"Interlude" is a 1968 song written and composed by Georges Delerue and

Hal Shaper Hal Shaper (Born Harold David Shaper), 18 July 1931 - 8 January 2004) was a South African songwriter. After qualifying as a lawyer in 1955, he travelled to London to begin his five-decade-long musical career during which he worked with and wrote f ...

and originally performed by American soul singer Timi Yuro. It is the title track for the 1968 film of the same name. In 1994, the song was covered in a duet by

Morrissey Steven Patrick Morrissey (; born 22 May 1959), known professionally as Morrissey, is an English singer and songwriter. He came to prominence as the frontman and lyricist of rock band the Smiths, who were active from 1982 to 1987. Since then ...

and Siouxsie Sioux and released as a single in August of that year by EMI. It was presented under the banner of "Morrissey & Siouxsie".

Morrissey and Siouxsie version

Background

"Interlude" was recorded during the recording sessions for Morrissey's '' Vauxhall and I'' album in summer 1993 at Hook End Manor, and was produced by Morrissey guitarist and musical director Boz Boorer. Morrissey first contacted Siouxsie in the early 1990s with a view to recording a

duet A duet is a musical composition for two performers in which the performers have equal importance to the piece, often a composition involving two singers or two pianists. It differs from a harmony, as the performers take turns performing a solo ...

with her. In 1993, he sent her a tape with some potential songs he had selected. All were numbers initially sung by female singers like Nancy Sinatra and

Dionne Warwick Marie Dionne Warwick (; born December 12, 1940) is an American singer, actress, and television host. Warwick ranks among the 40 biggest U.S. hit makers between 1955 and 1999, based on her chart history on ''Billboards Hot 100 pop singles cha ...

. Siouxsie picked this ballad and Morrissey agreed. The sessions went well and Boorer later described his collaboration with Siouxsie as "complete joy". The strings section were played by members of My Life Story. Morrissey and Siouxsie each recorded a solo version of the entire track and the final result with their two voices together was created in the final mix from these two solo versions. Goddard, Simon, ''Mozipedia: The Encyclopedia of Morrissey and The Smiths'', Ebury Press, 2009. Soon after the recording, however, the two singers fell out with one another regarding the content of the video. Ultimately, the video shoot never took place and the whole project was put on ice for a few months. EMI then threatened to not promote it without the existence of a supporting video. Although it was a "winter" song, against all expectations, EMI finally released "Interlude" in the summer of 1994. The song peaked at No. 25 on the UK Singles Chart in August 1994. "Interlude" was later included on a compilation called '' Suedehead: The Best of Morrissey''. A previously unreleased version of the song, featuring only Morrissey's vocals, appeared on his 2011 '' Very Best Of'' compilation.

Sleeve

The single's sleeve is a cropped version of the photograph ''Girl Jiving in Southam St.'' by Roger Mayne, the model being Eileen Sheekey. Morrissey conceived the sleeve of the record and chose that photograph by Mayne. Mayne used to visit London's most humble streets on weekends and one of them was Southam Street. He visited 27 times taking a total of 1400 photos between the years 1956 to 1961. Eileen Sheekey was one of 11 daughters and one boy from the Sheekey family. Mayne took two pictures of Eileen while she was dancing; someone on the street had put on a song; she didn't like the first photo but the second photo she did like. Mayne himself said it is one of his favourite photos.

Reception

The single was retrospectively well received by MacKenzie Wilson of AllMusic, who considered the performers to be "one of the finest duos in modern rock." The track's production was also praised: "The flowing string arrangements on "Interlude" are breathtaking, and appropriate to the talents of both artists."MacKenzie, Wilson
"Interlude - Morrissey & Siouxsie"
Allmusic. Retrieved 12 December 2015. ''

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'' also praised the collaboration, saying : "Two heroes enterwine their voices - Siouxsie's torchily rich, Morrissey's expansively wobbly - for a song about romance that actually doesn't sound doomed". This collaboration was included in ''Spin'' magazine's list of the top 10 "one-off team-ups" of all time."Singles going steady: The Top 10 one-off team-ups of all time". Spin Magazine. April 2007. Page 58. N°9: Morrissey & Siouxsie ''Interlude'' 1994.

Track listings

7" vinyl and cassette # "Interlude" (Georges Delerue / Hal Shaper) # "Interlude (Extended)" 12" vinyl and CD # "Interlude" # "Interlude (Extended)" # "Interlude (Instrumental)"

References