Set the Night to Music

"Set the Night to Music"
"Set the Night to Music"
Single by Roberta Flack
from the album Set the Night to Music
B-side	"Natural Thing"
Released	September 1991
Genre	Soul, adult contemporary
Length	4:39
Label	Atlantic
Songwriter	Diane Warren
Producer	Arif Mardin
Roberta Flack singles chronology

"Set the Night to Music"
"Set the Night to Music"
Single by Starship
from the album No Protection
B-side	"I Don't Know Why"
Released	February 1988
Genre	Soft rock
Length	4:12
Label	RCA
Songwriter	Diane Warren
Producer	Peter Wolf
Starship singles chronology

"Set the Night to Music" is a song written by Diane Warren and recorded by Starship for their LP, No Protection (1987). It became a major hit for Roberta Flack in 1991. Starship's original version became a Top 10 hit on the U.S. Billboard Adult Contemporary chart, reaching number nine in the spring of 1988,^[1] and also charted minorly in Canada.^[2] The song appeared at the end credits of the 1988 fantasy-comedy film Vice Versa starring Judge Reinhold and Fred Savage.

Cash Box said of the Starship version that "punctuated by lush strings and acoustic guitars, it's as warm and appealing a ballad as they have ever put on record."^[3]

Roberta Flack cover

Roberta Flack covered "Set the Night to Music" as a duet with Maxi Priest. The song is the title track to Flack's album Set the Night to Music (1991).

Flack's rendition reached number six on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 and number nine in Canada;^[4] it was her final charting Billboard Hot 100 hit. The song was a bigger Adult Contemporary hit, reaching number two in the U.S. and number one in Canada.^[5]

Personnel

Roberta Flack – lead vocals
Robbie Kondor – keyboards, programming, arrangements
Sammy Merendino – drum programming
Errol "Crusher" Bennett – percussion
Arif Mardin – string arrangements and conductor
Gene Orloff – concertmaster
Jerry Barnes – backing vocals
Katreese Barnes – backing vocals
Maxi Priest – lead vocals

Charts

Weekly charts

Starship

Chart (1988)	Peak position
Canada RPM Top Singles^[6]	92
US Billboard Adult Contemporary^[7]	9

Roberta Flack

Chart (1991–1992)	Peak position
Australia (ARIA)^[8]	80
Canadian RPM Top Singles^[9]	9
Canadian RPM Adult Contemporary^[10]	1
US Billboard Hot 100^[11]	6
US Adult Contemporary (Billboard)^[12]	2
US Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs (Billboard)^[13]	45
US Cash Box Top 100	5

Year-end charts

Chart (1991)	Rank
Canada RPM Top Singles^[14]	67
Canada RPM Adult Contemporary^[15]	17

Chart (1992)	Rank
US Adult Contemporary (Billboard)^[16]	38
US Cash Box ^[17]	48

References

^ Whitburn, Joel (1993). Top Adult Contemporary: 1961–1993. Record Research. p. 120.
^ "Item Display - RPM - Library and Archives Canada". Collectionscanada.gc.ca. April 23, 1988. Retrieved July 11, 2019.
^ "Single Releases" (PDF). Cash Box. February 20, 1988. p. 8. Retrieved 2022-12-21.
^ RPM Top Singles, November 23, 1991
^ RPM Adult Contemporary, December 7, 1991
^ "Item Display - RPM - Library and Archives Canada". Collectionscanada.gc.ca. April 23, 1988. Retrieved July 11, 2019.
^ Whitburn, Joel (1993). Top Adult Contemporary: 1961–1993. Record Research. p. 120.
^ Ryan, Gavin (2011). Australia's Music Charts 1988–2010 (pdf ed.). Mt. Martha, VIC, Australia: Moonlight Publishing.
^ RPM Top Singles, November 23, 1991
^ RPM Adult Contemporary, December 7, 1991
^ "Roberta Flack Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved August 12, 2021.
^ "Roberta Flack Chart History (Adult Contemporary)". Billboard. Retrieved August 12, 2021.
^ "Roberta Flack Chart History (Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved August 12, 2021.
^ RPM 100 Hit Tracks of 1991 Archived December 8, 2015, at the Wayback Machine
^ "Image : RPM Weekly". Library and Archives Canada. 17 July 2013.
^ "1992 The Year in Music" (PDF). Billboard. Vol. 104, no. 52. December 26, 1992. p. YE-38. Retrieved August 12, 2021.
^ Cash Box Year-End Charts: Top 100 Pop Singles, December 1992^{[permanent dead link]}

External links

Listen to "Set the Night to Music" on YouTube (Roberta Flack)
Listen to "Set the Night to Music" on YouTube (Jefferson Starship)

[1] Whitburn, Joel (1993). Top Adult Contemporary: 1961–1993. Record Research. p. 120.

[2] "Item Display - RPM - Library and Archives Canada". Collectionscanada.gc.ca. April 23, 1988. Retrieved July 11, 2019.

[cb-3] "Single Releases" (PDF). Cash Box. February 20, 1988. p. 8. Retrieved 2022-12-21.

[4] RPM Top Singles, November 23, 1991

[5] RPM Adult Contemporary, December 7, 1991

[6] "Item Display - RPM - Library and Archives Canada". Collectionscanada.gc.ca. April 23, 1988. Retrieved July 11, 2019.

[7] Whitburn, Joel (1993). Top Adult Contemporary: 1961–1993. Record Research. p. 120.

[8] Ryan, Gavin (2011). Australia's Music Charts 1988–2010 (pdf ed.). Mt. Martha, VIC, Australia: Moonlight Publishing.

[9] RPM Top Singles, November 23, 1991

[10] RPM Adult Contemporary, December 7, 1991

[sc_Billboardhot100_Roberta_Flack-11] "Roberta Flack Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved August 12, 2021.

[sc_Billboardadultcontemporary_Roberta_Flack-12] "Roberta Flack Chart History (Adult Contemporary)". Billboard. Retrieved August 12, 2021.

[sc_Billboardrandbhiphop_Roberta_Flack-13] "Roberta Flack Chart History (Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved August 12, 2021.

[14] RPM 100 Hit Tracks of 1991 Archived December 8, 2015, at the Wayback Machine

[15] "Image : RPM Weekly". Library and Archives Canada. 17 July 2013.

[16] "1992 The Year in Music" (PDF). Billboard. Vol. 104, no. 52. December 26, 1992. p. YE-38. Retrieved August 12, 2021.

[17] Cash Box Year-End Charts: Top 100 Pop Singles, December 1992^{[permanent dead link]}

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