"Dancing in the Dark" is a 1983 single by British singer Kim Wilde

Kim Wilde

Kim Wilde is an English pop singer, author and television presenter who burst onto the music scene in 1981 with the number 2 UK Singles Chart new wave classic "Kids in America". In 1987 she had a major hit in the United States when her version of The Supremes' classic "You Keep Me Hangin' On"...

. It is the second single from the album Catch as Catch Can.

Overview

The song marked a change in direction for the singer, with more of a dance-orientated style than her earlier work. It did not meet with the success of previous singles, only just scraping into the UK Top 75. Its peak at No.67 was Wilde's lowest chart showing up to this point and would remain so until 1990's "Time

Time (Kim Wilde song)

"Time" is the second single from Love Moves, the 1990 album by Kim Wilde.The song was slightly remixed from the version on the album for its release as a single and was extended for the 12" and CD-single formats. It was released exclusively in the United Kingdom where it stalled at the bottom end...

". Although it did make the top 30 in a number of European countries, Wilde considered this her "rock bottom" and was unhappy with the song.

"No-one expected that 'Dancing in the Dark' would do so badly. Every Monday I woke up in fear and asked my record company if the record had made the charts yet. They reacted coldly. Kim Wilde had disappointed her entourage. And I lost my self-confidence. No, it wasn't really a good song. My brother and father went through a less creative period. They own up to that now. And it can't be a success every time, of course. I still thought I'd failed though."

The track was written by Nicky Chinn

Nicky Chinn

Nicky Chinn born Nicholas Barry Chinn, 16 May 1945, London, UK) is a British songwriter and record producer. Together with Mike Chapman he had a long string of hit singles in the UK and US in the 1970s and early 1980s, including several number-one records...

 and Paul Gurvitz, making it only the second track Wilde recorded not written by her father

Marty Wilde

Marty Wilde is an English singer and songwriter. He was among the first generation of British pop stars to emulate American rock and roll, and is the father of pop singers Ricky Wilde, Kim Wilde and Roxanne Wilde.-Career:Wilde was performing under the name Reg Patterson at London's Condor Club in...

 and brother (the latter did, however, receive production credits). It was remixed by Nile Rodgers

Nile Rodgers

Nile Gregory Rodgers is an American musician, producer, composer, arranger, and guitarist.-Biography:...

 for the extended 12" release, which also included an instrumental version of the song. The B-side of the single was "Back Street Driver", another track from the Catch as Catch Can album. A promotional video was made for the single, which featured Wilde dressed in black and performing the song to camera, backed by a silhouette

Silhouette

A silhouette is the image of a person, an object or scene consisting of the outline and a basically featureless interior, with the silhouetted object usually being black. Although the art form has been popular since the mid-18th century, the term “silhouette” was seldom used until the early decades...

d male dancer. "Dancing in the Dark" received mixed reviews in the press, as did the album, with some commenting on the song's risqué lyrics, which detail a romantic encounter with a stranger.

This single remains Wilde's final UK release with her original record label, RAK Records

RAK Records

Rak Records was a British record label, founded by record producer Mickie Most in 1969. Rak was home of artists like Herman's Hermits, Suzi Quatro, Mud, Kenny, Hot Chocolate, Smokie, Arrows, Span, Racey and Kim Wilde. Rak Records were distributed via a licensing deal with EMI, which bought the...

.

The song was also recorded in 1983 by Dutch-based singer Tony Sherman and released as a single. In 1985 it was recorded by Stacey Q

Stacey Q

Stacey Q is a pop singer, dancer and actress. She is best known for her 1985 hit single "Two of Hearts".-Early life:Stacey Swain was born on November 30, 1958 in Fullerton, California. She is the youngest of three children...

 on her debut album

Stacey Q (album)

Stacey Q is the eponymous debut solo album by singer Stacey Q. The album was only released in cassette format to Limited Release. Track B1 is a cover of Kim Wilde's "Dancing in the Dark."-Track listing:#"Shy Girl"...

.

Chart performance

Chart (1983)	Peak position
United Kingdom United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...	67
Denmark Denmark Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...	3
Switzerland Switzerland Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....	9
Germany Germany Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...	26

Personnel

• Ricky Wilde : Keyboards, bass, guitar, Linn programmes, synclavier, backing vocals
• Mark Hayward Chaplin : Bass guitar, backing vocals
• Trevor Murrell : Drums
• Pete Schwier, Will Gosling, Simon Schofield, Keith Fernley : Engineers