Songoftheday 9/25/13 - Moonlight in the city brings the magic to your eyes freezin' a moment leave me paralyzed...

Billy Squier - "Rock Me Tonite"
from the album Signs Of Life (1984)
Billboard Hot 100 peak: #15 (one week)
Weeks in the Top-40: 12

Today's Song of the Day is by rock singer/guitarist Billy Squier, who came into 1984 with a track record of back-to-back top-5 albums, with the second landing him a top-40 hit with "Everybody Wants You" in 1982. After a successful tour, Billy took two years to release his next album Signs Of Life. MTV was ready, granting him a coveted "World Premiere Video" slot (remember when they actually had that?). The first single, his self-writte n"Rock Me Tonite", was produced by Squier with Meat Loaf mentor Jim Steinman. The record had the right balance of arena rock guitars and punkish edge, so most of their ducks were in a row.

Most. After burning through a couple of directors to shoot the music video, Billy brought in director/choreographer Kenny Ortega, a friend of Squier's girlfriend, to complete the clip in time to get aired. However, Ortega's finished product, well, was too 80's, even for the eighties. With pastel linens everywhere and Billy changing like a girl going to a sleepover to a pink tank top, while flailing his arms like an epilectic Richard Simmons, the video was simply bad. Really bad. Embarassingly bad.

While "Rock Me Tonite" became Billy's biggest pop hit of his career, reaching the top-20 in September of 1984, and scored him his second #1 rock radio hit in Billboard, the aftermath of the video, which was perceived at worst to be "gay" (when that term was poison in arena rock), was long-lasting. His album missed the top-10, and "Rock Me Tonite" would become Billy's last top-40 pop hit in America.

He would continue to have a few minor pop hits in the late 80s, the last being "Don't Say You Love Me", which topped out at #58 (while still reaching #4 on the rock chart). He started the 90s with his most recent top-10 rock hit, "She Goes Down", and two years later came his last singles chart appearance with "Angry" reaching #15. But after Signs Of Life none of his albums even made the top-40, and he was relegated to the C-list circuit.

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...and here's Billy reconciling himself with the fated song on tour in 2009...

Up tomorrow: Girls will be boys will be girls as they go 'round to the cotillion with a sneak peak of a future Brat Packer...