"When the Going Gets Tough, the Tough Get Going" is a 1985 song co-written and originally recorded by the British singer Billy Ocean in 1985.
Written by Wayne Brathwaite, Barry Eastmond, Mutt Lange and Ocean, the song was used as the theme song for the Michael Douglas and Kathleen Turner film The Jewel of the Nile (1985), a sequel to Romancing the Stone (1984). The saxophone solo is by Vernon Jeffrey Smith.
The song became a major international success, reaching number one on the UK Singles Chart for four weeks in February 1986, and number two on the Billboard Hot 100, stalling behind "How Will I Know" by Whitney Houston. It remains his only number-one single in the UK to date.
The song was later also featured on Ocean's Love Zone album, released in May 1986.
A music video was shot at Brixton Academy in London, and features Douglas and his Jewel of the Nile co-stars Kathleen Turner and Danny DeVito as lip-synching backing vocalists. It reportedly boosted the popularity of the venue.
The video was initially banned on Top of the Pops because the actors were not part of the Musicians' Union, meaning DeVito's miming of the saxophone solo went against the rules.
Jerry Smith of the Music Week magazine gave a critical review of "When the Going Gets Tough, the Tough Get Going", stating it was a "very slick US pop number" that "lacks substance and is barely saved by Ocean's strong vocal performance".
Other versions
Irish boy band Boyzone recorded a cover version for the 1999 Comic Relief telethon, shortening the title to "When the Going Gets Tough". Like the original, their version also reached number one on the UK Singles Chart for two weeks, becoming their fifth chart-topper and receiving a platinum certification in the UK. The video included Graham Norton, Jo Brand, Phill Jupitus, Mel Smith, Davina McCall, Harry Hill, Steve Collins, John McCririck, Jimmy White, Mystic Meg, Will Mellor, James Dreyfus, the cast of Emmerdale, Adam Buxton and Joe Cornish, and Ulrika Jonsson and Saracen from Gladiators.
UK CD single
UK cassette single
French CD single
Personnel are lifted from the By Request album booklet.
Main personnel
Orchestra