"Cruel Summer" was not an immediate international success when it was released. Although it hit #8 on the UK Chart, its international popularity soared after its inclusion in the 1984 feature film The Karate Kid; this was a year after the song's original release (the song was released in 1984 in the US). The group did not allow the song to be included in the film's soundtrack, but regardless it was their first top ten hit (#9) in the USA. When Bananarama were still struggling to make money in their early years, they even performed the song at a beauty contest in Hawaii.
The song has since been revived in various forms. It appeared in several television commercials, and was covered by other acts, such as Ace of Base, who scored an international hit with it (their version even reached gold in the US), and Blestenation on the Blue Crush soundtrack. In 2003, Swedish electronica female artist Sophie Rimheden sampled the beat and bassline from the song on the track "In Your Mind" of the album HiFi. In 2011, Athens, Ohio-based rock band Downplay covered the song on their album "Beyond the Machine."
Since its success, the group have recorded another three versions of the song. "Cruel Summer '89" was recorded with new member Jacquie O'Sullivan in 1989, and given a new jack swing make-over. It reached number nineteen in the UK singles chart in June. This version was not included on any Bananarama album until 2005's Really Saying Something: The Platinum Collection.
Another version of the song was recorded and featured on their 2001 album Exotica. This version featured Latin instrumentation and additional lyrics, but it was not released as a single. In 2009 they released another updated version as a B-side to their single "Love Comes". The song was also featured as the theme tune to the first series of Trouble's reality show of the same name, where a group of young adults were sent off to a holiday camp, only to be tortured and humiliated in an attempt to win a large sum of money.
The music video was shot in New York City in June 1983 and features a take on the American TV show The Dukes of Hazzard, with a bumbling cop duo who chase the girls as they make their escape in a truck (at one point, Bananarama members throw bananas at a trailing police cruiser). "[It] was just an excuse to get us to the fabled city of New York for the first time," says Siobhan Fahey. She recalls the shoot as a difficult experience. "It was August, over one hundred degrees. Our HQ was a tavern under the Brooklyn Bridge, which had a ladies' room with a chipped mirror where we had to do our makeup."
After an exhausting morning, the band returned to the tavern for lunch. They made the acquaintance of some of the local dockworkers, who upon learning of their situation shared vials of cocaine with them. "That was our lunch" said Fahey, who had never tried the drug before. "When you watch that video, we look really tired and miserable in the scenes we shot before lunch, and then the after-lunch shots are all euphoric and manic."
The music video for the 1989 remix was a compilation of different shots from Bananarama's earlier videoclips. Notably missing are clips from the original 1983 video. Fahey is only featured in a pair of frames. Bananarama were unable to record a proper video for the song due to being in the middle of a world tour at the time of release.
Cruel Summer
Bananarama Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Trying to smile but the air is so heavy and dry
Strange voices are saying
(What did they say)
Things I can't understand
It's too close for comfort
This heat has got right out of hand
It's a cruel, (cruel), cruel summer
Leaving me here on my own
It's a cruel, (it's a cruel), cruel summer
Now you're gone
The city is crowded my friends are away and I'm on my own
It's too hot to handle so I got to get up and go
It's a cruel, (cruel), cruel summer
Leaving me here on my own
It's a cruel, (it's a cruel), cruel summer
Now you're gone
You're not the only one
It's a cruel, (cruel), cruel summer
(Leaving me), leaving me here on my own
It's a cruel, (it's a cruel), cruel summer
Now you're gone
It's a cruel, cruel summer
Leaving me here on my own
It's a cruel, cruel summer
Now you're gone
You're not the only one
It's a cruel, (cruel), cruel summer
(Leaving me) leaving me here on my own
It's a cruel, (it's a cruel), cruel summer
Now you're gone
You're not the only one
It's a cruel, (cruel), cruel summer
(Leaving me), leaving me here on my own
It's a cruel, (it's a cruel), cruel summer
Now you're gone
The song "Cruel Summer" by Bananarama is a reflection of the emotional turmoil that comes with being alone during a hot summer. The opening lines “Hot summer streets and the pavements are burning, I sit around, trying to smile but the air is so heavy and dry” set the mood of the song immediately, highlighting the intensity of the summer heat and its effect on the singer's mental state. The lyricist also introduces a hint of mystery, with “Strange voices are saying, things I can't understand, it's too close for comfort, this heat has got right out of hand." The voices represent the anxieties and fears that the singer is experiencing, manifesting as a result of being alone and in a difficult situation, as if they are haunting her.
The chorus line "It’s a cruel, cruel summer, leaving me here on my own" is the central theme of the song. The upbeat melody, combined with the melancholic lyrics, perfectly captures the feeling of loneliness, isolation, and despair caused by the intense heat of the summer. The lyrics "Leaving me here on my own, now you're gone" suggests the singer is missing someone who was with her before and who isn't there now. The second verse reinforces the idea that the singer is alone, without friends or family to turn to. The phrase "It's too hot to handle, so I gotta get up and go" highlights the frustration and desperation of the situation.
Line by Line Meaning
Hot summer streets and the pavements are burning, I sit around Trying to smile but the air is so heavy and dry
The summer days are unbearable with the streets on fire and the heat making it difficult to even smile.
Strange voices are saying (What did they say) Things I can't understand It's too close for comfort This heat has got right out of hand
Unfamiliar voices and things are troubling her, and the heat is making it intolerable.
It's a cruel, (cruel), cruel summer Leaving me here on my own It's a cruel, (it's a cruel), cruel summer Now you're gone
The summer is cruel, leaving her alone because the person who she cared about is no longer there.
The city is crowded my friends are away and I'm on my own It's too hot to handle so I got to get up and go
The city is packed, but she is alone and barely managing to cope because of the unbearable heat.
It's a cruel, (cruel), cruel summer Leaving me here on my own It's a cruel, (it's a cruel), cruel summer Now you're gone You're not the only one
She is abandoned in the summer heat and feeling sorry for herself. But, she acknowledges that she is not the only one dealing with this.
It's a cruel, cruel summer Leaving me here on my own It's a cruel, cruel summer Now you're gone You're not the only one
She concludes that the cruel summer is isolating her, not just by making her miss someone but by keeping her away from everything else.
Lyrics © O/B/O DistroKid, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Downtown Music Publishing, Peermusic Publishing, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Keren Woodward, Tony Swain, Steven Jolley, Sara Dallin, Siobhan Maire Deirdre Fahey
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@xxlilly_playsxxkiz9980
1980 people: The future will be awesome!
2020 people: I want to go back to the 80s.
@kandykissesco
Lmaoo so true 😆 80’s kid here 🙋🏻♀️
@JFinns
2000s: the iPod is so cool
1980s: we already had the Walkman
@JaspheA21
true
@romimashups8260
Definitely.
@idesireit31
I was 2 , but yes take me back to the 80s 😟
@heliopereirabarreto1017
This song makes you want to walk around the city on a Sunday afternoon, just enjoying the heat, the city and your own company.
@muffs55mercury61
But don't throw bananas at cop cars,,,,LOL. My little brother when he was 7 tossed a water balloon at one,,,,LOL.
@LordCommandor
For real. I'm in a 80s mood tonight about to listen to west end girls..... Pet shop boys..
@hasonmorris4968
With headphones on