Weeping Lyrics

The band's (Bright Blue) strong connection to the anti-apartheid movement of the time is evidenced by the song "Weeping", which was penned by Dan Heymann (although in typical Bright Blue democratic style, they are all formally credited with its composition). As Heymann recalls: "In 1986, responding to the Apartheid Government's clamp-down on the media, I wrote the words of "Weeping", over a piece of music I had composed more than a year earlier, while I was stuck in the Army". The song was originally recorded in 1987, at Orange 338 Studio in Orange Grove, Johannesburg, by Phil Audoire and Daved Moloele. In a mad burst of creativity, Bright Blue recorded two songs in one night ('Yesterday Night' being the second) pausing only at about 2am to dash off to the Market Theatre to pick up the late Basil Coetzee to blow his magnificent horn on this track. At that time without a deal (the first album, 'Bright Blue', was the extent of their recordings for Trutone, though an EMI deal was soon to follow), the group pressed up 500 vinyl singles, featuring a black and white cover shot of Bright Blue sitting outside the Imperial Café in Cape Town. Astonishingly, 'Weeping' soon made it onto the national airwaves, despite the fact that it quite clearly contained a section of 'Nkosi Sikelel I'Afrika', which was then banned by the Nationalist Party government. 'Weeping' has been extensively covered since then, most notably by the Soweto String Quartet and Vusi Mahlasela. A particularly poignant moment for Bright Blue was playing the song live at a Mitchell's Plain concert for returning exiles, attended by former President Nelson Mandela soon after his release from prison in 1990. The song has more recently been receiving a lot of attention after it was covered by Josh Groban and included on his Alive album and Live DVD recordings.