David Barrett finds his inspiration in everything around him. Something might come to mind while the singer-songwriter is sitting at home. Maybe while he’s attending a wedding or celebrating a special occasion.
Or maybe when he’s talking to a waitress in a mostly empty tavern.
In 1986, Barrett was at the Varsity Inn in East Lansing, Michigan, having a beer and watching Larry Bird and the Boston Celtics on television. He sat chatting with Jan Shoemaker, a waitress he found attractive. Because he was somewhat nervous, the conversation turned to basketball and the beauty he found in the sport. Barrett was once a self-described “ball hog” who was recruited to play at Albion College before finding success in football.
He didn’t get Shoemaker’s phone number, but that conversation still led to something special. That night, Barrett took time to scribble words on a napkin. These words became the title of a song he wrote.
The song: “One Shining Moment”.
“I call him my little miracle because the way he fell is miraculous,” Barrett said.
The ball is knocked down. And There you go. You are running for your life. You are a shooting star.
For Barrett, basketball isn’t just a game, it’s something to behold. That night he watched Bird shine. At the same time, he tries to explain “the poetry of basketball” to Shoemaker.
Instead, Shoemaker left.
“When she got up to leave,” Barrett said, “I leaned over to my right and grabbed a napkin and wrote down the title of the song — because I thought it was exactly where Mr. Bird was at the moment. I played a lot of basketball growing up, so every now and then you know what it’s like when you get in the zone. So I figured there had a song, and that’s how it all started.
Barrett’s “little miracle” is now synonymous with March Madness. This traditionally marks the end of the men’s college basketball season. Expect to hear it at the end of the NCAA men’s basketball championship game Monday night.
And every year. Nobody knows. How hard you worked. But now it shows…
The song is one that some college basketball players and coaches dream of hearing. It was first performed as part of the video editing after the Indiana national championship in 1987. The song was so good that it was covered by several musical icons, including Teddy Pendergrass and Luther Vandross.
“I was writing a lot of music,” Barrett said. “I was getting paid to perform, but the music…most of it was stuck in my sock drawer.
“After ‘One Shining Moment,’ I was able to get a lot of these compositions out of the sock drawer. And then all of a sudden, I had talent.
A brilliant moment, everything is at stake. A brilliant moment, frozen in time.
Barrett said it all started with the song title while he was sitting at the Varsity Inn. He wrote the rest of the lyrics the next morning while waiting to have breakfast with a friend. He knew he had something special after he wrote it. He just didn’t know what to do with it. He had been writing and playing music since he was a teenager, but he hadn’t really made music a lucrative career.
Having relationships like with longtime journalist Armen Keteyian paid off for Barrett. The two are from Bloomfield Hills, Michigan, and knew each other but were not considered friends in high school. The two would become closer through a mutual friend shortly after college. Barrett was in New York for a musical concert in 1986, and he stayed with Keteyian – then a writer for Sports Illustrated – and his wife, Dede.
“Honest to God, you’re talking about serendipity, kismet, whatever it is,” Keteyian said. “Dave comes to play one of his shows in New York and he has this tape. He’s like, ‘Hey, I just wrote this song. I think it’s really, really good. It’s about basketball. Would you mind listening?’
When Keteyian heard “One Shining Moment,” he was blown away by how the lyrics encapsulated the competitiveness and spirit of the sport.
But time is running out. And the road is long. In the blink of an eye. Ah, that moment is over.
And when it’s done. Win or lose. You have always done your best. Because inside you knew…
Keteyian was talking with CBS executive Bob Tassie about a job when Tassie told him the network was looking for a sports anthem and if he knew of one, he should let them know. Keteyian passed this song to Tassie, and it was passed to CBS creative director Dave Towey.
Barrett didn’t know this had happened. Little did he know that when his song was played in a CBS office, passing employees were forced to stop and listen.
Barrett learned that CBS liked the song when Towey called him about using it after Super Bowl XXI in January 1987. The postgame broadcast, however, ran long and the song was not played at that time -there, but Towey saved it for the next NCAA tournament.
“I’m sure, like Dave said, that’s the gift that really changed Dave’s life, aside from anything I’ve done,” Keteyian said. “You know, it was kind of like a bolt of lightning that struck.”
(This) shining moment, you reached deep within yourself. A shining moment, you knew you were alive.
Every word seemed to resonate with sports fans, and “One Shining Moment” quickly became a hit. It also struck a chord with players and coaches. Mateen cleaves cried in 2000 when Michigan State won the title because he dreamed of hearing the song played since his childhood.
Former Duke coach Hall of Famer Mike Krzyzewski called him “the best song for all sports in the world.” Keteyian, who covered seven Final Fours for CBS, said he couldn’t think of another sports song besides Queen’s “We Are the Champions” that was so widely known across the country.
“My wife (Tracy) pointed it out to me: she said, ‘Dave, you wrote a generational song.’ Barrett said. “With the number of generations today, it’s like the jet stream in a unique way.”
Barrett sang the first version of the song, which was used in television edits for seven years, from 1987 to 1993. CBS then had an idea: What if a legendary soul singer like Pendergrass tried it? Pendergrass’ version was first broadcast in 1994 and was a mainstay until 1999.
Barrett sang the lyrics between 2000 and 2002, but Vandross first sang the lyrics in 2003. Vandross died in 2005, but CBS kept his version in rotation until 2009.
When asked if he felt jealousy or envy that his version of the song was replaced by one by two of the biggest voices producing soul and R&B music, Barrett had a four-word response.
“Are you kidding me?” he said. “Luther Vandross was the transcendent singer of the second half of the 20th century. I like my version. I love their versions.
“These are great singers singing the song I wrote in a tavern in East Lansing.”
There were other versions. Jennifer Hudson had a version used in 2010, but the networks returned to Vandross the following year. Ne-Yo brought his personal touch to the song with team specific versions in 2016. Vandross’ version was still used on the main show on TBS, while Ne-Yo’s versions were on TNT and TruTV.
Feel the beat of your heart. Feel the wind on your face. It’s more than a competition. It’s more than a race…
Barrett’s music career has flourished since that night 38 years ago in East Lansing. If he’s contacted for an idea, chances are he’s already written and recorded something that works. Otherwise, there is no problem in creating something new.
Barrett won an Emmy for opening “Beyond the Gridiron: The Life and Times of Woody Hayes.” He has composed music for sporting events such as the Olympics and other television programs. He has toured with artists such as Art Garfunkel.
He also teaches music and encourages musicians to find their own voice to express themselves. It’s one thing to pursue business success, but do it while being yourself.
It worked for Barrett.
“Sometimes it takes away your own voice because you’re just chasing their ideas,” Barrett said. “When I advise young people, I just tell them to make sure you keep what is unique about what you do and become good at it. You can write whatever they want, but you still have what you do, if that makes sense. »
And when it’s done. Win or lose. You have always done your best. Because inside you knew…
Barrett enjoys his place in college basketball, which makes this time of year special. “One Shining Moment” is forever linked to the end of the NCAA tournament, and Barrett loves the sport and all the excitement leading up to the championship game. That he was able to see players, coaches and fans singing his song after one of their greatest accomplishments was satisfying.
“Most players will play in the NBA, and this is their moment of glory. The way CBS handles it with a lot of respect and the feeling that they’re freezing (college players) in time, in a poetic way… it’s great, honestly,” Barrett said. “Vanity aside, I loved the tournament before, and now knowing that people identify with my song and this event is very rewarding.”
Barrett has his own sporting achievements. Although he was recruited to play basketball at Albion, he is in the school’s Hall of Fame to be an outstanding football player. But it’s his music that will get all the attention. Most musicians aspire to a big hit, a song that transcends generations.
His shot helps to crown a national champion.
(This) shining moment, you reached the sky. A brilliant moment, you knew it. A brilliant moment, you were ready to try.
A brilliant moment…
“Most music on television is perishable,” Barrett said. “They decided, fortunately, that it was not perishable but meaningful. … They decided it was something we wanted to keep. And as a result, 40 years later, here it is.
(Top photo: Jamie Schwaberow / NCAA Photos via Getty Images)