Tender is the Night

For anyone who has previously dived into the wonderful Radio 4 series Soul Music, you’ll be familiar with the often incredibly moving journeys into the emotional impact of song. So I was really honoured when I was recently invited to be a part of this documentary series and speak about the importance of Blur's 1999 song 'Tender’ for me as both a songwriter and human being.

Putting on my serious musicology hat, as well as speaking about its more personal resonances, I spoke about the literary history behind the song’s title, its composition, and how the song has been there for me through times of difficulty as a mantra of hope.

“Come on come come on, get through it”

The programme is a sometimes emotional listen, with some really moving stories from the other contributors. You can sit down with a cuppa and listen back now on BBC Sounds here, or search for “Soul Music”: https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/m00244mj

I first reworked the song “Tender” back when I was still holed up at home with a young baby, shielding from Covid and going slowly out of mind from the isolation and bleakness of it all. As I wrote at the time:

“What I love about Tender is a song that balances on the precipice between deep sorrow and hope - a feeling I think we can all relate to right now… I am deep-diving in the studio on the mellotron and had some great fun with the stacked harmonies (six versions of me!) standing in place for a gospel choir that's still outside of my remit (as I continue to shield at home). “Come on come come on, get through it”. A mantra for our times, if there ever was one.”

It was very timely to be asked to be a part of the the documentary as my version of “Tender” will also appear on the forthcoming limited edition release Versions: Encore, that collects together 6 of my covers/reworkings that I’ve put together since the release of the Versions album, all on vinyl for the very first time.

It is only available on limited edition Eco Mix vinyl (strictly limited to 500 copies) and there’s fewer than 70 copies remaining now which you can grab one now exclusively on Bandcamp here now:

As I’ve mused on many times before, covers can sometimes be sniffed at as lacking in merit, or a lazy alternative to writing your own song.

But I think what this attitude really overlooks is the power of a reinterpretation both for the artist AND the listener as a transformative space.

I cut my teeth learning how to record and produce by tackling versions of pre-existing songs on my previous collection Reprise. When you remove the pressure of writing something new you’re free just to focus on the craft and art of engineering and production. It’s also a great way to flex your arrangement skills when you’re rethinking how to approach a well-known song on a new instrument or in a new key. It’s a gift.

For the listener - well for me at least - I’ve often opened a door to a whole new catalogue through hearing another artist cover a song I didn’t know previously: For example, Smashing Pumpkins covering “Landslide’ was my first introduction to Fleetwood Mac, and Thom Yorke & co. covering “2HB’” was the first step into a life long love affair with Roxy Music that might not have happened without encountering this second hand version of the original.

So let’s hear it for the power of a cover version. Doorways into new, exciting worlds and playgrounds of possibility in the studio.

And I hope you enjoy listening to the programme.

Catherine x