‘And We Danced’ is a song by the American rock band the Hooters, released as a single in 1985. The song appeared on the band's second album, Nervous Night. It peaked at #21 on the US Billboard Hot 100 and reached #3 on the Mainstream Rock chart. ‘And We Danced’ became the band's second consecutive Top 10 hit in Australia, reaching #6. The Hooters performed ‘And We Danced’ at the Live Aid benefit concert in Philadelphia on July 13, 1985.
Singer Eric Bazilian said: “We wrote the first draft of “And We Danced” in the Poconos during the summer of 1984. I think we knew immediately that we had the germ of something special though there were a lot of versions between that one and the one we now know. I honestly don’t know where the lyrics came from… the verses were written last, when we were already mixing the rest of the album and were down to the wire. I think we just liked the way “she was a be bop baby” sounded.”
Eric Bazilian and Rob Hyman are the founding members of The Hooters. They played most of the instruments on Cyndi Lauper's 1983 debut album She's So Unusual, and Hyman co-wrote "Time After Time." The same year, The Hooters released their first album on an independent label and grew their following in the Philadelphia area. When Lauper's album became a huge hit, it got the attention of Columbia Records, who signed the band. The distinctive sound that leads off the song and plays throughout is a Melodica, a combination keyboard/harmonica instrument they played. The band called it a "Hooter," which is where they got their name.
The music video for the song was nominated for the Best New Artist award at the 1986 MTV Video Music Awards. The video featured live footage of the band filmed at the now-demolished Exton Drive-In in Exton, Pennsylvania. Cash Box said that the song shows the "band’s flair vocally and instrumentally" and has "an appealing Springsteen-like purely American sound." ‘And We Danced’ was ranked as the 88th greatest song of the 1980s on internet radio station WDDF Radio's "The 88 Greatest Songs of the 80's" second annual Independence Day countdown in 2017.
Label – Columbia
Songwriters – Eric Bazilian, Rob Hyman
Producer - Rick Chertoff
SONG LYRICS
[Intro]Wow!
Hey, hey!
[Verse 1]
She was a be-bop baby on a hard day's night
She was hangin' on Johnny, he was holdin' on tight
Oh, I could feel her coming from a mile away
There was no use talking, there was nothing to say
When the band began to play and play
[Chorus]
And we danced like a wave on the ocean, romanced
We were liars in love, and we danced
Swept away for a moment by chance
And we danced and danced and danced, skah!
[Verse 2]
I met my be-bop baby at the Union Hall
She could dance all night and shake the paint off the wall
But when I saw her smile across a crowded room, yeah
Well, I knew we'd have to leave the party soon
As the band began to play out of tune
[Chorus]
And we danced like a wave on the ocean, romanced
We were liars in love, and we danced
Swept away for a moment by chance
And we danced and danced and danced, yeah
And we danced
[Instrumental Interlude]
[Bridge]
The endless beat, she's walkin' my way
Hear the music fade when she says
Are we getting too close, do we dare to get closer
The room is spinning, she whispers my name
[Chorus]
And we danced like a wave on the ocean, romanced
We were liars in love, and we danced
Swept away for a moment by chance
And we danced and danced
[Outro]
And we danced like a wave on the ocean, romanced
We were liars in love, and we danced
Swept away for a moment by chance
And we danced and danced and danced
And danced and danced and danced
And danced and danced and danced
Ow! Whoa
And we danced
And we danced
(Hey! Oh!)
And we danced
(Come on, baby!
Hey!)
And we danced and danced and danced
And danced and danced and danced
And danced and danced and danced
(Hey!
Yeah, oh!)
And we danced
(Oooh, ooh)
And we danced