Life in a Northern Town

"Life in a Northern Town"
Single by The Dream Academy
from the album The Dream Academy
Released12 March 1985
Recorded1984
Genre
Length4:19
Label
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)
The Dream Academy singles chronology
"Life in a Northern Town"
(1985) 		"The Edge of Forever"
(1985)
Music video
"Life in a Northern Town" on YouTube

"Life in a Northern Town" is the debut single by British band The Dream Academy, released in March 1985. It appears on the band's self-titled debut studio album, The Dream Academy. The song was written as an elegy to British folk musician Nick Drake. Written by band members Nick Laird-Clowes and Gilbert Gabriel,[4] the song was produced by Laird-Clowes with help from Pink Floyd guitarist David Gilmour.[4][5] The single reached No. 7 on the US Billboard Hot 100 chart in February 1986 and reached No. 15 on the UK charts. It is the band's highest charting single in the UK,[6] the US,[7] and Ireland.[8]

American country music artists Sugarland, Little Big Town, and Jake Owen recorded a live cover version of "Life in a Northern Town" that became a minor U.S. hit in 2008.

  1. ^ Monger, James Christopher. "The Dream Academy – Artist Biography". AllMusic. All Media Network. Retrieved 7 May 2016.
  2. ^ Durcholz, Daniel; Orski, Allan (1998). "The Dream Academy". In Graff, Gary; Durchholz, Daniel (eds.). MusicHound Rock: The Essential Album Guide. Detroit: Visible Ink Press. p. 361.
  3. ^ "Top 20 Most Beautiful Songs of the 80s". Listverse. 6 February 2008.
  4. ^ a b "Life in a Northern Town by The Dream Academy". SongFacts.com.
  5. ^ Cite error: The named reference Grdn2024 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  6. ^ "Dream Academy". Official Charts. The Official UK Charts Company.
  7. ^ "The Dream Academy". Billboard.
  8. ^ "The Irish Charts - All there is to know". www.irishcharts.ie.