“Where Do the Nights Go”
Ronnie Milsap
Written by Rory Bourke and Mike Reid
Billboard
#1 (1 week)
January 23, 1988
Why was Ronnie Milsap phoning it in when the new traditionalist movement was taking off all around him?
I cannot believe how dreary this ballad is. Mike Reid seems to have given up on writing melodies at this point, forcing Milsap to unnaturally stretch syllables in the verses to try go get something going melodically. The song is supposed to be about lovin’ all night, but the production sounds more like it’s capturing a middle aged couple watching a procedural, followed by lights out at ten.
Where did the fire go, and why the unilateral disarmament right at the time when pop-flavored country needed to step up its game? This isn’t even interesting enough to be a bad record. It’s just boring.
“Where Do the Nights Go” gets a C-.
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Sigh! After mediocre reviews of some of my other favorite Ronnie Milsap pop ballads (“Inside”, “Still Losing You”), I had a bad feeling this one would be bad-mouthed too. I can see why it wouldn’t be everybody’s cup of tea thematically but for the life of me I can’t understand how one couldn’t admire the vocals and musicianship, all lending themselves to a gloss and shine I don’t ever recall hearing on a “country” song to this degree. When I think of Doug Supernaw’s pedestrian treatment of this song concept that came several years later with “Not Enough Hours in the Night”, it only makes me appreciate Ronnie’s silky-smooth OG delivery that much more. What you consider pop-country’s “unilateral disarmament” I consider to be Ronnie spreading his wings even deeper into an adult contemporary lane uniquely suited for him and this kind of arrangement. At least of the songs I’ve written reviews for, this is definitely the one we’re furthest apart on.
Grade: A
I’m not sure if Old Folks hit number one on R&R, but his next Billboard chart topper was definitely a response to the traditionalist wave. So this must’ve been a final straw of sorts.
Not sure if “Button off my shirt” hit #1 on R&R but that song sucked lol. Way worse than this one! It hit #4 on Billboard and was one of the very worst country songs of 1988 in my opinion. So much great stuff that year but “Button off my shirt” was terrible!
Old Folks was pretty bad too but mainly just boring. Burton off my shirt was awful. I also thought “Happy Happy Birthday Baby” was terrible in 1986 although I think it had a good rating on this site. When we get to 1989 not sure if “Houston Solition” hit #1 on RandR but it too was pretty awful lol. Best Milsap song in my opinion was “Smoky Mountain Rain.” Loved that song!
Old Folks was pretty bad too but mainly just boring. Burton off my shirt was awful. I also thought “Happy Happy Birthday Baby” was terrible in 1986 although I think it had a good rating on this site. When we get to 1989 not sure if “Houston Solition” hit #1 on RandR but it too was pretty awful lol. Best Milsap song in my opinion was “Smoky Mountain Rain.” Loved that song!
..way to slowly executed given the inital idea. still, surely something that al wheeler (carter brown’s promiscuous pine city detective lieutenant character from his 60s crime novels, spoiler altert: the australian was no mickey spillane) would have played with some pleasure in his apartment with the lights dimmed and the famous couch ready for some action. alternatively, quite a fitting contribution for breakfast radio shows at the time probably.
Perhaps my least favorite Ronnie Milsap single grade: vocals B- / material D-
I hope this isn’t what love either feels or sounds like.
This melody and performance is more evocative of clock-watching insomnia than any true thunder or wonder.
Milsap sounds like he has belligerently found himself cruising along in the middle-lane of the country music highway as newer and faster cars blow by him on both sides. Give him his flowers for confidently setting his cruise control and sticking to his creative itinerary but there was increasingly more interesting, seductive, and intriguing music out there to listen to.
You can hear the opportunity before country music passing him by on this one.
My favorite Milsap songs definitely came from the 1970s, but I love this song.
I really like Ronnie’s vocals on this but what makes the song for me is the beautiful guitar playing by the Legend Chet Atkins.