Square Rooms

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

"Square Rooms"
Square Rooms.jpg
Single by Al Corley
from the album Square Rooms
B-side"Don't Play with Me"
Released1984
Genre
Length3:39
LabelMercury Records
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)Harold Faltermeyer
Al Corley singles chronology
"Square Rooms"
(1984) 		"Cold Dresses"
(1985)

"Square Rooms" is a song by American singer and actor Al Corley. It was the first single from his debut album of the same name. First released in 1984, the song was a hit in some European countries and had a moderate success in the United States in 1985.

Background and writing[]

After two seasons playing one of the first gay leading characters an American TV series, Dynasty, Al Corley left the nighttime soap opera to become a singer.

The media-savvy singer affected the brooding look and attitude popular among pop stars and GQ models at the time: pouty, dark glances and tousled hair. His choice of image worked best in France, where his television performances elicited the unbridled enthusiasm of teenage girls. However, according to Elia Habib, a French charts specialist, his success was not only based on his physical appearance. Indeed, "Square Rooms"' music had a large popular appeal and had a production designed for the dance floor. It was produced and composed by the German musician Harold Faltermeyer, who had previously arranged "Self Control", a worldwide pop and dance-floor smash for Laura Branigan in 1984 which featured a similar vocal hook. Faltermeyer would achieve his greatest personal success later the same year, composing, performing and producing the score to Beverly Hills Cop, a 1984 film directed by Martin Brest, including its hit instrumental theme, "Axel F".[2]

Chart performance[]

"Square Rooms" was released first in Switzerland, where it was a hit, peaking at number 6 on 21 October 1984, and staying in the top 30 for ten weeks.[3] The single debuted at no. 47 in the French Singles Chart on 5 January 1985. It climbed quickly and was no. 1 for five nonconsecutive weeks, from 9 March to 13 April 1985. After its peak, it lingered on the charts until its 27th week, on 20 July 1985.[4] The song also achieved success in Italy (no. 12), Germany (no. 13) and Austria where it reached no. 15 in April 1985.[5] "Square Rooms" was released last in Corley's native US, where the single was only a minor pop hit, reaching no. 80 on the Hot 100 on 1 June 1985. American dancefloors were more receptive than its airwaves; Corley reached no. 26 on the Billboard dance chart[6] the week of 22 June 1985.

Formats and track listings[]

7" single
No.TitleLength
1."Square Rooms"3:39
2."Don't Play with Me"4:20
12" maxi
No.TitleLength
1."Square Rooms (12" version)"8:02
2."Square Rooms (7" version)"3:39
3."Don't Play with Me"4:20
  • The 12-inch (long) version includes an entire additional verse prior to the first chorus. This verse is excised in both the single and album versions of the song.

Charts[]

Covers[]

A French cover version was recorded by France Lise under the title "On vit à deux".[13]

See also[]

References[]

  1. ^ Jump up to: a b "Dance/Disco > Picks > Al Corley – Square Rooms (8:00)". Billboard. Vol. 97 no. 17. 27 April 1985. p. 67. ISSN 0006-2510.
  2. ^ Habib, Elia (2002). Muz hit.tubes (in French). Alinéa Bis. p. 35. ISBN 2-9518832-0-X.
  3. ^ Jump up to: a b "Swisscharts.com – Al Corley – Square Rooms". Swiss Singles Chart. Retrieved 23 July 2013.
  4. ^ Jump up to: a b "Lescharts.com – Al Corley – Square Rooms" (in French). Les classement single. Retrieved 23 July 2013.
  5. ^ Jump up to: a b "Austriancharts.at – Al Corley – Square Rooms" (in German). Ö3 Austria Top 40. Retrieved 23 July 2013.
  6. ^ Jump up to: a b "Al Corley – Awards". AllMusic. Retrieved 23 July 2013.
  7. ^ "Ultratop.be – Al Corley – Square Rooms" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. Retrieved 23 July 2013.
  8. ^ "European Top 40 Singles – Week Ending 20.04.85". World Charts. Archived from the original on 16 April 2015.
  9. ^ "Hot 100 Singles". Billboard. Vol. 97 no. 22. 1 June 1985. p. 68. ISSN 0006-2510.
  10. ^ "CASH BOX Top 100 Singles – Week ending MAY 18, 1985". Cash Box. Archived from the original on 17 September 2012.
  11. ^ "Offiziellecharts.de – Al Corley – Square Rooms". GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved 26 March 2019.
  12. ^ "TOP – 1985". Top-france.fr (in French). Retrieved 11 July 2014.
  13. ^ Lemonier, Marc (2008). Nos années Top, clips et 45 tours: 1984–1991 (in French). pp. 31–32. ISBN 978-2-258-07648-8.
Retrieved from ""