Rhythm of the Night (song)

"For the hit by Corona, see The Rhythm of the Night (song)."

Infobox Single
Name = Rhythm of the Night
Artist = DeBarge
from Album = Rhythm of the Night
Format = 7" single
Released = 1985
Recorded = 1984
Genre = Dance-pop/soul
Length = 3:49
Label = Gordy
Writer = Diane Warren
Producer = Richard Perry
Last single = "Love Me In a Special Way"
(1984)
This single = "Rhythm of the Night"
(1985)
Next single = "Who's Holding Donna Now"
(1985)

"Rhythm of the Night" is a 1985 hit single by the American R&B band DeBarge. The song is said to have been what jump started the career of songwriter Diane Warren [ [http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=33:3nfoxce5ldte allmusic ] ] and was the biggest hit recorded by the Motown family singing group.

Overview

History

By 1985, DeBarge had become pop/R&B sensations with mostly ballads making the repertoire of their hit catalog though they were as impressive as live performers with their mixture of their trademark soft ballads and a collection of dance material. Motown Records sought to produce DeBarge with a dance single to give them a bigger crossover success that mirrored that of label-mate Lionel Richie, who like DeBarge, had created his initial fan base on soft songs before the release of "All Night Long", which included a catchy dance beat influenced by calypso. A similar influence would come in the production of "Rhythm of the Night" which featured more of El DeBarge's deep tenor with flashes of his trademark falsetto. Richard Perry, the hit producer behind hit recordings for The Pointer Sisters and other artists, was appointed to produce the single with Diane Warren as its writer.

Reception

The release of "Rhythm of the Night" coincided with the release of the Motown film, "The Last Dragon", which featured the song as part of its soundtrack. The free publicity from the song on its soundtrack and in the movie itself helped boost its popularity. Eventually released as a single, the song produced DeBarge's biggest success yet with the single reaching #3 on the Billboard Hot 100, #1 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart, #1 on the US adult contemporary chart, and #4 in the UK singles chart - their only major hit single in the UK - going gold and boosting similar success for its parent album of the same name. The group's music video of the song gained the group heavy rotation on MTV and BET and was actually the group's first real music video starting a brief period where DeBarge became pop superstars.

Credits

*Lead vocals by El DeBarge
*Background vocals and spoken monologues by DeBarge
*Produced by Richard Perry

Other versions

* The song was covered, released as a single by Camen in 1997 and later included on the 1998 album "12/Twelve" [http://www.camen-page.de/page_one/unterseiten/disco.htm] .

*Australian pop princess Kylie Minogue performed the chorus of this song as a medley with her own hit "In Your Eyes" on the KylieFever2002 Tour [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/KylieFever2002] .

References