"On the Dark Side" is a song by fictional American rock band Eddie and the Cruisers, released as a tie-in to the 1983 film of the same name. When initially released in September 1983, the song peaked at No. 64 on the Billboard, while the film itself was pulled after three weeks in the theaters.
When the film was released to home video and pay cable outlets in early 1984, the film as well as the song received renewed interest, and the single was re-released that August. This time, the song reached No. 7 on the Billboard Hot 100 and No. 19 on Canada's RPM 100. It also lasted five weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard Rock Tracks chart, displacing The Fixx.
John Cafferty & The Beaver Brown Band served as the real-life, officially uncredited stand-ins for the fictional Cruisers on the recording (as they did for the rest of the soundtrack album); only one member of the band, saxophonist Michael Antunes, appeared in the film, and none of the other actors playing Eddie and the Cruisers were musicians.Muir, John Kenneth. The Rock and Roll Film Encyclopedia. Applause Books, 2007. p.86
Chart performance First US release (1983) Chart (1983–1984)Peak positionUS Billboard Hot 10064US Cash Box Top 10064
US re-release (1984) Chart (1984)Peak positionCanada Top Singles (RPM)19US Billboard Hot 1007US Billboard Top Rock Tracks1US Cash Box Top 10012
Year-end charts Chart (1984)PositionU.S. Billboard Hot 10094U.S. Cash Box89
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