Synopsis

Cheap Trick perform "The Flame" in a polished, atmospheric power-ballad video built around dramatic lighting, close-ups, and studio-style performance shots. Robin Zander receives much of the visual focus as he delivers the song's emotional vocal, while the band is presented in a sleek late-1980s rock setting rather than the playful, eccentric style associated with many of their earlier clips. The video emphasizes mood and romantic intensity, matching the song's themes of devotion, heartbreak, and enduring love.

Factoids & Trivia

• "The Flame" was released in 1988 as the first single from *Lap of Luxury*, and the video received heavy MTV exposure during the band's commercial comeback.

• The single became Cheap Trick's first No. 1 hit on the Billboard Hot 100, remaining at the top for two weeks in July 1988.

• The song was written by British songwriters Bob Mitchell and Nick Graham. It had originally been considered for singer Elkie Brooks, who declined to record it.

• Cheap Trick were initially reluctant to record the song. Rick Nielsen reportedly disliked the demo so strongly that he crushed the cassette under his boot.

• Producer Richie Zito eventually recorded the musicians' parts one at a time after an early attempt to record the whole band together broke down. Zito felt the song was particularly well suited to Robin Zander's voice.

• The band had been offered a choice between "The Flame" and "Look Away." Cheap Trick selected "The Flame," while Chicago later recorded "Look Away" and took it to No. 1 as well.

• The video uses the shorter 4:44 single edit rather than the 5:37 album version.

• The clip was later included on the 1990 Cheap Trick video compilation *Every Trick in the Book*.

• Retrospective criticism has focused on the video's polished power-ballad presentation, with some commentators arguing that it toned down the band's distinctive personality in favor of a more conventional late-1980s rock image.