If You Were A Woman (And I Was A Man)

If You Were A Woman (And I Was A Man)

"If You Were a Woman (And I Was a Man)" is a song that was written and composed by Desmond Child and recorded by Bonnie Tyler.

Produced by Jim Steinman, the dramatic, rock-leaning song was released as the first single from her 1986 album Secret Dreams and Forbidden Fire. The track features a saxophone solo by Lenny Pickett, formerly of Tower of Power and then a member of the Saturday Night Live band. Critics have noted that this song's chorus has a melody and chord progression similar to the #1 Bon Jovi hit "You Give Love a Bad Name", which was also co-written by Child and released later that same year.

A music video received some early MTV play but not the heavy rotation of previous Tyler videos such as "Total Eclipse of the Heart" and "Holding Out for a Hero". "If You Were A Woman (And I Was A Man)" debuted on the Hot 100 the week ending April 12, 1986, and became Bonnie Tyler's last U.S. chart single to date, peaking at #77.

The song did make the top 40 in Germany, notably peaking at #16 in Switzerland and #6 in France, where the single was certified Silver for sales of more than 200,000 copies, and Tyler would enjoy some continued success in Europe with successive releases.

In Europe, the song was Tyler's second single from the album, following "Loving You Is A Dirty Job But Somebody's Gotta Do It", a duet with Todd Rundgren released in 1985. The album also contained "Holding Out for a Hero", a 1984 hit single for Tyler from the soundtrack album to the film Footloose.