AMG Review of In the Heat of the Night

Rob Theakston
All Music Guide

With her debut recording In the Heat of the Night, Pat Benatar wasted no time starting out of the gate with the furious leadoff track "Heartbreaker," which solidified her place in a class of women who were taking the rock world by storm in the late '70s. In the Heat of the Night was an album that obviously had its share of filler, but the one-two punch of "Heartbreaker" and the John Cougar Mellencamp tune "I Need a Lover" leading off the album made enough of a statement to put her on the pop charts. The deflated three tracks following are easily forgettable, especially the sci-fi '50s ballad "My Clone Sleeps Alone," but the remainder of the album packs enough grit and solid songwriting (especially the Blondie-esque "So Sincere") that it remains an impressive debut and foreshadows a glimpse of great things to come.