John's Track of the Week: "Dance Tonight"

Song: Dance Tonight

Artist: Paul McCartney

Album: Memory Almost Full

Year: 2007

This week's Track of the Week is a pretty fun song, in my opinion.  Though an unabashedly radio-friendly hit, Paul McCartney's "Dance Tonight" seems to capture the essence of a career that has spanned almost 50 years.  As possibly the most successful artist in music history, McCartney has seen everything- from being a pop culture trend to watching other trends form around him and then pass him by with age.  Though he has released another album since Memory Almost Full, I do feel as if this song in particular sums up what his life has come down to, with the days of The Beatles and Wings far behind him.

Oddly enough, "Dance Tonight" was not even supposed to be on Memory Almost Full.  One day while playing the mandolin, McCartney noticed that his three year-old daughter, Beatrice, would always get up to dance.  This prompted the concept of the song, and as he claims, it "wrote itself".  The song was recorded at the very last minute, and then included on the album.  It ended up being the most notable hit off of the record, after being released as a digital single on McCartney's birthday, it charted well in both the US and UK, and was also used for an Itunes commercial.  Many have probably heard this one, but just in case you haven't, check it out below.