Survivor's Eye of the Tiger: Rocky's Hit Song

On March 25th, Survivors Eye of the Tiger became the top song in the United States for seven

straight weeks back in 1982. It earned the band from Chicago a Grammy award and an Oscar nomination.

The track came from their third album and skyrocketed thanks to its tie-in with the movie Rocky

3. Sylvester Stallone played a big role in making it happen. He loved some of Survivors'

earlier hits and reached out through his friend at the record label to get them on board for the

film soundtrack. Guitarists, Frankie Sullivan, and Jim Potterrick handled the writing and

production. The duo crafted a punchy riff to match the boxing scenes, drawing from rough footage

to loans and over. They even offered a ballad at first, but the high energy rocker won out.

Interestingly, a demo recorded on February 1st that year ended up in the movie itself,

replacing Queen's another one bites the dust. The success transformed the band, especially for

Sullivan, who have been scraping by in a cheap apartment while others thrived on session work.

It topped charts three weeks after the film hit theaters, leading to a grueling tour and awards

ceremonies that left everyone starstruck. Even with lineup changes like frontman Dave Bickler

leaving, due to vocal strain and Jimmy Jameson stepping in, Eye of the Tiger remains their defining.

Anthem, Sullivan says he'll never get tired of playing it live, as it still packs a powerful

punch decades later. Music news, powered by AI. This is Music News Today.