Guitarist Billy Squier saw nearly a decade's worth of failed musical endeavors finally pay off with the release of his second solo album, Don't Say No, in 1981. The album went Top Ten and spawned several radio hits including the Top Twenty pop chart single "The Stroke," making him one of the year's breakthrough acts. Squier consolidated his pop-tinged, melodic hard rock success with that album's follow-up, Emotions In Motion.

So, when his album Signs Of Life arrived in the summer of 1984, Squier had built up a sizeable fan base with both pop and rock fans. Released in the midst of synth-based acts dominating the charts and radio, Squier opted to add more keyboards and glossier production to his trademark bombastic rock. The shift in style was quite evident on the set's first single, "Rock Me Tonite."

"Rock Me Tonite" was quickly embraced by rock radio and pop formats followed soon after as the song's video was a staple on MTV for months. The song had an undeniably catchy chorus and became Squier's fourth US Top 40 hit in July. Blending sprightly keyboards with Squier's familiar rock crunch helped it become his most mainstream single and "Rock Me Tonite" would become his highest-charting pop single, peaking at #15 in late September as it spent three months in the Top 40.

However, "Rock Me Tonite" would prove to be Squier's swan song. The video, featuring a melodramatic Squier prancing and preening, became a source of ridicule and, despite its heavy play on MTV, soon alienated many of Squier's hard rock fans. The song would, aside from a few minor hits - none of which cracked the Top 40 - be his final major hit and, though he would retain an audience throughout the rest of the decade, it would dwindle considerably from his early '80s heydey.

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