In 1986, British band The Communards teamed up with jazz vocalist Sarah Jane Morris to release a hi-NRG version of the disco-soul classic Don’t Leave Me This Way. While it filled dance floors around the world, it was also embraced by many as a protest anthem during the AIDS crisis, which was devastating queer communities.
The song was originally recorded in 1975 by Harold Melvin & the Blue Notes, featuring the legendary Teddy Pendergrass on lead vocals. A year later, disco star Thelma Houston released her celebrated version. The song was written by Kenneth Gamble, Leon Huff and Cary Gilbert, who were responsible for many major soul and disco hits.
The Communards’ version, featuring Jimmy Somerville’s soaring falsetto alongside Sarah Jane Morris’s powerful contralto vocals, spent four weeks at number one in the UK and finished as the country’s highest-selling single of 1986. In Australia, it reached number two on the charts.
Somerville formed The Communards with friend Richard Coles after leaving Bronski Beat, the group behind hits including Why?, Smalltown Boy and a cover of Donna Summer’s I Feel Love.
While many listeners simply enjoyed the song as a dance-floor favourite, it was also widely interpreted as a response to political inaction surrounding the growing HIV/AIDS crisis. At the time, Margaret Thatcher was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Ronald Reagan was President of the United States.
Released 40 years ago today, the song still packs a punch. Fans seeking an extended dance-floor experience can track down the epic Gotham Mix, which runs for more than 20 minutes.
