Released July 1980 (1980-07) Genre Pop rock
worldbeat Label Warner Bros. | Format 7"
12" Length 4:02 | |
B-side "How the Heart Approaches What It Yearns" | ||
"Late in the Evening" is a song by the American singer-songwriter Paul Simon. It was the lead single from his fifth studio album, One-Trick Pony (1980), released on Warner Bros. Records.
His first single release for Warner, "Late in the Evening" was released in July 1980 and became a hit on several charts worldwide. In the U.S., the song hit number six on the Billboard Hot 100. Internationally, the song was a top 20 hit in the Netherlands, Belgium, and New Zealand.
Chart performance
"Late in the Evening" performed on singles charts in several territories worldwide. In the U.S., the single premiered on the Billboard Hot 100 at position 46 on August 9, 1980, rising over the following weeks to a peak of number six on September 27, 1980. It spent sixteen weeks on the chart in total. It had also peaked at number seven on the magazine's Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks chart two weeks earlier, where it also spent sixteen weeks. In Canada, it first premiered on the magazine's RPM's all-genre singles chart, the RPM 100, on August 23 at number 87, eventually peaking at number 19 on October 25. It debuted on the magazine's "Adult Oriented Playlist" chart on September 6, 1980 at number 39, later peaking at number two on October 25.
In the United Kingdom, the song premiered on the UK Singles Chart on August 31, 1980 at number 74, and rose over two weeks to a peak of number 58 on September 14, 1980. It performed better in the Netherlands, peaking at number 11, in Belgium at number 15, and in New Zealand at number 19. Nearby in Australia, the song fared better than its UK performance, peaking at position 34.