1982 · Behind the Songs
The theme from Six Pack — a stock-car movie, a No. 1 country hit, and Kenny at full throttle.
The recording in context
In the summer of 1982, Kenny Rogers did what country stars of his stature were supposed to do: he headlined a movie. Six Pack, directed by Daniel Petrie and released by 20th Century Fox, cast Rogers as Brewster Baker, a down-on-his-luck stock-car driver who finds himself the reluctant guardian of six orphaned kids. The film needed a theme song, and Rogers wrote one — with David Malloy, Thom Schuyler and Even Stevens sharing the credit.
It worked better than the movie did. “Love Will Turn You Around” went to No. 1 on the country chart and reached No. 13 on the pop chart, and it gave its name to Rogers’s 1982 album. Where his story-songs looked backward, this one leaned forward: an upbeat promise that no skid is permanent.
Listen closely
This is Rogers in motion. The rhythm has a forward roll to it, the backing vocals lift the chorus like a pit crew, and Rogers sings the title like a man who has read the manual on second chances. It is the sunniest record he made in years.
Notice how the arrangement keeps the country in the verses and the pop in the chorus — the exact crossover recipe that made him a star, served at racing speed.
The film has faded; the theme song hasn’t. “Love Will Turn You Around” remains the sound of Kenny Rogers betting on a happy ending — and winning.