"My Ever Changing Moods" is a song by the English band

the Style Council The Style Council were an English pop band formed in Woking in 1982 by Paul Weller, the former lead vocalist, principal songwriter and guitarist with the rock band the Jam, and keyboardist Mick Talbot, previously a member of Dexys Midnight Ru ...

. It was their fifth single to be released.

Background

"My Ever Changing Moods" was composed by lead vocalist

Paul Weller John William Weller (born 25 May 1958), better known as Paul Weller, is an English singer-songwriter and musician. Weller achieved fame in the late 1970s as the guitarist and principal singer and songwriter of the rock band the Jam, alongside ...

, recorded at Weller's own studio Solid Bond Studios, and was released in 1984. It is the first single from the band's debut studio album, ''

Café Bleu ''Café Bleu'' is the debut studio album by the English band the Style Council. It was released on 16 March 1984, on Polydor Records, produced by Paul Weller with Peter Wilson. It followed four non-album singles in the UK, the first three of wh ...

'' (1984), which was renamed ''My Ever Changing Moods'' in the United States to capitalise on the success of that single. "My Ever Changing Moods," backed with the

Hammond organ The Hammond organ is an electric organ invented by Laurens Hammond and John M. Hanert, first manufactured in 1935. Multiple models have been produced, most of which use sliding #Drawbars, drawbars to vary sounds. Until 1975, sound was created ...

instrumental "Mick's Company", peaked at No. 29 on the ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...

Hot 100 The ''Billboard'' Hot 100, also known as simply the Hot 100, is the music industry standard record chart in the United States for songs, published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine. Chart rankings are based on sales (physical and digital), o ...

the week of 9 June 1984, in the US. The song remains Weller's greatest success in the US (including his efforts in

the Jam The Jam were an English rock band formed in 1972 in Woking, Surrey, consisting of Paul Weller, Bruce Foxton and Rick Buckler. They released 18 consecutive top 40 singles in the United Kingdom, from their debut in 1977 to their break-up in ...

and as a solo artist).

Versions

The album version features vocals by Weller only accompanied by acoustic piano. This version is 3:37 long. There are two versions of the song with full band accompaniment. The 7" single version is 4:02 minutes long, while the 12" single version is 5:44 minutes long. Weller released a new version of "My Ever Changing Moods" on his album ''An Orchestrated Songbook'' in 2021.

Critical reception

In a 2020 article for the

Los Angeles Review of Books The ''Los Angeles Review of Books'' (''LARB'' is a literary review magazine covering the national and international book scenes. A preview version launched on Tumblr in April 2011, and the official website followed one year later in April 201 ...

, Thomas McLean called "My Ever Changing Moods" "one of Weller’s best compositions," identifying the song's debt to the

Classics IV The Classics IV is an American band formed in Jacksonville, Florida, United States, in 1965. The band, founded by Dennis Yost, is known mainly for the hits " Spooky", " Stormy", and " Traces" (released 1967–69), which have become cover stand ...

's "Stormy" (1968) and its influence on

Santana Santana may refer to: Transportation * Volkswagen Santana, an automobile * Santana Cycles, manufacturer of tandem bicycles * Santana Motors, a former Spanish automobile manufacturer * Sailboat designs by W. D. Schock Corp ** Santana 20 ** Santan ...

's "The Game of Love". Calling attention to the song's mix of personal and political, McLean reads the song lyric "the hush before the silence, the winds after the blast" as "a potent reference to nuclear fears in the Thatcher/Reagan era" and praises the line "Evil turns to statues," declaring it "as brisk a summing up of commemorative history as I know, and one that takes on new significance in 2020."

Compilation appearances

As well as the song's single release, it has featured on various compilation albums released by The Style Council. The song was included on '' The Singular Adventures of The Style Council'', '' The Complete Adventures of The Style Council'' and ''

Greatest Hits A greatest hits album or best-of album is a type of compilation album that collects popular and commercially successful songs by a particular artist or band. While greatest hits albums are typically supported by the artist, they can also be creat ...

''.

Music video

The music video for "My Ever Changing Moods," which shows Talbot and Weller cycling down an avenue of trees, was directed by

Tim Pope Timothy Michael Pope (born 12 February 1956) is a film director most known for his music videos, for having directed feature films, and for a brief pop career. Early life and career Pope grew up in the north London suburb of Enfield. Both his ...

and filmed at

Kentwell Hall Kentwell Hall is a stately home in Long Melford, Suffolk, England. It includes the hall, outbuildings, a rare-breeds farm and gardens. Most of the current building facade dates from the mid-16th century, but the origins of Kentwell are much ear ...

, Long Melford, Suffolk, UK.

Track listing

* 12" Single (TSC X 5, TSCX5) #"My Ever Changing Moods (Long Version)" – 5:44 #"Spring, Summer, Autumn" – 2:24 #"Mick's Company" – 2:49 * 7" Single (817 450-7) #"My Ever Changing Moods" – 4:02 #"Mick's Company" – 2:48

Personnel

Credits are adapted from the album's liner notes. *

– lead vocals, guitars *

Mick Talbot Michael Talbot (born 11 September 1958) is an English keyboardist. He was a co-founder of the Style Council with Paul Weller, and has also been a member of Dexys Midnight Runners, the Merton Parkas and The Bureau (band), the Bureau. Career ...

– electric piano, organ, backing vocals * Steve White – drums, percussion * Peter Wilson – bass synthesizer * Hilary Seabrook – saxophone * Barbara Snow – trumpet

Charts

References

External links

* 1984 songs 1984 singles The Style Council songs Songs written by Paul Weller Polydor Records singles Music videos directed by Tim Pope {{1980s-pop-song-stub