1986 Hit, That Saved This Singer's Career, Ranked Among 'Greatest Rock Duets'
Eddie Money made a name for himself in the '70s with hit singles. When it came to entering the '80s, the iconic singer experienced a lag in his career that was revived thanks to an unsuspecting rock duet with Ronnie Spectorthat was a success on the charts.
By the mid-1980s, Money's career wasn't at its peak due to a series of drug issues that pushed Columbia Records to limit his creative control over his tracks. Wanting to still keep him on as one of their artists, the track "Take Me Home Tonight" was suggested to the singer. The pop-rock track would cause a resurgence of Money's career, landing at No. 4 on the Billboard Hot 100 charts. It did land at No. 1 on the Mainstream Rock charts.
UltimateClassicRock tagged "Take Me Home Tonight" at No. 13 on their list of the Greatest Rock Duets. The track was iconic for a few reasons, as it pushed Spector to come out of retirement and perform once again. Songwriters Mick Leeson and Peter Vale developed the track with producer Richie Zito having introduced it to Money.
Reports claim that Money wasn't interested in the demo, but was intrigued by how it interpolated Spector's 1963 hit "Be My Baby." It soon led Money to agree to record the track and had the idea of wanting the music icon to record it as a duet, singing her original parts. Many called it impossible, with Money instead asking Martha Davis to record the lyrics.
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Money was still urged to try and get Spector on board, with her having commented, "He called me and said, 'Ronnie, I need your help with this. It needs you to be on it. I said, 'Baby, I don't do that anymore,' but he was insistent." Spector had originally stopped performing in 1968 when she married Phil Spector, with Money recalling her saying she was retired and needed to take care of her children.
"I said 'Ronnie, I got this song that's truly amazing and it's a tribute to you. It would be so great if you ... did it with me,'" recalled the singer.
"Take Me Home Tonight" ended up being the spark Money needed to bring his career back on top, with the track having been his highest charting success. It led him to receive a nomination for Best Male Rock Vocal Performance at the 29th Annual Grammy Awards.
The track also holds significance as it pushed Spector to return to music and released her second solo album, Unfinished Business. By then, she was already divorced from Spector and married to Jonathan Greenfield.
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This story was originally published May 7, 2026 at 1:32 PM.