The Story Behind The Song
When Tina Turner perused the artwork for her comeback album - showing her seated seductively in a black dress with a black cat at her feet - she decided to call it Private Dancer, after one of the tracks. It was succinct and appropriate because, early in her career, she had performed musical shows at private events. With surprising innocence, she believed that was what the song was about. "I can be naive about some of these things," she later said. "I never realised it was about a hooker."
The song Private Dancer was originally recorded by Dire Straits for the group's fourth album, Love Over Gold (1982) with Mark Knoffler on vocals. Due to the nature of the lyrics, he felt the song demanded a female vocalist and the track was cut from the album. While Love Over Gold achieved double platinum status in the UK and sold millions of copies across the globe, Private Dancer remained unheard and largely forgotten.
About a year later, Tina Turner's manager became aware of the song and the fact the Knoffler wanted it to be sung by a female artist. It was given to Tina with the idea that she would put her vocal over the original backing track. Legal complications prevented this, however, and it was re-recorded with members of Dire Straits but without Mark Knoffler, whose guitar solo was performed by Jeff Beck. Later, Knoffler was scathing about the solo.
The song concerns a woman who wants "to make a million dollars" and "live out by the sea" with "a husband and some children". However, this idyllic dream contrasts sharply with her work in which she dances for nameless men, and there is no doubt that these private dances involve sexual services: "I'm your private dancer A dancer for money I'll do what you want me to do". She doesn't care about the customer, only his money: "You don't think of them as human You don't think of them at all You keep your mind on the money Keeping your eyes on the wall."
The single was the fifth release from Private Dancer, which helped the album shift 20 million copies across the globe and turned Tina Turner into a superstar. Her stratospheric success was in stark contrast to her situation less than ten years before when she had to flee her abusive husband in the middle of the night, escaping to a motel. With virtually no money, she took a cleaning job to pay her rent. In 1978, after her divorce, in which the only thing of enduring value she kept was her stage name, she embarked on her solo career with cabaret-style shows in Las Vegas. In her early 40s, and after several albums had flopped, it looked like Tina had reached the end of the road.
She refused to give up and opted for a change of style, a more rock-based pop. In 1981, she supported both Rod Stewart and The Rolling Stones. Then she worked with Heaven 17 on several synth-based tracks, including a cover of Let's Stay Together. It was the turning point from which there was no return. She had made it big. So big, in fact, that when she died the media were unanimous in declaring her the queen of rock 'n' roll. Her coronation had been almost 40 years earlier with the release of the Private Dancer album.
The promotional video for the title track, which was obviously less sexually charged than the song, portrayed her as a washed-up ballroom dancer. It was choreographed by Arlene Philips and filmed in the Rivoli Ballroom, one of the last remaining 1950s-style ballrooms in London (which has featured on Strictly Come Dancing, other pop videos and several films). It has been viewed 40 million times online; a small figure in the streaming age but very respectable for a mid-1980s track, when the mediums for audio and video were vinyl and VHS tape respectively.
Tina Turner's fall and rise had been very public but, as ill-health began to take its toll, she retreated in accordance with her Buddhist beliefs, which she credited as saving her life when she was at her lowest ebb. She died on 23 May 2023 in Switzerland. As a Buddhist, she would have believed in reincarnation but, as a singer, she had already achieved immortality as one of the greats.
We hereby instate Private Dancer by Tina Turner on The Wall as No.14 Best Single of 1984
A heartfelt ballad expressing empathy for sex workers trapped in a profession they dream of escaping.Dave B
