"Total Eclipse of the Heart" song story, music video, success

"Total Eclipse of the Heart." - smash hit Bonnie Tylerthat's on her album 1983 years Faster Than the Speed of Night. The insightful composition was written and produced by . Jim SteinmanThe songwriter, composer and producer, songwriter and performer... Having seen the light of day as a single, "Total Eclipse of the Heart." was a big breakthrough for Tyler! The song was the fifth best-selling single of 1983 within the UK... As for worldwide circulation, it has long since surpassed the 6 million copies... So, the track received first a gold and then a platinum certificate from the RIAA! After more than 30 years this song has been voted the third number one favourite ! 80-х of the year according to UK listeners! Talk about her story...

History, background

The author of this marvellous ballad is Jim Steinmanto which Bonnie Tyler approached her with a view to co-operation. At first, she was offered "Have You Ever Seen the Rain?" and "Goin' 'Through the Motions."but two weeks later, Tyler and her manager. David Aspden back to the studio flat where Steinman and Rory Dodd performed for her "Total Eclipse of the Heart."... It's worth noting that Jim was also responsible in choosing a band to record the track, which included Dodd (as lead vocalist). Steinman later recalled:

"I wrote this song exclusively for Bonnie. Only she could sing 'Total Eclipse of the Heart' the way it was meant to be sung... In this song I was trying to tell an unusual love story, and I wrote it as a vampire love story. It was originally called 'Vampire Lovers': a lot of it was because I was working on a musical about vampires at the time... And if you listen to the lyrics, you'll realise that it has really vampiric lines... It's all about darkness, the power of darkness and the place of love in the darkness...".

https://youtu.be/XBpu02ja7Xg

In the same interview. Jim Steinman told me that he wrote this song specifically for Bonnie Tyler: Jim wanted to showcase the power and brilliance of her voice... The producer said that in this track, Tyler sounded like a John Fogerty! The singer herself took the song as a "challenge" to perform it, adding that she doesn't like songs that can be sung by just about anyone:

"When Jim performed it for the first time that day, a shiver ran down my spine... I couldn't wait to record that song sooner..."

In the end, the ballad "Total Eclipse of the Heart." was a huge leap forward in the singer's career! The song became an international hit, reaching number one in six countries, including The United States and the United Kingdom... At its peak, it was selling about 60,000 copies a day! "Total Eclipse of the Heart" will be added to the list later. "100 Best Love Songs" canal VH1..

Lyrics, meaning

"Total Eclipse of the Heart." - is a brilliant classic, a heartfelt ballad about love, which will sound powerful and, most importantly, relevant for generations to come... We can rightfully say that it is one of the best songs of all time! As mentioned above, originally Jim Steinman wrote this masterpiece for a rock musical called Nosferatu The VampireJim wanted to create a song about the love of a vampire! That's why the lyrics of "Total Eclipse of the Heart" sound dark and even heavy... The title itself - "Total Eclipse of the Heart" - hints at darkness and "heartfelt" love. Listening to it, it becomes obvious that the narrator of the love story is clearly disturbed by the fact that the person he loves is not by his side....

Graduation, Critical Reception and Success

Released as a single in 1983, the song became a brutal success in many countries around the world! "Total Eclipse of the Heart." has topped the UK's most popular charts, as well as the US charts Billboard Hot 100! By the way: by topping the Hot 100, Bonnie Tyler became the first Welsh singer to achieve this feat. Amongst other things, the single has been awarded platinum status in the territory USA, England, Italy and Canada... And its worldwide circulation was more than 6 million copies! And, of course, "Total Eclipse of the Heart" has become Tyler's trademark: since its release, the singer has performed this ballad at every live concert she's performed.

Music video

The music video was directed by Russell Mulcahy. The filming took place in a sanatorium. Hollowaya large Victorian gothic hospital, Surrey, England. The music video shows us Bonnie TylerIn the story, the singer fantasises about her students at a boarding school for boys... It looks impressive... The number of views on YouTube has crossed the threshold of 800 million.

Subsequently, the clip won two awards at once Music Awards.

Interesting facts

• Song "Total Eclipse of the Heart." is gaining popularity every time an eclipse occurs. So, in 2017. Bonnie Tyler performed this hit song on board a cruise ship during a solar eclipse.....
• The tune was originally written Steinman for a 1980 film "A small circle of friends.".
• The composition had to be cut by two and a half minutes for radio.