Adams' previous singles had charted much weaker in Europe and "Heaven" would be Adams' first single to chart in mainland Europe.Īlthough "Heaven" reached the top ten in Sweden and Norway and then the top twenty in Austria, Ireland, Switzerland and Sweden, it was a moderate top hundred success in Germany where it peaked at number 62. "Heaven" continued the trend of higher-charting singles when it debuted and peaked at top twenty in most of the European countries in which it charted. The song was released in Australia, Europe and New Zealand in 1985. "Heaven" was the highest charting single from Reckless. The song reached the top twenty on the Canadian Singles Chart and remained in the top twenty for another month. In Canada "Heaven" was officially released to radio on January, 1985. "Heaven" also peaked at number 12 on the Adult Contemporary chart during its second run, becoming Adams' second single to reach that chart after " Straight from the Heart" in 1983, and his biggest AC hit until 1991.
The song also re-entered the Top Rock Tracks chart in 1985, peaking at number 27. It was released as the third single from the album Reckless in April 1985 and reached number 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 and number two on the Billboard Hot 100 Airplay. "Heaven" first appeared on the A Night in Heaven soundtrack album in 1983 and received substantial airplay on album-oriented rock radio stations, reaching number 9 on Billboard 's Top Tracks chart in early 1984. Live tracks recorded at the Hollywood Palladium on February 1, 1985.
The song first appeared on the soundtrack to the 1983 film, A Night in Heaven, although it was not officially released as a single at this point.Īdams was unconvinced that "Heaven" was suitable for his next studio album, Reckless, a feeling that was echoed by producer Jimmy Iovine, who was working with Adams at the time. Since the recording session for "Heaven" was running behind schedule, Adams called Journey drummer Steve Smith, who happened to be in New York at the time and he filled Curry's drumming position. Halfway through the recording session, drummer Mickey Curry – who had warned Adams about his limited availability that day – announced that he had to leave since he had committed in advance to a Hall & Oates session. It was recorded at The Power Station in New York City on June 6 and 7, 1983. During that time, he and Jim Vallance co-wrote "Heaven", which was heavily inspired by the band's hit " Faithfully". Adams had played over 100 dates with Journey during 1983, serving as the opening act on their Frontiers Tour.