"What I Did for Love" is a song from the musical ''

A Chorus Line ''A Chorus Line'' is a 1975 musical with music by Marvin Hamlisch, lyrics by Edward Kleban, and a book by James Kirkwood Jr. and Nicholas Dante. Set on the bare stage of a Broadway theater, the musical is centered on seventeen Broadway dancers ...

'' (music by

Marvin Hamlisch Marvin Frederick Hamlisch (June 2, 1944 – August 6, 2012) was an American composer and conductor. Hamlisch was one of only seventeen people to win Emmy, Grammy, Oscar and Tony awards. This collection of all four is referred to as an " E ...

, lyrics by

Edward Kleban Edward "Ed" Kleban (April 30, 1939 – December 28, 1987) was an American musical theatre composer and lyricist. Kleban was born in the Bronx, New York City, in 1939 and graduated from New York's High School of Music & Art and Columbia Universi ...

). It was quickly recognized for its show-business potential outside

Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street **Broadway Theatre (53rd Stree ...

and was picked up by popular singers to include in their performances in their club and television appearances. Both female and male singers have made it an inclusion in their recorded

album An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early 20th century as individual 78 rpm records c ...

s to great effect. ''

The Daily Telegraph ''The Daily Telegraph'', known online and elsewhere as ''The Telegraph'', is a national British daily broadsheet newspaper published in London by Telegraph Media Group and distributed across the United Kingdom and internationally. It was f ...

'' described it as a "big anthem".

Synopsis within ''A Chorus Line''

In the penultimate scene of the production, one of the dancers, Paul San Marco, has suffered a career-ending injury. The remaining dancers, gathered together onstage, are asked what they would do if they were told they could no longer dance. Diana, in reply, sings this anthem, which considers loss philosophically, with an undefeated optimism; all the other dancers concur. Whatever happens, they will be free of regret. What they did in their careers, they did for love, and their talent, no matter how great, was only theirs "to borrow," was to be only temporary and would someday be gone. However, the love of performing is never gone, and they are all pointed toward tomorrow.

Notable versions

Beverly Bremers Beverly Ann Bremers (born March 10, 1950) is an American singer and actress. After roles on Broadway, Bremers recorded the 1972 Top 20 hit single, " Don't Say You Don't Remember". Early life/ career Beverly Bremers - her surname is pronounced ''br ...

' version, was released as a single in 1975. * Eydie Gormé - a single release in 1976 (US AC #23). *

Bing Crosby Harry Lillis "Bing" Crosby Jr. (May 3, 1903 – October 14, 1977) was an American singer, musician and actor. The first multimedia star, he was one of the most popular and influential musical artists of the 20th century worldwide. He was a ...

- for his album ''

Beautiful Memories ''Beautiful Memories'' (french: Se souvenir des belles choses) is a 2001 French film directed by Zabou Breitman. It won the César Awards for Best First Feature Film, Best Actress and Best Supporting Actor, and was nominated for Best Actor. Al ...

'' (1977) * Engelbert Humperdinck - for his album ''Miracles'' (1977). *

Grace Jones Grace Beverly Jones (born 19 May 1948) is a model, singer and actress. Born in Jamaica, she and her family moved to Syracuse, New York, when she was a teenager. Jones began her modelling career in New York state, then in Paris, working for ...

- for her debut album ''

Portfolio Portfolio may refer to: Objects * Portfolio (briefcase), a type of briefcase Collections * Portfolio (finance), a collection of assets held by an institution or a private individual * Artist's portfolio, a sample of an artist's work or a c ...

'' (1977) *

Aretha Franklin Aretha Louise Franklin ( ; March 25, 1942 – August 16, 2018) was an American singer, songwriter and pianist. Referred to as the " Queen of Soul", she has twice been placed ninth in '' Rolling Stone''s "100 Greatest Artists of All Time". Wit ...

- for her album

Sweet Passion ''Sweet Passion'' is the twenty-third studio album by American singer Aretha Franklin. It was released on May 19, 1977, by Atlantic Records. Following Franklin's Gold-certified 1976 soundtrack album, ''Sparkle'', she paired up with Motown pro ...

(1977) *

Jack Jones Jack Jones may refer to: Arts and entertainment Music *Jack Jones (American singer) (born 1938), American jazz and pop singer *Jack Jones, stage name of Australian singer Irwin Thomas (born 1971) *Jack Jones (Welsh musician) (born 1992), Welsh mu ...

- in his 1975 album ''What I Did for Love '' (US AC #25, Canada AC #23). *

Johnny Mathis John Royce Mathis (born September 30, 1935) is an American singer of popular music. Starting his career with singles of standard music, he became highly popular as an album artist, with several dozen of his albums achieving gold or platinum s ...

- ''

Feelings Feelings are subjective self-contained phenomenal experiences. According to the ''APA Dictionary of Psychology'', a feeling is "a self-contained phenomenal experience"; and feelings are "subjective, evaluative, and independent of the sensations ...

'' (1975) * Bill Hayes - for his album ''From Me To You With Love'' (1976) *

Marcia Hines Marcia Elaine Hines, AM (born July 20, 1953), is an American-Australian vocalist and TV personality. Hines made her debut, at the age of 16, in the Australian production of the stage musical ''Hair'' and followed with the role of Mary Magdalene ...

- see below *

Peggy Lee Norma Deloris Egstrom (May 26, 1920 – January 21, 2002), known professionally as Peggy Lee, was an American jazz and popular music singer, songwriter, composer, and actress, over a career spanning seven decades. From her beginning as a vocalis ...

- for her album '' Peggy'' (1977) *

Petula Clark Petula Sally Olwen Clark, CBE (born 15 November 1932) is an English singer, actress, and composer. She has one of the longest serving careers of a British singer, spanning more than seven decades. Clark's professional career began during the ...

- a single release in 1975. *

Shirley Bassey Dame Shirley Veronica Bassey (; born 8 January 1937) is a Welsh singer. Best known for her career longevity, powerful voice and recording the theme songs to three James Bond films, Bassey is widely regarded as one of the most popular vocalist ...

- ''

Love, Life and Feelings ''Love, Life and Feelings'' is the 21st studio album from Shirley Bassey, released in 1976 on the United Artists label. The album peaked at #13 in the UK album chart, and charted at #149 in the Billboard 200. ''Love, Life and Feelings'' was award ...

'' (1976) *

Robert Goulet Robert Gérard Goulet (November 26, 1933 October 30, 2007) was an American and Canadian singer and actor of French-Canadian ancestry. Goulet was born and raised in Lawrence, Massachusetts until age 13, and then spent his formative years in Canad ...

- in his album ''You're Something Special'' (1978). *

Elaine Paige Elaine Jill Paige (née Bickerstaff; born 5 March 1948) is an English singer and actress, best known for her work in musical theatre. Raised in Barnet, Hertfordshire, Paige attended the Aida Foster Theatre School, making her first professiona ...

- included in her album '' Stages'' (1983) *

Howard Keel Harold Clifford Keel (April 13, 1919November 7, 2004), known professionally as Howard Keel, was an American actor and singer, known for his rich bass-baritone singing voice. He starred in a number of MGM musicals in the 1950s and in the CBS te ...

- for his album ''Just for You'' (1988). *

Josh Groban Joshua Winslow Groban (born February 27, 1981) is an American singer, songwriter, and actor. His first four solo albums have been certified multi-platinum, and he was charted in 2007 as the number-one best selling artist in the United States, wi ...

- for his album '' Stages'' (2015) *

Me First and the Gimme Gimmes Me First and the Gimme Gimmes (often shortened to just Me First or the Gimmes) are a punk rock supergroup and cover band that formed in San Francisco in 1995. The band's lineup consists of Spike Slawson, Fat Mike, Joey Cape, and Dave Raun. Ch ...

- from their album ''

Are a Drag ''Are a Drag'' is the second album by Me First and the Gimme Gimmes, released in 1999 on the Fat Wreck Chords independent record label. The album is made up mainly of show tunes. The album's title alludes to the fact that most of the songs on th ...

'' (1999)

Marcia Hines' version

recorded and released a version as the lead single from her third studio album, '' Ladies and Gentlemen'' (1977). The song peaked at number 6 on the

Kent Music Report The Kent Music Report was a weekly record chart of Australian music singles and albums which was compiled by music enthusiast David Kent (historian), David Kent from May 1974 through to January 1999. The chart was re-branded the Australian Music ...

, becoming Hines' third top 10 single in Australia. At the 1978 Australian Record Awards, the song won Hines Female Vocalist of the Year.

Track listing

; 7" Single (MS-507) *Side A "What I Did for Love" - 3:15 *Side B "A Love Story" ( Robie Porter) - 3:31

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

References

{{Authority control Songs from A Chorus Line 1975 songs 1975 singles 1977 singles Marcia Hines songs Beverly Bremers songs Columbia Records singles Grace Jones songs Songs written by Marvin Hamlisch