I don’t know about you, but my sleep patterns are fairly erratic. I use an app to keep a record of them, and it shows some big variations on a daily basis. Nothing seems to make much difference to this, however much doctors tell us how important good, regular sleep is to our wellbeing. But it gave me an idea for this week’s theme, and I knew of quite a few songs to fit the bill, so I give you: songs about sleep. All but one have the word in their title, and that is a great song about FOMO so I just had to include it.

I’m starting with one from, in my view, the best band ever, the one that changed the face of pop and rock music:

As the video shows, The Beatles included I’m Only Sleeping on their Revolver album, which was released in August 1966. Well, they did everywhere except in North America, that is, as this was one of the three tracks which were omitted from its release over there – in those days, record companies messed about mercilessly with track listings, without the band’s approval. Those three songs had, however, been included on an album released only in the US and Canada in June 1966, entitled Yesterday And Today. That album reached #1 in both countries, as did Revolver in the US, the UK, Australia, Finland and West Germany (as it was then). But it only got to #18 in Canada – hopefully Capitol Records learned a lesson from that! The song was written by John Lennon, and in a London Evening Standard article published on 4 March 1966, Maureen Cleave, a journalist and friend of Lennon, wrote: “He can sleep almost indefinitely, is probably the laziest person in England. ‘Physically lazy,’ he said. ‘I don’t mind writing or reading or watching or speaking, but sex is the only physical thing I can be bothered with any more.'” Sounds a good life to me!

My second song for today comes from a band that may have gone under the radar for many, but I absolutely loved the album this was on:

Semisonic only made three albums, the first of which didn’t chart anywhere while the other two were both top twenty here in the UK, though much less successful in their US homeland. Singing In My Sleep was a track on their second album, Feeling Strangely Fine, released in March 1998 and peaking at #16 in the UK and #43 in the US. This was the second song from the album to be a single, and got to #39 in the UK. It didn’t make the main Billboard chart in the US though, but it did get to #11 on their Alternative Airplay listing. I bought the album when it first came out and thought it was fantastic: in those days I had a long car commute around the North Circular Road in London (a kind of hell on earth, really) and it was a great album for driving.

This next one is from a band who had an American lead singer, though the rest of its members were Brits. Like Semisonic, they are also a band who generally did better in the UK charts than the American ones:

I Go To Sleep was written by Ray Davies of The Kinks: his band didn’t record it, though there is a solo demo version of it that dates back to 1964. The Pretenders version came out as a single in November 1981, at a time when their leader, Chrissie Hyde, had been dating Davies, and I think she does a wonderful job with a tender love song that was a little removed from their usual jangly guitar rock stuff. The song reached #7 in the UK chart – still their second best ever placing behind Brass in Pocket, which got to #1 – but wasn’t a hit in the US. It had first been released in August 1981 as a track on the band’s second album – Pretenders II – which also peaked at #7 in the UK and got to #10 in the US.

After that, how about another tender love song. This is a beauty:

You Can Sleep While I Drive was a track on Melissa Etheridge’s second album, Brave And Crazy, released in September 1989, peaking at #22 in the US and #63 in the UK. The album has to date sold more than 1m copies in the US and 200k in Canada, though Wikipedia doesn’t show a chart placing for it there. Melissa released the track as a single in 1990, but it only appears to have charted in The Netherlands, at #56, and at #105 in Australia. Trisha Yearwood recorded a cover version in April 1995, which reached #23 on the US Country chart and #26 on the Canadian Country listings. I much prefer the original, and I think this is a stunning performance, with so much love and tenderness.

Something a little different? How about a brilliantly rowdy and raucous live performance from the late, great, Warren Zevon:

I’ll Sleep When I’m Dead was initially a track on Warren’s self-titled second album, released in May 1976, and was also included on his live album Stand In The Fire, which came out on Boxing Day 1980. The first of those albums reached #189 in the US, while the second got to #80. Neither made the UK charts, though, which for me is a real shame as I rate Warren as one of the best singer-songwriters there has ever been, and it is sad to think that it is nearly nineteen years since he was taken from us at the age of just 56.

For today’s next tune I’m playing the one without sleep in its title, though I think you’ll see why I am including it:

I Don’t Want To Miss A Thing was written by Diane Warren for the movie Armageddon, and she originally envisaged that it would be performed by someone like Celine Dion. But as Liv Tyler, the daughter of Aerosmith’s lead singer Steven Tyler, was starring in the movie it seemed a natural choice for the band to record it. The rest, as they say, is history. The song was released in August 1998 and was a massive hit, getting to #1 in the US and many other countries, and to #4 in the UK. It has to date sold more than 5m copies in the US and nearly 2m here in the UK, which is quite some going! It hasn’t ever been on one of the band’s regular albums, but was included on the July 2002 compilation Oh Yeah: Ultimate Aerosmith Hits, which got to #4 in the US and #6 in the UK. It has also featured on subsequent compilations, too.

There doesn’t seem to be a video for this, and I can only find the official audio version of today’s penultimate song, but no matter – it is still a beautiful song even without pictures:

Matchbox Twenty could never be accused of being prolific. Their first three albums were released in 1996, 2000 and 2002, and then there was nothing until they released North in September 2012. Their fans, of whom I’m one, had obviously missed them, as the album got to #1 in the US and #14 in the UK, their highest chart positions in both countries. Sleeping At The Wheel is the album’s closing track and, since there hasn’t been anything new from them since then it may end up being a lovely way for them to end their career. I hope not, and am keeping the faith: they were scheduled to make a large US tour in 2020, which was cancelled due to the pandemic, and has since been rescheduled three times, now due to be happening in 2023. Maybe there will be a new album to accompany it, if it ever happens!

I’m closing today with a song from one of my all time favourite bands, who I think I haven’t played nearly enough here. By way of redressing the balance, I give you:

The Sidewinder Sleeps Tonite was a track on R.E.M’s mega hit album Automatic For The People, which was released in October 1992. It reached #1 in the UK and #2 in the US – maybe a touch surprising that it did better here? In sales terms, it has achieved more than 3.5m in the US and 2.8m here – a phenomenal figure when you consider how much smaller our market is – and has sold over 18m copies worldwide. For me it is still one of the best albums ever made. This song was released as a single in February 1993 and got to #17 here in the UK, though it didn’t make the US chart. Its title and opening chords were borrowed from The Lion Sleeps Tonight, which has been a hit in several guises, and in a nice homage R.E.M. recorded it and made it the B-side to their single – it is a very nice version, and can also be found on their compilation album Complete Rarities: 1988-2011.

That’s all for this week. Hopefully there was something in there for you to enjoy: if you enjoyed them all then you may need to consider how closely our musical tastes align! Having posted three days in a row I’m off to take a break now, and will see you again in a few days. Have a great time, however you spend it 😊