As a way of giving thanks to all the frontline workers battling against Covid 19 in often difficult circumstances Wayne Hussey from the Mission has put together an all-star cast to record new versions of The Missions Tower Of Strength, the guest list has members of The Cure, Siouxsie & The Banshees, Slowdive, Bauhaus / Love and Rockets, The Smiths, The Twilight Sad, Depeche Mode, The Cult, The Wonder Stuff, Gary Numan, Evi Vine, Midge Ure (Ultravox), Spear of Destiny / Theatre Of Hate, Beauty In Chaos, The Soft Cavalry, All About Eve, Guns N' Roses, Nine Inch Nails and Gene Loves Jezebel and yes this is the first time both Aston Twins have appeared on a record together in a very long time indeed.
The first of the three versions of TOS2020 (Tower Of Strength) on the single is the Radio Edit, that opens sounding like Simple Minds in the mid-80's but with some cool swirling goth sounds but builds into being much more typical Mission style goth pop and it's as full a sound as you could wish for as well as being a fine tribute to all the care workers and hospital staff as apparently some NHS workers had started using the original version as an anthem anyway.
The second version is the single version of TOS2020 (Tower Of Strength) that feels a bit more stripped back at the beginning but no less magnificently towering re-working of the original song. It also has a great guitar solo bit that really pops out as we all give thanks to everyone on the frontlines helping out during the current pandemic. Make sure to go and watch the video that goes with this version.
The Third version of TOS2020 (Tower Of Strength) is the Beholden To The Frontline Workers Of The World Mix and it's almost 10 minutes long and a wonderful dancefloor goth smash version that will be perfect to change lightbulbs too if we are ever allowed to go dancing again. Yes you can try to pick out who is singing what. But this is a really cool a song and a great tribute to everyone who went that extra mile. I know how worrying a time it has been for many of us and what it was like to wait for my girlfriend to come back from shifts working in the intensive care unit.
Here is Wayne Hussey's statement about this record. "From Wayne Hussey (Sao Paulo, Brazil, 28th August 2020): "When Covid-19 hit I started receiving messages asking 'why don't you re-issue Tower Of Strength for the front line workers?' The song had apparently been adopted as an anthem by some NHS workers, and it got me thinking that I would like to contribute something to the greater cause at this unprecedented time and the only thing I could really contribute is music. So in conjunction with my good friend Michael Ciravolo, I came up with the idea of recording a new version of Tower Of Strength for charity by enlisting the help of musician friends and acquaintances. Tower Of Strength was first released by The Mission as single in 1988 and then again in 1994. It charted twice in the UK top 40 and has proved to be probably our biggest song and the one we generally close our shows with. It is anthemic. I wondered if recording a more well known song might have a greater reach but neither Michael or I could come up with any suggestions that seemed to fit lyrically without getting too corny. So Tower Of Strength it was then."
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Wayne continues: "Now pre-orders for TOS2020 and ReMission International have started I wanted to give a quick update because we've been completely blown away by the response, with orders worth over £40k to date. That is incredible and I want to thank everyone for their support especially as it's a hard time financially for people. Please keep it going. Spread the word, share, tweet, post it everywhere to tell others about it. Shout it from the rooftops and tell your friends, tell everyone. The digital bundle contains 5 awesome tracks for just £2.99, it all helps those that need it most and the proceeds will be divided and distributed equally among all the beneficiaries. Thank you."
The single is raising money for the following charities NHS UK
St. Jude's Children's Hospital, Memphis
Music Venue Trust UK
Covenant House, New Orleans
Disasters Emergency Committee
MusiCares
Plan International
Direct Relief
Alzheimer's Scotland
Liberty Hill Foundation
The Shrewsbury Ark
Memorial Sloan Kettering Center, NYC
Prostate Cancer UK
The Teddy Bear Clinic
Red Rover
Help Musicians UK
Crew Nation
Venice Family Clinic
The Anthony Walker Foundation
Projeto Cao Communitario
The City Of San Francisco Covid-19 Fund
Find out more at https://themissionukband.com/ https://remissioninternational.lnk.to/tos2020 https://www.beautyinchaosmusic.com/tos2020
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