I Drove All Night

"I Drove All Night"
Single by Cyndi Lauper
from the album A Night to Remember
B-side	"Maybe He'll Know" (remix)
Released	1989
Genre	Rock, pop
Length	4:11
Label	Epic
Writer(s)	Billy Steinberg, Tom Kelly
Producer	Cyndi Lauper, Lennie Petze
Certification	Gold (U.S.) Silver (UK)
Cyndi Lauper singles chronology
"Hole in My Heart (All the Way to China)" (1988) "I Drove All Night" (1989) "My First Night Without You" (1989)
Music sample I Drove All Night

"I Drove All Night" is a song written by Billy Steinberg and Tom Kelly and made famous by Cyndi Lauper. The song was originally written for Roy Orbison, who recorded it in 1987, but his rendition was not released until 1992, after the song had become a top 10 hit on both sides of the Atlantic for Cyndi Lauper in 1989. The song has been covered by Pinmonkey (2002) and Céline Dion (2003). John Waite recorded the song in 1987 while recording tracks for the CD Rovers Return, but decided not to release it. American rock singer and former American Idol contestant, Carly Smithson, covered the song during the semi-finals of the show during a week inspired by the music of the 1980s.

Cyndi Lauper version

"I Drove All Night" was recorded by Cyndi Lauper for her third solo album A Night To Remember. Lauper said she wanted to do it because she liked the idea "of a woman driving, of a woman in control." The song was a top 10 pop hit in the United States (her last U.S. top 40 single to date), peaking at number 6 on the Billboard Hot 100, and also a hit in other countries. The single was certified gold by the RIAA. This song is the last Top 10 on the Billboard Hot 100, until today she scored no Top 10. It received a Grammy Award nomination for Best Female Rock Vocal Performance.

The only official remix of the song for Lauper's version is the Jungle mix, a version that incorporates supposed jungle noises.

The music video for "I Drove All Night," directed by Scott Kalvert and Cyndi Lauper, features shots of an antique car, Lauper's characteristically manic dancing, and movie film projected onto Lauper's naked body.

Charts

Chart (1989)	Peak position
Australian Singles Chart	11
Canadian Singles Chart	20
Dutch Singles Chart	7
French Singles Chart	10
German Singles Chart	19
Ireland Singles Chart	13
Italian Singles Chart	2
New Zealand Singles Chart	10
Swedish Singles Chart	11
UK Singles Chart	7
U.S. Billboard Hot 100	6

Roy Orbison version

"I Drove All Night"
Single by Roy Orbison
from the album King of Hearts
Released	1992
Recorded	1987
Genre	Pop
Length	3:46
Label	Virgin Records
Writer(s)	Billy Steinberg, Tom Kelly
Producer	Jeff Lynne
Roy Orbison singles chronology
"Oh, Pretty Woman" (1990) "I Drove All Night" (1992) "Crying" (1992)

Jeff Lynne remixed Orbison's 1987 recordings for the posthumous album King of Hearts of which "I Drove All Night" was one of the tracks. However, Orbison's version of the song was released as a single off the 1991 compilation album Nintendo: White Knuckle Scorin'. The song was a significant hit in the United Kingdom, reaching number 7 on the UK Singles Chart (matching the peak position of Lauper's version three years earlier). King of Hearts and "I Drove All Night" were generally well-received in the United States, returning Orbison to the Billboard charts and receiving a Grammy Award.

A music video featuring Jason Priestley and Jennifer Connelly was also made for the single.

Pinmonkey version

"I Drove All Night"
Single by Pinmonkey
from the album Pinmonkey
Released	late 2002
Format	Airplay
Genre	Country
Length	3:29
Label	BNA
Writer(s)	Billy Steinberg, Tom Kelly
Producer	Paul Worley
Pinmonkey singles chronology
"Barbed Wire and Roses" (2002) "I Drove All Night" (2003) "Let's Kill Saturday Night" (2003)

Country music band Pinmonkey recorded a cover of the song on its 2002 self-titled album, issued by BNA Records. This cover was released as a single in late 2002, reaching number 36 on the Billboard Hot Country Singles & Tracks (now Hot Country Songs) chart. It was the second and final single from the album.

Céline Dion version

"I Drove All Night"
Single by Céline Dion
from the album One Heart
Released	March 3, 2003 (2003-03-03)
Format	CD single, 12" single
Recorded	Echo Beach Studios, Masterplan Studios
Genre	Pop, Dance-pop, Nu-Disco
Length	4:00
Label	Columbia, Epic
Writer(s)	Billy Steinberg, Tom Kelly
Producer	Peer Åström, Vito Luprano
Certification	Gold (Belgium) Gold (Australia)
Céline Dion singles chronology
"At Last" (2002) "I Drove All Night" (2003) "Have You Ever Been in Love" (2003)

"I Drove All Night" was recorded by Céline Dion for her album One Heart and released as the lead single on March 3, 2003.

The song was featured in promotional ads for the Chrysler Crossfire vehicle.

The "I Drove All Night" music video was directed by Peter Arnell and released in February 2003. It was included on the United Kingdom enhanced double A-side single "One Heart/I Drove All Night."

Critical reception

The song received positive reviews from music critics. Allmusic senior editor Stephen Thomas Erlewine noticed that the song is " a tongue-in-cheek, neo-house cover" and picked it as one of the best tracks on the album, alongside the title track and "Have You Ever Been in Love". Rebecca Wallwork wrote a positive review for Amazon, calling it "the car-commercial-driven tempo", while Jam!'s Darryl Sterdan named it "a Cher-style Eurodisco." Slant Magazine's Sal Cinquemani echoed the same thought, saying that "she gets the Cher treatment on the blazing cover." People's Chuck Arnold wrote that in the song, Celine " shows surprising restraint for a diva who just had a coliseum custom-built for her."

The Guardian's Betty Clarke wrote a negative review, saying that "Her cover of Roy Orbison's I Drove All Night is full of reverberating notes and sultry asides, but reveals a fundamental lack of sincerity that renders her threatening when she is trying for tender."

Chart performance

The song was commercially successful, reaching number 1 for five weeks in Canada and topping the charts in Belgium Flanders and Sweden. It was Dion's third airplay-only single that charted on the Billboard Hot 100, peaking at number 45 (number 46 on the Billboard Hot 100 Airplay). The commercial single was released five months later reaching number 26 on the Hot 100 Singles Sales. Because of several club remixes created mainly by Hex Hector, the song peaked at number 2 on the Hot Dance Club Play. "I Drove All Night" was certified platinum in Belgium (50,000) and gold in Australia (35,000). According to the Nielsen SoundScan, the CD single has sold 55,000 copies in the United States.

Promotion

Céline Dion performed "I Drove All Night" during A New Day... show and included it on the A New Day... Live in Las Vegas CD in 2004 and Live in Las Vegas - A New Day... DVD in 2007. The A New Day... Live in Las Vegas bonus DVD, called One Year...One Heart contained the recording of the song and fragments from making the video.

The song became also an opening track for the 2008-09 Taking Chances Tour, preceded by an introduction video using the remix of "I Drove All Night" as well. The audio and footage of this performance was included in the Taking Chances World Tour: The Concert CD/DVD. In October 2008, "I Drove All Night" was included on My Love: Essential Collection greatest hits.

Formats and track listings

European CD single

1. "I Drove All Night" – 4:00
2. "I Drove All Night" (UK radio edit) – 3:39

U.S. CD single

1. "I Drove All Night" – 4:00
2. "I Know What Love Is" – 4:28

Australian CD maxi single

1. "I Drove All Night" – 4:00
2. "I Drove All Night" (Hex Hector extended vocal import mix) – 7:53
3. "I Drove All Night" (Hex Hector dub vocal import mix) – 7:53
4. "Ten Days" – 3:37

European CD maxi single

1. "I Drove All Night" – 4:00
2. "I Drove All Night" (UK radio edit) – 3:39
3. "I Drove All Night" (Hex Hector extended vocal import mix) – 7:53

French CD maxi single

1. "I Drove All Night" – 4:00
2. "I Drove All Night" (UK radio edit) – 3:39
3. "I'm Alive" (Humberto Gatica mix) – 3:30
4. "Je t'aime encore" – 3:24

UK CD maxi single

1. "One Heart" – 3:24
2. "I Drove All Night" – 4:00
3. "I Drove All Night" (Hex Hector extended vocal import mix) – 7:53
4. "I Drove All Night" (video) – 4:00

UK CD maxi single #2

1. "One Heart" – 3:24
2. "I Drove All Night" – 4:00
3. "All by Myself" – 5:12
4. "One Heart" (video) – 3:24

Official versions

1. "I Drove All Night" (UK radio edit) – 3:39
2. "I Drove All Night" (Hex Hector extended vocal import mix) – 7:53
3. "I Drove All Night" (Hex Hector dub vocal import mix) – 7:53
4. "I Drove All Night" (UK radio mix a cappella) – 3:26
5. "I Drove All Night" (Wayne G heaven anthem mix) – 7:41
6. "I Drove All Night" (GW-1 remix) – 7:03
7. "I Drove All Night" (Polarbabies in Prague club mix) – 7:14
8. "I Drove All Night" (Everbots Fasha mix) – 7:50
9. "I Drove All Night" (Original 3 remix) – 3:48
10. "I Drove All Night" (Starrie Knights mix) – 4:09
11. "I Drove All Night" (album version) – 4:00

Charts and certifications

Chart (2003)	Peak position
Australian Singles Chart	22
Austrian Singles Chart	17
Belgian Flanders Singles Chart	1
Belgian Wallonia Singles Chart	18
Canadian Singles Chart	1
Canadian Adult Contemporary Chart	1
Danish Singles Chart	2
Dutch Singles Chart	24
European Singles Chart	8
Finnish Singles Chart	16
French Singles Chart	22
German Singles Chart	22
Greek Singles Chart	7
Hungary (Rádiós Top 40)	7
Irish Singles Chart	30
Italian Singles Chart	14
New Zealand Singles Chart	24
Norwegian Singles Chart	11
Portuguese Singles Chart	9
Spanish Singles Chart	15
Swedish Singles Chart	1
Swiss Singles Chart	11
UK Singles Chart	27
US Billboard Hot 100	45
US Billboard Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks	7
US Billboard Hot Adult Top 40 Tracks	23
U.S. Billboard Hot Country Singles & Tracks	36
US Billboard Hot Dance Club Play	2
US Billboard Top 40 Mainstream	23
US Billboard Top 40 Tracks	32

Country	Certification
Australia	Gold
Belgium	Gold

References

Preceded by "Beautiful" by Christina Aguilera

Canadian number-one single March 22, 2003 (5 weeks)

Succeeded by "American Life" by Madonna