Cover Me first, ahem, covered Jon Hardy and the Public back in 2009 when the band released an EP of Randy Newman covers entitled Little Criminals: Songs of Randy Newman. As we noted back then, Randy Newman covers pretty much never get old, particularly when they include a version of the greatest lyrical work of all time, “Short People.” What we didn’t know then though was that, while in the studio for that EP, the band was also working on a reinterpretation of Them‘s 1965 hit “Here Comes the Night.”
We’re happy to revisit the St. Louis quintet’s soulful melodies with an exclusive premiere of that work. Their version of “Here Comes the Night” shares much in common with the 1965 original in beat and basic structure, but cuts out any semblance of upbeat doo-wop that may have shown through on the original. Lyrically, the song deals in the painful subject matter of breakups and the heartache of watching your ex move on to someone new. Van Morrison sings the verses in an amazingly upbeat and almost carefree way. There is no such joy in Hardy’s voice.
“Like most rust-belt cities, our hometown of St. Louis got hit hard by the recession,” explained bassist Greg Shadwick. “Most of us in the band were out of work or barely employed. Same with family and friends. Real quick, things got dark. Confusing. A weight was put on living and everything stung.” Like the lyricist’s experience with his ex, the band members saw others carrying on like normal and thought something must be wrong with them for being down.
“This song spoke to us,” Shadwick said. “We played it the way we played it because it gave us comfort. Turning up the amps and cutting into something. It kept us from going full-on crazy.”
Cover Me is proud to offer a first listen below. Download the MP3 or stream the audio.
Check out more from Jon Hardy and the Public at their website or MySpace. Also, be on the lookout for a new EP from the band in November.
Fab article. I love them!