Only You (Pearl and Rusty)

"Only You" is the love duet from Andrew Lloyd Webber's Starlight Express. It is performed by the protagonist, Rusty, a young steam locomotive and his true love, the observation car, Pearl.

"Only You" is the second version of the show-stopping love song at the key moment in Starlight Express. In the Original London production, Pearl sang a solo "Only He", a passionate power ballad originally performed by Stephanie Lawrence. At the end of this solo Rusty came to find Pearl, and together they sang a very short reprise of the song, "Only You". "Only He" proved to be a highly demanding song, coming shortly after the performers have raced at up to 30mph on roller skates, and it was found this song in this context was too demanding for most performers to sing.

"Only You" is essentially Pearl's solo "Only He", as opposed to the reprise version in the original, re-arranged as a duet between Pearl and Rusty, with the most demanding octave leap passages removed. It replaced "Only He" in London in 1987. This simplified duet version was used in all productions from Broadway until the 1992 London re-vamp. This version is in nature sweet and reflective, less of a show-stopper but more in keeping with the character's journeys.

Only You was, in turn, replaced by "Next Time You Fall in Love", a new song written as part of the 1992 London production revamp, then used in following productions. "Next Time" is a re-working of Lloyd Webber's song "The Ballad of Billy Macaw" from Cats. Musically it is near identical, with replacement lyrics by Don Black. The lyrics of "Next Time" make very little sense within the context of the show, however at the time it was released as a chart single.

"Next time" was added to the German production in 2003, replacing "Du Allein" (direct translation of "Only You"). The German lyrics resolved the issue of lacking context, the song was titled "Allein im Licht der Sterne" (Alone, in the Starlight). At the same time the 2003 US Tour replaced "Next Time" with the second version of "Only He", a duet version that included the octave leaps from the original song, in a very rich, dramatic arrangement, aided by the use of pre-recorded instrumentation. This version has now found its way to the 2009 New Zealand tour.

In 2008 the second version of "Only He" was included in the German production, now titled "Nur Mit Ihm" (Only with Him) to distinguish from the earlier "Du Allein".

Rusty's journey through the story of Starlight Express shows him, in his darkest hour, calling to the Starlight Express for help. The Starlight Express answers telling him "Only You have the power within you...". Rusty gains belief in himself, and goes on to race in the final. During the race, Pearl, who is racing with Greaseball, is injured by Electra and disconnected at full speed. She is sure to crash when Rusty leaves the race to rescue her. He then goes on to win the race, but has lost Pearl. He wants to declare his love openly to her, but first he must find her. Meanwhile, Pearl, injured and alone far from the finish line, realises how she has been blind to her own love for the little Steam Train who would do anything for her. Only He actually cares for her, the other engines left her to die.

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Wikipedia