In another life I used to do IT support for Books-A-Million at their Birmingham headquarters. The schedule was rotating shift work, and I always looked forward to pulling the night shift - 11PM to 730AM. The place was quiet, the phones didn't ring, and I basically didn't have to deal with people. It was just me and a big old AS400 mini mainframe that took up an entire room.
When I left work, I'd go to the gym, run errands, or just tool around town. Since it's the middle of the work day, everyone else was at work, and I'd have all these places to myself. Perfect for this lone wolf.
I usually got in around 6 in the afternoon. As a kid in my early 20's, I could catch 3 or 4 hours of sleep, wake up, and do it again with ease. I hadn't yet developed an appreciation I have these days for my bed - I'm not sure I could handle that nightshift today.
The Commodores released Nightshift in 1985. The album was significant for a couple of reasons. It was one of their first albums released after Lionel Richie left the group. It was also their last to hit #1 on the R&B charts. This was mainly due to to the album's title track "Nightshift", a tribute to R&B greats, Marvin Gaye and Jackie Wilson who both died the year before. The song charted high around the world and earned the group their first and only Grammy.
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