"The Touch" was released as a double A-side single with
"Weird Al" Yankovic's "
Dare to Be Stupid", another song from the soundtrack album of the
Transformers movie. The
power ballad was also released in 1987 on Stan Bush & Barrage's self-titled album. The song was inspired by a line in the movie
Iron Eagle, and originally written for
Sylvester Stallone's film
Cobra Its inclusion on the
Transformers soundtrack was Bush's first exposure to the franchise. The song was performed by
Mark Wahlberg in
Paul Thomas Anderson's film
Boogie Nights (1997). The 2009 version differs markedly from the original and 2007 versions, adding
rap verses and being more melancholic in tone, with it being described as a "redux a la
Linkin Park". In 2010, Bush released a music video for "The Touch: Sam's Theme" on his
YouTube channel, featuring clips from the first two
Transformers films. The song was edited with the rap verses removed, and was included in the 2010 album
Dream the Dream. The 2007 version of "The Touch" was released as a free downloadable track for the video game
Guitar Hero World Tour on May 28, 2009. On April 5, 2009, "The Touch" was featured in a
YouTube video tribute to voice actress
Lara Jill Miller. Bush had expressed interest in wanting the song to appear in the game or in competing music game
Rock Band. On October 12, 2010, the song was released as a downloadable track for Rock Band through the
Rock Band Network. On September 15, 2012, Bush released another remix of the song as "The Touch (Power Mix)" on
iTunes. The "Power Mix" is a variation of "Sam's Theme" with a new chorus arrangement. Also included in the single is "The Touch (Epic Guitar Mix)", which, like the 1997 and 2007 versions, is a re-recording of the original song. ==References==