Tonight's the Night (1976)

When a record spends 8 weeks in the #1 slot on Billboard's Hot 100, you know you've got a “Great Song.” And that's exactly what Rod Stewart had in late 1976 and early 1977.

“Tonight's the Night” was, by far, Rod's biggest hit, also reaching #1 in Canada...as well as the Top 10 in 6 other countries! By the time the dust had settled, it was the top selling song of 1977, Billboard's #1 song of the year (also 1977), and as of 2018, the #19 most successful chart single of all time!

According to all sources, when Rod wrote the song, he took his cue from a somewhat obscure song by the group America: “Today's the Day.” Seems pretty logical in retrospect. To help drive home the sexiness of the song,.

Rod had his girlfriend at the time, actress Britt Ekland, record the French spoken-word part near the end. That sexiness was a bit problematic for some radio stations, who came up with their own edits to make it less suggestive.

Some stations didn't play it at all, but,no matter: “Tonight's the Night” easily became a “Great Song of the '70s!

Here is the uncut version: