History of the song "Don't Dream It's Over" - Crowded House (1986)
This romantic creation was written by the lead singer of Australian rock band Crowded House, Neil Finn, in 1986. When it was released as part of Crowded House's debut studio album, the song instantly became a leader of the world's top charts, taking the band to the pinnacle of fame. Finn later recalled:
"I composed this piece on my brother's piano. To be honest, I don't even remember what exactly inspired me to compose the song. But I distinctly remember that I felt very lost at that time in my life... On the other hand, when I was writing the lyrics, I kept thinking: "Don't dream that everything will end so easily"... Actually, it's a very lyrical thing that I often think about a lot...".
As a result, a completely random piece of music inspired by Neil's personal experiences became the biggest hit in the band's history! The track was a huge success in the United States, Canada and in the band's home country of New Zealand. And by the way: the band's first album Crowded House, on which the famous song was actually released, did very well in the USA, but subsequently all the band's studio works were successful in the UK, but not in the States.
After reuniting Crowded House in 2016, Neil Finn confessed: he is genuinely happy to be able to perform one of his most favourite creations again.
In an interview, he said:
"I really like to hum 'Don't Dream It's Over' every day. It's become a kind of tradition (laughs). When I sing this song, I feel very happy and proud, because it was the first and the main breakthrough, our calling card... I think it's one of my best works!"
Funnily enough, Mitchell Froom, the producer of the band's first three studio works, helped Finn complete the composition. Neil also shared this memory with the journalist:
"The day I wrote the thing, I knew immediately that I had something very special... However, when me and the guys played the track the next day, it sounded like a complete... Well, you get the picture. It wasn't until Mitchell suggested the bass line you know today, played by Seymour, that the song really took off! I was hesitant to come up with demonstrations for a long time, and Mitchell helped me again: he made me a couple of original suggestions. In general, he filled in a lot of gaps in this composition that the guys and I couldn't do. Of course, for me it was a far cry from the textures I was used to... It may have even made our signature sound less colourful. But over time we got used to the style of the song, and then it started to gain popularity in the States, and we all realised that this record had a great future...".
And the members of Crowded House were not wrong! The song debuted at number 85 and then skyrocketed to number two on the Billboard Hot 100, the top chart in the United States! The single stayed at that position for 24 weeks, which was a powerful breakthrough for the young band.
Later, a very beautiful video was made for the song, which received three MTV Video Music Awards nominations, in the categories of Best Debutante Video, Best Director and Best Group Video.
