"So Cold the Night" is a song by British duo

the Communards The Communards were a British synth-pop duo formed in London in 1985. The duo consisted of Jimmy Somerville and Richard Coles. They are most famous for their cover versions of "Don't Leave Me This Way", originally by Harold Melvin & the Blue N ...

released in November 1986 as the final single from their debut album ''

Communards The Communards () were members and supporters of the short-lived 1871 Paris Commune formed in the wake of the French defeat in the Franco-Prussian War. After the suppression of the Commune by the French Army in May 1871, 43,000 Communards ...

''. It was the their second top-ten hit, peaking at number 8 on the

UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...

Release and reception

"So Cold the Night" was released with the B-side "When the Walls Come Tumbling Down", also written by the duo, and was dedicated to

Nelson Mandela Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela (; ; 18 July 1918 – 5 December 2013) was a South African Internal resistance to apartheid, anti-apartheid activist who served as the President of South Africa, first president of South Africa from 1994 to 1 ...

. The 12-inch single was released with the additional B-side "Never No More". A remix of "So Cold the Night" was released as a 12-inch single in December 1986. It was a double A-side single with "When the Walls Come Tumbling Down" and "The Multimix", a medley remix of "

Don't Leave Me This Way "Don't Leave Me This Way" is a song written by Kenneth Gamble, Leon Huff, and Cary Gilbert. It was originally released in 1975 by Harold Melvin & the Blue Notes featuring Teddy Pendergrass, an act signed to Gamble & Huff's Philadelphia Internat ...

", "So Cold the Night" and "Disenchanted". Reviewing for ''

Record Mirror ''Record Mirror'' was a British weekly music newspaper between 1954 and 1991 for pop fans and record collectors. Launched two years after the ''NME'', it never attained the circulation of its rival. The first UK album chart was published in ''Re ...

'', Jane Wilkes wrote "clandestine meetings and

hi-NRG Hi-NRG (pronounced "high energy") is a genre of uptempo disco or electronic dance music (EDM) that originated in the United States during the late 1970s and early 1980s. As a music genre, typified by fast tempo, staccato hi-hat rhythms (and the ...

Balkan folk music Balkan folk music is the traditional folk music within Balkan region. It's also known as narodna muzika (Bulgarian, Macedonian, sr-cyr, народна музика), also folk muzika (фолк музика) means folk music in the South Slavic l ...

engage for this Somerville/Coles composition. Their cover versions have always maintained an ambiguity, whereas their own songs place you right in the picture regarding their sexual/political stance".

Track listing

7": London / LON 110 # "So Cold the Night" – 4:39 # "When the Walls Come Tumbling Down" – 4:20 7": London / LONDJ 110 (promo) # "So Cold the Night" – 3:45 # "So Cold the Night" (Full Length) – 4:40 12": London / LONX 110 # "So Cold the Night" – 9:12 # "When the Walls Come Tumbling Down" – 4:22 # "Never No More" – 2:58 12": London / LONXR 110 # "So Cold the Night" – 8:34 # "The Multimix" – 8:00 # "When the Walls Come Tumbling Down" – 4:21 12": London / LONX 110 (promo) # "So Cold the Night" – 9:12 # "So Cold the Night" (Instrumental) – 9:12 12": London / LDSX 235 (Canada) # "So Cold the Night" (Remixed Club Version) – 8:45 # "So Cold the Night" (7" Version) – 3:45 # "So Cold the Night" (Instrumental) – 9:45 Cassette: London / LONCS 110 # "So Cold the Night" # "When the Walls Come Tumbling Down" # "Never No More" # "

" (Son of Gotham City)

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

References

{{authority control 1986 songs 1986 singles The Communards songs London Records singles Music videos directed by Andy Morahan Song recordings produced by Mike Thorne Songs written by Jimmy Somerville