During early production, the album was intended to be titled "Say You, Say Me" and released in December 1985. However, Richie found that he did not "want to do those songs" owing to the social conditions he saw, and as such he began rewriting it "to express what felt the world was boxing itself into". Ultimately, the album's title was changed to "Dancing on the Ceiling", as the titular song was Richie's next single. Recording for the album took over a year and a half, and Richie later stated that he tried to include a mixture of sounds.