Prime Time (The Alan Parsons Project song)

Last updated
"Prime Time"
Prime Time Alan Parsons Project.jpg
Single by The Alan Parsons Project
from the album Ammonia Avenue
B-side "The Gold Bug"
ReleasedMay 1984
Studio Abbey Road Studios, London England
Genre Pop rock
Length5:03
Label Arista
Songwriters Eric Woolfson, Alan Parsons
Producer Alan Parsons
The Alan Parsons Project singles chronology
"Don't Answer Me"
(1984)		"Prime Time"
(1984)		"Let's Talk About Me"
(1985)

"Prime Time" is a song by The Alan Parsons Project, the opening track to their 1984 album Ammonia Avenue . Eric Woolfson provided the lead vocals on "Prime Time" and co-wrote the song with Alan Parsons. It was released as the album's second single and became the band's final top 40 hit in the United States. A music video was created to promote the single.

Contents

Background

"Prime Time" was initially distributed to album oriented rock radio in February 1984 along with the band's "Don't Answer Me". During the week dated 24 February 1984, "Prime Time" was added to 29 album oriented rock stations that reported to Radio & Records , making it one of the most added songs in that radio format. [1] The following week, the song continued to be among the most added songs in the album oriented rock radio format with 33 new adds. [2] In the 17 March 1984 edition of Billboard , the publication listed "Prime Time" as a "strong single contender" from Ammonia Avenue. [3] That same month, the song debuted at No. 18 on the Billboard Album Rock Tracks chart and ascended to its peak position of No. 3 the following week. [4]

For the week of 11 May 1984, "Prime Time" crossed over to adult contemporary and contemporary hit radio, where it was among the most added songs in both formats. [5] The song made continued gains the following week and remained as one of the most added songs for adult contemporary radio stations reporting to Radio & Records. [6] By the week of 25 May 1984, 64 percent of adult contemporary stations reporting to Radio & Records had included the song in their playlists. [7] Around this time, the song debuted at No. 30 on the Billboard Adult Contemporary chart. [8] Billboard also reviewed the single, saying that it had a "breezy, easy quality perfect for early summer days (or nights)." [9]

The song entered the Billboard Hot 100 during the week of 19 May 1984. [10] By early June, 64 percent of contemporary hit radio stations reporting to Radio & Records were playing the song. [11] The song reached its position of No. 34 later that month and ultimately spent a total of 11 weeks on the Hot 100. [10]

"Prime Time" was released by Arista Records in the UK during the month of June. The 7" single included "The Gold Bug" as the B-side, with "Pipeline" and "Sirius" also included on the 12" single. [12] By the end of the month, the song had been added to the playlists of 14 radio stations across the UK, including DevonAir, Red Rose Radio, and Swansea Sound. [13] A few weeks later, the song was added to six additional radio stations, including some under the Capital radio network. [14] BBC Radio 2 also picked up the song for the week dated 21 July 1984. [15]

Music video

A music video for "Prime Time" was launched on MTV in May 1984, which achieved medium rotation, indicating a maximum of three plays per day on the network. [16] [17] Intercontinental Televideo Inc. was responsible for converting the music video from PAL to NTSC. [18]

Personnel

Charts

Chart (1986)Peak
position
Canada Adult Contemporary ( RPM ) [19] 20
European Airplay ( Music & Media ) [20] 32
Germany (GfK) [21] 51
US Billboard Hot 100 [10] 34
US Adult Contemporary ( Billboard ) [22] 10
US Mainstream Rock ( Billboard ) [23] 3
US Cashbox Top 100 [24] 33

References

  1. ↑ "AOR/Hot Tracks" (PDF). Radio & Records . 24 February 1984. p. 54. Retrieved 30 October 2025– via World Radio History.
  2. ↑ "AOR/Hot Tracks" (PDF). Radio & Records . 2 March 1984. p. 95. Retrieved 30 October 2025– via World Radio History.
  3. ↑ "Billboard Album Reviews" (PDF). Billboard . 17 March 1984. p. 58. Retrieved 30 October 2025– via World Radio History.
  4. ↑ "Rock Albums and Top Tracks" (PDF). Billboard . 31 March 1984. p. 22. Retrieved 30 October 2025– via World Radio History.
  5. ↑ "Arista's Rock" (PDF). Radio & Records . 11 May 1984. p. 16. Retrieved 30 October 2025– via World Radio History.
  6. ↑ "Adult/Contemporary" (PDF). Radio & Records . 18 May 1984. p. 66. Retrieved 30 October 2025– via World Radio History.
  7. ↑ "Adult/Contemporary" (PDF). Radio & Records . 25 May 1984. p. 58. Retrieved 30 October 2025– via World Radio History.
  8. ↑ "Top 50 Adult Contemporary" (PDF). Billboard . 26 May 1984. p. 21. Retrieved 30 October 2025– via World Radio History.
  9. ↑ "Billboard Single Reviews" (PDF). Billboard . 19 May 1984. p. 64. Retrieved 30 October 2025– via World Radio History.
  10. 1 2 3 "Alan Parsons Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved 30 October 2025.
  11. ↑ "Contemporary Hit Radio" (PDF). Radio & Records . 1 June 1984. p. 78. Retrieved 30 October 2025– via World Radio History.
  12. ↑ "New Singles" (PDF). Music Week . 23 June 1984. p. 10. Retrieved 30 October 2025– via World Radio History.
  13. ↑ "Regional Airplay" (PDF). Music Week . 30 June 1984. p. 20. Retrieved 30 October 2025– via World Radio History.
  14. ↑ "Regional Airplay" (PDF). Music Week . 14 July 1984. p. 11. Retrieved 30 October 2025– via World Radio History.
  15. ↑ "Radio 2" (PDF). Music Week . 21 July 1984. p. 14. Retrieved 30 October 2025– via World Radio History.
  16. ↑ "MTV Adds & Rotation As of 5/30/84" (PDF). Billboard . 9 June 1984. p. 36. Retrieved 30 October 2025– via World Radio History.
  17. ↑ "MTV Adds & Rotation As of 6/6/84" (PDF). Billboard . 16 June 1984. p. 28. Retrieved 30 October 2025– via World Radio History.
  18. ↑ "Music Monitor" (PDF). Billboard . 30 June 1984. p. 28. Retrieved 30 October 2025– via World Radio History.
  19. ↑ "Top RPM Adult Contemporary: Issue 6803." RPM . Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved 30 October 2025.
  20. ↑ "European Airplay Top 50" (PDF). Music & Media . 9 July 1984. p. 6. Retrieved 30 October 2025– via World Radio History.
  21. ↑ "The Alan Parsons Project – Prime Time" (in German). GfK Entertainment charts. Retrieved 30 October 2025.
  22. ↑ "Alan Parsons Chart History (Adult Contemporary)". Billboard. Retrieved 30 October 2025.
  23. ↑ "Alan Parsons Chart History (Mainstream Rock)". Billboard. Retrieved 30 October 2025.
  24. ↑ "Cashbox Top 100 Singles" (PDF). Cashbox . 30 June 1984. p. 4. Retrieved 30 October 2025– via World Radio History.
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