Soul legend Al Green has turned his attention to college rock favorites REM, sharing a cover of Georgia's 1993 single 'Everybody Hurts'.
Released on Tuesday (November 19), Green's cover of the song sees the veteran singer reimagine the original in his trademark soulful style, backing up the delivery of the hopeful lyrics with a full band, including strings and backing vocals.
Explore
Check out the latest videos, charts and news
Check out the latest videos, charts and news
“Recording 'Everybody Hurts,' I could really feel the weight of the song and wanted to bring some hope and light to it,” Green wrote on social media. “There is always a presence of light that can overcome these moments of darkness.”
Originally released on the 1992 album Automatic for people“Everybody Hurts” was released as the album's second single and became the most successful. While the album itself reached No. 2 of Bulletin board 200, “Everybody Hurts” reached No. 29 on the Hot 100 and reached No. 13 on the Pop Airplay charts.
It has since been used by a number of charities, including the Samaritans in the UK, and the Helping Haiti fund and the Disasters Emergency Committee, who organized a cover edition to help support the 2010 Haiti earthquake disaster. The cover featured contributions from Mariah Carey, Miley Cyrus, Rod Stewart, Jon Bon Jovi, Kylie Minogue and many more, eventually reaching No. 21 of the Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles chart.
In February 2019, the song became embroiled in a bit of controversy when President Donald Trump shared excerpts from his State of the Union address in front of a montage of congressional Democrats looking disappointed. REM later protested the use of the song, citing the title of their 1988 track “World Leader Pretend” in their response, and eventually convinced Twitter to remove Trump's original clip.
The cover of “Everybody Hurts” is Green's first single since last year's cover of Lou Reed's “Perfect Day,” which in turn followed his first new music in a decade with his 2018 cover of ” Before the Next Teardrop Falls” by Freddy Fender. . Green's final studio album, Lay it downwas released in 2008 and reached no. 9 of Bulletin board 200.
