Tears for Fears “The Working Hour” released on Songs from the Big Chair

The Working Hour Tears for Fears

Writer(s): Roland Orzabal, Ian Stanley, Manny Elias (see lyrics here) Released: February 17, 1985 (album cut) Peak: 1 DF (Click for codes to singles charts.) Sales (in millions): -- Airplay/Streaming (in millions): -- radio, 4.88 video, -- streaming

Awards: Click on award for more details.

About the Song: The entry point to an album is typically a hit single, maybe even more than one. A successful song or two, however, isn’t enough to make an album a classic – at least for me. An album crosses over into that rarefied territorty only when it goes beyond the popular songs, when album cuts start achieving must-listen status in the same ballpark as the familiar songs. Tears for Fears’ 1985 Songs from the Big Chair falls into that category for exactly that reason. The album could have broached classic status just on the basis os singles alone. “Everybody Wants to Rule the World” and “Shout” were #1 hits in the U.S. “Head Over Heels” reached #3. “Mother’s Talk” was a top-40 hit in the US and got to #14 in the UK. “I Believe” was also a hit in the UK, getting to #23, and giving the Chair album a whopping five successful singles. On top of all that, though, the album also featured “The Working Hour.” This was the cut which immediately caught my attention the first time I heard the album. The song starts off with a very ethereal sound punctuated by a saxophone. Ozabal said the “main saxophone riff is extremely important and powerful – it’s got that sort of ‘crying’ quality to it.” SF Drums and keyboards kick in at about 45 seconds as the song continues to build. Roland Orzabal doesn’t come in with vocals until about the two-minute mark. He quickly offers the inciteful observation that “we are paid by those who learn by our mistakes” in a song that he said grew out of his frustration with people telling him what to do. SF Orzabal and bandmate Curt Smith both said this is their favorite cut from the album. They even considered calling the album The Working Hour, but used Songs from the Big Chair, named for the B-side of “Shout,” a song called “The Big Chair.” SF Resources: DMDB Encyclopedia entry for Tears for Fears SF Songfacts Related Links: First posted 8/5/2022.