Obsession

(Holly Knight/Michael Des Barres)

Before it’s major success this song, written in 1983 by Holly Knight and Michael Des Barres, was first recorded and released by the composers. It achieved minimal attention even after it had been picked to be used on the soundtrack of the 1983 movie A Night in Heaven, which starred Lesley Ann Warren.

The song is basically about a stalker who is obsessed with a younger girl and according to an interview by songfacts.com the co-writer Holly Knight is said to have stated, as a creative person who uses their imagination a lot, “I can’t imagine anyone in their life never having a moment where they’re not obsessed with somebody or something”.

Nearly two years later, in early 1985, it was recorded and released again in a new version by the New Wave group Animotion. This time round it was a different story when the song with its accompanying video became extremely popular on both sides of the Atlantic. It reached No. 5 on the UK Singles chart and No. 6 on the Billboard Hot 100. It appeared on their 1985 album The Best of Animotion.

In 1986 this hit version was used as the theme for Canada’s FT-Fashion Television and has been used for that programme ever since. Other shows that have used it include Weeds, MTV’s House of Styles and NBC’s WWE Saturday Night’s Main Event. Not being used just on the TV, it has featured in several movies such as Adventureland, Edge of Seventeen, El Cantante, Hot Tub Time Machine, Just Can’t Get Enough, The King of Kong, Lucky Numbers and Nail Polish.

In the 2000s the song has also been sampled in the song “I Will have You” by Andy J and covered by The Azoic on their 2004 Illuminate and Sugababes for their 2005 Taller In More Ways.

In the world of video games it appears in 2002’s Grand Theft Auto: Vice City.

Sources:

Obsession

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