I Won't Let the Sun Go Down on Me

Not to be confused with Don't Let the Sun Go Down on Me.

"I Won't Let the Sun Go Down on Me" is a song by English singer-songwriter Nik Kershaw from his debut studio album, Human Racing (1984). It was his first single, released on 9 September 1983 to limited success. When re-released on 4 June 1984, the song became Kershaw's highest-charting single on the UK Singles Chart, peaking at number two. It features the non-album track "Dark Glasses" as the B-side, which was also released as a bonus track on the 2012 re-release of the album.

"I Won't Let the Sun Go Down on Me"
Original release cover
Single by Nik Kershaw
from the album Human Racing
B-side	"Dark Glasses"
Released	9 September 1983 (1983-09-09)^[1]
Genre	Synth-pop new wave
Length	3:23 (album version) 3:19 (single version) 6:00 (extended version)
Label	MCA
Songwriter(s)	Nik Kershaw
Producer(s)	Peter Collins
Nik Kershaw singles chronology
"I Won't Let the Sun Go Down on Me" (1983) "Wouldn't It Be Good" (1984)
"Dancing Girls" (1984) "I Won't Let the Sun Go Down on Me (re-issue)" (1984) "Human Racing" (1984)

Release

"I Won't Let the Sun Go Down on Me" was originally released on 9 September 1983.^[1] After a lack of success, it was then re-released and/or re-promoted in November 1983 with a new sleeve, whereupon it entered the charts.^[2] However, despite spending eight weeks in the UK top 100, it only reached number 47. Then, after the top-five success of the follow-up single, "Wouldn't It Be Good", and a further top-20 entry with "Dancing Girls", "I Won't Let the Sun Go Down on Me" was re-released in June 1984 and soared to number two. It was also subsequently a commercial success in several other countries and was responsible for bringing Kershaw to greater public attention.

During an appearance on BBC One's The One Show in June 2015, Pete Waterman of Stock Aitken Waterman claimed he produced the record. Kershaw took to social media to point out that "I Won't Let the Sun Go Down on Me" was in fact produced by Peter Collins, who is credited on all releases as the record's sole producer. (Waterman managed Collins at the time the song was recorded, but had no involvement in the actual production of the track.)^[3]

Lyrics

The song was written during the latter part of the Cold War period when nuclear war between the two superpowers of the USSR and United States was still a very real concern, and the lyrics reflect a satirical view of politics and the threat of war with lines such as: "old men in stripey trousers, rule the world with plastic smiles", and: "forefinger on the button, is he blue or is he red?"

In September 1984, Kershaw told Number One magazine:^[4]

It's probably not immediately obvious but "I Won't Let the Sun" is about The Bomb, or rather about people taking responsibility for what they do generally. It's saying that it probably won't do much good for one person to shout about these things but I'm going to anyway.

Musical arrangement

The song was originally written as a folk protest song, but as Kershaw's manager had signed him up to Peter Collins and Pete Waterman's Loose Ends production company, it turned into a pop anthem in the studio.^[5]

In Kershaw's version, the synth tune was produced with an Oberheim OB-8 played by Paul "Wix" Wickens.^[6]

Music video

There are two different music videos for the song.

First release

The original video for "I Won't Let the Sun Go Down on Me" shows Kershaw singing the song on a hillside and in a castle. He is accompanied by children, and by a minstrel, who plays the guitar parts on a lute. The video was filmed at Allington Castle in Kent.^[7]

Second release

When the song was re-released in June 1984, a new video was shot. Because Kershaw was doing promotional work in Europe, there was little time to arrange anything, so a faux live video was shot. It was interspersed with occasional shots of the old men in stripey trousers, including actor Fred Evans.^[8] At one point, one of the old men picks a blue rabbit out of a guitar case. This had been sent to Kershaw by a fan named Lauren, and he placed it on stage in front of his right hand monitor during gigs, for luck.^[9] Kershaw was not happy with the video, feeling it was hurried:

I'll never forget the day of the shot, it was a real pandemonium. The band was trying to rehearse -'cos we hadn't played live for so long - and do the video at the same time. It would've been a much better video if we'd had more time. The best way to shoot a live gig is over four or five nights then you might get a good set because when you're playing live, there's a lot of excitement and you can't always concentrate on every note.

Track listings

Original release

• 7-inch single (MCA 816)^[10]

A. "I Won't Let the Sun Go Down on Me" - 3:19

B. "Dark Glasses" (4:15)

• 12-inch single (MCAT 816)

A. "I Won't Let the Sun Go Down on Me" (Extended Dance Mix) - 6:00

B. "Dark Glasses" (4:20)

Re-release

• 7-inch single (MCA NIK 4)

A. "I Won't Let the Sun Go Down on Me" - 3:19

B. "Dark Glasses" (4:12)

• 12-inch single (MCA NIKT 4)

A. "I Won't Let the Sun Go Down on Me" (Extended Remix) - 6:35

B. "Dark Glasses" (4:12)

Charts

Weekly charts Weekly chart performance for "I Won't Let the Sun Go Down on Me" (original release) Chart (1983) Peak position UK Singles (OCC)^[11] 47 Weekly chart performance for "I Won't Let the Sun Go Down on Me" (re-release) Chart (1984) Peak position Australia (Kent Music Report)^[12] 17 Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders)^[13] 5 Canada Top Singles (RPM)^[14] 94 Denmark (IFPI)^[15] 3 Europe (European Top 100 Singles)^[16] 8 Finland (Suomen virallinen lista)^[17] 26 Ireland (IRMA)^[18] 4 Netherlands (Dutch Top 40)^[19] 6 Netherlands (Single Top 100)^[20] 5 Norway (VG-lista)^[21] 8 Sweden (Sverigetopplistan)^[22] 10 Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade)^[23] 6 UK Singles (OCC)^[11] 2 West Germany (Official German Charts)^[24] 12

Year-end charts Year-end chart performance for "I Won't Let the Sun Go Down on Me" Chart (1984) Position Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders)^[25] 52 Netherlands (Dutch Top 40)^[26] 58 Netherlands (Single Top 100)^[27] 56 UK Singles (Gallup)^[28] 34

Robin Cook version

"I Won't Let the Sun Go Down"
Single by Robin Cook
from the album Land of Sunshine
B-side	"Reggae in the Night"
Released	June 1996
Genre	Reggae fusion
Length	3:20
Label	Stockholm
Songwriter(s)	Nik Kershaw
Robin Cook singles chronology
"I Won't Let the Sun Go Down" (1996) "Comanchero" (1997)

Swedish producer Jonas Ekfeldt recorded his version of the song as Robin Cook in 1996, under the title "I Won't Let the Sun Go Down", which was later included on the album Land of Sunshine (1997). The song charted in Sweden for 19 weeks in 1996, peaking at number three, and in Finland for two weeks, peaking at number 16.^[29]

Sampled by Sveriges Radio

Ekfeldt filed a lawsuit against Sveriges Radio for sampling "I Won't Let the Sun Go Down" and accused them for using the sample without permission in the parody "I Won't Let Susan Go Down on Me" on the album Rally 2 from the radio programme Rally on the channel SR P3. Sveriges Radio denied the accusations, but the Swedish National Laboratory of Forensic Science compared the songs^[30] and asserted that the former song indeed had been sampled.

The amount of Ekfeldt's compensation was not made public, but was said to be of a significant amount and a lot more than if the channel had asked for permission first.^[31]

Track listing

• European CD single

1. "I Won't Let the Sun Go Down" (Radio Edit) – 3:05
2. "I Won't Let the Sun Go Down" (Extended Version) – 4:34
3. "I Won't Let the Sun Go Down" (Summer Club Mix) – 7:00
4. "Reggae in the Night" – 3:25

Weekly charts

Weekly chart performance for "I Won't Let the Sun Go Down"

Chart (1996)	Peak position
Denmark (Tracklisten)^[32]	4
Finland (Suomen virallinen lista)^[33]	16
Italy (Musica e dischi)^[34]	20
Sweden (Sverigetopplistan)^[29]	3

Year-end charts

Year-end chart performance for "I Won't Let the Sun Go Down"

Chart (1996)	Position
Sweden (Sverigetopplistan)^[35]	12

References

1. "News" (PDF). Music Week. 3 September 1983. p. 2. ISSN 0265-1548 – via World Radio History.
2. "Advert" (PDF). Number One. 12 November 1983. p. 12 – via World Radio History.
3. Kershaw, Nik [@NikKershaw] (11 June 2015). "Just watched Peter Waterman on the one show. For the record "I won't let the sun go down" was produced by Peter Collins" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
4. . NikKershaw.it. 2005. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 17 July 2013.
5. . NikKershaw.it. 2005. Archived from the original on 3 March 2016. Retrieved 17 July 2013.
6. . NikKershaw.co.uk. November 2008. Archived from the original on 21 August 2009. Retrieved 8 January 2012.
7. . NikKerhaw.it. 2005. Archived from the original on 1 November 2016. Retrieved 17 July 2013.
8. "Fred Evans". IMDb. Retrieved 6 February 2020.
9. "Nik Kershaw: Smash Hits Interview - 5 July 1984". www.nikkershaw.it. 2005. Retrieved 17 July 2013.
10. "Nik Kershaw Singles Discography 1984-2005". www.nikkershaw.it. 2005. Retrieved 16 July 2013.
11. "Nik Kershaw: Artist Chart History". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 13 July 2022.
12. Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 (illustrated ed.). St Ives, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book. p. 165. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
13. "Nik Kershaw – I Won't Let the Sun Go Down on Me" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. Retrieved 13 July 2022.
14. "Top RPM Singles: Issue 8512." RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved 13 July 2022.
15. "Hits of the World". Billboard. Vol. 96, no. 38. 13 October 1984. p. 68. ISSN 0006-2510 – via Google Books.
16. "European Top 100 Singles" (PDF). Music & Media. Vol. 1, no. 19/20. 13 August 1984. p. 8. OCLC 29800226 – via World Radio History.
17. Pennanen, Timo (2006). Sisältää hitin – levyt ja esittäjät Suomen musiikkilistoilla vuodesta 1972 (in Finnish) (1st ed.). Helsinki: Kustannusosakeyhtiö Otava. ISBN 978-951-1-21053-5.
18. "The Irish Charts – Search Results – I Won't Let the Sun Go Down on Me". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved 13 July 2022.
19. "Nederlandse Top 40 – Nik Kershaw" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40.
20. "Nik Kershaw – I Won't Let the Sun Go Down on Me" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved 13 July 2022.
21. "Nik Kershaw – I Won't Let the Sun Go Down on Me". VG-lista.
22. "Nik Kershaw – I Won't Let the Sun Go Down on Me". Singles Top 100.
23. "Nik Kershaw – I Won't Let the Sun Go Down on Me". Swiss Singles Chart.
24. "Offiziellecharts.de – Nik Kershaw – I Won't Let the Sun Go Down on Me" (in German). GfK Entertainment charts. Retrieved 11 September 2019.
25. "Jaaroverzichten 1984 – Singles" (in Dutch). Ultratop. Retrieved 13 July 2022.
26. "Top 100-Jaaroverzicht van 1984" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40. Retrieved 13 July 2022.
27. "Jaaroverzichten – Single 1984" (in Dutch). Dutch Charts. Retrieved 13 July 2022.
28. "Top 100 Singles (January 3–December 29, 1984)" (PDF). Music Week. 26 January 1985. p. 37. ISSN 0265-1548 – via World Radio History.
29. "Robin Cook – I Won't Let the Sun Go Down". Singles Top 100.
30. Törnqvist, Elin (23 November 2006). [New analysis method reveals illegal music samples] (in Swedish). Swedish Police Authority. Archived from the original on 27 September 2007. Retrieved 2 July 2007.
31. Fischier, Tony Fischier (31 August 2006). [Recreated recording was theft]. Göteborgs-Posten (in Swedish). Archived from the original on 30 September 2007. Retrieved 2 July 2007.
32. "Hits of the World". Billboard. Vol. 108, no. 41. 12 October 1996. ISSN 0006-2510 – via Google Books.
33. "Robin Cook: I Won't Let the Sun Go Down" (in Finnish). Musiikkituottajat.
34. "Classifiche". Musica e dischi (in Italian). Retrieved 6 June 2022. Select "Singoli" in the "Tipo" field, type "I Won't Let the Sun Go Down" in the "Titolo" field and press "cerca".
35. "Årslista Singlar, 1996" (in Swedish). Sverigetopplistan. Retrieved 13 July 2022.

External links

• I Won't Let the Sun Go Down on Me at Discogs (list of releases)