Dancing the Night Away should not be confused with Dance the Night Away (disambiguation).
| Dancing the Night Away | |
| Cover: | The Motors 1977 Single European Dancing the Night Away.jpeg |
| Type: | single |
| Artist: | The Motors |
| Album: | 1 |
| B-Side: | Whisky and Wine |
| Released: | 2 September 1977 |
| Genre: | Power pop |
| Length: | 3:13 |
| Label: | Virgin Records (VS186), Ariola Benelux |
| Producer: | Robert John "Mutt" Lange |
| Next Title: | Be What You Gotta Be" / "You Beat the Hell Outta Me |
| Next Year: | 1977 |
"Dancing the Night Away" is the debut single by English rock band the Motors, which was released in 1977 as the lead single from their debut studio album 1. The song was written by band members Andy McMaster and Nick Garvey, and produced by Robert John "Mutt" Lange.[1]
"Dancing the Night Away" peaked at number 42 on the UK Singles Chart and remained in the top 50 for four weeks.[2] For its release as a single, the full six-and-a-half minute album version of the track was edited down to produce two separate edits for 7-inch and 12-inch formats.[3]
In a retrospective review of 1, Mark Deming of AllMusic praised "Dancing the Night Away" as "superb" and "an excellent fusion of pop melody with big guitar firepower". He added that the song is "so effective that it sets a standard the rest of the disc can't quite match".[4]
7-inch single
12-inch single
Motors
Production
| Dancing the Night Away | |
| Cover: | Cheap Trick 1983 Single Dancing the Night Away American.jpeg |
| Type: | single |
| Artist: | Cheap Trick |
| Album: | Next Position Please |
| B-Side: | Don't Make Our Love a Crime |
| Released: | 1983 |
| Genre: | Rock, power pop |
| Length: | 4:57 |
| Label: | Epic |
| Producer: |
|
| Prev Title: | Saturday at Midnight |
| Prev Year: | 1982 |
| Next Title: | I Can't Take It |
| Next Year: | 1983 |
American rock band Cheap Trick released a cover of "Dancing the Night Away" in 1983 as the lead single from their seventh studio album Next Position Please.
Todd Rundgren, who produced the majority of Next Position Please, originally advised Epic to release "I Can't Take It" as the album's lead single. The label were less enthusiastic about the song and suggested that the band record a version of "Dancing the Night Away". Produced by Cheap Trick and Ian Taylor, who had previously engineered the band's 1982 album One on One, "Dancing the Night Away" was released as the album's lead single, but failed to chart in the US.[5]
In a review of Next Position Please, Evelyn Erskine of The Ottawa Citizen described "Dancing the Night Away" as "spunky and fun".[6] Jim Bohen of the Daily Record was negative of the band's version, describing it as "regrettably ponderous and shrill".[7]
7-inch single
7-inch single (US promo)
12-inch single (UK release)
12-inch single (US promo)
Cheap Trick
Production