Home | Songs By Year | Songs from 1979


Heartache Tonight

Buy Heartache Tonight now from Amazon

First, read the Wikipedia article. Then, scroll down to see what other TopShelfReviews readers thought about the song. And once you've experienced the song, tell everyone what you thought about it.

Wikipedia article




"'Heartache Tonight'" is a song written by Don Henley, Glenn Frey, Bob Seger and J. D. Souther, recorded by the Eagles and features Glenn Frey on lead vocals. The track was included on their album 'The Long Run' and released as a single in 1979. It reached No. 1 on the U.S. 'Billboard' Hot 100 in November of that year and was certified Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America representing one million copies sold.'Joel Whitburn's Top Pop Singles 1955-1990' - It was the Eagles' final chart-topping song on the Hot 100.

Composition



The song originated from an electric jam session between Frey and Souther, who would visit Frey's home in Los Angeles whenever he was in town on tour. Frey and Souther wrote the first verse while listening to Sam Cooke songs. In the heat of jamming, Frey called Seger on the phone and sang him the verse. Seger then blurted out the chorus. According to Frey, "J.D. [Souther], Don and I finished that song up. No heavy lyrics -- the song is more of a romp -- and that's what it was intended to be." The song was covered by country music singer John Anderson on the tribute album 'Common Thread: The Songs of the Eagles,' by Michael Bubl on his album 'Crazy Love,' and by Tom Jones on his 1980s TV show.

Seger said:

Reception



'Billboard' suggested that the handclaps provided "more of a young, vital sound" than previous Eagles' songs and particularly praised the guitar break and the vocal harmonies. 'Cash Box' said it has a "partyin' country-rock groove."

The recording received a 1979 Grammy Award for Best Rock Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal.

Personnel



*Glenn Frey: lead vocals, rhythm guitar, handclapping

*Don Henley: drums, backing vocals

*Joe Walsh: slide guitar

*Don Felder: rhythm guitar

*Timothy B. Schmit: bass guitar, backing vocals

*Bob Seger: backing vocals (not credited on album liner notes)

Chart performance



Weekly charts



Year-end charts



Conway Twitty version



"Heartache Tonight" was revived four years later in a cover version by country music artist Conway Twitty. Released as the second single from his 'Lost in the Feeling' album, Twitty's version reached No. 6 on the 'Billboard' Hot Country Singles chart in the fall of 1983.

Twitty's version featured the Osmond Brothers on backing vocals. Allmusic reviewer Thom Jurek wrote that "Heartache Tonight" and its follow-up single, "Three Times a Lady," "offer(ed) a solid view of Twitty's amazing crossover potential, and his ability to take well-known pop tracks and turn them into solid country smashes long after the countrypolitan days of Chet Atkins and RCA." (In addition to "Three Times a Lady" (a cover of a song by The Commodores), Twitty had successfully covered "Slow Hand" and "The Rose," previously pop hits for the Pointer Sisters and Bette Midler, respectively.)

Chart performance



References



Category:1979 singles

Category:1983 singles

Category:1993 singles

Category:Billboard Hot 100 number-one singles

Category:Cashbox number-one singles

Category:Songs written by Glenn Frey

Category:Songs written by Don Henley

Category:Eagles (band) songs

Category:Conway Twitty songs

Category:John Anderson (musician) songs

Category:Songs written by Bob Seger

Category:Songs about heartache

Category:RPM Top Singles number-one singles

Category:Songs written by J. D. Souther

Category:Song recordings produced by Jimmy Bowen

Category:Song recordings produced by Bill Szymczyk

Category:Asylum Records singles

Category:Warner Records singles

Category:1979 songs

Buy Heartache Tonight now from Amazon

<-- Return to songs from 1979



This work is released under CC-BY-SA. Some or all of this content attributed to http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=1095676996.