The stars were definitely aligned during the creation of 1985’s “Rhythm of the Night.”

The song was one of the earliest hits written by the extremely talented and prolific Dianne Warren…and from there, it found it’s way to Motown, where the family group DeBarge was starting to make some serious noise on the charts with a number of hit ballads.

Knowing that the family was capable of performing exceptional dance music as well as ballads, Motown decided it was about time to showcase their versatility with an uptempo change-of-pace single.

To show they were totally invested in the idea, they hired producer Richard Perry, who had already played hitmaker for The Pointer Sisters, Carly Simon, and Harry Nilsson.

And when “Rhythm of the Night” was recorded and released, everything immediately fell into place–a perfect example of the equation: Great Song + Great Production + Great Vocals (led by El Debarge) =

A BIG HIT!

The song charted in 14 countries, including the US, where it topped Billboard’s Black Singles and Adult Contemporary Charts, and reached #3 on the Hot 100.

“Rhythm of the Night” was most definitely–and by design–a Great Song of 1985!