"Piano in the Dark" is a song by American singer-songwriter Brenda Russell (featuring backing vocals by Joe Esposito). It was the first single to be taken from Russell's 1988 album, Get Here.
Russell, believing "that in every title there's a song somewhere," made a habit of "collecting" interesting phrases she heard and placing them in a notebook for potential song titles. It was through this process that she wrote the lyrics to "Piano in the Dark" as the title seemed to fit with the music her co-writers sent her.[1] In the early stages Russell did not understand what the title would refer to, eventually deciding it was about
" ...this woman. Her lover plays piano. And she wants to leave him, because she's really kind of bored. But every time she does that, he sits down and starts playing. And it sucks her right back in. She's so in love with the way he plays. And he plays in the dark, theoretically. It's not that literal, necessarily. But that's what keeps her to him, basically, is his music. And I just found that was an interesting story to write about."[1]
Initially "Gravity" was planned to be released as the first single, however Herb Alpert pushed to have "Piano" released instead, feeling that it better represented her as an artist.[2]
"Piano in the Dark" was released in early 1988, nine years after Russell's previous charting single on the Billboard Hot 100 (1979's "So Good, So Right"). The song gained heavy airplay and became Russell's biggest hit, peaking at number 6 on the Billboard Hot 100, number 8 on the R&B Chart[3] and number 3 on the Adult Contemporary Chart. The song was also a moderate hit in the UK, peaking at number 23.
There are two music videos. The first version, filmed in black-and-white, shows Brenda looking depressed in her apartment as she tosses cards in a derby and thinks about her lover, a long-haired blond man playing on the piano. The second video was filmed in color and mostly shown in the US where a smiling Brenda is shown performing with her band (including Joe Esposito) in a dimly lit nightclub with many people during a thunderstorm at night.
^"1988 The Year in Music & Video: Top Pop Singles". Billboard. Vol. 100, no. 52. December 24, 1988. p. Y-20.
^"Billboard Top 100 – 1988". Retrieved October 3, 2016.
December 02, 2023
piano, dark, song, american, singer, songwriter, brenda, russell, featuring, backing, vocals, esposito, first, single, taken, from, russell, 1988, album, here, single, brenda, russellfrom, album, hereb, side, this, time, need, releasedfebruary, 1988recorded198. Piano in the Dark is a song by American singer songwriter Brenda Russell featuring backing vocals by Joe Esposito It was the first single to be taken from Russell s 1988 album Get Here Piano in the Dark Single by Brenda Russellfrom the album Get HereB side This Time I Need You ReleasedFebruary 2 1988Recorded1987GenreR amp B soulLength5 20 album version 4 27 single version LabelA amp MSongwriter s Brenda RussellJeff HullScott CutlerProducer s Brenda RussellJeff HullBrenda Russell singles chronology If You Love The One You Lose 1981 Piano in the Dark 1988 Get Here 1988 Music video Piano in the Dark on YouTube Contents 1 Song information 2 Music video 3 Charts 3 1 Year end charts 4 ReferencesSong information editRussell believing that in every title there s a song somewhere made a habit of collecting interesting phrases she heard and placing them in a notebook for potential song titles It was through this process that she wrote the lyrics to Piano in the Dark as the title seemed to fit with the music her co writers sent her 1 In the early stages Russell did not understand what the title would refer to eventually deciding it was about this woman Her lover plays piano And she wants to leave him because she s really kind of bored But every time she does that he sits down and starts playing And it sucks her right back in She s so in love with the way he plays And he plays in the dark theoretically It s not that literal necessarily But that s what keeps her to him basically is his music And I just found that was an interesting story to write about 1 Initially Gravity was planned to be released as the first single however Herb Alpert pushed to have Piano released instead feeling that it better represented her as an artist 2 Piano in the Dark was released in early 1988 nine years after Russell s previous charting single on the Billboard Hot 100 1979 s So Good So Right The song gained heavy airplay and became Russell s biggest hit peaking at number 6 on the Billboard Hot 100 number 8 on the R amp B Chart 3 and number 3 on the Adult Contemporary Chart The song was also a moderate hit in the UK peaking at number 23 The song earned Russell two Grammy Award nominations in 1989 including one for Song of the Year Music video editThere are two music videos The first version filmed in black and white shows Brenda looking depressed in her apartment as she tosses cards in a derby and thinks about her lover a long haired blond man playing on the piano The second video was filmed in color and mostly shown in the US where a smiling Brenda is shown performing with her band including Joe Esposito in a dimly lit nightclub with many people during a thunderstorm at night Charts editChart 1988 PeakpositionCanada RPM Top Singles 4 23UK Singles Chart 23US Billboard Hot 100 6US Billboard Hot R amp B Singles 8US Billboard Adult Contemporary 3Year end charts edit Chart 1988 PositionUnited States Billboard 5 6 81References edit a b G Carrie Songwriter Interviews Brenda Russell Songfacts Retrieved 15 July 2019 Hunt Dennis 8 May 1988 Russell Shines With Piano in the Dark Los Angelis Times Retrieved 17 November 2017 Whitburn Joel 2004 Top R amp B Hip Hop Singles 1942 2004 Record Research p 507 Item Display RPM Library and Archives Canada Collectionscanada gc ca 1988 06 25 Retrieved 2018 07 13 1988 The Year in Music amp Video Top Pop Singles Billboard Vol 100 no 52 December 24 1988 p Y 20 Billboard Top 100 1988 Retrieved October 3 2016 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Piano in the Dark amp oldid 1158226696, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
