Piano in the Dark

"Piano in the Dark"
Single by Brenda Russell
from the album Get Here
Released	February 2, 1988
Format	Single
Recorded	1987
Genre	R&B, soul, quiet storm adult contemporary
Length	5:20 (album version) 4:20 (single version)
Label	A&M
Writer(s)	Brenda Russell, Jeff Hull, Scott Cutler
Producer(s)	Brenda Russell, Jeff Hull

"Piano in the Dark" is a song by the American singer-songwriter Brenda Russell (featuring backing vocals by Joe Esposito). It was the first single to be taken from Russell's 1988 album, Get Here. On the 45 rpm single of the song, the title is listed as "Piano In The Dark" and also as "Cry, Just A Little" in parentheses, which may be the complete title of the song. "Cry Just A Little" is a line that is repeated in the song's refrain portion.

Song Information

"Piano in the Dark" was released in early 1988, nine years after Russell's previous charting single on the Billboard Hot 100 (1979's "So Good, So Right"). The song gained heavy airplay and became Russell's biggest hit, peaking at number 6 on the Billboard Hot 100, number 8 on the R&B Chart^[1] and number 3 on the Adult Contemporary Chart. The song was also a moderate hit in the UK, peaking at 23.

The song earned Russell two Grammy Award nominations in 1989, including one for Song of the Year.

Music Video

There are two music videos. The first version, filmed in black-and-white, shows Brenda looking depressed in her apartment as she tosses cards in a derby and thinks about her lover, a long-haired blond man playing on the piano. The second video was filmed in color and mostly shown in the US where a smiling Brenda is shown performing with her band (including Joe Esposito) in a dimly lit nightclub with many people during a thunderstorm at night.

Charts

Chart (1988)	Peak position
UK Singles Chart	23
US Billboard Hot 100	6
US Billboard Hot R&B Songs	8
US Billboard Adult Contemporary	3

Cover versions

• Pianist Alex Bugnon covered the song from his popular 1989 album Love Season.^[2][3]
• AMP (Alan Matthews Project) released a 1991 version of the original song with a dance beat, using Brenda Russell's vocal.
• British actress/singer Bonnie Langford covered this song on her four track CD Limited Edition in 1996.
• Pop/rock singer Jennifer Rush recorded a version on her 1997 album Credo.
• Filipina pop singer Nina covered the song live on her love songs live album Nina Live! in 2005.
• Jinky Vidal covered this song on her third track on the album "Jinky" in 2005.
• The song was covered by house music singer Shanie and remixed as a dance track by 7th Heaven.
• George Howard covered this song on his 1989 album "Personal."

Sampling

• The song was sampled by 2Pac & tha Outlawz for the song "U Can Be Touched," from their 1999 album, Still I Rise.
• The song was sampled by Steve Angello in the EDM track "Davali" in 2004.
• August 03, 2009, Guy Robin is sampled is track "Cry A Little".
• Sixty-9 vs Discodrive featuring DJ Fierce sampled the chorus under the song "Rainbow" in 2006.
• Danny-S Vs. TAITO sampled the chorus under the song "Rainbow" in 2010, and bonus track called " Rainbow (DJ Roxx Remix Edit)".
• Vinylshakerz is sampled in its song "Rainbow" in 2011.
• In 2011, the Bingo Players released a dance mix "Cry (Just a Little)", which consisted entirely of a repetition of the first line from Piano in the Dark's main chorus: "I know I'm caught up in the middle, I cry just a little, When I think of letting go".
• The song was sampled by Sedelic for the song "Cry Just a Little (Sedelic's inb4 the Bingo Players Mix)".
• The song was sampled by DJ Milton & DJ Dizzy in the EP "Cry (Just a Little) (Milton's Bootleg Mix)" in November 14, 2011.
• September 27, 2011, Re-Mix Stems Tribute is sampled of "Bingo Players" in track "Cry (Just a Little) (Re-Mix Stem 126 BPM)".
• Roger-M is sampled using the vocal of Neu Era was the song "Letting Go (Piano in the Dark)" in 2011.
• Qwote sampled the song for his 2012 single featuring Pitbull "Letting Go (Cry Just a Little)".
• Bingo Players' version was also used in Flo Rida's 2012 hit "I Cry".
• January 09, 2013, Drew Smith is sampled is track "I Cry".
• The song was sampled KIDZ BOP Kids in the track "I Cry" released in January 15, 2013.
• July 23, 2013, Paolo Tuci is sampled is track "Piano In The Dark (Cry Just a Little)", As for the female vocals are Lafaux (Stefania Del Prete).

References

1. Whitburn, Joel (2004). Top R&B/Hip-Hop Singles: 1942-2004. Record Research. p. 507.
2. "Love Season overview". Allmusic.com.
3. "Berks Jazz Fest 2008: Alex Bugnon". SmoothVibes.com.

External links

• Lyrics of this song at MetroLyrics