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London Nights

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"London Nights" is a song by British Europop duo London Boys, released in 1989 from their debut album, The Twelve Commandments of Dance. The single was written and produced by Ralf René Maué, and its cover artwork features photography from Andy Knight. It was a hit in the United Kingdom, Finland and Ireland where it was a top five hit, thus becoming the band's biggest hit single. Several formats of the single include an instrumental version of "London Nights", titled "London Days".

"London Nights"
Single by London Boys
from the album The Twelve Commandments of Dance
B-side"London Days" (the instrumental)
Released19 June 1989 (1989-06-19)[1]
GenreDisco[2]
Length4:00
LabelWEA, TELDEC
Songwriter(s)Ralf René Maué
Producer(s)Ralf René Maué
London Boys singles chronology
"Requiem '89"
(1989) 		"London Nights"
(1989) 		"Harlem Desire '89"
(1989)

Lyrics and music

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According to James Masterton, "London Nights" is similar to "Requiem", the duo's previous single, as it uses "the same formula of Gregorian chants, rap verses and uplifting choruses". Lyrically, it deals with parties and romance in London.[3]

Critical reception

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A review in Pan-European magazine Music & Media said it found "shades of Boney M on this disco single. Basic but effective. After the big success in the UK, ready for the Continent".[2] To Masterton, "Maue's wall of sound production gave the track a swagger which turned it into a true disco epic".[3] Tim Nicholson of Record Mirror considered that the song marked London Boys' end of the game, as their performance "start[ed] to lose its impact".[4] Retrospectively, in a 2015 review of the parent album, the Pop Rescue website considered that "the tempo, throbbing basseline, and the mixture of choral synth samples and dance beat really makes this song really catchy", adding that many features are reminiscent of Pet Shop Boys.[5]

Chart performance

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"London Nights" entered the UK Singles Chart at number 19 on July 1st, 1989, then climb to number three where it stayed for another week, reached a peak of number two the next week, being blocked from the number one slot by Sonia's "You'll Never Stop Me Loving You", and remained on the chart for nine weeks.[6] It received a silver disc.[7] It also entered the top five in Ireland where it hit number four and totaled eight weeks on the chart.[8] In the other European countries, it reached number one in Finland,[9] number nine in Switzerland,[10] and number 24 in Germany.[11] On the Eurochart Hot 100, it started at number 63 on July 8th, 1989, jumped to number 11 the next week and peaked at number six in its fourth week,[12] and fell of the chart after 13 weeks. Mainly aired on UK radios, it reached number 24 on the European Airplay Chart and appeared on the chart for six weeks.[13]

Track listings

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A. "London Nights" – 4:00
B. "London Days" (the instrumental) – 3:56
  • UK 12-inch single[15]
A. "London Nights" – 8:22
B. "London Days" (the instrumental) – 3:56
  • UK 12-inch remix single[16]
A1. "London Nights" (London remix) – 7:33
B1. "London Nights" – 3:28
B2. "London Days" (the instrumental) – 3:56
  • European mini maxi-CD single[17]
  1. "London Nights" (single version) – 4:00
  2. "Requiem" (Continental remix) – 7:40
  3. "London Nights" (12-inch version) – 8:10

Charts

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Certifications

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Certifications for "London Nights"
Region Certification Certified units/sales
United Kingdom (BPI)[7] Silver 200,000^

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

References

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  1. ^ Smith, Robin (17 June 1989). "News". Record Mirror. p. 4.
  2. ^ a b "Previews – Singles" (PDF). Music & Media. Vol. 6, no. 30. 29 July 1989. p. 13. OCLC 29800226. Retrieved 31 July 2023 – via World Radio History.
  3. ^ a b Masterton, James (2019). "London Boys". Chart Watch UK - Hits of 1989. ISBN 9781090753205.
  4. ^ Nicholson, Tim (24 June 1989). "45 reviewed by Tim Nicholson" (PDF). Record Mirror. London: Spotlight Publications Ltd. p. 31. ISSN 0144-5804. Retrieved 24 October 2021 – via World Radio History.
  5. ^ "REVIEW: "THE TWELVE COMMANDMENTS OF DANCE" BY LONDON BOYS (CD, 1989)". Pop Rescue. 13 July 2015. Retrieved 25 October 2023.
  6. ^ a b "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 8 February 2021.
  7. ^ a b "British single certifications – London Boys – London Nights". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 8 February 2021.
  8. ^ a b "The Irish Charts – Search Results – London Nights". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved 8 February 2021.
  9. ^ a b Nyman, Jake (2005). Suomi soi 4: Suuri suomalainen listakirja (in Finnish) (1st ed.). Helsinki: Tammi. ISBN 951-31-2503-3.
  10. ^ a b "London Boys – London Nights". Swiss Singles Chart. Retrieved 8 February 2021.
  11. ^ a b "Offiziellecharts.de – London Boys – London Nights" (in German). GfK Entertainment charts. Retrieved 8 February 2021.
  12. ^ a b "Eurochart Hot 100 Singles" (PDF). Music & Media. Vol. 6, no. 30. 29 July 1989. p. IV. Retrieved 8 February 2021.
  13. ^ a b "European Airplay Top 50" (PDF). Music & Media. Vol. 6, no. 32. 12 August 1989. p. III. OCLC 29800226. Retrieved 31 July 2023 – via World Radio History.
  14. ^ London Nights (German 7-inch single sleeve). London Boys. TELDEC. 1989. 247 019-7.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  15. ^ London Nights (UK 12-inch single sleeve). London Boys. Warner Music Group. 1989. YZ 393T, 247 018-0.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  16. ^ London Nights (UK 12-inch remix single sleeve). London Boys. Warner Music Group. 1989. YZ393 TX, 246 824-0.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  17. ^ London Nights (European mini maxi-CD single liner notes). London Boys. Warner Music Group. 1989. YZ 393 CD, 247 017-2.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  18. ^ "Response from ARIA re: chart inquiry, received 15 July 2015". imgur.com. Archived from the original on July 16, 2015. Retrieved January 27, 2024.
  19. ^ "Playlist Report - The most played records in Europe" (PDF). Music & Media. Vol. 6, no. 32. 12 August 1989. p. II. OCLC 29800226. Retrieved 1 August 2023 – via World Radio History.
  20. ^ "Top Dance Singles" (PDF). Music Week. 15 July 1989. p. 34. Retrieved 2 August 2023 – via World Radio History.
  21. ^ "Year End Singles". Record Mirror. 27 January 1990. p. 44.
  22. ^ Copsey, Rob (7 May 2021). "Official Top 40 best-selling songs of 1989". Official Charts. Retrieved 25 October 2023.
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