The Bellamy Brothers Have Neil Diamond To Thank for Their First No. 1 Hit

In 1976, The Bellamy Brothers released “Let Your Love Flow”. At the time, the duo, made up of siblings David Bellamy and Howard Bellamy, had no idea that “Let Your Love Flow” would become one of the biggest hits of all time, or that they would still be playing it live more than 50 years later.

The title track of The Bellamy Brothers’ freshman record, “Let Your Love Flow” was written by Larry E. Williams. But surprisingly, The Bellamy Brothers have Neil Young at least partially to thank for them even being able to record “Let Your Love Flow”. 

At the time, Williams was working as a roadie for Diamond. A strange, serendipitous twist of fate led The Bellamy Brothers to record their signature song.

“I moved to Los Angeles and started cutting demos with Neil Diamond’s band,” David Bellamy recalls to The Boot. “Neil’s drummer, Dennis St. John, told me that one of Neil’s roadies, Larry Williams, had written a song that sounded like something we would do. He sent a copy of the song to our producer, Phil Gernhard. The next day, I went to Phil’s office and listened to it. I called Howard and said, ‘I’ve got to play you this song!’ And when he heard it, he had the same reaction that I did.”

The Bellamy Brothers actually recorded “Let Your Love Flow” with members of Diamond’s own band.

“We got the right key, the band hooked it right away, and we probably didn’t do more than two or three takes on the whole session,” David Bellamy reveals. “It was the perfect song for us and became the key to our career.”

The Success Of “Let Your Love Flow” by The Bellamy Brothers

“Let Your Love Flow” became an instant international hit. It was also a crossover hit for The Bellamy Brothers, charting on Billboard’s Adult Contemporary and Country charts. However, Howard Bellamy later admits he still doesn’t like how he sounds on this song, even after so many years.

“I had the flu when I did that song, the vocal. And a fever,” Howard Bellamy tells Taste of Country. “I still hear the vocal, and I cringe because I felt so bad. Just had to suck it up and go on.”

Years later, The Bellamy Brothers are still enjoying the success of “Let Your Love Flow”.

“The song is one of those universal tunes, melodically and lyrically,” David Bellamy says. “Larry wrote a perfect, three-and-a-half-minute song that was magical. … We’ve been blessed to have a lot of hits, but that one kicked everything off. ‘Let Your Love Flow’ is still the reason we can tour worldwide today.”

In 2025, “Let Your Love Flow” was included in a Super Bowl commercial by Budweiser, using their legendary Clydesdale horses.

Photo by Arthur Grimm/United Archives via Getty Images

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