Tears Are Not Enough
{{Short description|1985 single by Northern Lights}}
{{for|the song by ABC|Tears Are Not Enough (ABC song)}}
{{Infobox song
| name = Tears Are Not Enough
| cover = Tearsarenotenoughsingle.jpg
| alt =
| type = single
| artist = Northern Lights
| album = We Are the World
| B-side = "Tears Are Not Enough" (Instrumental)
| released = MayThe Canadian Encyclopedia 1, 1985
| format =
| recorded = February 10, 1985
| studio = Manta Sound Studios, Toronto
| venue =
| length = {{Duration|m=4|s=28}}
| label = Columbia 7073
| writer = David Foster (music)
Bryan Adams, Jim Vallance (lyrics)
Rachel Paiement (French lyrics)
Paul Hyde and Bob Rock (title)
| producer = David Foster
Jim Vallance (co-producer)
| prev_title =
| prev_year =
| next_title =
| next_year =
}}
"Tears Are Not Enough" is a 1985 charity single recorded by a supergroup of Canadian artists, under the name Northern Lights, to raise funds for relief of the 1983–85 famine in Ethiopia. It was one of a number of such supergroup singles recorded between December 1984 and April 1985, along with Band Aid's "Do They Know It's Christmas?" in the United Kingdom, USA for Africa's "We Are the World" in the United States, "Cantaré, cantarás" by a supergroup of Latin American and Spanish singers, Chanteurs sans Frontières's "Éthiopie" in France, and Fondation Québec-Afrique's "Les Yeux de la faim" in Quebec.
Although recorded independently of the USA for Africa project, it was included on the full-length We Are the World album.
The project was organized by Bruce Allen, who brought together a large group of artists to record a song written by David Foster, Jim Vallance, Bryan Adams, Rachel Paiement, Paul Hyde and Bob Rock. Foster and Vallance wrote the music and initial lyrics, Adams completed the English lyrics, Paiement wrote the one French verse, Rock & Hyde contributed the song title. The song was recorded on February 10, 1985 at Manta Sound studios in Toronto.
Foster revealed the melody of the song was originally offered to filmmaker Joel Schumacher as incidental music for his film St. Elmo's Fire. Schumacher reported hated it but was later, in Foster's words, "really pissed" when it showed up later as a charity single.{{cite web |title=Tears (still) are not enough, 30 years later |url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/tears-still-are-not-enough-30-years-later-1.2949836 |website=CBC.ca |access-date=10 February 2015}}
The song was issued as the album's second and final single by Columbia Records{{cite web |title=Northern Lights - Tears Are Not Enough |url=https://www.discogs.com/Northern-Lights-Tears-Are-Not-Enough/release/594905 |website=Discogs |access-date=25 October 2018}} on May 1, 1985,{{cite web |last1=Mcintosh |first1=Andrew |title=Tears Are Not Enough |url=https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/tears-are-not-enough-emc |website=The Canadian Encyclopedia |access-date=25 October 2018 |language=en |date=February 22, 2016}} and quickly reached number one on the Canadian Top 40 chart. It also finished number one on the year-end Canadian charts for that year. The song's video also received extensive airplay on MuchMusic.
The vocals were recorded at Manta Sound Studios in downtown Toronto on Sunday, February 10, 1985. Gordon Lightfoot drove himself to the recording in a pick-up truck. Neil Young and Joni Mitchell arrived together in a taxi. Mark Holmes of Platinum Blonde arrived in a white stretch limousine.{{cite web |title=JimVallence.com - Tears Are Not Enough |url=http://www.jimvallance.com/01-music-folder/songs-folder-may-27/pg-song-northern-lights.html |website=JimVallence.com |access-date=8 March 2021}}
Bryan Adams performed a live version of "Tears Are Not Enough" on July 13, 1985 during his Live Aid performance in Philadelphia.{{cite web |title=Bryan Adams Setlist at John F. Kennedy Stadium, Philadelphia, PA, USA (July 13, 1985) r |url=https://www.setlist.fm/setlist/bryan-adams/1985/john-f-kennedy-stadium-philadelphia-pa-1bd599e4.html |website=setlist.fm |access-date=14 August 2022}}
On December 22, 1985, CBC Television aired a 90-minute documentary by John Zaritsky on the song and its creation. A CBC reporter, Brian Stewart, had been the first Western journalist to bring the famine in Ethiopia to worldwide attention. The film was a Genie Award nominee for Best Documentary Film at the 7th Genie Awards in 1986.Sid Adilman, "Genie films are coming on strong". Toronto Star, February 14, 1986.
By 1990, the project had raised $3.2 million for famine relief projects in Africa. Ten percent of the funds raised was set aside to assist Canadian food banks.
Performers
=Solo vocalists (in order)=
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- Gordon Lightfoot
- Burton Cummings
- Anne Murray
- Joni Mitchell
- Dan Hill
- Neil Young
- Bryan Adams
- Corey Hart
- Bruce Cockburn
- Geddy Lee (Rush)
- Mike Reno (Loverboy)
}}
=Heard in duos or trios=
- Mike Reno (Loverboy) with Liberty Silver
- Carroll Baker, Ronnie Hawkins, and Murray McLauchlan
- Véronique Béliveau, Robert Charlebois, and Claude Dubois (in French)
- Bryan Adams with Donny Gerrard (Skylark)
- Alfie Zappacosta with Lisa Dal Bello
- Carole Pope (Rough Trade) and Paul Hyde (Payola$)
- Salome Bey, Mark Holmes (Platinum Blonde), and Lorraine Segato (The Parachute Club)
=Chorus members=
Chorus members included:
{{columns-list|colwidth=15em|style=width: 600px; font-style|
- Alan Thicke
- Aldo Nova
- Ainalem Tebeje
- Andy Kim
- Brian Good (The Good Brothers){{cite news |url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/entertainment/who-was-who-in-tears-are-not-enough-1.2950819 |title=Who was who in Tears Are Not Enough |publisher=CBC News|date=February 10, 2015|access-date=March 18, 2021}}
- Bruce Murray
- Catherine McClenahan
- Catherine O'Hara
- Colina Phillips
- Dean McTaggart (The Arrows)
- Eugene Levy
- Frank Mills
- Gordon Deppe (Spoons)
- Graham Shaw
- Ian Thomas
- Jane Siberry
- John Candy
- Kim Mitchell
- Leroy Sibbles
- Liona Boyd
- Marc Jordan
- Martha Johnson
- Oscar Peterson
- Paul Shaffer
- Richard Manuel (The Band)
- Robin Duke
- Sharon Lee Williams
- Sylvia Tyson
- Tom Cochrane (Red Rider)
- Tommy Hunter
- Wayne St. John[https://www.thestar.com/news/gta/2016/06/05/torontos-jingle-king-still-crooning.html "Toronto’s Jingle King still crooning"]. Toronto Star, Christopher Reynolds June 5, 2016
}}
=Instrumentation and production=
{{columns-list|colwidth=20em|}}
- David Foster - Keyboards, Producer
- Jim Vallance - Drums, Engineer, Associate Producer
- Paul Dean (Loverboy) - Guitar
- Steven Denroche - French Horn
- Doug Johnson (Loverboy) - Synthesizer
- David Sinclair (Straight Lines / Body Electric) - Acoustic guitar
- Hayward Parrott - Engineer
- Geoff Turner - Engineer
- Bob Rock (Payola$) - Engineer
- Humberto Gatica - Mixing Engineer
Recording process
Bruce Cockburn could not participate in the Toronto recording session, due to performing in Germany at that time. Producer Jim Vallance flew to Germany to record audio and video of Bruce performing his line in the song, which were eventually edited into the song and music video respectively.https://musiccanada.wordpress.com/2011/05/30/tears-are-not-enough-by-northern-lights/
Joni Mitchell later spoke to writer Iain Blair about the recording experience: "I know it sounds ridiculous, but I was literally starving when we did the session 'cause my yoga teacher had sent me to a psychic dietician who, while rubbing her chin and swinging her arm around in a circle, had diagnosed a lot of food allergies. The result was, predictably, that I was hardly allowed to eat anything, so by the time I arrived with an apple and a rice patty, my poor stomach was making all these strange noises. Then we get in the studio, and the engineer says he can't record 'cause he's picking up some weird rumbling sound coming from my direction. (She laughed.) And it was all pretty ironic, considering the subject matter!"Chicago Tribune, May 1, 1985.
At one point during the recording process, Foster also had Neil Young re-record his line after singing the word "innocence" flat, to which Young famously quipped, "That's my sound, man."Kevin Chong, [https://www.straight.com/article/neil-young-saved-my-life Neil Young Saved My Life], Georgia Straight, October 13, 2005.
Artists not appearing
- Buffy Sainte-Marie - According to journalist Terry David Mulligan, Sainte-Marie was supposed to be part of the project but did not show up to recording sessions. As a result, the term "Buffy bailed" became an expression in certain Canadian music circles.[https://www.torontomike.com/2022/02/terry-david-mulligan-toronto-miked-podcast-episode-992/Terry David Mulligan: Toronto Mike'd Podcast Episode 992], February 1, 2022.
- Leonard Cohen - Because Cohen performed the day before the recording session in Copenhagen, Denmark, he would have been unable to appear on the recording.[https://www.setlist.fm/setlist/leonard-cohen/1985/falkoner-teatret-copenhagen-denmark-1bc5c918.html/Feb 9, 1985 - Leonard Cohen at Falkoner Teatret, Copenhagen, Denmark], Setlist.fm - October 14, 2021
- Rik Emmett - The Triumph (band) frontman was on tour in the United States at the time "Tears Are Not Enough" was recorded. Triumph played a show at the Beaumont Civic Center in Beaumont, Texas that day. Emmett says he was invited and would have loved to be part of the recording but scheduling wouldn't allow and recording verses remotely wasn't an option.[https://www.setlist.fm/setlist/triumph/1985/beaumont-civic-center-beaumont-tx-23c4703b.htmlFeb 10, 1985 - Triumph at Beaumont Civic Center, Beaumont, Texas], Setlist.fm - Date added November 14, 2014[https://www.torontomike.com/2023/12/rik-emmett-toronto-miked-podcast-episode-1396/Rik Emmett: Toronto Mike'd Podcast Episode 1396], December 21, 2023.
- Randy Bachman - On the Toronto Mike'd podcast, Bachman revealed he was never asked to appear on the recording.[https://www.torontomike.com/2023/10/randy-bachman-toronto-miked-podcast-episode-1340/Randy Bachman: Toronto Mike'd Podcast Episode 1340], October 8, 2023.
- Stompin' Tom Connors - The recording of "Tears Are Not Enough" overlapped with Connors' self-imposed retirement, a move meant to protest the lack of support given to Canadian stories by the policies of the Federal government. Therefore, Connors was unable to attend the sessions.
Video
The song's video opens with footage from Brian Stewart's original CBC News report on the famine, and then cuts to the performers singing the song in a studio. Near the end of the video, footage also appears from the 1985 NHL All-Star Game in Calgary, depicting the Campbell Conference All-Stars and the Wales Conference All-Stars — including Wayne Gretzky, Grant Fuhr, Jari Kurri and Miroslav Frycer — singing along as the audience waves flags and banners in the air.{{cite web |last1=Proteau |first1=Adam |title=The story behind famous Canadian music video "Tears Are Not Enough" featuring NHL players – including Wayne Gretzky and a more-than-just-happy-to-be-there Mike Bossy |url=https://thehockeynews.com/news/article/the-story-behind-famous-canadian-music-video-tears-are-not-enough-featuring-nhl-players-including-wayne-gretzky-and-a-more-than-just-happy-to-be-there-mike-bossy |website=thehockeynews.com |publisher=The Hockey News |access-date=4 May 2020 |language=en-CA |date=17 December 2013}}
2022 live version
A live version of "Tears Are Not Enough" was performed at the Canadian Songwriters Hall of Fame gala in Toronto on September 24, 2022. The rendition included many original Northern Lights members including soloists Hart, Hill, and Cockburn plus new Canadian talent such as Alessia Cara and Charlotte Cardin.{{cite web |last1=Friend |first1=David |title=Alanis Morissette, Bryan Adams join Canadian Songwriters Hall of Fame |url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/entertainment/alanis-morissette-bryan-adams-songwriters-hall-of-fame-1.6595804 |website=CBC.ca |publisher=The Canadian Press |access-date=26 September 2022 |language=en-CA |date=25 September 2022}}
See also
References
{{reflist}}
External links
- [http://www.olografix.org/krees/dfnet/html/readinterviews.php?ID=58 Interview with Songwriter Jim Vallance on "Tears Are Not Enough"]
- [https://web.archive.org/web/20060104185726/http://www.jimvallance.com/01-music-folder/songs-folder-may-27/pg-song-northern-lights.html Many photos of the performers as well as the song lyrics]
- [https://www.torontomike.com/2021/03/toronto-miked-podcast-episode-814-tears-are-not-enough/ Tears Are Not Enough deep dive on Toronto Mike'd]
- [https://vancouversignaturesounds.com/hits/tears-are-not-enough-by-northern-lights/ Vancouver Pop Music / Signature Sounds - "Tears Are Not Enough" by Northern Lights]
Category:Song recordings produced by David Foster
Category:Songs written by David Foster
Category:Songs written by Jim Vallance
Category:Songs written by Bryan Adams
Category:RPM Top Singles number-one singles
Category:Columbia Records singles
Category:Songs written by Bob Rock