"Rain" is a song by New Zealand rock group

Dragon A dragon is a reptilian legendary creature that appears in the folklore of many cultures worldwide. Beliefs about dragons vary considerably through regions, but dragons in western cultures since the High Middle Ages have often been depicted as ...

released in July 1983 as the first single ahead of their seventh studio album, '' Body and the Beat'' (June 1984). It is co-written by the group's brothers,

Marc Marc or MARC may refer to: People * Marc (given name), people with the first name * Marc (surname), people with the family name Acronyms * MARC standards, a data format used for library cataloging, * MARC Train, a regional commuter rail system o ...

and

Todd Hunter Todd Stuart Hunter NOTE: Requires user to input song title, e.g. POLITICS (born 22 June 1951) is a New Zealand musician and composer known for his involvement in the band Dragon. Their best known songs are "April Sun in Cuba", "Are You Old Enou ...

, with

Johanna Pigott Johanna Paton Pigott (born ca. 1955) is an Australian musician, singer-songwriter and screenwriter. Her best known hit songs are Dragon's "Rain" which peaked at No. 2 on the Australian Kent Music Report Singles Chart in 1983, Note: Used f ...

, Todd's then-domestic partner. "Rain" peaked at number 2 and stayed in the

Kent Music Report The Kent Music Report was a weekly record chart of Australian music singles and albums which was compiled by music enthusiast David Kent from May 1974 through to January 1999. The chart was re-branded the Australian Music Report (AMR) in July ...

singles chart for 26 weeks. The song reached number 88 on the United States ''Billboard'' Hot 100 charts in mid-1984. For the original single version the group's

Kerry Jacobson Kerry Samuel Jacobson (born 19 April 1954) is a New Zealand musician, educator, ARIA hall of fame inductee and former drummer of rock band Dragon. Jacobson was a member from 1976 to 1983, played at their 30-year reunion and at the 2008 ARIA Hal ...

had provided drums and percussion; he left the group in September 1983 and was replaced by

Terry Chambers Terry Peter Chambers (born 18 July 1955) is an English drummer who was a member of the band XTC from 1972 to 1982 and the popular Australian-New Zealand group Dragon between 1983-5. He appears on all of XTC's albums between ''White Music'' (197 ...

, who is shown in promotional material including cover art and music videos. At the 1983 Countdown Music Awards, the song was nominated for Best Australian Single.

Background

Dragon issued "Rain" in July 1983 almost a year after the group had reconvened in the previous August with the line-up of

and

, Robert Taylor, Paul Hewson and

. They undertook the Class Reunion tour in late 1982, which was "ostensibly run to pay off outstanding debts, the tour proved so successful that the band re-formed on a permanent basis", according to Australian musicologist

Ian McFarlane Ian McFarlane (born 1959) is an Australian music journalist, music historian and author, whose best known publication is the '' Encyclopedia of Australian Rock and Pop'' (1999), which was updated for a second edition in 2017. As a journalist ...

. In October of that year they issued a single, "

Ramona ''Ramona'' is a 1884 American novel written by Helen Hunt Jackson. Set in Southern California after the Mexican–American War, it portrays the life of a mixed-race Scottish– Native American orphan girl, who suffers racial discrimination and ...

", which did not reach the top 50 on the

Singles Chart. The group's bass guitarist, Todd, had started writing the instrumental portion of "Rain" at his home in Bondi when his domestic partner,

, jokingly sang, "

It's raining, it's pouring __NOTOC__ "It's Raining, It's Pouring" is an English language nursery rhyme and children's song. It has a Roud Folk Song Index number of 16814. Origins The first two lines of this rhyme can be found in ''The Little Mother Goose'', published in t ...

" from the children's nursery rhyme over the top of it. This provided the lyrical focus for the work. Pigott recalled, " twas written before Dragon even reformed. I didn't think it'd be a hit but Todd always thinks all his songs are hits." American producer Alan Mansfield, who had worked with the group's lead singer, Marc, on his solo material, was invited to work with Dragon. At the first recording session, Jacobson, their drummer had a headache and took some over-the-counter medication. Together with Todd and Taylor, Jacobson, "laid down an aggressive bed to which overdubs could be added" on their third take. Mansfield told Jacobson to go home to recover while Todd, Marc and Pigott were asked to finish off the lyrics. Meanwhile, Mansfield recorded Hewson's "low, menacing synthesiser parts." The producer also provided his own keyboards, guitar and backing vocals. Upon hearing their work, after the first day's sessions, the Hunter brothers told Mansfield, "If this song doesn't make it to number one you'll have to join the band." "Rain" first charted in Australia on 15 August 1983, peaked at number 2 and stayed in the

singles chart for 26 weeks. In September Jacobson injured his right index finger, he was temporarily replaced by Brent Eccles (on loan from The Angels) for two weeks of gigs in Sydney and Melbourne. Jacobson left the group and was replaced by

(ex-

XTC XTC were an English rock band formed in Swindon in 1972. Fronted by songwriters Andy Partridge (guitars, vocals) and Colin Moulding (bass, vocals), the band gained popularity during the rise of punk and new wave in the 1970s, later playing in ...

) on drums, soon after Mansfield joined the band on keyboards, guitar and vocals. Three music videos were filmed for the track – in the first, Marc's infant son appears below Hewson's keyboards. For its United States release their label, PolyGram International, made a second version with the new band members, Chambers and Mansfield, appearing – the group disapproved of its "post-apocalyptic scenario" and a third one was commissioned. This version also has Chambers and Mansfield as band members. The song peaked at number 88 on the US ''Billboard'' Hot 100 charts in mid-1984. The new line-up recorded a single, "

Magic Magic or Magick most commonly refers to: * Magic (supernatural), beliefs and actions employed to influence supernatural beings and forces * Ceremonial magic, encompasses a wide variety of rituals of magic * Magical thinking, the belief that unrela ...

" (December 1983), which was also produced by Mansfield – it reached the top 40 in Australia. Both singles were included on Dragon's seventh studio album, '' Body and the Beat'' (June 1984), with Carey Taylor as producer for the new tracks.

Track listings

Personnel

Dragon * Paul Hewson – keyboards, vocals *

Marc Hunter Marc Alexander Hunter (7 September 195317 July 1998) was a New Zealand rock and pop singer, songwriter and record producer. He was the lead vocalist of Dragon (1973–11/1979, 8/1982–1989, 1995–11/1997), a band formed by his older brother, ...

– lead vocals *

– vocals, bass guitar *

– percussion, drums * Robert Taylor – guitar, vocals Additional musicians * Alan Mansfield – keyboards, guitar, vocals Recording details * Steve Bywaters – audio engineer * Alan Mansfield – producer at Rhinoceros Studios, Sydney * Otto Ruiter – mastering engineer at EMI Studios 301, Sydney for "It's Too Late" * Carey Taylor – mixing engineer at Fast Forward Recorders, Melbourne for "Rain"

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

The Drought Breakers version

In 2018, Australian musician

Scott Darlow Scott Darlow is an Australian singer, songwriter, guitarist, didgeridoo player and public speaker from Melbourne, Victoria Biography Darlow was born in Melbourne, Australia to Salvation Army parents, the second of four children, Darlow move ...

enlisted the help of Australian musicians to re-record the track with all net proceeds from the sale to go towards to the Buy-a-bale program in support of Australian farmers suffering from the

Australian drought Drought in Australia is defined by the Australian Bureau of Meteorology as rainfall over a three-month period being in the lowest decile of what has been recorded for that region in the past. This definition takes into account that drought is a ...

. The musicians include Darlow,

Sarah McLeod Sarah McLeod (born 18 July 1971) is a New Zealand film and television actress. Her most notable role was in the Peter Jackson films '' The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring'' and '' The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King'' ...

, Adam Brand, Jack Jones and

. The track was released on 14 September 2018.

References

{{Dragon (band) 1983 singles 2018 singles 1983 songs Dragon (band) songs Mercury Records singles Polydor Records singles Rock ballads Songs written by Johanna Pigott Songs written by Marc Hunter Songs written by Todd Hunter