"Nightime" by Pretty Poison

Song#:  3468

Date:  04/02/1988

Debut:  79

Peak:  36

Weeks:  12

Genre:  Dance-Pop

Pop Bits:  This band's first single for Virgin Records, "Catch Me (I'm Falling)," became a surprise hit getting to #8 Pop/#1 Dance and going gold. The trio and their label were caught a little off guard by the sudden success and it left them scrambling for a follow-up single and album. As April of '88 approached, their full-length debut album, Catch Me I'm Falling, was ready to go and this next single was released. It would do fine on the Dance chart getting to #13 while being a blip on the R&B chart at #83. Over at Pop, the song wasn't nearly successful as their previous hit, but it was able to crack the Top 40. In turn, the album would only manage to reach #104. Another single from the LP, "When I Look in Your Eyes," got to #10 Dance, but failed to make the Pop chart. Overall, the results were positive and Pretty Poison might have had more hits with a second album, but it seems the band didn't much care for being poked and prodded by a major label. Feeling that they couldn't do what they wanted, the band decided to leave the label and that ended the band's days on the Pop chart.

ReduxReview:  While this song was definitely not as hooky or immediately alluring as "Catch Me (I'm Falling)," it wasn't a bad follow-up. Jade Starling sounded terrific once again and the new production gave the song a more modern, professional feel over the original (see below), which was more like a new wave dance track. It wasn't destined for the Top 10, but a #36 showing was appropriate..

ReduxRating:  5/10

Trivia:  Double Shot!  1) This is actually a remake of a song the band originally recorded and released in 1984. Back when they were a struggling band in Philadelphia, they recorded and released a few indie singles. The last of those before they signed with Virgin was "Nightime." It did well in the Philly clubs and it started to spread from there. It ended up getting enough attention to reach #14 on the Dance chart as well as #82 at R&B. When it came time to quickly get out a debut album, they decided to re-record the song. A remix would then be pushed out as the second single from the LP. The new version cracked the Pop Top 40 and got one notch higher on the Dance chart than the original.  2) After leaving Virgin, it seems the band decided to return to their indie roots. They would release a single in 1992, but it failed to do anything. Two members of the group, Jade Starling and Whey Cool, then chose to form a rock-oriented duo called Sex in Violets. They recorded an album titled Deflowered in 1995. After that, they picked back up with Pretty Poison and released the single "Let Freedom Ring" in 1997. It made the Dance chart at #33. It was followed in 1998 by "Catch Me (I'm Falling) '98" (#43 Dance) along with their second album titled Euphoria. Lead singer Jade Starling would later do some solo work and was able to get a few singles on the Club Play chart including the 2019 #3 "Fired Up."

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