After rocking the house with her cover of Billie Eilish’s “Happier Than Ever” on Thursday, Kelly Clarkson returned to her daytime talk show on Friday (Oct. 1) with a romantic and slow-burning rendition of Whitney Houston’s 1985 hit, “Saving All My Love for You,” for the program’s signature Kellyoke opener.
For the cover, Clarkson stood next to her piano player and sang the iconic song with ease, peppering the lyrics with soaring high notes and fitting vocal runs. “A few stolen moments is all that we share/ You’ve got your family and they need you there/ Though I’ve tried to resist being last on your list/ But no other man’s gonna do/ So I’m saving all my love for you,” she sang.
Houston’s version of “Saving All My Love for You” — which she released as the second single from her self-titled debut studio album in 1985 — was a cover as well. It was originally recorded by Marilyn McCoo and Billy Davis Jr. for their 1978b album Marilyn & Billy. The song became a massive hit for Houston and reached the No. 1 spot on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1985.
The “Stronger” singer has covered Houston songs on The Kelly Clarkson Show. Since the show’s premiere, Clarkson has performed “Run to You,” “I’m Every Woman” (originally recorded by Chaka Khan), “Exhale (Shoop Shoop),” “How Will I Know” and “I Wanna Dance With Somebody” during the daytime program.
Kellyoke songs are often chosen by the show’s attendees, Alex Duda, the NBCUniversal-distributed series’ executive producer, previously told Billboard. “I get a list of songs requested by audience members, I plug them in based on episodes and themes — usually a mix of Motown, ’70s and ’80s songs, current pop to rock and one country song a week,” Duda said.
Watch Clarkson’s cover of “Saving All My Love For You” below.
