Extreme – “More Than Words” Live

More Than Words To Show You Feel

“More Than Words” was written by Nuno Bettencourt and Gary Cherone. It was released on March 23, 1991 for Extreme’s second album “Extreme II: Pornograffitti (A Funked Up Fairy Tale).” This iconic ballad was famous for Bettencourt’s acoustic guitar work. Because of its popularity, it has become a staple in the band’s concert repertoire.

• Number 1 on the US Billboard Hot 100
• Number 2 on the UK Singles (The Official Charts Company)and US Billboard Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks

The song is a detour from the funk metal style that permeates the band’s records. As such, it has been often described as “a blessing and a curse” due to its overwhelming success and repercussion worldwide.

Bettencourt was sitting on the porch with his guitar when this song came to him. This was his process with most of their songs. He then brought it to Cherone who penned the lyrics. In the US, this became Extreme’s first mainstream success. This song has minimal production because they wanted to keep it simple. The same goes for the music video.

The song was described by Bettencourt as a song warning that the phrase “I love you” was becoming meaningless: “People use it so easily and so lightly that they think you can say that and fix everything, or you can say that and everything’s OK. Sometimes you have to do more and you have to show it—there’s other ways to say ‘I love you.'”

I bet everyone knows the lyrics by heart!