For My Sunday Song #241 we are going to cover the song “Don’t Change” by the Australian band INXS. Actually for the next 10 episodes, we will focus on the band INXS as I feel they are worthy of having a spotlight on them for a little while. The song “Don’t Change” is off the band’s third album,’Shabooh Shoobah’ from 1982. It was the second single from that album and the first that saw the band start to take off around the world.
The song is credited to all the band members and is the only song on the album to do so. The song talks about how there is always a point where do to nostalgia, we don’t want anything to ever change and keep that feeling we are currently feeling. The singer is trying to keep hold and never let go. But regardless, things are and will change. There is no stopping it. The singer is thinking back to a lost love and how that relationship made him feel. He doesn’t want that person to change, not for her or for him. Stay the way they are…which people never do.
Musically, it is a fun, upbeat, fast tempo track. A simple song with very few chords, but interesting enough to grab hold and get you moving. The guitars sound great, the keyboards are pleasant and Michael Hutchence’s vocals are stellar. The man could sing. The music feels familiar which ties to the song meaning of the feeling of familiarity. INXS was part of the new wave sound, with a little rock and these earlier songs were a little punk sounding as well.
Give the song a listen and let it take you back to a simpler time in music. Let me know what you think and I hope you enjoy it as much as I have. The guys look so young in this video and it is hard to believe it was shy of 40 years ago. Crazy how time flies. Thanks for stopping by and have a great and Happy Sunday!!
“Don’t Change”
I’m standing here on the ground
The sky above won’t fall down
See no evil in all direction
Resolution of happiness
Things have been dark
For too long
Don’t change for you
Don’t change a thing for me
I found a love I had lost
It was gone for too long
Hear no evil in all directions
Execution of bitterness
Message received loud and clear
Don’t change for you
Don’t change a thing for me
I’m standing here on the ground
The sky above won’t fall down
See no evil in all directions
Resolution of happiness
Things have been dark for too long
Don’t change for you
Don’t change a thing for me
Written by Garry Gary Beers, Andrew Farriss, Jon Farriss, Tim Farriss, Michael Hutchence and Kirk Pengilly
Great selection to kick off your Inxs series.
It’s the song that won over the rock heads in Australia and suddenly at an Inxs show you had the new wave crowd mixing with the rock crowd.
Sambora went he toured Australia as a solo artist with Orianthi covered this live and had the Inxs drummer Jon Farris make a guest appearance. And yep it rocked.
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That would’ve been a great show (even though I hated the whole RSO thing).
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At the time it wasn’t RSO. It was just post Jovi breakup and it was Richie Sambora. Jovi toured in December in Australia and Richie a month later.
Orianthi was just the guitarist in his band.
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Ohhh! I didn’t realize that. Still don’t like RSO though…that was horrible.
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Orianthi sang a song on that project which was awesome. Go and check out “Blues Won’t Leave Me Alone”
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There were a few decent tracks on that project, but I disliked it so much I never went back to it after I reviewed it.
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I still reckon the Orianthi track is worthy of a relisten. Do it. Lol.
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Ummmm…maybe…not
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Lol
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Excellent choice. I knew this song from Goo Goo Dolls covering it before I knew the INXS original
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I didn’t know the Goo covered that one. I’m no longer a fan of them so not going to run out and hear it. I’m not sure what happened to them, but they are a shell of their former self.
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They really are. I think they chased the hits after Name and Iris and just became a cash machine. Don’t Change was in the Superstar Car Wash era
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I got on INXS train with Listen like thieves. Have heard the first 4 but haven’t listened to them that much. Looking forward to seeing which tracks are going to be picked from this a bit unknown area to me.
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Awesome. I hope you enjoy the series! After Halestorm, I needed to go in the opposite direction.
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A good pop single, that. Nice one. Looking forwards to monitoring the series from Melbourne!
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Thanks so much! I hope you enjoy it.
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I’ve come quite late to an appreciation of INXS (no ‘late/late’ puns intended), so I might well get some revision!
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Never to late to jump on the train.
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Cool stuff John. Look forward to following this series for the next 10 weeks! Garry Gary Beers! Best name in the music biz
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I love his name. I always had fun typing it with each post.
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Hiccup!
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Nice choice for a 10-song spotlight, John – one of those groups I liked what I heard but never ventured beyond the greatest hits!
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Thanks. The album Kick is so good. I had it out playing a few weeks back and that was when I decided that INXS was next.
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Who doesn’t love Kick, right? Did u get the 30th anniversary edition?
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No, I haven’t bought that one yet. I have the regular album so figured I’d get to it eventually.
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I don’t think I’ve never heard this song, though I have heard “The One Thing” from the same album. They were a great band. I have their later albums “Kick” and “X”.
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Kick is so, so good. X too, but Kick is my favorite. I like their early stuff. You could feel they were going to be special and Hutchence was that. One of the best frontman of any band.
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My old boss used to say old INXS was really worth checking out. Seems like he was right.
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Old INXS really is worth it.
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I forgot how good this song was. INXS were one of those bands I should have paid more attention to but somehow didn’t. After all these years, I feel a bit of a fool.
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No, it is all good. Better late than never. The was such a catchy pop song. They really wrote some cool riffs and Michael Hutchence was majorly talented.
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Good pick 2loud. I like this early INXS stuff. They had a great sound and Ideas. They come out rockin is this one.
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Thanks. This is one of my favorites, obviously. I like to start with a favorite and end with one.
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I’ll peak on on your choices.
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Great pick, John. I’m really pretty fond of INXS and this is one of their best tunes, I reckon. As you say, this one really gives an indication as to just how big they’d get… The songwriting was there and they had a helluva frontman.
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Thanks. He was one of the best frontmen IMO.
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Cool song John. I’ve never heard this one but I do miss this band.
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I didn’t mind the album with JD Fortune. I wish that could’ve continued.
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I know what you mean…they had a style all their own even without Hutchence
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An important formative band for me – for many of us, surely. Love it.
I’ll always remember the conductor of our highs chool band pronouncing it “Inks.”
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Your band conductor was a moron it sounds like. LOL!!! or just old!!
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No, he wasn’t a moron. Actually a nice guy. It wasn’t his kind of music and when he saw the name on a tshirt he was just trying to read it as it looked to him.
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I am sure I would’ve done the same thing if I was unfamiliar with it.
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Yup!
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I though Original sin was one of the tracks on your Inxs series.
Listening to The Swing at the moment and reading Michael, my brother, the lost boy of Inxs book. Learning new things about him. Didn’t know he was short-sighted. Nice to read about his childhood too. Only on page 96. How come most of these music related books all have more or less 300 pages in them?
This year have been filled with music related books, Kravitz, linkin park, Menza and now Michael. Do u have a book that u are reading at the moment?
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Man, that’s a lot of books. I am finishing Ted Templeman book and have Richard Marx next.
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Looking forward to reading your review on the Marx set. That’s both the book and cd, right?
Is the Ted one about Van Halen? I remember when VH released that compilation Best of both worlds. Was so happy to hear those new songs. Think I listened to that compilation at least once a week for 2 years.
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I can’t wait to read it.
It is Ted’s whole life and has a lot of Van Halen in the back half of the book.
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