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"Dancing in the Dark" is a song written and performed by American
rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...
singer
Bruce Springsteen Bruce Frederick Joseph Springsteen (born September 23, 1949) is an American singer and songwriter. He has released 21 studio albums, most of which feature his backing band, the E Street Band. Originally from the Jersey Shore, he is an originat ...
. Adding uptempo
synthesizer A synthesizer (also spelled synthesiser) is an electronic musical instrument that generates audio signals. Synthesizers typically create sounds by generating waveforms through methods including subtractive synthesis, additive synthesis and ...
riffs to his sound for the first time, the song spent four weeks at number two on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 and sold over one million singles in the U.S. It was the first single released from his 1984 album, ''
Born in the U.S.A. ''Born in the U.S.A.'' is the seventh studio album by American recording artist Bruce Springsteen, released by Columbia Records on June 4, 1984. It topped the charts in nine countries, including the US and UK, becoming his most commercially su ...
'', and became his biggest hit, helping the album become the best-selling album of his career. "Dancing in the Dark" was also successful worldwide, becoming Australia's highest-selling single of 1984 (despite peaking at number five on the
Kent Music Report The Kent Music Report was a weekly record chart of Australian music singles and albums which was compiled by music enthusiast David Kent from May 1974 through to January 1999. The chart was re-branded the Australian Music Report (AMR) in July ...
), peaking at number one in Belgium and the Netherlands, and charting within the top 10 in seven other countries. The song is listed among the
Rock and Roll Hall of Fame The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (RRHOF), sometimes simply referred to as the Rock Hall, is a museum A museum ( ; plural museums or, rarely, musea) is a building or institution that cares for and displays a collection of artifacts and othe ...
's 500 Songs that Shaped Rock and Roll.


Writing and recording

Springsteen wrote "Dancing In the Dark" overnight, after
Jon Landau Jon Landau (born May 14, 1947) is an American music critic, manager, and record producer. He has worked with Bruce Springsteen in all three capacities. He is the head of the nominating committee for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, and recei ...
convinced him that the album needed a single. According to journalist Dave Marsh in the book ''Glory Days'', Springsteen was not impressed with Landau's approach. "Look", he snarled, "I've written seventy songs. You want another one, you write it." Despite this reaction, Springsteen sat in his hotel room and wrote the song in a single night. It sums up his state of mind, his feeling of isolation after the success of his album '' The River'', and his frustrations of trying to write a hit single. Six
take A take is a single continuous recorded performance. The term is used in film and music to denote and track the stages of production. Film In cinematography, a take refers to each filmed "version" of a particular shot or "setup". Takes of each s ...
s of "Dancing in the Dark" were recorded on February 14, 1984, at
The Hit Factory The Hit Factory is a recording studio in New York City owned and operated by Troy Germano. History On March 6, 1975, Edward Germano, a singer, record producer, and one of the principal owners of the Record Plant Studios New York, purchased the ...
, and after 58 mixes, work was completed on March 8, 1984. The 12-inch single was released May 9, 1984, and was the highest-selling 12-inch single in the US that year.


Reception

''
Cash Box ''Cashbox'', also known as ''Cash Box'', was an American music industry trade magazine, originally published weekly from July 1942 to November 1996. Ten years after its dissolution, it was revived and continues as ''Cashbox Magazine'', an online ...
'' said that the song "is classic Springsteen: gutsy vocals set to a hard-driving backbeat" and "an added surprise is the addition of the synthesizer to the inspired playing of the E-Street Band."


Chart performance

Released as a single prior to the album's release, the song entered the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart on May 26, 1984, at no. 36, and spent four weeks at No. 2 (his highest-charting song to date) beginning June 30, 1984 (it was kept off the No. 1 spot by
Duran Duran Duran Duran () are an English Rock music, rock band formed in Birmingham in 1978 by singer and bassist Stephen Duffy, keyboardist Nick Rhodes and guitarist/bassist John Taylor (bass guitarist), John Taylor. With the addition of drummer Roger ...
's "
The Reflex "The Reflex" is the eleventh single by English new wave band Duran Duran, released in 1984. The song was heavily remixed for single release and was the third and last to be taken from their third studio album '' Seven and the Ragged Tiger'' ...
" and that year's song of the summer,
Prince A prince is a male ruler (ranked below a king, grand prince, and grand duke) or a male member of a monarch's or former monarch's family. ''Prince'' is also a title of nobility (often highest), often hereditary, in some European states. Th ...
's "
When Doves Cry "When Doves Cry" is a song by American musician Prince, and the lead single from his sixth studio album '' Purple Rain''. According to the DVD commentary of the film '' Purple Rain'' (1984), Prince was asked by director Albert Magnoli to write a ...
"). It did, however, reach No. 1 on the ''
Cash Box ''Cashbox'', also known as ''Cash Box'', was an American music industry trade magazine, originally published weekly from July 1942 to November 1996. Ten years after its dissolution, it was revived and continues as ''Cashbox Magazine'', an online ...
'' Top 100 Singles chart. It was also the first of a record-tying seven top 10 hit singles to be released from ''Born in the U.S.A.'' "Dancing in the Dark" also held the No. 1 spot for six weeks on ''Billboard'''s
Top Tracks Classic Vinyl is a Sirius XM Radio channel focusing on classic rock music mostly from the late-1960s to the mid-1970s, with the channel's name meant to indicate that it consists of music that first appeared on vinyl records. This encompasses musi ...
chart. The song reached No. 1 on the ''
Radio & Records ''Radio & Records'' (''R&R'') was a trade publication providing news and airplay information for the radio and music industries. It started as an independent trade from 1973 to 2006 until VNU Media took over in 2006 and became a relaunched sister ...
'' CHR and AOR airplay charts."National Airplay" ''Radio & Records'' June 29, 1984: 88 In the UK, the song peaked at No.4. It was the 29th-best-selling single of the year. The recording also won Springsteen his first
Grammy Award The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pres ...
, picking up the prize for Best Rock Vocal Performance in 1985. In the 1984 ''
Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first kno ...
'' readers poll, "Dancing in the Dark" was voted "Single of the Year". The track has since gone on to earn further recognition and is as such listed one of
The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's 500 Songs that Shaped Rock and Roll The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (RRHOF), sometimes simply referred to as the Rock Hall, is a museum and hall of fame located in downtown Cleveland, Ohio, United States, on the shore of Lake Erie. The museum documents the history of rock music and ...
.


Remixes

In a first-for-Springsteen effort to gain dance and club play for his music, Arthur Baker created the 12-inch "Blaster Mix" of "Dancing in the Dark", wherein he reworked the album version. The remix was released on July 2, 1984. The result generated a lot of media buzz for Springsteen, as well as actual club play; the remix went to #7 on the ''Billboard'' Hot Dance Music/Club Play chart, and had the most sales of any 12-inch single in the United States in 1984.


Music video

Directed by
Brian De Palma Brian Russell De Palma (born September 11, 1940) is an American film director and screenwriter. With a career spanning over 50 years, he is best known for his work in the suspense, crime and psychological thriller genres. De Palma was a leading ...
, the video was shot at the
Saint Paul Civic Center The St. Paul Civic Center was an indoor arena located in Saint Paul, Minnesota. The arena opened in 1973 and was closed and demolished in 1998. It once sat near the Ordway Music Theater and the Roy Wilkins Auditorium. The Xcel Energy Center wa ...
in Saint Paul, Minnesota, on June 28 and 29, 1984. The first night was a pure video shoot, the second was on the opening date of the
Born in the U.S.A. Tour The Born in the U.S.A. Tour was the supporting concert tour of Bruce Springsteen's '' Born in the U.S.A.'' album. It was his longest and most successful tour to date. It featured a physically transformed Springsteen; after two years of bodybuil ...
. Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band performed the song twice during that show to allow De Palma to get all the footage he needed. The video is a straight performance video, with Springsteen not playing a guitar, allowing him to invite a young woman from the audience, performed by
Courteney Cox Courteney Bass Cox (previously Courteney Cox Arquette; born June 15, 1964) is an American actress and filmmaker. She gained international recognition for her starring role as Monica Geller on the NBC sitcom '' Friends'', which aired from 1994 ...
, to dance along with him on the stage at the end. Although De Palma had told him that it was she whom he was supposed to select, Springsteen thought she was just a pre-selected fan attending and did not know until afterward that she was a professional actress, brought in from New York City, who had already played in ''
As the World Turns ''As the World Turns'' (often abbreviated as ''ATWT'') is an American television soap opera that aired on CBS for 54 years from April 2, 1956, to September 17, 2010. Irna Phillips created ''As the World Turns'' as a sister show to her other soa ...
''. Despite this Cox has stated that she was one of many that Springsteen could have selected and that she was secretly hoping to not be picked. The video initially included a storyline in which Cox and several of her friends were getting ready to go to the concert with one of them getting picked. Vignettes were shot for this although they remained unused. In September 1985, the video won the MTV Video Music Award for Best Stage Performance and was nominated for Best Overall Performance. Actor
Alfonso Ribeiro Alfonso Lincoln Ribeiro (born September 21, 1971) is an American actor, comedian and television host. He is best known for his roles as Alfonso Spears on the sitcom ''Silver Spoons'', Carlton Banks on the NBC sitcom ''The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air ...
later claimed to have drawn inspiration from Cox's dancing in the video in developing "The Carlton" for his character in ''
The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air ''The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air'' is an American television sitcom created by Andy and Susan Borowitz for NBC. It aired from September 10, 1990, to May 20, 1996. The series stars Will Smith as a fictionalized version of himself, a street-smart t ...
''.


Live performance history

On the 2009
Working on a Dream Tour The Working on a Dream Tour was a concert tour by Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band, which began in April 2009 and ended in November 2009. It followed the late January 2009 release of the album '' Working on a Dream''. This was the first ...
, the song appeared intermittently during the encores. However, Springsteen for the first time played a number of
music festival A music festival is a community event with performances of singing and instrument playing that is often presented with a theme such as musical genre (e.g., rock, blues, folk, jazz, classical music), nationality, locality of musicians, or h ...
s during the routing, and "Dancing in the Dark" closed all of them:
Pinkpop Festival The Pinkpop Festival is an annual music festival held at Landgraaf, Netherlands. It is usually held on the Pentecost weekend (''Pinksteren'' in Dutch, hence the name). If Pentecost falls on an early date in May, the festival is held later in Jun ...
, Bonnaroo Music Festival, Glastonbury Festival, and
Hard Rock Calling Calling Festival (formerly Hyde Park Calling and Hard Rock Calling) was an annual music festival, formerly held in Hyde Park, London, from 2006 until 2012, and from 2013 in Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park, London. In September 2013, Hard Rock In ...
. When played live in recent years, the song features a harder, guitar-driven sound, with the distinctive synthesizer riff being supplied by
Soozie Tyrell Soozie Tyrell (born May 4, 1957), formerly known as Soozie Kirschner, is an American violinist, guitarist, and vocalist, most known for her work with Bruce Springsteen in the E Street Band and formerly The Sessions Band. Biography Tyrell wa ...
's violin. During the 2012 tour the song again became a regular at live shows with audience members selected to dance not just with Springsteen (reenacting the Courteney Cox scene from the video), but with other band members too, especially new band member
Jake Clemons Jake Clemons (born February 27, 1980) is an American musician, singer and songwriter. Since 2012, he has been the saxophonist for Bruce Springsteen's E Street Band, after the death of the band's original saxophonist, his uncle Clarence Clemons. ...
. Springsteen family members appeared on stage for this song on occasion, with mother Adele doing the "Courteney Cox" dance at the
Wells Fargo Center Wells Fargo Center may refer to: *Wells Fargo Center (Los Angeles), California *Wells Fargo Center (Sacramento), California * Wells Fargo Center (San Francisco), California * Wells Fargo Center for the Arts, Santa Rosa, California * Wells Fargo Cen ...
in Philadelphia at the start of the tour, and daughter Jessica dancing on stage with him in Paris on July 5.


Personnel

According to authors Philippe Margotin and Jean-Michel Guesdon: *
Bruce Springsteen Bruce Frederick Joseph Springsteen (born September 23, 1949) is an American singer and songwriter. He has released 21 studio albums, most of which feature his backing band, the E Street Band. Originally from the Jersey Shore, he is an originat ...
– vocals, guitars *
Roy Bittan Roy J. Bittan (born July 2, 1949) is an American musician best known as a long-time member of Bruce Springsteen's E Street Band. Nicknamed "The Professor", Bittan joined the E Street Band in 1974. He plays the piano, organ, accordion and synthe ...
– keyboards *
Clarence Clemons Clarence Anicholas Clemons Jr. (January 11, 1942 – June 18, 2011), also known as The Big Man, was an American musician and actor. From 1972 until his death in 2011, he was the saxophonist for The E Street Band. Clemons released several s ...
– saxophone *
Garry Tallent Garry Wayne Tallent (born October 27, 1949), sometimes billed as Garry W. Tallent, is an American musician and record producer, best known for being bass player and founding member of the E Street Band, Bruce Springsteen's primary backing band si ...
– bass * Max Weinberg – drums


Track listings


7": Columbia / 38-04463

#"Dancing in the Dark" – 3:59 #"Pink Cadillac" – 3:33


7": CBS / WA-4463 *

#"Dancing in the Dark" – 3:59 #"Pink Cadillac" – 3:33 (*Car-shaped picture disc released in the UK, featuring a pink Cadillac on the front side)


12": Columbia / 44-05028

#"Dancing in the Dark" (Blaster Mix) – 6:09 #"Dancing in the Dark" (Radio) – 4:50 #"Dancing in the Dark" (Dub) – 5:30


12": CBS / TA4436

#"Dancing in the Dark" (Extended Remix) – 6:09 #"Pink Cadillac" – 3:33 * The B-side of the single, " Pink Cadillac", was a comic
rockabilly Rockabilly is one of the earliest styles of rock and roll music. It dates back to the early 1950s in the United States, especially the Southern United States, South. As a genre it blends the sound of Western music (North America), Western music ...
tale about the virtues (and vices) of a colourful
Cadillac The Cadillac Motor Car Division () is a division of the American automobile manufacturer General Motors (GM) that designs and builds luxury vehicles. Its major markets are the United States, Canada, and China. Cadillac models are distributed i ...
; in 1988 it became a #5 hit for
Natalie Cole Natalie Maria Cole (February 6, 1950 – December 31, 2015) was an American singer, songwriter, and actress. She was the daughter of American singer and jazz pianist Nat King Cole. She rose to success in the mid-1970s as an R&B singer with the h ...
.


Charts


Weekly charts


Year-end charts


Certifications


See also

* List of number-one hits of 1985 (Flanders) * List of Dutch Top 40 number-one singles of 1985 * List of ''Billboard'' Mainstream Rock number-one songs of 1984 * List of ''Cash Box'' Top 100 number-one singles of 1984


Footnotes


References

* ''Born in the U.S.A. Tour'' (tour booklet, 1984), Springsteen chronology. * ''Born in the U.S.A. The World Tour'' (tour booklet, 1985), Tour chronology. * Marsh, Dave. ''Glory Days: Bruce Springsteen in the 1980s''. Pantheon Books, 1987. . {{authority control 1984 singles Bruce Springsteen songs Dance-rock songs Cashbox number-one singles Number-one singles in Belgium Dutch Top 40 number-one singles Songs written by Bruce Springsteen Song recordings produced by Jon Landau Columbia Records singles Grammy Award for Best Male Rock Vocal Performance 1984 songs Songs about dancing Song recordings produced by Bruce Springsteen Song recordings produced by Steven Van Zandt Song recordings produced by Chuck Plotkin