The No. 1 Song On August 6, 1982 Sounds Even More Fiery Today
On August 6, 1982, the track firmly occupying the No. 1 position on the Billboard Hot 100 was a banger rock song made famous by a movie. It also happens to be one of the greatest motivating, get-pumped-up tunes of all time: "Eye of the Tiger" by the then little-known hard rock band Survivor.
Initially a trio that enjoyed some popularity in the Midwest, Survivor evolved into a five-piece arena rock band in the early 1980s and got a recording contract with Scotti Brothers Records. After releasing two LPs, Survivor had only appeared in the Top 40 once by the end of 1981, with the single "Poor Man's Son" peaking at No. 33 that December. But then the right person got a listen, setting Survivor on a short road to the top of the charts and lasting success. "Eye of the Tiger" is still one of pop culture's most fiery motivational tracks, but the story of how Survivor found themselves at No. 1 in August 1982 — by way of the inclusion of "Eye of the Tiger" on the soundtrack of a blockbuster movie — is as inspiring as the song itself.
Survivor had the eye of the tiger when it concocted Eye of the Tiger
As Sylvester Stallone prepared to direct and star in 1982's "Rocky III," he wanted a hard-rock framing song rather than the brassy "Gonna Fly Now" from the previous "Rocky" movies. He came close to securing a pre-existing hit: 1980's disco-inspired "Another One Bites the Dust" by Queen. Tony Scotti of Scotti Brothers Records, which had released a single by Stallone's brother, Frank, in 1980, got word that Stallone was looking for a "Rocky III" tune. Scotti had the filmmaker listen to Survivor's 1981 LP "Premonition." Stallone was so impressed that he invited the band to submit a song, giving them an unfinished copy of the movie for inspiration.
Survivor's Frankie Sullivan and Jim Peterik, a rock star from 1970 who should still be famous today, required about an hour and a half to come up with the song, inspired by a line repeatedly spoken in the film by Rocky's trainer: to succeed, he had to maintain the "eye of the tiger." With some powerful drums, dramatic keyboard fills, and a lyric-matching, get-locked-in guitar riff added, Survivor got the gig, and "Eye of the Tiger" spent six weeks at No. 1 and won the Grammy Award for best rock performance by a duo or group with vocals. Survivor later provided "Burning Heart" for 1985's "Rocky IV." It nearly followed "Eye of the Tiger" to the top, peaking at No. 2.