Songfacts®:

• Not to be confused with the slower 1930 Rodgers/Hart composition of the same name, the title track of Richie's third solo album is a show opener, and one that sets the mood for the rest of the concert, which in keeping with the major body of his work, is usually a fun affair. The song is about having a good time - and literally dancing on the ceiling. Lyrically, it's far from challenging, but Richie created a very memorable couplet with "Oh, what a feeling, when we're dancing on the ceiling."
• Richie co-wrote the song with Mike Frenchnik and Carlos Rios, and spared no expense; the video is said to have cost a staggering $400,000! It was one of the most memorable clips of the '80s, using the rotating room effect made famous in the 1951 movie Royal Wedding, where Fred Astaire danced on the ceiling. The film was directed by Stanley Donen, and he was enlisted to do the same effect on Richie's video, which retained its wow factor 35 years later, taking it to another level by having a number of people rotating in the room at the same time, rather than just one. In 2010, the movie Inception used more complex variations on the same effect.
• Released on the Motown label in 7-inch and 12-inch formats as well as a CD single, the song runs 4:21 and is backed by "Love Will Find A Way." >>>

  Suggestion credit:
  Alexander Baron - London, England, for above 3
• The direct-to-video "The Making Of 'Dancing On The Ceiling,'" available on laser disc and VHS, sold over 100,000 copies for about $20 each.