Up All Night

Album: Nine Track Mind (2016)
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • Charlie Puth sings here about being smitten with a girl who is playing games with him. He wrote the song with Katy Perry's frequent songwriting partner Bonnie McKee. Puth told AT40: "I was talking with Bonnie, who was going through a tough time with this guy wanting [him] to like her, and I didn't tell her that I was having a tough time with this girl wanting to like me, and it was the first time that I've been in a session where two people were both experiencing the same feeling, but didn't tell each other, but we found it out through music. So that's pretty cool."
  • Bonnie McKee was an established songwriter when she was paired with Puth, who had yet to released his first album. She wasn't happy about working with a newbie, but was pleasantly surprised when Puth turned out to be terrific songwriting partner and receptive to her ideas. In most songwriting sessions, McKee helps the artist tell their story, but in this one it was Puth telling her tale.

    Puth ended up co-writing two songs with McKee for her to sing: a Christmas song called "California Winter," and her 2015 cut "Bombastic," which ended up in the trailer for the 2019 movie Charlie's Angels.
  • In a Songfacts interview with Bonnie McKee, she revealed the inspiration for this song: "I had literally been up all night the night before dealing with a boyfriend that was giving me the run-around," she said. "We were in a grey area if I remember correctly. It was just driving me crazy - it was that 'are we or aren't we' kind of moment. Charlie was young and inexperienced at the time, but he's very empathetic and he knows how to tell a story, so when I told him what was going on, he was able to help me spin that into a song."

Comments

Be the first to comment...

Editor's Picks

Director Mark Pellington ("Jeremy," "Best Of You")

Director Mark Pellington ("Jeremy," "Best Of You")Song Writing

Director Mark Pellington on Pearl Jam's "Jeremy," and music videos he made for U2, Jon Bon Jovi and Imagine Dragons.

Emmylou Harris

Emmylou HarrisSongwriter Interviews

She thinks of herself as a "song interpreter," but back in the '80s another country star convinced Emmylou to take a crack at songwriting.

Neal Smith - "I'm Eighteen"

Neal Smith - "I'm Eighteen"They're Playing My Song

With the band in danger of being dropped from their label, Alice Cooper drummer Neal Smith co-wrote the song that started their trek from horror show curiosity to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

The Punk Photography of Chris Stein

The Punk Photography of Chris SteinSong Writing

Chris Stein of Blondie shares photos and stories from his book about the New York City punk scene.

Martyn Ware of Heaven 17

Martyn Ware of Heaven 17Songwriter Interviews

Martyn talks about producing Tina Turner, some Heaven 17 hits, and his work with the British Electric Foundation.

Ian Astbury of The Cult

Ian Astbury of The CultSongwriter Interviews

The Cult frontman tells who the "Fire Woman" is, and talks about performing with the new version of The Doors.