Twistin' the Night Away

This article is about the Sam Cooke song. For the album with the same name, see Twistin' the Night Away (album).

"Twistin' the Night Away" is a song written and recorded by Sam Cooke. It was recorded on 18 December 1961 and released as a single in 1962. It became very popular, charting in the top ten of both the Billboard Hot 100 (#9) and Billboard's R&B chart (#1).^[1] "Twistin' the Night Away" was successful overseas as well, peaking at #6 on the UK Singles Chart.

"Twistin' the Night Away"
Single by Sam Cooke
from the album Twistin' the Night Away
B-side	"One More Time"
Released	January 9, 1962
Recorded	December 18, 1961
Studio	RCA (Hollywood, California)
Genre	Rhythm and blues
Length	2:42
Label	RCA Victor 0566 (USA)
Songwriter(s)	Sam Cooke
Producer(s)	Hugo & Luigi, Engineer: Al Schmitt
Sam Cooke singles chronology
"Feel It" (1961) "Twistin' the Night Away" (1962) "Chain Gang" b/w "Cupid" (1962)

The song was recorded with The Wrecking Crew as session musicians, including Rene Hall as band leader, Red Callender on bass, Earl Palmer on drums, Tommy Tedesco and Clifton White on guitars, Ed Beal on piano, John Kelson, John Ewing and Jewell Grant on saxophone and Stuart Williamson on trumpet.^[2]

Personnel

• Sam Cooke – vocals
• René Hall – guitar, arrangement, conducting
• Clifton White, Tommy Tedesco – guitar
• Red Callender – bass guitar
• Earl Palmer – drums
• Eddie Beal – piano
• Stuart Williamson – trumpet
• John Ewing – trombone
• Jewell Grant – baritone saxophone

Chart history

Weekly charts Chart (1962) Peak position New Zealand (Lever Hit Parade)[3] 6 UK[4] 6 U.S. Billboard Hot 100[5] 9 U.S. Billboard R&B 1 U.S. Cash Box Top 100[6] 6

Year-end charts Chart (1962) Rank UK[7] 55 U.S. Billboard Hot 100[8] 23 U.S. Cash Box[9] 30

Certifications

Region	Certification	Certified units/sales
United Kingdom (BPI)[10]	Silver	200,000‡
‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

Rod Stewart version

"Twistin' the Night Away"
Single by Rod Stewart
from the album Never a Dull Moment
B-side	"True Blue" / "Lady Day"
Released	August 1973 July 1987 (re-recorded version)
Recorded	1972 1987 (re-recorded version)
Genre	Rock and roll
Length	3:13 (album version) 4:10 (1987 re-recording)
Label	Mercury
Songwriter(s)	Sam Cooke
Rod Stewart singles chronology
"Angel" (1972) "Twistin' the Night Away" (1973) "Oh! No Not My Baby" (1973)

In 1973, Rod Stewart released his version as the third single from Never a Dull Moment, his fourth album. This version achieved marginal success, peaking at #59 on the Billboard Hot 100. In 1987, he re-recorded the song for the soundtrack to the film Innerspace. When released as a single in the summer of 1987, this version hit #80 on the Hot 100.

Track listing

1. "Twistin' The Night Away" - 3:15
2. "True Blue" - 3:29

1987 Re-recorded version (from the film, Innerspace)

1. "Twistin' The Night Away" — Rod Stewart (4:10)
2. "Let's Get Small" — Jerry Goldsmith (5:57)

Charts

Original release

Chart (1973)	Peak position
Canadian Singles Chart[11]	76
US Billboard Hot 100[12]	59
US Cash Box Top 100 [13]	35

Reissue

Chart (1987)	Peak position
Canadian Singles Chart[14]	54
US Billboard Hot 100[12]	80

Divine version

"Twistin' The Night Away"
Single by Divine
B-side	"A Divine Good Time"
Released	1985
Genre	Hi-NRG, house
Label	Proto Records
Songwriter(s)	Sam Cooke
Divine singles chronology
"Walk Like a Man" (1985) "Twistin' The Night Away" (1985) "Hard Magic" (1985)

Divine recorded "Twistin' The Night Away" and released it as the second single from his album Maid in England in 1985.

Track listing

1. "Twistin' The Night Away (Dance Version)" — 6:53
2. "Twistin' The Night Away (Instrumental)" — 6:10
3. "A Divine Good Time" — 3:52

Charts

Chart (1985)	Peak position
UK Singles Chart[15]	47

Other cover versions

• The song was also covered by the Motown group, the Marvelettes. Their version of the song appeared on the 1962 album, The Marvelettes Sing Smash Hits of 1962.^[16]
• The Glitter Band covered the song in 1974, on their debut album "Hey!".
• The song was recorded by Hutti Heita as a dark psytrance track in 2009.

Elsewhere in popular culture

• Cooke's version also appeared in the 1978 classic Animal House, the 1987 film Innerspace,^[17] the 2011 film The Green Hornet, and the 2025 film The Monkey.
• The Shins titled their third album Wincing the Night Away in an apparent reference to the song.
• The song appeared in a dance sequence in Umbrella Academy.

See also

• Twist songs
• List of number-one R&B singles of 1962 (U.S.)

References

1. Whitburn, Joel (2004). Top R&B/Hip-Hop Singles: 1942-2004. Record Research. p. 135.
2. "Image of recording contract" (PDF). Wreckingcrewfilm.com. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2016-03-03. Retrieved 2016-09-26.
3. Flavour of New Zealand, 12 April 1962
4. "officialcharts.com". officialcharts.com. Retrieved January 8, 2023.
5. Joel Whitburn's Top Pop Singles 1955–1990 - ISBN 0-89820-089-X
6. "Cash Box Top 100 Singles, March 31, 1962". Archived from the original on October 10, 2012. Retrieved January 21, 2020.
7. "The 100 Best-Selling Singles of 1962". Archived from the original on 2020-07-03. Retrieved 2020-01-21.
8. "Musicoutfitters.com". Archived from the original on 2020-03-25. Retrieved 2020-01-21.
9. "Cash Box Year-End Charts: Top 100 Pop Singles, December 29, 1962". Archived from the original on May 17, 2015. Retrieved January 21, 2020.
10. "British single certifications – Sam Cooke – Twistin The Night Away". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved August 2, 2024.
11. "Item Display - RPM - Library and Archives Canada". Collectionscanada.gc.ca. Archived from the original on 2013-12-14. Retrieved 2014-06-28.
12. Rod Stewart - Billboard Singles Allmusic. Retrieved 2010-06-15.
13. "Top 100 1973-09-22". Cashbox Magazine. Archived from the original on 2012-10-01. Retrieved 2015-12-15.
14. "Item Display - RPM - Library and Archives Canada". Collectionscanada.gc.ca. Archived from the original on 2013-12-14. Retrieved 2014-06-28.
15. "Divine". Official Charts Company. Archived from the original on 2019-05-08. Retrieved 2010-06-14.
16. "www.allmusic.com". allmusic.com. Retrieved January 8, 2023.
17. Video on YouTube