Editing The Bangles (section)

===Career peak (1984–1989)===
[[File:The Bangles, 1984.jpg|thumb|The Bangles in 1984]]
The Bangles' full-length debut album on [[Columbia Records]], ''[[All Over the Place (The Bangles album)|All Over the Place]]'' (1984), captured their [[power pop]] roots, featuring the singles "Hero Takes a Fall" and the [[Kimberley Rew]]-penned Beatlesque "[[Going Down to Liverpool]]" (originally recorded by Rew's band [[Katrina and the Waves]]). The record received positive reviews and the video for "Liverpool" featured [[Leonard Nimoy]], which helped to generate further publicity.<ref>{{cite web |url= https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=EegbAAAAIBAJ&pg=4471,4154485&dq=bangles+nimoy&hl=en |title= Spock Beams Down for Bangles' Video|first= E.A.|last= Vare|work= The Dispatch|date= October 31, 1984|access-date=June 13, 2011}}</ref> This came about through a friendship between the Hoffs and Nimoy families. They received a much wider audience serving as the opening act for [[Cyndi Lauper]] on her [[Fun Tour]].

All this went some way to attracting the attention of [[Prince (musician)|Prince]], who gave them "[[Manic Monday]]" originally written for his group [[Apollonia 6]]. "Manic Monday" went on to become a number-two hit in the US, the UK and Germany, outsold at the time only by another Prince composition, his own "[[Kiss (Prince song)|Kiss]]". The band's second album, ''[[Different Light]]'' (January 1986), was more polished than its predecessor,<ref>{{Cite web |last=Cinquemani |first=Sal |date=2003-09-23 |title=Review: The Bangles, Different Light |url=https://www.slantmagazine.com/music/the-bangles-different-light/ |access-date=2025-02-02 |website=Slant Magazine |language=en-US}}</ref> and with the help of the worldwide number-one hit "[[Walk Like an Egyptian]]" (written by [[Liam Sternberg]]), put the band firmly in the mainstream, reaching number two on the [[Billboard 200|''Billboard'' 200]].<ref name="Dickerson, Jim 1987 pp. 20">Dickerson, Jim (December 1987) "The Bangles: You Have to Enjoy it While It's There," Nine-o-One, pp. 20–23.</ref>

The song was sent to them in midsession and the group was divided about whether it would be a failure or a success. When the song was released, the group was amazed to discover that it brought them a new audience of female fans, most of them very young. Commented Michael Steele to a ''[[Nine-O-One Network|Nine-O-One Network Magazine]]'' writer: "When I go out now it is usually girls who recognize me."<ref name="Dickerson, Jim 1987 pp. 20"/> Three additional hit singles released from the ''Different Light'' album were: "[[Following (song)|Following]]" (top 40 in Ireland), "[[Walking Down Your Street]]" (number 11 on the US ''Billboard'' Hot 100) and the wistful "[[If She Knew What She Wants]]", written and first recorded by [[Jules Shear]] (which reached 29 on the Hot 100 in the summer of 1986 and was in the German top 20 for 13 weeks).<ref>{{cite magazine |url= https://www.billboard.com/charts/hot-100/1986-07-12| title=Billboard The Hot 100| magazine=[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]]}} {{cite web |url= https://hitparade.ch/song/Bangles/If-She-Knew-What-She-Wants-1455| title=Schweizer Hitparade|access-date=February 19, 2018}}</ref>

The band had another hit with a cover of [[Simon & Garfunkel]]'s "[[A Hazy Shade of Winter]]" (1987) from [[Less than Zero (soundtrack)|the soundtrack]] of the film ''[[Less than Zero (film)|Less than Zero]]''.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://diffuser.fm/the-bangles-hazy-shade-of-winter/|title=30 Years Ago: The Bangles Rock Out for 'Less Than Zero'|first=Nick|last=DeRiso|website=Diffuser.fm|date=November 6, 2017 }}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/music/features/story-of-the-song-hazy-shade-of-winter-the-bangles-1987-2144463.html|title=Story of the Song: Hazy Shade of Winter, The Bangles (1987)|date=November 26, 2010|website=The Independent}}</ref> The song reached number 2 in February 1988.<ref>{{Cite magazine|url=https://www.billboard.com/music/the-bangles|title=The Bangles|magazine=Billboard}}</ref>
[[File:901 December 1987.jpg|thumb|The Bangles on the cover of the December 1987 edition of ''[[Nine-O-One Network]]'']]
The album ''[[Everything (The Bangles album)|Everything]]'' (1988) was produced by [[Davitt Sigerson]], as the band had a negative reaction to working with David Kahne on ''Different Light''.<ref>{{cite web |url= https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=0RdQAAAAIBAJ&pg=5368,1027522 |title= Bangles Disavow Maturity|work= The Victoria Advocate|date= December 4, 1988|access-date=June 13, 2011}}</ref> It was another multiplatinum hit and included the top-five hit "[[In Your Room (The Bangles song)|In Your Room]]", as well as their biggest-selling single "[[Eternal Flame (song)|Eternal Flame]]". Co-writer [[Billy Steinberg]] came up with the title after Hoffs told him about the band's recent trip to Memphis, Tennessee, where they visited [[Graceland]], [[Elvis Presley]]'s estate. An eternal flame is maintained at Presley's grave, but it had gone out on the day of their visit, and its clear plastic enclosure was flooded. They asked what was in the box and were told, "That's the eternal flame."<ref>Susanna Hoffs, "Commentary", the Bangles, ''Return to Bangleonia'', DVD, 2007</ref>

The single became their biggest worldwide hit and the biggest single by an all-female band in history.<ref>''Stichting Nederlandse Top 40, 500 Nr. 1 hits uit de Top 40'', page 261, 9023009444</ref> Hoffs was naked when she recorded the song, convinced by Sigerson that [[Olivia Newton-John]] got her amazing performances by recording everything naked.<ref>''Soundtrack to My Life'', Series 3, Hosted by Cat Deeley, interview with Vicki and Debbi Peterson and Susanna Hoffs</ref> Hoffs said she felt it was like 'skinny dipping' and recorded most of the rest of the album naked.<ref>{{cite web|last=Fleming|first=Amy|date=May 3, 2021|title='I did the vocals in the nude' – the Bangles on how they made Eternal Flame|url=http://www.theguardian.com/culture/2021/may/03/vocals-nude-bangles-eternal-flame-susanna-hoffs-how-we-made|access-date=May 29, 2021|website=The Guardian|language=en}}</ref>