Video hit The Bangles

The Bangles - Eternal Flame (live)

Eternal Flame is a song by The Bangles from their 1988 album Everything. It became a hit single, when released in 1989, peaking at number one in the charts in nine countries, including Australia, the United Kingdom, and the United States. It was written by popular songwriters Billy Steinberg and Tom Kelly and The Bangles' own Susanna Hoffs. With this song and "Walk Like an Egyptian", The Bangles became only the third all-girl group to score multiple no.1's in the United States. (The others are The Supremes, who had 12, and The Shirelles, with 2.).

Unlike the rest of the more uptempo pop songs on their album Everything, "Eternal Flame" is a ballad. Co-writer Billy Steinberg describes it as "The Beatles meet The Byrds".

The song was inspired by two eternal flames: one at the gravesite of Elvis Presley that the Bangles saw when the band visited Graceland, and one at a local synagogue in Palm Springs which Steinberg attended as a child.

Steinberg recalled to Songfacts: "Susanna was talking about The Bangles having visited Graceland, and she said there was some type of shrine to Elvis that included some kind of eternal flame. As soon as those words were mentioned, I immediately thought of the synagogue in the town of Palm Springs, California where I grew up. I remember during our Sunday school class they would walk us through the sanctuary. There was one little red light and they told us it was called the eternal flame."

Cover versions:

In 1991, jazz fusion/contemporary jazz guitarist Chuck Loeb offered Chuck's version from the album "Balance."

A Japanese rendition of "Eternal Flame" was also performed by Seiko Matsuda.

The song has also been covered by Atomic Kitten (band) in 2001.

The song has been covered in 1999 by the Australian group Human Nature on the Counting Down album.

The song has been covered in 2000 by Rollergirl on the Now I'm Singin'... And The Party Keeps On Rollin' and released as a single which peaked at #87 in the Swiss Charts.

The song was covered in 2001 by the Argentine band Smitten on them Let me be album.

The song was covered in 2004 by Japanese pop singer Beni Arashiro on her Infinite... single.

The song was covered in 2005 by Jeremy Udden on his Torchsongs album.

The song was covered in 2005 by Japanese artist LISA on her Melody Circus album.

A cover version has been made in 2005 by the Filipino acoustic duo M.Y.M.P. on the Versions album.

Portuguese power metal band Oratory included a rendition of the song on their 2005 "Interludium" EP.

In 2006, the song was covered by former Deutschland sucht den SuperStar contestant Lena Hanenberg on the Love Songs album.

Bonnie Tyler and French singer Laura Zen recorded a version in 2011 which went to French radio stations on Monday August 29. The song was named "Eternal Flame (Amour éternel)".

The song was featured in the movie Pitch Perfect.

The lyrics:

Close your eyes, give me your hand, darling

Do you feel my heart beating

Do you understand

Do you feel the same

Am I only dreaming

Is this burning an eternal flame

I believe it's meant to be, darling

I watch you when you are sleeping

You belong with me

Do you feel the same

Am I only dreaming

Or is this burning an eternal flame

Say my name sun shines through the rain

A whole life so lonely

And then you come and ease the pain

I don't want to lose this feeling