Bauhaus‘ Peter Murphy and Boy George have joined forces on an enchanting new single ‘Let The Flowers Grow’.
Produced and co-written by Killing Joke‘s Youth, the duet – a grand orchestral pop piece – sees the two musicians sing “I’ve been changing / and mama don’t know / let her tears fall / and make the flowers grow,” serving as a message of hope and tolerance.
According to a press release, ‘Let The Flowers Grow’ was originally written by the Culture Club frontman with its initial message being “one of personal acceptance about being gay.” As the song developed, it “took on a more expansive and universal scope with its lyrics extending beyond sexuality and embracing race, gender, creed and religion.”
Speaking about the creation of the track, Murphy said: “I was recording my new album in Spain with Youth and, while listening to a playback of a song, I heard another piece of music coming from his mobile phone. It caught my ear for its melodic beauty as well as a Roy Orbison-like voice that was singing it.”
After learning that the song was actually an unfinished demo written by Boy George, Murphy asked Youth if he could work on the partial song. “In a matter of 20 minutes, we had ‘Flowers…’ finished,” he said.
“When I heard the mix, I was satiated in every way,” Boy George added. “I have
always loved Pete’s voice and his writing on this adds a beautiful darkness. The production feels very epic, like Scott Walker.”
He continued: “With everything going on in the world about identity, it feels very powerful. It makes me dizzy and proud.” Murphy also opened up about the duet being out in the world and said: “Boy George loves it and I’m so glad.”
The collaboration is a one-off single. Murphy’s last full-length release was 2014’s ‘Lion’. Boy George recently released a single with Ariana DeBose and Nile Rodgers titled ‘Electric Energy’ for the Argylle soundtrack.
In other news, Culture Club are set to embark on a tour across the UK and Ireland in celebration of their first two studio albums next month. Visit here to purchase tickets.
