No Heartlight Song For E.T?

I have always wondered why Heartlight was not included on the soundtrack to 1982's E.T.

It seems tailor-made for it, lyrically speaking.

"Gonna take a ride across the moon"? I mean come on!

And lest we forget, E.T. actually had a heartlight.

In fact, let us remember, or see for the first time. Whatever suits. Let's hear it for 35 mm film!





Perhaps Universal Pictures, and by extension MCA Records, was afraid that CBS would sue for breach of contract. If you consider that a wild theory, check out this very rare Michael Jackson cut, Someone In The Dark, recorded for an E.T. read-along LP record, which Jackson also narrated:



Jackson was a CBS artist, and according to Wikipedia, and he began recording the E.T. album in June 1982, at the same time as he began work on Thriller. Both albums were produced by Quincy Jones using the same writers and engineers (with Q even helping to pen the read-along narration). MCA had very strict orders not to release the E.T. album until after Thriller dropped on November 7. Displaying monumental arrogance, MCA decided to release it on the very same day. Understandably CBS filed a cease-and-desist order, effectively erasing it from the marketplace, despite MCA's attempt to try to sell it on TV in 1984, which is how I became aware of it:




Too bad, because it was a wonderful and groundbreaking album for its time, using dialogue and music from the film. I heard it because the Edmonton Public Library had a copy.

And too bad about Heartlight too. But Neil Diamond was also a CBS artist.

So maybe he saw all the hubbub and hedged his bets.

MTMG