Here is another of my songs going through it’s various stages. Firstly there is my home rough demo using a DR 55 Dr Rhythm drum machine (a very early drum machine ). Next I took it to Guardian Studios in Pity Me (UK) where Paul Smith supplied the drums I did the rest and Dave Black added the vocals. I’m afraid I don’t recall the name of the girl who did harmonies. Next we hear Sheena Easton’s version. This was released in 1982 on the top twenty album “Madness Money and Music”. Unfortunately my song was not included on the USA release but it did really well in Japan and was added to later Stateside releases. Finally there is a version by Celine Dion which is a French adaptation by Eddie Marnay released both as a single and album track in 1984. The single was a big hit in France and Canada (cert Gold) and the album Les Chemins de ma Maison also did well. As you can imagine the album has been re-released many times now and Ne Me Plaignez Pas is on oodles of compilation CD’s which continue to sell well to this day. Incidentally, Sheena’s version was produced by Chris Neil who also went on to produce Celine Dion. I’ve featured a live version of Ne Mr Plaignez Pas which I prefer
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Here is the story behind Hurry Home. The audio collage you can hear below starts with my rough demo. Unfortunately auto-tune had not been invented in those days. The rough demo was laid down after a heavy metal session I recall, everyone had left and there was only me and audio engineer Mickey Sweeney in the studio. I nipped in quickly and laid down a demo. There is a recording in my kitchen that pre-dates this but I can’t find it so you have been spared. This particular demo was recorded next to a taxi office which you can hear. Next, I only made a couple of simple demos, the first being with Paul Caffrey followed by another with Mick Whitaker. Next there is a clip sung by Vikki Clayton (Fairport Convention) and after that a version by Sarah Brightman. We conclude with the big one by Wavelength. Wavelength’s version charted in 1982 and went top 20 staying in the charts for 3 months. Oh, and BTW Sarah B, if you’d like to pay me the royalties from your 100 date world wide La Luna tour of stadiums I’d be happy to accept!