The Lady in Red (Chris de Burgh song)

"The Lady in Red"
Single by Chris de Burgh
from the album Into the Light
B-side
  • "Borderline"
  • "The Ecstasy of Flight (I Love the Night)"
Released20 June 1986[1]
GenreSoft rock[2]
Length4:17
LabelA&M
Songwriter(s)Chris de Burgh
Producer(s)Paul Hardiman
Chris de Burgh singles chronology
"Fire on the Water"
(1986) 		"The Lady in Red"
(1986) 		"Fatal Hesitation"
(1986)

"The Lady in Red" is a song by British-Irish singer-songwriter Chris de Burgh. It was released on 20 June 1986 as the second single from the album Into the Light. Charting at number one in several countries and reaching the top three in the United States, the song was responsible for introducing de Burgh's music to a mainstream audience worldwide.

Creation

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The song was written in reference to his wife, Diane, who used to come and watch him perform at his parents' hotel. It was released on the album Into the Light. On the British TV series This Is Your Life, de Burgh said that the song was inspired by the memory of when he first saw Diane, and how men so often cannot even remember what their wives were wearing when they first met.[3] It is written in the key of Bb major, and the drum pattern is performed by a Roland TR-808 drum machine.

Release

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The song was a massive hit across the world, quickly becoming de Burgh's best-selling single and his signature song, transforming him from a cult artist into a household name in many countries. It reached the number one position in Canada, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Norway, and the Flanders region of Belgium. It reached number three in the United States during the spring of 1987. The song also propelled its parent album Into The Light to the number two position in the United Kingdom and success in other markets. The song was de Burgh's third UK hit single and first to reach the top 40.[4]

Critical reception

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Responding to de Burgh's comment that the song was "not the best song I ever wrote", Dennis Hunt of the Los Angeles Times wrote in 1987, "That's an understatement. It's not even the best song on his latest album [...] Whether you like the song or not, it's easy to see why this syrupy ballad clicked with the masses, even though it doesn't have a particularly memorable melody, distinctive vocals or an ounce of subtlety. What it does boast, however, is the kind of gushing sentiment women love to hear from men — but seldom do."[5]

The song tends to divide public opinion and it was voted the tenth most annoying song of all time in a poll commissioned by Dotmusic in 2000. It was one of only two singles in the top ten which were not novelty songs.[6] It was also voted the third worst song of the 1980s by readers of Rolling Stone.[7] It was chosen as the sixth worst love song of all time by Gigwise, who said "it is destined to grate on you at weddings forever more."[8] In a 2001 poll of more than 50,000 Channel 4 viewers and readers of The Observer, the song was voted the fourth most-hated UK number-one single.[9]

Neil Norman of The Independent argued in 2006, "Only James Blunt has managed to come up with a song more irritating than Chris de Burgh's 'Lady in Red'. The 1986 mawkfest – according to De Burgh – has reduced many famous people to tears including Diana, Princess of Wales, Fergie and Mel Smith. The less emotionally impressionable, meanwhile, adopt Oscar Wilde's view on the death of Little Nell – that it would take a heart of stone to listen to 'Lady in Red' and not laugh."[10]

Music video

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The music video is a studio performance, with animation at the beginning and at the end of the song. It features a curly-haired woman in red who depicts the song's lyrics.

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The song has been featured on numerous movie soundtracks. It is briefly featured in a scene of the 2000 film American Psycho where the main character Patrick Bateman is listening to the song while in his office.[11][importance?]; in the 1988 Academy Award-winning film Working Girl during a slow dance scene between Tess McGill (Melanie Griffith) and Mick Dugan (Alec Baldwin); in the 2004 film, Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story, acting as the theme music for the character Fran Stalinovskovichdaviddivichski (played by Missi Pyle), who wears a red warmup suit; and in the 2024 film Deadpool & Wolverine, during the scene when the dog variant of Deadpool (played by Ryan Reynolds) named Mary Puppins aka Dogpool (played by Peggy the Pugese) comes running to Deadpool in the Void.

Chart performance

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Certifications

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Region Certification Certified units/sales
Brazil (Pro-Música Brasil)[45] Gold 30,000‡
Canada (Music Canada)[46] Platinum 100,000^
Denmark (IFPI Danmark)[47] Gold 45,000‡
Spain (PROMUSICAE)[48] Gold 30,000‡
United Kingdom (BPI)[1] Gold 500,000^

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.
‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

Alternate versions

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  • In 1987, de Burgh released a Spanish language adaptation of "The Lady in Red" entitled "La Dama de Ayer" (literally "the lady of yesterday") as a 7-inch single in Spain.
  • In 1995, de Burgh recorded a version with a full orchestra for Beautiful Dreams, his twelfth original album.
  • In 2022, de Burgh performed a solo piano version of "The Lady in Red" in Schönbrunn Palace on the ABC reality television show, The Bachelor.

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b "British single certifications – Chris de Burgh – The Lady in Red". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 3 May 2022.
  2. ^ Coyle, Colin (5 July 2009). "Chris De Burgh cancels Iran gig". The Sunday Times. Archived from the original on 23 May 2015. Retrieved 23 May 2015.
  3. ^ "Lady in Red by Chris de Burgh". Songfacts. Retrieved 27 June 2010.
  4. ^ Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. ISBN 1-904994-10-5.
  5. ^ Hunt, Dennis (7 June 1987). "'Lady in Red' may be his ticket to U.S. stardom". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2 April 2024.
  6. ^ "Birdie Song tops hall of shame". BBC News Online. 24 July 2000. Retrieved 4 August 2014.
  7. ^ "Readers' Poll: The 10 Worst Songs of the 1980s". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 4 August 2014.
  8. ^ "The 20 Worst Love Songs of All Time". Gigwise. Retrieved 4 August 2014.
  9. ^ Arlidge, John (7 January 2001). "'Imagine' top song ever". The Guardian. Retrieved 5 August 2014.
  10. ^ Norman, Neil (29 October 2006). "Chris de Burgh: Great hands, shame about the voice". The Independent. Archived from the original on 18 June 2022. Retrieved 7 August 2014.
  11. ^ Burke, Kevin (23 November 2022). "American Psycho — An 80s Homage". HeadStuff. Retrieved 1 February 2023.
  12. ^ "Hits of the World". Billboard. Vol. 98, no. 50. 13 December 1986. p. 56. ISSN 0006-2510.
  13. ^ "Chris de Burgh – The Lady in Red" (in German). Ö3 Austria Top 40. Retrieved 27 June 2010.
  14. ^ "Chris de Burgh – The Lady in Red" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. Retrieved 14 February 2014.
  15. ^ "Top RPM Adult Contemporary: Issue 8843." RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved 14 February 2014.
  16. ^ "Top RPM Singles: Issue 0743." RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved 14 February 2014.
  17. ^ Nyman, Jake (2005). Suomi soi 4: Suuri suomalainen listakirja (in Finnish) (1st ed.). Helsinki: Tammi. ISBN 951-31-2503-3.
  18. ^ "InfoDisc : Tous les Titres par Artiste". InfoDisc (in French). Select "Chris DeBurgh" from the artist drop-down menu. Archived from the original on 19 May 2013. Retrieved 14 February 2014.
  19. ^ "Chris de Burgh – The Lady in Red" (in German). GfK Entertainment charts. Retrieved 27 June 2010.
  20. ^ "The Irish Charts – Search Results – Lady in Red". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved 27 June 2010.
  21. ^ "Nederlandse Top 40 – week 38, 1986" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40. Retrieved 27 June 2010.
  22. ^ "Chris de Burgh – The Lady in Red" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved 14 February 2014.
  23. ^ "Chris de Burgh – The Lady in Red". Top 40 Singles. Retrieved 27 June 2010.
  24. ^ "Chris de Burgh – The Lady in Red". VG-lista. Retrieved 27 June 2010.
  25. ^ "South African Rock Lists Website SA Charts 1969 – 1989 Acts (D)". Rock.co.za. Retrieved 14 February 2014.
  26. ^ Salaverri, Fernando (September 2005). Sólo éxitos: año a año, 1959–2002 (in Spanish) (1st ed.). Spain: Fundación Autor-SGAE. ISBN 84-8048-639-2.
  27. ^ "Chris de Burgh – The Lady in Red". Singles Top 100. Retrieved 27 June 2010.
  28. ^ "Chris de Burgh – The Lady in Red". Swiss Singles Chart. Retrieved 27 June 2010.
  29. ^ "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 14 February 2014.
  30. ^ "Chris de Burgh Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard.
  31. ^ "Chris de Burgh Chart History (Adult Contemporary)". Billboard.
  32. ^ "CASH BOX Top 100 Singles – Week ending MAY 30, 1987". Cash Box. Archived from the original on 6 October 2012.
  33. ^ "National Top 100 Singles for 1986". Kent Music Report. No. 650. December 1986. Retrieved 24 January 2023 – via Imgur.
  34. ^ a b "Forum – ARIA Charts: Special Occasion Charts – Top 100 End of Year AMR Charts – 1980s". Australian-charts.com. Hung Medien. Retrieved 14 February 2014.
  35. ^ "Jaaroverzichten 1986" (in Dutch). Ultratop. Hung Medien. Retrieved 14 February 2014.
  36. ^ "Top 100 Singles of '86". RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved 26 January 2018.
  37. ^ "Top 100 Single-Jahrescharts – 1986" (in German). GfK Entertainment. Retrieved 6 December 2020.
  38. ^ "Top 100-Jaaroverzicht van 1986" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40. Retrieved 14 February 2014.
  39. ^ "Jaaroverzichten – Single 1986" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Hung Medien. Retrieved 14 February 2014.
  40. ^ Copsey, Rob (16 April 2021). "Official Top 40 best-selling songs of 1986". Official Charts Company. Archived from the original on 16 April 2021. Retrieved 6 August 2023.
  41. ^ "Top Singles of '87". RPM. Library and Archives Canada. 26 December 1987. Retrieved 14 February 2014.
  42. ^ "Top 20 Hit Singles of 1987". Rock.co.za. Retrieved 14 February 2014.
  43. ^ "Top 100 Hits for 1987". The Longbored Surfer. Archived from the original on 4 January 2016. Retrieved 14 February 2014.
  44. ^ "The CASH BOX Year-End Charts: 1987". Cash Box. Archived from the original on 6 October 2012.
  45. ^ "Brazilian single certifications – Chris de Burgh – The Lady in Red" (in Portuguese). Pro-Música Brasil. Retrieved 15 August 2024.
  46. ^ "Canadian single certifications – Chris de Burgh – The Lady in Red". Music Canada. Retrieved 22 August 2022.
  47. ^ "Danish single certifications – Chris de Burgh – The Lady in Red". IFPI Danmark. Retrieved 10 January 2023.
  48. ^ "Spanish single certifications – Chris de Burgh – The Lady in Red". El portal de Música. Productores de Música de España. Retrieved 2 August 2024.
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