Stewart, the record company did not think the song was suitable as a single in the United States as it lacked a chorus. However, when a radio DJ in Cleveland kept playing the song from the album, and it generated a strong local response, the label decided to release it in the US. Chart performance "Sweet Dreams" was Eurythmics' commercial breakthrough in the United Kingdom and all over the world. The single entered the UK Singles Chart at number 63 in February 1983 and reached number two the following month, spending a total of six weeks in the Top 5. It was the 11th best-selling single of 1983 in the UK and has been certified double platinum by the British Phonographic Industry. "Sweet Dreams" was the first-ever single released by Eurythmics in the United States when it was released in May 1983. The single debuted at number 90 and slowly eased up the chart. By August, the single had reached number two and stayed there for four weeks before it took the number one spot. Music video The music video for "Sweet Dreams" was directed by Chris Ashbrook and filmed in January 1983, shortly before the single and the album were released. The video received heavy airplay on the then-fledgling MTV channel and is widely considered a classic clip from the early-MTV era. Rolling Stone stated it "made Annie Lennox and Dave Stewart MTV superstars". The video begins with a fist pounding on a table, with the camera panning up to reveal Lennox in a boardroom, with images of a Saturn V launch projected on a screen behind her, which are later replaced by a shot of a crowd walking down a street. Stewart is shown typing on a computer (actually an MCS drum computer). The camera cuts to Lennox and Stewart meditating on the table. Stewart is next shown playing cello in a field. The scene then returns to the boardroom, with Lennox and Stewart lying down on the table, and a cow walking around them. Stewart is shown again typing on the computer, with the cow feeding next to him. The scene cuts to the duo in a field, with a herd of cows, and Stewart still typing. Lennox and Stewart are then seen floating in a boat, with Stewart again playing the cello. The video ends with Lennox lying in bed, with the last shot being a