After back-to-back #1 hit albums, Olivia Newton-John released four albums over the next three years with diminishing returns, sales-wise. She continued to place singles atop the Adult Contemporary chart (seven in a row at one point) and high on the Country chart, but didn’t enjoy as much crossover success.

Among the songs she recorded during this span are covers of Dolly Parton (‘Jolene’) and The Beatles (‘The Long and Winding Road’), show tunes (‘Don’t Cry For Me, Argentina’), and a track titled ‘Don’t Stop Believin” that isn’t the one by Journey.

In 1977, Newton-John met producer Allan Carr at a dinner party hosted by Helen Reddy. He was looking for an actress to play the lead role in a film adaptation of the musical Grease. The 28-year-old did a screen test for the role to make sure she could pass for a high school student (hilarious, given that most of the cast look like they’re in their late 30s) and landed the job. Producers changed the script to make Sandy Australian so Newton-John wouldn’t have to mask her native accent.

Grease was a huge success, reviving Newton-John’s music career and making her a movie star overnight. Three of the film’s songs charted in the top five, including two written for the film by John Farrar. Those were #1 hit ‘You’re the One That I Want,’ performed with John Travolta, and the lovesick ballad ‘Hopelessly Devoted To You.’

Newton-John’s contract for Grease entitled her to a solo vocal performance, and this song became not just a highlight of the film but another signature tune in her catalog.