"So Cold the Night" is a song by British

synth-pop Synth-pop (short for synthesizer pop; also called techno-pop; ) is a music genre that first became prominent in the late 1970s and features the synthesizer as the dominant musical instrument. It was prefigured in the 1960s and early 1970s b ...

duo

the Communards The Communards were a British synth-pop duo formed in London in 1985. They consisted of Scottish singer Jimmy Somerville and English musician Richard Coles. They are best known for their cover versions of Harold Melvin & the Blue Notes fe ...

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 we ...

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

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 ( , ; born Rolihlahla Mandela; 18 July 1918 – 5 December 2013) was a South African Internal resistance to apartheid, anti-apartheid activist and politician who served as the first president of South Africa f ...

. 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 Interna ...

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

Record Mirror ''Record Mirror'' was a British weekly music newspaper published between 1954 and 1991, aimed at pop fans and record collectors. Launched two years after ''New Musical Express'', it never attained the circulation of its rival. The first UK Album ...

'', 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 during the late 1970s and early 1980s. As a music genre, typified by its fast tempo, staccato hi-hat rhythms (and the four-on-the-flo ...

Balkan folk music Balkan folk music is the traditional folk music within Balkan region. In South Slavic languages, it is known as narodna muzika () or folk muzika () in Bulgarian, Macedonian, and Serbo-Croatian, and alternatively narodna glazba in standard Croa ...

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

Certifications and sales

In France, the single reportedly sold at least 150,000 copies.

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