Dancing in the Moonlight (It's Caught Me in Its Spotlight)

Last updated
"Dancing in the Moonlight (It's Caught Me in Its Spotlight)"
Single by Thin Lizzy
from the album Bad Reputation
B-side "Bad Reputation"
ReleasedAugust 1977 (UK) [1]
RecordedMay – June 1977
Genre
Length3:26
Label
Songwriter(s) Phil Lynott
Producer(s) Thin Lizzy, Tony Visconti
Thin Lizzy singles chronology
"Don't Believe a Word"
(1976)
"Dancing in the Moonlight (It's Caught Me in Its Spotlight)"
(1977)
"Rosalie/Cowgirl's Song (Medley)"
(1978)

"Dancing in the Moonlight (It's Caught Me in Its Spotlight)" is a song by the Irish rock band Thin Lizzy. It appears on their 1977 album Bad Reputation and was also released as a single a few months before the album. The song reached No. 14 in the UK Singles Chart in September 1977, [2] and No. 84 in Canada. [3] It should not be confused with a similarly named song, "Dancing in the Moonlight", recorded by King Harvest and Toploader, amongst others. [4]

Contents

The song builds on the introductory bass riff played by Phil Lynott, adding the vocal melody line sung by Lynott which contrasts and synergizes with the saxophone melodic counterpoint played by Supertramp's John Helliwell. [5]

Covers

The Smashing Pumpkins covered the song for various live performances, turning the originally upbeat, overlaid melody of the original into a slow paced acoustic tune; it was recorded as B-side of the single "Disarm". [6] British indie pop singer-songwriter Diana Vickers covered the song as the first of several covers used as teasers leading up to the release of her second studio album. [7]

In 2012 the English indie rock band Alt-J released a mash up of "Dancing in the Moonlight" for the compilation album, The Saturday Sessions from The Dermot O'Leary Show. [8] Later it was recorded at Spotify Studios NYC and released as part of their Spotify Singles project in 2017.

In 2017 British singer Josh Dally released a reworked acoustic ballad version of the song.

The American band Cannons released a dream pop-inspired cover in November 2023 as the final track on their Heartbeat Highway album.

In commercials

In 2005, this song was used as part of an advertising campaign to launch Magners Irish Cider in the UK. [9]

In 2021, this song was used in an advertisement for Specsavers hearing aids in the UK.

Charts

Chart (1977)Peak
position
Australian Singles (Kent Music Report) [10] 59
Canada Top Singles ( RPM ) [11] 84
Ireland (IRMA) [12] 4
UK Singles (OCC) [13] 14

Related Research Articles

<i>Fighting</i> (Thin Lizzy album) 1975 studio album by Thin Lizzy

Fighting is the fifth studio album by Irish rock band Thin Lizzy, released in 1975. Following the release of four studio albums, the band finally forged an identifiable sound featuring the twin guitars of Scott Gorham and Brian Robertson. This sound draws from hard rock, folk, pop and rhythm and blues. It set the stage for the big commercial breakthrough of the follow-up album, Jailbreak. The album was also their first album to chart in the UK, hitting No. 60.

<i>Johnny the Fox</i> 1976 studio album by Thin Lizzy

Johnny the Fox is the seventh studio album by Irish hard rock band Thin Lizzy, released in 1976. This album was written and recorded while bassist/vocalist Phil Lynott was recovering from a bout of hepatitis that put him off the road halfway through the previous Jailbreak tour. "Don't Believe a Word" was a British hit single. Johnny the Fox was the last Thin Lizzy studio album on which guitarist Brian Robertson featured as a full member of the band, as the personality clashes between him and Lynott resulted in Robertson being sacked, reinstated, and later sacked again.

<i>Bad Reputation</i> (Thin Lizzy album) 1977 studio album by Thin Lizzy

Bad Reputation is the eighth studio album by the Irish rock band Thin Lizzy, released in 1977. As the front cover suggests, most of the tracks feature only three-quarters of the band, with guitarist Brian Robertson only credited on three tracks. He had missed most of their previous tour, following a hand injury sustained in a brawl, and this album turned out to be his last studio effort with Thin Lizzy. On 27 June 2011, a new remastered and expanded version of Bad Reputation was released.

<i>Live and Dangerous</i> Live album by Thin Lizzy

Live and Dangerous is a live double album by the Irish rock band Thin Lizzy, released in June 1978. It was recorded in London in 1976, and Philadelphia and Toronto in 1977, with further production in Paris. It was also the last Thin Lizzy album to feature guitarist Brian Robertson, who left the band shortly after its release.

<i>Greatest Hits</i> (Thin Lizzy album) 2004 greatest hits album by Thin Lizzy

Greatest Hits is a double-CD compilation of Thin Lizzy songs released in 2004.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Today (The Smashing Pumpkins song)</span> 1993 single by the Smashing Pumpkins

"Today" is a song by American alternative rock band the Smashing Pumpkins, written by lead vocalist and guitarist Billy Corgan. The song, though seemingly upbeat, contains dark lyrics; Corgan wrote the song about a day in which he was having suicidal thoughts. The contrast between the grim subject matter of the song and the soft instrumental part during the verses, coupled with use of irony in the lyrics, left many listeners unaware of the song's tale of depression and desperation. The song alternates between quiet, dreamy verses and loud choruses with layered, distorted guitars.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Disarm</span> 1994 single by The Smashing Pumpkins

"Disarm" is a song by American alternative rock band the Smashing Pumpkins, written by vocalist and guitarist Billy Corgan. It was the third single from their second album, Siamese Dream (1993), and became a top-20 hit in Australia, Canada, and the United Kingdom.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1979 (song)</span> 1996 single by The Smashing Pumpkins

"1979" is a song by American alternative rock band the Smashing Pumpkins. It was released in 1996 as the second single from their third studio album, Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness. "1979" was written by frontman Billy Corgan, and features loops and samples uncharacteristic of previous Smashing Pumpkins songs. The song foreshadows the synth-pop sound the band would embrace more openly on Adore and its tracks "Ava Adore" and "Perfect". The song was written as a nostalgic coming-of-age story by Corgan. In the year 1979, Corgan was twelve, and this is what he considered his transition into adolescence.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Zero (The Smashing Pumpkins song)</span> 1996 single by The Smashing Pumpkins

"Zero" is a song by American alternative rock band the Smashing Pumpkins, released as the third single from their third album Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness (1995). Written by Billy Corgan, it was the first song recorded for the album and features six rhythm guitars with two line-in 12-string acoustic guitars. The cover artwork and music video were created by Ukrainian photographer and Corgan's then-girlfriend Yelena Yemchuk.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Thirty-Three (song)</span> 1996 single by the Smashing Pumpkins

"Thirty-Three" is a song by American alternative rock band the Smashing Pumpkins. It was the fifth and final single from their third album, Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness (1995), in November 1996. It was the first single released after the firing of Jimmy Chamberlin and death of Jonathan Melvoin. The song peaked at 39 on the US Billboard Hot 100, becoming the band's fourth and final top-40 hit there, number seven in New Zealand and the top 30 in Canada and the United Kingdom. In Canada, it coincidentally finished at number 33 on the RPM Alternative 30 year-end chart for 1997.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Perfect (The Smashing Pumpkins song)</span> 1998 single by the Smashing Pumpkins

"Perfect" is a song by American alternative rock band the Smashing Pumpkins. It was released as the second single from their fourth album, Adore (1998), on September 7, 1998. It was the final commercial single from the album, although "Crestfallen" and "To Sheila" were subsequently released as promotional singles.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Stand Inside Your Love</span> 2000 single by The Smashing Pumpkins

"Stand Inside Your Love" is a song by American alternative rock band the Smashing Pumpkins. It was the second single and the lead international single released from their fifth album, Machina/The Machines of God (2000). The song was written by Billy Corgan.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dancing in the Moonlight</span> 1970 single by Boffalongo

"Dancing in the Moonlight" is a song written by Sherman Kelly, originally recorded in 1970 by Kelly's band Boffalongo, and then a hit single by King Harvest in 1972, reaching number 5 in Canada and number 13 on the Billboard Hot 100. In 2000, a cover by English band Toploader became a worldwide hit and achieved multi-platinum status in the United Kingdom. A version by Swedish EDM duo Jubël, released in 2018, was a hit in Europe.

<i>Nightlife</i> (Thin Lizzy album) 1974 studio album by Thin Lizzy

Nightlife is the fourth studio album by Irish rock band Thin Lizzy, released on 8 November 1974 by Vertigo Records. It was produced by Ron Nevison and bandleader Phil Lynott, and was the first album to feature the band as a quartet with newcomers Scott Gorham and Brian Robertson on guitars.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Boys Are Back in Town</span> 1976 single by Thin Lizzy

"The Boys Are Back in Town" is a song by Irish hard rock band Thin Lizzy. The song was released in 1976 as the first single from their album Jailbreak. It is considered by Rolling Stone to be the band's best song, placing it at No. 272 on the 2021 edition of the "500 Greatest Songs of All Time" list.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Smashing Pumpkins discography</span>

The discography of the Smashing Pumpkins, an American alternative rock band formed in Chicago, Illinois, consists of twelve studio albums, four live albums, one digital live album series, seven compilation albums, five extended plays, 55 singles, four video albums, 37 music videos, and contributions to five soundtrack albums. This list does not include material recorded by the Smashing Pumpkins members with other side projects.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Landslide (Fleetwood Mac song)</span> 1975 song by Fleetwood Mac

"Landslide" is a song by British-American rock band Fleetwood Mac, written and performed by singer Stevie Nicks. The song was first featured on the band's self-titled album Fleetwood Mac (1975). The original recording also appears on the compilation albums 25 Years – The Chain (1992), The Very Best of Fleetwood Mac (2002) and 50 Years – Don't Stop (2018), while a live version was released as a single 23 years later from the live reunion album The Dance (1997). "Landslide" reached No. 51 on the US Billboard Hot 100 chart and No. 10 on the Adult Contemporary chart. "Landslide" was certified gold in October 2009 for sales of over 500,000 copies in the United States. According to Nielsen Soundscan, "Landslide" sold 2,093,186 copies in the United States as of 2017.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sarah (Thin Lizzy song)</span> 1979 single by Thin Lizzy

"Sarah" is a pop song released in 1979 by Irish rock group Thin Lizzy, included on their album, Black Rose: A Rock Legend. The song was written by the band's frontman Phil Lynott and guitarist Gary Moore about Lynott's newborn daughter. The song was also issued as a single, and appeared on several compilation albums including Wild One: The Very Best of Thin Lizzy. The song was never performed live by Thin Lizzy, but it was adopted as a live favourite by Lynott's post-Thin Lizzy project, Grand Slam, and featured on Live in Sweden 1983, a recording of Lynott's solo band.

<i>Still Dangerous</i> 2009 live album by Thin Lizzy

Still Dangerous is a live album by Irish rock band Thin Lizzy. It was compiled from two live concerts by the band at the Tower Theater in Upper Darby Township, Pennsylvania, U.S., just outside of Philadelphia, at 20 and 21 October 1977 during the tour in support of their Bad Reputation album. No overdubs were made to any tracks so the album is completely live. The tracks "Cowboy Song", "The Boys Are Back in Town", "Massacre" and "Emerald" were previously released on the album Live and Dangerous, while "Opium Trail" and "Bad Reputation" were issued on the Killers Live EP in 1981.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Do Anything You Want To</span> 1979 single by Thin Lizzy

"Do Anything You Want To" is a song by the Irish hard rock band Thin Lizzy. It was the second single released from their 1979 album Black Rose: A Rock Legend. It was recorded at Pathe Marconi EMI Studios in Paris, France.

References

  1. Strong, Martin Charles (1995). The Great Rock Discography. p. 829. ISBN   9780862415419.
  2. Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. pp. 555–556. ISBN   1-904994-10-5.
  3. "RPM Top 100 Singles - November 12, 1977" (PDF).
  4. "Search for "dancing in the moonlight"". AllMusic . Retrieved 1 June 2021.
  5. July 2016, Paul Brannigan03 (3 July 2016). "The story behind Thin Lizzy's Dancing In The Moonlight". Classic Rock Magazine. Retrieved 1 June 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  6. Disarm (CD cover). Smashing Pumpkins. Virgin Records. 1994. 7243 8 92310 2 1.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  7. O'Mance, Brad (11 April 2012). "Diana Vickers has covered a Tom Petty song". Popjustice . Retrieved 26 February 2018.
  8. The Saturday Sessions From The Dermot O'Leary Show (CD cover). Alt-J. Sony Music. 2014. 88843028882.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  9. O'Mahony, Catherine (28 May 2005). "Magners London launch is Irish-made". The Sunday Business Post . Key Capital and Cooke. Retrieved 29 March 2016.(registration required)
  10. Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 . St Ives, NSW: Australian Chart Book. ISBN   0-646-11917-6.
  11. "Top RPM Singles: Issue 5454b." RPM . Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved May 25, 2024.
  12. "The Irish Charts – Search Results – Dancing in the Moonlight". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved May 25, 2024.
  13. "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved May 25, 2024.