There’s just something so romantic about midnight — at least, musicians across the world seem to think so. Over the years, singer-songwriters have repeatedly pondered the magic, the beauty, the sadness and the symbolism of the inevitable witching hour, when one day reliably turns into the next.
For instance, one of pop’s most influential musicians has written about the subject so often in her work that she ended up making a whole album specifically in honor of 12 a.m. Taylor Swift’s Midnights — surprise announced during her video of the year acceptance speech at the 2022 VMAs — is devoted to all who “lie awake in love and fear, in turmoil and in tears,” as Swift herself said in a description of the album.
“We stare at walls and drink until they speak back,” she wrote on Instagram. “We twist in our self-made cages and pray that we aren’t – right this minute – about to make some fateful life-altering mistake. For all of us who have tossed and turned and decided to keep the lanterns lit and go searching – hoping that just maybe, when the clock strikes twelve… we’ll meet ourselves.”
Swift — one of many lyricists to muse about midnight’s melancholy — hit the nail on the head in terms of why 12 o’clock can be such an emotional hour of the night. But, as groups like One Direction and ABBA can attest, midnight is also often the time stamp on some of life’s most fun, carefree moments. From New Year’s Eve celebrations to all-nighters spent on dance floors, many of the best parties in life are just getting started when the day comes to an end.
Keep reading to see these moonlit moments when the word “midnight” has appeared in popular songs throughout history.
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“Midnight Special” – Lead Belly (1934)
Image Credit: Hulton Archive/GI Folk singer Lead Belly recorded a version of “Midnight Special” for John and Alan Lomax in 1934. The song, which originated in the American South and is sung from the perspective of a prisoner, would go on to be recorded by everyone from Creedence Clearwater Revival to Paul Evans, who took it to the top 20 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1960. Listen here.
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“Walkin’ After Midnight” – Patsy Cline (1957)
“Walkin’ After Midnight” was Patsy Cline’s breakthrough hit single, reaching No. 2 on Hot Country Songs. Listen here.
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“Midnight in Moscow” – Kenny Ball (1962)
Kenny Ball’s dixieland swing version of the Soviet Russian song reached No. 2 on the Hot 100 in 1962. Listen here.
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“Midnight Mary” – Joey Powers (1963)
Joey Powers reached No. 10 on the Hot 100 with this midnight track. Listen here.
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“In the Midnight Hour” – Wilson Pickett (1965)
Image Credit: Michael Ochs Archives/GI The title track on Wilson Pickett’s sophomore album, “In The Midnight Hour” reached No. 21 on the Hot 100. Listen here.
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“Midnight Confessions” – The Grass Roots (1968)
This track was The Grass Roots’ best-charting single of their three top 10 Hot 100 hits, reaching No. 5 in 1968. Listen here.
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“Midnight Cowboy” – Ferrante & Teicher (1969)
Image Credit: GAB Archive/Redferns Reaching No. 10 on the Hot 100, this single was a version of the instrumental theme for the Oscar-winning (best picture) film Midnight Cowboy starring Dustin Hoffman and Jon Voight (not the version used in the film, however). Listen here.
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“Midnight Rambler” – Rolling Stones (1969)
“Midnight Rambler” was released on the Rolling Stones’ tenth studio album Let It Bleed, which reached No. 3 on the Billboard 200, and remains a staple of their live concerts. Listen here.
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“After Midnight” – Eric Clapton (1970)
Though it would become one of Eric Clapton’s signature songs, “After Midnight” was actually first released in 1966 by J. J. Cale. Listen here.
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“Midnight Rider” – The Allman Brothers Band (1970)
Image Credit: Courtesy Everett Collection The Allman Brothers first released “Midnight Rider” in 1970, but it was 1973 when Gregg Allman released a solo version that the song gained prominent chart success, reaching No. 19 on the Hot 100 in 1974. Listen here.
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“Midnight Train to Georgia” – Gladys Knight & the Pips (1973)
The epic “Midnight Train to Georgia” was Gladys Knight and the Pips’ first single to go No. 1 on the Hot 100, a position it held for two weeks in 1973. Listen here.
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“Midnight at the Oasis” – Maria Muldaur (1973)
Folk singer Maria Muldaur is best known for this track, which peaked at No. 6 on the Hot 100. Listen here.
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“Midnight Blue” – Melissa Manchester (1975)
Image Credit: Courtesy Everett Collection The lead single off Melissa Manchester’s third studio album Melissa, “Midnight Blue” (co-written by Manchester and Carole Bayer Sager) marked the singer’s first top 10 hit and peaked at No. 6 on the Hot 100. Listen here.
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“At Midnight (My Love Will Lift You Up)” – Rufus feat. Chaka Khan (1977)
“At Midnight (My Love Will Lift You Up” topped what is now known as the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart in 1977. It hails from the iconic funk group’s classic LP Ask Rufus. Listen here.
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“Midnight Wind” – John Stewart (1979)
John Stewart topped the Hot 100 as a songwriter in 1967 when the Monkees took his composition “Daydream Believer” to No. 1. In 1979, his own “Midnight Wind” breezed to No. 28 on that chart.
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“Gimme! Gimme! Gimme! (A Man After Midnight)” – ABBA (1979)
ABBA’s earworm “Gimme! Gimme! Gimme! (A Man After Midnight)” didn’t hit the Hot 100, but a sample of its instrumental hook helped propel Madonna’s “Hung Up” to the top 10 three decades later. Listen here.
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“Midnight Rocks” – Al Stewart (1980)
Scottish singer-songwriter Al Stewart’s “Midnight Rocks” peaked at No. 24 on the Hot 100 in 1980. Listen here.
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“Isn’t It Midnight” – Fleetwood Mac (1987)
Image Credit: Everett Collection / Everett Col “Isn’t It Midnight” was the sixth and final single off of Tango in the Night, the last album released by Fleetwood Mac in the days of its most iconic lineup: Stevie Nicks, Lindsey Buckingham, Mick Fleetwood, Christine McVie and John McVie. Listen here.
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“Midnight Blue” – Lou Gramm (1987)
When Foreigner’s Lou Gramm busted out with his debut album Ready or Not, the lead single “Midnight Blue” peaked at No. 5 on the Hot 100. Listen here.
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‘Midnight Marauders’ – A Tribe Called Quest (1993)
Midnight Marauders, A Tribe Called Quest’s third studio album and an all-time hip-hop classic, hit No. 8 on the Billboard 200. Listen here.
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“Midnight City” – M83 (2011)
This track served as the lead single off M83’s 2011 sixth studio album, Hurry Up, We’re Dreaming. Even if you don’t think you know it, you’ll recognize those yelping synths the moment you hit play on this song, which went top 10 on the Alternative Songs and Hot Rock Songs charts and was named one of the Songs That Defined the 2010s by, well, us. Listen here.
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‘Midnight Memories’ – One Direction (2013)
Image Credit: FOX Image Collection/GI One Direction’s third album Midnight Memories made the boy band the first group to ever debut at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 with their first three albums. Listen here.
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“Midnight” – Coldplay (2014)
Hailing from the band’s 2014 album Ghost Stories, “Midnight” peaked at No. 29 on the Hot 100 in 2014. Listen here.
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“Midnight Love” – girl in red (2020)
“Midnight Love” served as the lead single off girl in red’s debut studio album, If I Could Make It Go Quiet, which peaked at No. 67 on the Billboard 200. Listen here.
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“Midnight Sky” – Miley Cyrus (2020)
Image Credit: Vijat Mohindra The lead single off Cyrus’ 2020 album Plastic Hearts, “Midnight Sky” peaked at No. 14 on the Hot 100. It was given a Stevie Nicks makeover when the Fleetwood Mac frontwoman appeared on an official remix of “Midnight Sky” and “Edge of Seventeen,” titled “Edge of Midnight.” Listen here.
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‘Medicine at Midnight’ – Foo Fighters (2021)
Medicine at Midnight marked the final album recorded by Foo Fighters before drummer Taylor Hawkins passed away in 2022. Listen here.
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‘Midnights’ – Taylor Swift (2022)
Midnights marks Swift’s tenth studio album and 12th overall, if you include the re-recorded versions of her older albums Fearless and Red.
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Bonus: Dexys Midnight Runners
Image Credit: Brian Cooke/Redferns Known for their Hot 100-topping “Come On Eileen,” Dexys Midnight Runners is the one entry on this list that isn’t a song or album, but a band. Formed in 1978 in Birmingham, England, the group has released five studio albums and is led by Kevin Rowland, the only member to have steadily remained in the band through several lineup changes.