Don't Give Up

( Album: "SO", UK - May 19, 1986 )

In this proud land we grew up strong
We were wanted all along
I was taught to fight, taught to win
I never thought I could fail

No fight left or so it seems
I am a man whose dreams have all deserted
I've changed my face, I've changed my name
But no one wants you when you lose

Don't give up, 'cause you have friends
Don't give up, you're not beaten yet
Don't give up, I know you can make it good

Though I saw it all around
Never thought that I could be affected
Thought that we'd be last to go
It is so strange the way things turn

Drove the night toward my home
The place that I was born, on the lakeside
As daylight broke, I saw the earth
The trees had burned down to the ground

Don't give up, you still have us
Don't give up, we don't need much of anything
Don't give up, 'cause somewhere there's a place where we belong

Rest your head
You worry too much
It's gonna be alright
When times get rough
You can fall back on us
Don't give up, please don't give up

Got to walk out of here I can't take anymore
Gonna stand on that bridge keep my eyes down below
Whatever may come and whatever may go
That river's flowin', that river's flowin'

Moved on to another town
Tried hard to settle down
For every job, so many men
So many men no-one needs

Don't give up 'cause you have friends
Don't give up, you're not the only one
Don't give up, no reason to be ashamed
Don't give up, you still have us

Don't give up now, we're proud of who you are
Don't give up, you know it's never been easy
Don't give up, 'cause I believe there's a place,
There's a place where we belong

"Don't Give Up" is a duet recorded by Peter Gabriel and Kate Bush for Gabriel's album So. It describes the despair of a man who feels that the economic system has no place for him, and the support and wise counsel sung in the refrain by Bush. There were two videos created for this song by Godley & Creme. The first consisted of a single take of the singers in an embrace, as the sun enters total eclipse and re-emerges. The second featured Gabriel and Bush's faces superimposed over film of a town and its people in disrepair.

Peter Brian Gabriel (born 13 February 1950, in Chobham, Surrey, England) is an English musician. He first came to fame as the lead vocalist and flautist of the progressive rock group Genesis. After leaving Genesis, Gabriel went on to a successful solo career. More recently he has focused on producing and promoting world music and pioneering digital distribution methods for music. He has also been involved in various humanitarian efforts.

Kate Bush (born 30 July 1958) is an English singer, songwriter, musician, and record producer. Her eclectic musical style and idiosyncratic lyrics have made her one of England's most successful solo female performers of the past 30 years. Bush was signed by EMI at the age of 16 after being recommended by Pink Floyd's David Gilmour. In 1978, aged 19, her début song "Wuthering Heights" topped the UK charts for four weeks and made her the first woman to have a UK number one with a self-written song.

After her 1979 tour, which was the sole tour of her career, Bush released the 1980 album Never for Ever, which made her the first solo female British singer to top the UK album charts. In 1987, she won a BRIT Award for Best British Female Solo Artist. She released eight albums, three of which topped the UK album charts, and had UK top ten hit singles with "Running Up That Hill", "King of the Mountain", "Babooshka", "The Man with the Child in His Eyes", and "Don't Give Up".

In 2002, her songwriting ability was recognised with an Ivor Novello Award for Outstanding Contribution to British Music. In 2005, Bush released Aerial, her first album in 12 years. The album was a UK success and earned her a BRIT Award nomination for Best Album and another for Best Solo Female Artist. She has also been nominated for three Grammy Awards.

Updated: Jun 8, 2014
Toronto