"Every Beat of My Heart" is a song by British singer Rod Stewart. Written by Stewart and Kevin Savigar and produced by Bob Ezrin,[2] the song is a sentimental ballad with lyrics about Stewart returning to the United Kingdom after a long period overseas.[3] The song was included on Stewart's 14th studio album, Every Beat of My Heart (1986), and was released as its second single on 30 June 1986. Music critics were divided on the track, but it became a commercial hit in Europe, peaking at number two on both the UK and Irish singles charts. It was not as successful in North America, stalling outside the top 75 in the United States and Canada.
Critical reception
Music & Media magazine listed "Every Beat of My Heart" as a "recommended" song from the parent album along with "In My Life".[4] British trade paper Music Week called the song an updated version of Rod Stewart's 1975 hit "Sailing" with "ludicrous Eighties drumming", noting that it would serve well as an encore song and a "favourite last smooch with lager and lime lovers in discos everywhere".[3] Robin Smith of Record Mirror also noted the similarities with "Sailing" and wrote that Stewart did not deliver an impressive performance, writing that the song "probably sounds a lot better after 15 pints of McEwans".[5] Alan Jones, writing for the same publication, stated that he disliked the song but understood its appeal as a "stirringly patriotic anthem" in the vein of "Sailing".[6] Reviewing the album on AllMusic, Dave Thompson picked "Every Beat of My Heart" as a standout track, noting its "wistful romance" and calling it "remarkable".[7]
Chart performance
On the UK Singles Chart, "Every Beat of My Heart" debuted at number 17 for the week starting 6 July 1986. The following week, it jumped to number two, giving Stewart his 18th top-10 hit in the United Kingdom.[8][9] The song spent nine weeks on the chart and was the UK's 57th-best-selling single of 1986 according to Music Week, receiving a silver certification from the British Phonographic Industry (BPI) for shipping over 250,000 copies.[8][10][11] In Ireland, the song also peaked at number two—making it Stewart's 17th top-10 Irish single—and stayed in the top 30 for eight weeks.[12] Elsewhere in Europe, the single peaked at number three in Belgium and entered the top 20 in Austria, Italy, the Netherlands, Switzerland, and West Germany, achieving a peak of number five on the European Hot 100 Singles chart.[13][14][15] On South Africa's Springbok Radio chart, the track peaked at number 20.[16] In Australasia, "Every Beat of My Heart" reached number 26 in Australia and number 32 in New Zealand.[17][18] The song did not become a hit in North America, peaking at number 83 on the US Billboard Hot 100 and number 95 on the Canadian RPM 100 Singles chart.[19][20]
^ ab"Classifiche". Musica e dischi (in Italian). Retrieved 25 August 2023. Select "Singoli" in the "Tipo" field, type "Every beat of our heart" in the "Titolo" field and press "cerca".
^ ab"European Hot 100 Singles". Music & Media. Vol. 3, no. 33. 23 August 1986. p. 12.
^Every Beat of My Heart (UK 12-inch single sleeve). Rod Stewart. Warner Bros. Records. 1986. W8625T, 920 511-0.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
^Every Beat of My Heart (UK limited 12-inch single sleeve). Rod Stewart. Warner Bros. Records. 1986. W 8625 (TE), 920522-0.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
