B-side "On the Loose" Format 7" Single
12" Single Label Epic | Released March 1985 Length 4:03 | |
Genre Glam metal, heavy metal | ||
"Rock the Night" is a single released by the Swedish hard rock band Europe. The song was written by vocalist Joey Tempest in 1984 and premiered on the band's Wings of Tomorrow tour the same year.
Contents
It was released twice; in 1985 as a single from the soundtrack to the Swedish film On the Loose, and in 1986 as the second international single from the album The Final Countdown. The B-side for both releases was a 1985 re-recording of the band's debut single, "Seven Doors Hotel".
The 1986 release became a Top 10 hit in France (silver disc, 250.000 copies), Germany, Italy, Holland, Ireland and Switzerland, and peaked at #12 on the UK Singles Chart and #30 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in the United States. The music video was directed by Nick Morris and shot at the Hard Rock Cafe in Stockholm. It was the first Europe music video that featured the band's new guitarist, Kee Marcello, since the original guitarist John Norum had left the band weeks before the video shoot.
The song was included in the 2007 film Hot Rod and the European version of the Nintendo DS game Guitar Hero: On Tour.
Music video
There were two music videos released for "Rock the Night." The original 1985 version focused on the band performing the song in a simple garage, never taking its view away from a member of the band. The second begins with Europe drinking in a car before walking into the Hard Rock Cafe, where the people inside are watching a video...of Europe's "Rock the Night." Joey begins singing while the band is looking at the Cafe's order menu. The others use forks and their imagination to play invisible instruments. The rest of the people inside soon become a crowd, clapping and cheering them on. Live footage was also included, although overdubbed by the studio version of the song. After the chorus, Joey uses a ketchup bottle as an imaginary microphone, before the waiter delivers a real wireless one. Right before the solo, Kee removes a guitar from the Cafe's wall. They take the stage during the solo and perform the remainder of the song.