Obsession (song)

This article is about the New Wave single. For other songs of this name, see Obsession (disambiguation).

"Obsession"
Single by Animotion
from the album Animotion
B-side	"Turn Around"
Released	November 23, 1984
Format	7" vinyl, 12" vinyl
Recorded	1983
Genre	Synthpop, New Wave, Hi-NRG
Length	3:11
Label	Mercury
Writer(s)	Holly Knight, Michael Des Barres
Producer	John Ryan
Animotion singles chronology
"Obsession" (1985) "Let Him Go" (1985)

"Obsession" is a 1983 song covered in 1984 by the Synthpop-New Wave group Animotion. The song hit number six in the United States, and number five in the United Kingdom in early 1985, helped by a distinctive video that received heavy rotation on MTV.

History

"Obsession" was originally written and recorded as a duet by songwriter Holly Knight and musician Michael Des Barres in 1983, although the recording did not perform well. This version was prominently featured in the 1983 film A Night in Heaven, most notably in a scene in which Christopher Atkins bumps and grinds in Lesley Ann Warren's face in sync with the rhythm of the song. The song was featured on the film's soundtrack, but did not receive enough attention to warrant much radio play or a place on any Billboard charts. That version was also featured in the theatrical trailer to the 1986 film 9 1/2 Weeks, starring Mickey Rourke and Kim Basinger.

It's a mainstay on 1980s compilations and is featured in the 2002 video game Grand Theft Auto: Vice City as part of the New Wave radio station Wave 103. It has also been used as the theme song for WWE Saturday Night's Main Event (aired on NBC) and FashionTelevisionChannel, as well as MTV's House of Style. It was featured in the 2000 comedy film Lucky Numbers and documentary "What the Bleep Do We Know!?". . Various artists have covered the song, including The Azoic in 2004, and the Sugababes, for their album - Taller In More Ways, in 2005. The song has been used as the opening theme for the internationally syndicated Canadian program FT - FashionTelevision since it premiered in 1986. It has recently been featured in the films El Cantante and Adventureland, the TV show Weeds and was featured in the trailer for Hot Tub Time Machine and the movie itself.

The track has now been sampled by Australian DJ/producer Andy J, in a track titled "I Will Have You", released to radio late December^[when?].^{[citation needed]}

Contrary to popular belief, the song was never covered by Human League and has often been falsely attributed to them.

Music video

The music video features the Animotion band members — focusing on the two singers, Bill Wadhams and Astrid Plane — dressed in various costumes (such as Mark Antony and Cleopatra) while performing the song next to a swimming pool and inside a luxury house.

Track listings

7" Single

1. Obsession 3:58
2. Turn Around 3:54

12" Single

1. Obsession (Dance) 6:00
2. Obsession (Dub) 5:30

Chart performance

Chart (1984/85)	Peak position
U.S. Billboard Hot 100	6
U.S. Billboard Hot Dance Club Play	35
U.S. Hot Dance Music/Maxi-Singles Sales	3
Canadian Singles Chart	7
UK Singles Chart	5
German Singles Chart	8[1]
Austrian Singles Chart	17[2]
Dutch Top 40	42
New Zealand Singles Chart	10

References

1. ^ musicline.de
2. ^ austriancharts.at