The actual words "I just died in your arms tonight" originally came to Van Eede while he was having sex with his girlfriend, the French phrase la petite mort, or "the little death", being a metaphor for orgasm. After writing down his version of the phrase, he later used it as the opening line to the song as well as using it as the chorus.
The power ballad was the band's biggest hit, peaking at number-one in the United States, Canada and Finland, and reaching the top five in the UK, South Africa, Sweden and Switzerland.
