B-side "This Is Goodbye" Format 7" single Genre Rock | Released August 1965 Recorded July 1965 Length 3:26 | |
"The Sun Ain't Gonna Shine (Anymore)" is a song written by Bob Crewe and Bob Gaudio.
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It was originally released as a single credited to Frankie Valli as a solo artist in 1965 on the Smash label, but was more successful when recorded by The Walker Brothers in 1966. Cher and Keane have also recorded the song.
Frankie Valli
Frankie Valli recorded and released the first version of the song but his single achieved only limited success, charting on Billboards Bubbling Under Hot 100 singles chart but not making the Billboard Hot 100 itself. Although it was recorded in a Four Seasons recording session (with the other band members at that time), it was Valli's first official "solo" single in over a decade.
The Walker Brothers
In 1966, The Walker Brothers released their remake as a single. Retitled "The Sun Ain't Gonna Shine Anymore", this version met with much greater success than Valli's. It topped the UK Singles Chart, and also became their highest rating song on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in the U.S., where it peaked at #13. The single also hit the top 10 in the Netherlands.
In 2010, the Walker Brothers version was used in the promotional trailer for the AMC television series The Walking Dead.
In 2012, the Walker Brothers version played a prominent role in the film Seeking a Friend for the End of the World. It was featured the following year in the film Stoker.
In 2013, the single's B-side "After the Lights Go Out", played over the end-credits of the Canadian-Spanish psychological thriller film Enemy.
Cher version
In the summer of 1996, Cher released her remake as the fourth official European single from her twenty-second album It's a Man's World. The song went to #26 on the UK Singles Chart. Her version was used in The X-Files episode "The Post-Modern Prometheus".
Critical reception
Allmusic called this song "a real highlight" and continued "epic and beautiful, complete with echoes of the Wild West."
UK CD Maxi-Single (WEA 071 CD)
- "The Sun Ain't Gonna Shine (Anymore)" (Trevor Horn Remix)
- "Not Enough Love in the World" (Sam Ward Remix)
- "Paradise Is Here"
Keane
In 2004, the British group Keane recorded a special version of this song. Unlike the original version, Tim Rice-Oxley, pianist and composer of Keane, changed the guitar for piano. He also takes the lead vocals in the second chorus, like the original version. The single was selected in summer 2004 by readers of the NME and first released as a download-only single in September 2004. The song was given for download to the War Child foundation website and one thousand vinyl copies given as a gift to some fans of Keane, who had supported and helped the band. The numbered copies each included a handwritten note from Tim Rice-Oxley, also signed by the other two members, thanking them for their support.
- "The Sun Ain't Gonna Shine Anymore"
- "Your Eyes Open" (Mo Mental Remix)
Other versions
Other notable artists who recorded this song include Jules Shear, Long John Baldry, Clarence Clemons, The Ides of March, The Lettermen (for their 1970 album Reflections), and Robson and Jerome. Alfie Boe and G4 have both released classical versions.
The song also features prominently in the 1991 bittersweet romance film Truly, Madly, Deeply, starring Alan Rickman and Juliet Stevenson, with Nina (Stevenson) playing the main chords in the chorus on the piano and Jamie (Rickman) playing the main riff on the bass strings of his cello, and both of them singing. The singing of the song is a game the couple often played. The choice of this song in particular, given the events in the film, emphasize the poignancy of the lyric especially well.