The lightest and most radio-friendly song on the Van Halen II album, Warner Brothers Records insisted "Dance The Night Away" be released as the first single. The band didn't think it represented their sound and did not want it released first, but they didn't have the clout to overrule their record company.
The original title was "Dance, Lolita, Dance."
Van Halen picked up a lot of new fans after this song got some airplay. Many listeners who heard them for the first time were pleasantly surprised when they bought the album, and rushed out to buy the first Van Halen album as well. That first album, which sold about a million copies in America the first year it was released, eventually sold 10 million.
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