Welsh singer Bonnie Tyler had great success in much of Europe throughout the late '70s and early '80s, but she seemed destined to be a one-hit wonder in the US on the strength of her lone Top Ten hit, "It's A Heartache," which hit #3 in 1978. One problem was her American record label that had tried to steer her into the direction of more country-oriented material.

However, for her 1983 album Faster Than The Speed Of Night, Tyler joined forces with producer Jim Steinman, who had steered Meat Loaf to success during the '70s. The result was an album built around Steinman's penchant for bombastic rock and including several cover songs. It was an original, though, that sent the album into the Top Ten in the US (and much of the world) - "Total Eclipse Of The Heart."

Opening as a hushed piano ballad, "Total Eclipse Of The Heart" swelled to a dramatic crescendo as Tyler delivered the lyrics of lost-love in her distinctive raspy voice. Already a #1 hit in much of the world, the song was released in the US in July and became Tyler's second US Top 40 hit a month later. By October, "Total Eclipse Of The Heart" had reached the Top Ten and, a month later, the song was the #1 hit in American, a position it would hold for four weeks, making it one of the biggest hits of 1983.

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