B-side "Bell Jar" Recorded 1988 Length 3:27 | Released October 1988 Genre Pop rock, power pop | |
Format 7" vinyl
CD
Cassette single | ||
"In Your Room" is a 1988 song by American rock group The Bangles, written by Susanna Hoffs, Tom Kelly and Billy Steinberg. The song was released as the first single from the band's third album, Everything. It reached the top five of the US singles chart, and also charted in Australia, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom.
Contents
Background
According to songwriter Billy Steinberg, "In Your Room" was written in the same batch of songs as "Eternal Flame". Steinberg recalled, "[The Bangles] liked everything from Petula Clark to The Beatles and all the Sixties music they loved. So when we got together to write with Susanna it was right up our alley because of course Tom and I grew up in the sixties and that was what we loved. So we had that in common with Susanna". He added that the song's style was somewhat similar to "Mony Mony", the 1968 hit single by Tommy James and the Shondells.
Release and reception
Released in October 1988, "In Your Room" entered the Billboard Hot 100 the following month and peaked at number five in January. It reached number four on the Singles Sales chart, number nine on the Hot 100 Airplay chart, and number five on the Modern Rock chart. The song also peaked at number 11 in New Zealand, number 41 in Australia, and number 35 in the United Kingdom.
AllMusic writer Matthew Greenwald praised the band's rhythm section for the song's chorus and bridge sections, and noted that the song's lyrics were ideal for Hoffs' "kittenish sexuality". Rolling Stone writer Jim Freek said "In Your Room" was perhaps the band's best song to be released after their debut album.