The Heat Is On (Agnetha Fältskog song)

"The Heat Is On" is a song written by Florrie Palmer and Tony Ashton, originally recorded by Australian singer Noosha Fox in 1979. It was notably recorded by Swedish singer Agnetha Fältskog in 1983 for her debut English-language solo studio album, Wrap Your Arms Around Me.

"The Heat Is On"
Single by Agnetha Fältskog
from the album Wrap Your Arms Around Me
B-side	"Man"
Released	3 May 1983[1]
Recorded	1983
Genre	Europop
Length	3:53
Label	Polar Music
Songwriter(s)	Florrie Palmer Tony Ashton
Producer(s)	Mike Chapman
Agnetha Fältskog singles chronology
"Never Again" (1982) "The Heat Is On" (1983) "Wrap Your Arms Around Me" (1983)

Original releases

The song was originally recorded in 1979 by Noosha Fox, which failed to chart when Fox released it as a single. It had also been rewritten by Manfred Mann's Earth Band as "On the Run" for their 1980 album Chance.

Agnetha Fältskog version

Fältskog's version was released as lead European single from Wrap Your Arms Around Me.

Background

In 1982, ABBA had released the compilation The Singles: The First Ten Years, Frida had embarked on a solo career with her successful first English-language album, Something’s Going On, produced by Phil Collins, while Fältskog released a duet single, Never Again with Tomas Ledin. In early 1983, Fältskog recorded the album Wrap Your Arms Around Me and the lead single became "The Heat Is On", released on May 1983. In an interview, Fältskog said “every time a single of ours becomes a hit we are happy. Now that I hear my own single on the radio I get excited. A very happy feeling. Especially because we worked hard on it. It has influenced my life for months.”^[2]

The B-side of "The Heat Is On" was the song "Man", written by Fältskog herself. Compared to her pre-ABBA-albums where most of the songs were self-penned, this was the only song on the Wrap Your Arms Around Me album that she wrote herself.

Chart performance

The single reached No.1 in Sweden and Norway, and peaked at No. 2 in Belgium and the Netherlands. In the United Kingdom, "The Heat Is On" peaked at No. 35, making it Fältskog's highest-charting solo single in the UK until the release of her 2004 comeback single, "If I Thought You'd Ever Change Your Mind", which reached No. 11.

In some countries, the record companies also released a 12-inch single featuring an extended version of "The Heat Is On" instead of the album version.

Music video

The accompanying music video was shot by Swedish director Erik Irion Nanne in a public bath in Stockholm named Centralbadet for two nights after closing time. According to Nanne, after the last shot, Fältskog fell into the water and could not continue (her hair got all wet). The video also features dancer Blossom Tainton.^[3]

Charts

Weekly chart performance for "The Heat Is On" Chart (1983) Peak position Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders)[4] 2 Finland (Suomen virallinen lista)[5] 22 Ireland (IRMA)[6] 28 Netherlands (Dutch Top 40)[7] 2 Netherlands (Single Top 100)[8] 5 Norway (VG-lista)[9] 1 Sweden (Sverigetopplistan)[10] 1 Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade)[11] 15 UK Singles (OCC)[12] 35 West Germany (GfK)[13] 20

Year-end chart performance for "The Heat Is On" Chart (1983) Position Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders)[14] 24 Netherlands (Dutch Top 40)[15] 20 Netherlands (Single Top 100)[16] 41

References

1. "swedishcharts.com – Agnetha Faltskog – The Heat is on". Hung Medien. Retrieved 5 December 2024.
2. "ABBA'S AGNETHA NU OOK MET EEN SOLO-ELPEE OP DE MARKT „Frida en ik worden heel vaak met elkaar vergeleken. We lachen er om!"". Limburgsch dagblad. 1983-05-21. Retrieved 2024-12-29.
3. "Agnetha Fältskog -The Heat Is On". YouTube. 2013-05-04. Archived from the original on 2021-12-21. Retrieved 2014-05-23.
4. "Agnetha Fältskog – The Heat Is On" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. Retrieved 22 March 2016.
5. Pennanen, Timo (2006). Sisältää hitin – levyt ja esittäjät Suomen musiikkilistoilla vuodesta 1972 (in Finnish) (1st ed.). Helsinki: Kustannusosakeyhtiö Otava. ISBN 978-951-1-21053-5.
6. "The Irish Charts – Search Results – The Heat Is On". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved 22 March 2016.
7. "Nederlandse Top 40 – Agnetha Faltskog" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40. Retrieved 24 May 2022.
8. "Agnetha Fältskog – The Heat Is On" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved 24 May 2022.
9. "Agnetha Fältskog – The Heat Is On". VG-lista. Retrieved 22 March 2016.
10. "Agnetha Fältskog – The Heat Is On". Singles Top 100. Retrieved 22 March 2016.
11. "Agnetha Fältskog – The Heat Is On". Swiss Singles Chart. Retrieved 22 March 2016.
12. "Agnetha Faltskog: Artist Chart History". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 24 May 2022.
13. "Offiziellecharts.de – Agnetha Fältskog – The Heat Is On" (in German). GfK Entertainment charts. Retrieved 22 March 2016.
14. "Jaaroverzichten 1983 – Singles" (in Dutch). Ultratop. Retrieved 24 May 2022.
15. "Top 100-Jaaroverzicht van 1983" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40. Retrieved 24 May 2022.
16. "Jaaroverzichten – Single 1983" (in Dutch). Dutch Charts. Retrieved 24 May 2022.