Who Did It Better? Moonlight Dancing

Who Did It Better? 

Moonlight Dancing

Today's edition of Who Did It Better features a pair of well-established artists who began their recording careers in the early 1970's only to become even more successful in the 1980's. As fate would have it, this particular song finds one act experiencing a decline in popularity, while the other soars to ever newer heights. Both have a history of serving up delectable slices of pop gold, so let's dig in and uncover what each had to bring to this particular table.

Moonlight Dancing is a song written by hit-meister Diane Warren, whose list of successful tunes reads like a history of the Top 40 circa 1983-1998, and beyond.  

The song first appeared on the Pointer Sisters' thirteenth studio album, Serious Slammin'. Ever since the lofty heights achieved with their appropriately-titled 1983 blockbuster, Breakout, the sisters had been experiencing an ever diminishing slide in popularity. Released on RCA Records in March of 1988, it would prove to be their final offering under the guidance of longtime collaborator, producer Richard Perry. It would also be the last Pointer Sisters album to chart on Billboard's Top 200.  

Bette Midler, on the other hand, was continuing to enjoy yet another resurgence in popularity, thanks to the success of her 1988 movie, Beaches, and its accompanying soundtrack. To capitalize on renewed interest in her recording career, Atlantic Records brought back producer Arif Mardin, who had helmed the Beaches soundtrack, hoping lightening would strike twice. 

It did. 

Some People's Lives, Midler's seventh studio album was released in 1990, and contains one of her biggest hits, From a Distance, which won songwriter Julie Gold a Grammy Award for Song of the Year in 1991. It would also become the biggest commercial success of Midler's musical career, peaking at #6 in the US and #5 in the UK.  

Moonlight Dancing was released as the fourth single from the album, but failed to chart, though it remains a fan favorite. It was also released as an extended dance remix which sampled her 1973 hit, Do You Want to Dance.

And that's the whole story.

Now? On to the competition.

The Song: Moonlight Dancing

The Competitors: Pointer Sisters vs. Midler

Moonlight Dancing - Pointer Sisters

Moonlight Dancing - Bette Midler

Pointer Sisters

Love the rhythm track right from the start. It is so much fun. And the sisters sound great, going with a very light, but pitch perfect touch on that first bit of harmony. 

I am a huge fan of this song. It makes me smile and it has the sort of groove that moves me. I find the timing and lyrics to be so tight and fun. 

Love it. All the way through the second chorus. I'd ask for a bit more separation between the lead vocal and and the rhythm section, but the sister is in such a lovely, loaded mode, I'll take it as is. 

Now... when we get to the bridge part? I want them to dig in a bit more... sort of like Prince would? Because that's what this should have been... a Prince song. 

Things get messy. The ladies' harmonies are not as sharp as they should be and after a point, because there's no sense of build or direction, the whole thing ends up feeling stuck in second gear and rather aimless. 

Around the 2:10 mark, Ruth starts asserting herself a whole lot more and that helps. I have always felt she was somewhat under appreciated as a singer... she's got pipes.

And things are slowly - very slowly - heating up. Though I do wish those 'oh's' at the 2:22 mark had more focus. The harmonies are there, but the sisters seem to have hit the snooze button on their alarm clocks.

And now I know why I think this is a Prince song... that rhythm track? Little Red Corvette.

This could have been Little Red Corvette.

Instead? It's more like an Edsel. As in... not going anywhere.

By the 2:50 mark, the sisters are waking up. And, I must confess, I keep arm dancing in my seat as I'm listening. This thing? Just like an Edsel... it has it's charms. 

Ruth.. busting loose in the background. Damn, girl. You go get it!

I love the tone of that saxophone. Absolutely spot on. 

And the very ending... nice touch.

Huh. Okay... this is going to be tougher than I thought. I was hard on this version, but in the end... it sort of won me over. 

What can I say? I got thing for these sisters.

Not Richard Perry's best work by a long shot. Not the sisters' either. But it has a lot going for it. Sometimes messy can be a whole lotta fun!

Bette Midler

What is going on in that first five seconds? I have no idea. 

When the rhythm track kicks in so does that plucked synth line, and... surprise, surprise - it sounds a lot thinner than I remember. 

An aside: My favorite number in the movie Beaches? Oh, Industry. It was so theatrical and fun - it made little to no sense, but it was so much fun. And that's what this song has always reminded me of... Oh, Industry. Because of its mechanical musical nature.

I like that quick string sting!

And, honestly? Bette never sounded better. So focused. So pop. 

This also reminds me a lot of her work on No Frills. I love the layered vocals. And, yes... I suspect all the vocals are being run through some kind of filter. Treating vocals in the studio is so standard. Even back then. Once the industry heard what it could do for Oliva Newton John? Everybody jumped on that bandwagon. 

The string arrangement, thus far? Tasteful and subtle, as it should be. I do like the mix. Of course, when it comes to Bette? She always needs to be on top, am I right?

As we move into verse two... lots of new additions and the harmonies are heating up. And still... the mix is perfect. I love all the silly little synth lines snaking in and out and about. Her bridge is abbreviated, but I'm a fan of succinct. She moves straight ahead. I don't think I can recall a time when Midler has been so focused as a singer. The discipline and restraint she showing? Remarkable.

Yet, as we progress, more and more of her personality is coming to the fore. It's a wonderful build, and exactly what is missing in the sisters messier version. I think the vocals just keep getting more and more interesting. 

By the time we hit that flute/fife solo with those strings going nuts underneath it? So much fun! I want to flutter off into the night like a firefly.

Oh, my gawd. A solo violin and then... man-do-lin!  A mandolin! NO! Get out!

And the lovely rhythm track with that plucked synth. I am a sucker for kitchen sink instrumentation. A little goes a long way... but a little of a lot is so much more fun.

This is a marvel of production. It is so sonically diverse. It's a fascinating piece of work. Brilliant.  

The Verdict

Bravo, Bette. 

I thought it would go that way.

I must say, the production on her version sounds a bit thin to me these days, or at least thinner than I remember it. But it is just a marvelous piece of work. Her restraint. And yet her personality comes through. And the arrangement and the production work - all on point, all succinct, all tight. 

I like the Pointer Sister's version, too. Theirs is a lot of fun and had they been made to focus a bit more, keeping in mind that they were building on something as sexy as Little Red Corvette, I think it could have been made into something that would have caught the public's attention. As is? A missed opportunity. 

But Bette's version? Spot on. Hermetically sealed, yes, but oh, what a magnificent piece of art. So much candy for the ears. I think, had they tweaked their promotion of this single a bit differently, pitching it as a sort of cosmic adventure, it might have caught on.

It's a very clever song. 

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And that's enough of me. 

Okay, your turn. You know what to do - leave your choice and thoughts in the comments section. I love to hear about what you're hearing.

That's all for now.

Until next time...

Thanks for reading... and listening!

Moonlight Dancing - Bette Midler

12" Version