About The Song

“Total Eclipse Of The Heart” was written and produced by Jim Steinman, whose songs were always passionate, often opulent, and sometimes perplexing. This one is all three.
Steinman rarely divulged the meaning behind his lyrics, but he did say this one was a tribute to the 1922 vampire film Nosferatu, an adaptation of the Dracula story. This helps explain the “love in the dark” that permeates the song. The singer is on edge, at times lonely, nervous, and terrified. She calls out for her lover, ready to join him in a forever that may be more than metaphorical (vampires are immortal). When he comes for her, it’s a total eclipse of the heart. Forever starts tonight.

Bonnie Tyler, from Swansea, Wales, was best known at the time for her 1977 hit “It’s A Heartache.” Jim Steinman thought her distinctive raspy voice was the perfect vessel for “Total Eclipse Of The Heart.” “It sounded so sensual but so ravaged,” he said on the ITV program Smash. “It sounded heroic that she could sing at all.”

“Total Eclipse” hit #1 in the US on October 1, 1983. The for the next three weeks, it retained the top spot while another Jim Steinman composition – “Making Love Out Of Nothing At All” by Air Supply – stayed at #2, never reaching the summit. At least one writer came up with the headline “Total Eclipse Of The Charts.”  The song was nominated for the Grammy Award for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance. Worldwide, the single has sales in excess of 6 million copies and was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) for sales of over 1 million copies after its release, updated to platinum in 2001 when the certification threshold changed.

Video

Lyrics

“Total Eclipse Of The Heart”

(Turn around)
Every now and then
I get a little bit lonely
And you’re never coming ’round

(Turn around)
Every now and then
I get a little bit tired
Of listening to the sound of my tears

(Turn around)
Every now and then
I get a little bit nervous
That the best of all the years have gone by

(Turn around)
Every now and then
I get a little bit terrified
And then I see the look in your eyes

(Turn around, bright eyes)
Every now and then I fall apart
(Turn around, bright eyes)
Every now and then
I fall apart

(Turn around)
Every now and then
I get a little bit restless
And I dream of something wild

(Turn around)
Every now and then
I get a little bit helpless
And I’m lying like a child in your arms

(Turn around)
Every now and then
I get a little bit angry
And I know I’ve got to get out and cry

(Turn around)
Every now and then
I get a little bit terrified
But then I see the look in your eyes

(Turn around, bright eyes)
Every now and then
I fall apart
Turn around, bright eyes
Every now and then
I fall apart

And I need you now tonight
And I need you more than ever
And if you only hold me tight
We’ll be holding on forever
And we’ll only be making it right
‘Cause we’ll never be wrong

Together we can take it to the end of the line
Your love is like a shadow on me all of the time (all of the time)

I don’t know what to do and I’m always in the dark
We’re living in a powder keg and giving off sparks

I really need you tonight
Forever’s gonna start tonight
(Forever’s gonna start tonight)

Once upon a time I was falling in love
But now I’m only falling apart
There’s nothing I can do
A total eclipse of the heart

Once upon a time there was light in my life
But now there’s only love in the dark
Nothing I can say
A total eclipse of the heart

(Turn around, bright eyes)
(Turn around, bright eyes)

(Turn around)
Every now and then
I know you’ll never be the boy
You always wanted to be

(Turn around)
But every now and then
I know you’ll always be the only boy
Who wanted me the way that I am

(Turn around)
Every now and then
I know there’s no one in the universe
As magical and wondrous as you

(Turn around)
Every now and then
I know there’s nothing any better
There’s nothing that I just wouldn’t do

(Turn around, bright eyes)
Every now and then I fall apart
(Turn around, bright eyes)
Every now and then I fall apart

And I need you now tonight
And I need you more than ever
And if you only hold me tight
We’ll be holding on forever
And we’ll only be making it right
‘Cause we’ll never be wrong

Together we can take it to the end of the line
Your love is like a shadow on me all of the time (all of the time)

I don’t know what to do
I’m always in the dark
Living in a powder keg and giving off sparks

I really need you tonight
Forever’s gonna start tonight
(Forever’s gonna start tonight)

Once upon a time I was falling in love
But now I’m only falling apart
Nothing I can do
A total eclipse of the heart

Once upon a time there was light in my life
But now there’s only love in the dark
Nothing I can say
A total eclipse of the heart

A total eclipse of the heart
A total eclipse of the heart

(Turn around, bright eyes)
(Turn around, bright eyes)
(Turn around)

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