1. British Mod … Read Full Bio ↴There are 3 bands under the name of The Small Hours.
1. British Mod band from the late 1970s. The Small Hours played London extensively and following their appearance on the Mods Mayday live album, began touring the country. They frequently sold out venues such as the Marquee, The Music Machine, The Venue and Dingwalls. It has been said by many observers of the time that the Hours were the most authentic-sounding of all the mod acts. They favoured a much tighter Memphis r&b type sound than a lot of their punkier, thrashier contemporaries and the use of a big fat Stax organ live and horns on a few recordings lent a much more soulful sound. They were even invited to play at elitist Northern soul nights-something unheard of for bands at that time whose material would never have satisfied the soul purists. Small Hours did though, including faithful covers of Northern classics such as JJ Jackson’s ‘It’s Alright’, Don Covay’s ‘Mercy Mercy’ and the ironic Javells ‘Goodbye, Nothing To Say’ in their set.
Small Hours built a devoted fan base from mainly east and south London, and their live appearances were packed, roof-raising nights. Their following included the Beermats from Lewisham, the Three Johns, two of whom edited mod fanzines Maximum Speed and Mission Impossible, the Scooter Girls and the Bethnal Green Skins. This was an eclectic bunch, all shuffling their soul shoes to the Small Hours infectious dancehall grooves. In an era which coincided with football hooliganism, rivalry between fans from Millwall, West Ham and Chelsea sometimes erupted in Wild West-style barroom brawls. Occasionally, band members would launch themselves offstage in mid-song, to break up putative fights and defuse ugly moods. As Iain Shedden once said, “Sometimes I feel that our gigs just provide background music for football fans to kick seven colours of shit out of each other...”
When Small Hours were booked on to a national tour by Dexy’s Midnight Runners and then suddenly thrown off, there were rumblings in the music papers as to the real reason. “That was all bollocks…” said Neil Thompson (Small Hours vocalist), “…about Dexy’s refusing to let us wear suits and stuff. Me and Kevin (Rowland, Dexy’s founder member) have known each other since we were fifteen. He just thought our following were too mental and he was trying to get away from all that. And of course he knew that we would have blown them off stage every night”.
At the height of their touring success, Small Hours were offered record deals by EMI, Virgin and Phonogram, but turned them all down for reasons that are unclear. The band eventually signed to Automatic, a small boutique label, and released one four track EP featuring: ‘Midnight To Six’, ‘Business In Town’, ‘The Kid’ and ‘End Of The Night.’ They also recorded a single ‘Can’t Do Without You,’ unreleased until now.
As a unit, Small Hours ended as suddenly as they had begun and have never played or recorded together again. They remain a bit of an enigma and for a band whose recorded output was three tracks on the Mod’s Mayday compilation and one EP they have somehow managed to remain entrenched in the memory of mod, soul and sixties music fans. They are even cited as an influence by current Swedish darlings The Hives.
The former Small Hours are now spread across the globe. Carol Isaacs still plays keyboards and has worked with Squeeze, Sinead O’Connor and the Latin Quarter. She now plays with Indigo Girls and divides her time between LA and London where she is also an illustrator. Kym Bradshaw runs a farm in Shropshire. Armand Thompson is a writer who lives in southern Spain. Neil Thompson is a film/ TV director who still resides near the Hope & Anchor in London. Iain Shedden still bangs the skins for acts such as 13 Frightened Girls and recently toured Australia with the re-formed Saints. He is the music critic on The Australian newspaper and lives in Sydney.
2.Some kids from Sydney specialising in thoughtful, melodic indie rock. Fun, interesting music provoking the mind to dance and the body to take in all surroundings. Expect good things.
3. An indie rock band from Boston circa 1999-2001.
Wonderful World
The Small Hours Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
What a wonderful
What a wonderful world
You chop them down before
You even give them half a chance
You never know you're wrong
Until you see the blood on your hands
You run around like there's nothing wrong
No one about so you please yourself,
Please yourself, please yourself
Never any guilt nothing on your mind, on your mind, on your mind
But what a wonderful world this is
Always fair
Always kind
What a wonderful world
What a wonderful
What a wonderful world
What a wonderful
What a wonderful world
What a wonderful
What a wonderful world
Its a wonderful world
It's a wonderful world
It's a wonderful world (what a wonderful)
It's a wonderful world (what a wonderful)
You run around like there's nothing wrong
Nothing wrong
No one about so you please yourself,
Please yourself, please yourself
Never any guilt nothing on your mind, on your mind, on your mind
But what a wonderful world this is
Always fair, always kind...
The Small Hours's song "Wonderful World" is a commentary on the state of the world and human nature. The lyrics suggest that the world is a beautiful and wonderful place, but people often fail to live up to its potential by being selfish, violent and cruel. The repetitive structure of the song, with the phrase "What a wonderful world" being repeated several times as a kind of refrain, indicates a sense of irony and sarcasm. The tone of the song is somewhat mournful, as if the singer is resigned to the fact that humanity has a lot of flaws, yet still hopeful that people will find a way to improve.
The opening lines of the song suggest that people are quick to judge and destroy things without giving them a fair chance to grow and thrive. The line "You chop them down before you even give them half a chance" could refer to both figurative and literal destruction, as in cutting down trees or destroying relationships. The second half of the song highlights the fact that people often act without consideration for others, giving into their own desires and pleasures with no thought of repercussions. However, even though people are imperfect and the world is far from perfect, the song still hints at the possibility of hope and the potential for the world to be a wonderful place if people could learn to be fair and kind to one another.
Line by Line Meaning
What a wonderful world
The world is beautiful and full of wonder.
What a wonderful
The world is amazing.
You chop them down before
You cut people off before they have a chance to prove themselves.
You even give them half a chance
You don't even let people show what they can do.
You never know you're wrong
You don't realize that you're making a mistake.
Until you see the blood on your hands
You don't see the consequences of your actions until it's too late.
You run around like there's nothing wrong
You act like everything is fine, even when it's not.
Nothing wrong, nothing wrong
You deny that anything is wrong or needs fixing.
No one about so you please yourself,
You only do what makes you happy without considering others.
Please yourself, please yourself
You prioritize your own desires at the expense of others.
Never any guilt nothing on your mind, on your mind, on your mind
You don't feel remorse or regret for your selfish actions.
But what a wonderful world this is
Despite all of this, the world itself is still beautiful.
Always fair
The world is always just and impartial.
Always kind
The world is always generous and compassionate.
Its a wonderful world
The world is full of wonder and awe.
It's a wonderful world (what a wonderful)
The world truly is amazing.
Contributed by Sebastian G. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@AMerzz
This movie is so underrated, honestly one of my faves and still has an impact on me to this day ❤
@aliencat444
I still have a crush on him. After so many years.
@meganm1630
You're not alone.
@cassondralynch6342
I checked him out on twitter (only social besides this I have) and was also impressed with his profile. He seems like a super cool and socially conscious, smart, funny dude. Yum lol.
@ekaterinafurman8083
More than 10 years
@CarolineRoses
Saaaaaaame
@zofishaxxx
This makes me cry each time I listen to it, bringing back painful memories of the movie 💔
@v-wose1050
Makes me cry soo much 😭 this movie really did something to me.. just so painful.
@dariaplutto6108
Вау, прекрасное видео, обожаю этот фильм!
@keceylymbu7353
I love this guy a lot