for five years in the smash Broadway show The Wiz and recorded the song "Home for the play's 1975 original cast soundtrack album, she wanted to record the song again as a posthumous tribute to the play's producer, Ken Harper, and the song's composer, Charlie Smalls. On her new version of "Home," Take 6 sung the background vocals. The song went to #1 R&B in late 1989 and was followed by "Comfort Of A Man" and "Real Love." The Home LP ended up peaking at #5 R&B, #82 Pop in summer 1989. She then recorded a charting single with J.T. Taylor titled "Heart To Heart" in late 1991. Her final MCA album, Something Real included the hit "All Day All Night" and "Never Do Wrong." Following this album, she recorded a gospel album, Personal Inspirations, for Interscope Records and recorded several tracks at Philadelphia International Records with Bunny Sigler among others in the late '90s.
After a hiatus from recording Mills returned with sixteenth album, "Born For This" in 2004. It includes the singles "Can't Let Him Go" and "Healing Time." Mills is currently working on her seventeenth album titled "Breathless." The lead single chosen is a song called, "Yesterday."
Never Knew Love Like This Before
Stephanie Mills Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Now I'm lonely never more
Since you came into my life
You are my love light, this I know
And I'll never let you go
You my all, you're part of me
Once I was lost and now I'm found
Then you turned my world around
When I need you, I call your name
â??Cause I never knew love like this before
Opened my eyes
â??Cause I never knew love like this before
What a surprise
â??Cause I never knew love like this before
This feeling's so deep inside of me
Such a tender fantasy
You're the one I'm living for
You are my sunlight and my rain
And time could never change
What we share forever more, ooh
I never knew love like this before
Now I'm lonely never more
Since you came into my life
â??Cause I never knew love like this before
Opened my eyes
â??Cause I never knew love like this before
What a surprise
â??Cause I never knew love like this before
You are my love light, this I know
And I'll never let you go
You my all, you're part of me
Once I was lost and now I'm found
Then you turned my world around
When I need you, I call your name
â??Cause I never knew love like this before
Opened my eyes
â??Cause I never knew love like this before
What a surprise
â??Cause I never knew love like this before
Inside of me
I never (Never) knew love like this before
Opened my eyes
Never (Never), never (Never)
Never knew love like this (I never knew, I never knew I never)
Never (Never), never (Never)
Never knew love like this (I never knew, I never knew I never knew)
Never (Never), never (Never)
Never knew love like this (I never knew)
Never (Never knew), never (Never)
Never knew love like this (I never knew)
Never (Never knew), never (Never)
Never knew love like this (I never knew, I never knew I never knew)
Never (I never knew, I never knew), never (I never)
Never knew love like this (Never knew)
Never (Never knew), never (Never)
Never knew love like this (Opened my eyes)
Never (What a surprise)
The song "Never Knew Love Like This Before" by Stephanie Mills talks about a newfound love that the singer has never experienced before. The lyrics describe the feeling of being lost and then being found by the person they love. The singer admits that their love is deep inside of them and they consider it a "tender fantasy." They acknowledge that their love has opened their eyes and it came as a surprise because they never knew this type of love before. Through this song, the singer expresses that the person they love has become their everything and they never want to let them go.
The chorus of the song repeats the phrase "I never knew love like this before" which emphasizes the impact that this newfound love has on the singer. The repetition of this phrase also highlights the contrast between the singer's past experiences with love and the love they have now. The verses are a reflection of the singer's realization of how much their life has changed since this love came into their life. The bridge further reiterates that this newfound love has opened their eyes, and it's a feeling they've never felt before.
Overall, the lyrics of "Never Knew Love Like This Before" convey the message that love can bring a drastic change in someone's life. The singer acknowledges the newfound love as something special that they never want to lose.
Line by Line Meaning
I never knew love like this before
Before I met you, I never knew what true love was
Now I'm lonely never more
Now that you're in my life, I never feel lonely anymore
Since you came into my life
Your presence has made my life happier and more complete
You are my love light, this I know
You are the one who fills my life with love and light
And I'll never let you go
I will hold onto you and never let you go
You my all, you're part of me
You mean everything to me, you are a part of me
Once I was lost and now I'm found
Before I met you, I felt lost and directionless, now I've found love
Then you turned my world around
Your love has completely transformed my world
When I need you, I call your name
You are always there for me when I need you, I just have to call your name
'Cause I never knew love like this before
I'm still surprised about how deep and amazing this love is
Opened my eyes
Your love has opened my eyes to a whole new world
What a surprise
I never expected to feel this way and to find someone like you
This feeling's so deep inside of me
My love for you is so deep, it's a core part of me
Such a tender fantasy
My love for you is like a beautiful, romantic dream come true
You're the one I'm living for
You are the reason I keep going every day, you are the one I love and live for
You are my sunlight and my rain
You bring light and happiness to my life, even during the tough times
And time could never change
No matter how much time passes, my love for you will never fade
What we share forever more, ooh
This love that we share will last forever, it's something special
Never (Never) knew love like this before
I'm still in awe of how amazing this love is, I never knew love like this before
Opened my eyes
Your love has opened my eyes to a whole new world
What a surprise
I never expected to feel this way and to find someone like you
Inside of me
This love is not just on the surface, it's deep inside of me
Never (Never), never (Never)
I can't stress enough how amazing this love is
Never knew love like this (I never knew, I never knew I never)
This love is completely new to me, I never knew it was possible
Never (Never), never (Never)
I can't stress enough how amazing this love is
Never knew love like this (I never knew, I never knew I never knew)
I'm still surprised that I could find and feel this kind of beautiful love
Never (Never knew), never (Never)
I will never forget how much you mean to me and how much your love has transformed my life
Never knew love like this (I never knew)
Before I met you, I never knew love could be like this
Never (I never), never (I never)
I'm still surprised and awed by how incredible this love is
Never knew love like this (Never knew)
I never experienced such beautiful love before
Opened my eyes
Your love has opened my eyes to a whole new world
Never (What a surprise)
I never imagined that I could feel this way or that someone like you could exist in my life
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Universal Music Publishing Group, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: James Mtume, Reggie Lucas
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind