The song was fully rehearsed and presented at the Leningrad Rock Club Festival in 1986, but was first released on the album Gruppa krovi (Russian: Группа крови [ˈɡrupːə ˈkrovʲɪ], lit.
Audio engineer Alexey Vishnya said that the first version of "Spokoynaya nochʹ" was recorded together with songs that were included in the album Eto ne lyubov... (Russian: Это не любовь..., lit.
According to film director Sergey Lysenko, Viktor Tsoi composed the song while staying at the Slavutich Hotel in Kyiv, drawing inspiration from the city's panoramic views from the tenth floor.
The track underwent full rehearsals before its official public debut at the fourth Leningrad Rock Club Festival in 1986, with Viktor Tsoi providing the primary composition and lyrics while Yuri Kasparyan contributed the guitar solo.
The track exists in multiple versions, including both electric and acoustic arrangements, preserved on official concert recordings and unofficial fan bootlegs.
Some also interpret the song as at least partly based around a lamentation of how people, consumed by daily routines, fail to appreciate such unique qualities of night and of life in general.
On the album "At Shabolovka" prior to performing "Spokoynaya Noch'" as the second to last track, frontman Konstantin Kinchev stated: "As long as we are alive, we will always sing this song, because it is very close and dear to us."